Toronto restaurateurs are fed up with Uber Eats

Photo courtesy of Il Fornello Restaurants.

🕒 7 min read

Last week, a call to boycott Uber Eats on Wednesdays was led by restaurateurs including Il Fornello president Ian Sorbie and partners Stacey Patterson and Sean Fleming, and Nick Di Dinato, president & CEO of Liberty Entertainment Group. 

The impetus: a campaign to order takeout mid-week. The initiative, which came under fire recently, may have resulted in increased delivery orders on the day in question, but with UberEats high commission rates, it still leaves restaurants – even the aforementioned ones with multiple locations – unable to cover costs.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants had to contend with razor thin margins. Now with dining rooms shuttered and businesses either currently open solely for takeout and/or delivery or working towards reopening, the majority are just barely hanging on.

Which is why food delivery platforms - Uber Eats in particular - have been making headlines of late. A rising backlash from both restaurateurs and customers is causing many to quit or delete the app altogether.

Bye, bye, bye

On April 24 and 25, a system outage left customers stranded without food, and restaurateurs scrambling to try and get orders out, without delivery people, on Friday and Saturday - two of the busiest days/nights of the week.

One of the many businesses affected was Craig’s Cookies, Owner Craig Pike posted across social media the following Tuesday that he’d already made the switch to competitor DoorDash after losing “nearly $6000 in sales over two locations.” He praised the platform for “helping us out with 0% commissions and 100% of tips will go directly to our staff.” 

Three weeks ago popular Italian haunt Sugo joined the delivery app. On Tuesday April 28, in a since-deleted post on Instagram, they stated they too, abandoned the app: “We can no longer in good conscience stay open on uber.” They have since implemented online ordering for pickup directly from their website.

It’s complicated

This is not the first time UberEats has caused outrage with restaurant owners or customers. Backlash against the app has been going on for years, for everything from issues with delivery to outrage for its high commission fees.

So why are they still popular? It’s complicated.

For one, many customers don’t realize or comprehend the high costs restaurants pay to be on the app. Uber Eats currently charges the highest fees to restaurants:

Uber Eats  30%
Skip the Dishes 20%
DoorDash 10% 

Skip The Dishes - and up until Monday, Foodora (After five years, they ceased operations May 11) - is second highest. They are currently providing commission rebates to “local and independent restaurants.” DoorDash, the least expensive option for restaurants, is also offering merchants financial assistance during COVID-19. New entrants to the landscape include Tock To Go, CMEOW (Chanmao Inc.), and latest addition Catch22 Delivery.

Secondly, due to social distancing requirements during the global crisis, restaurants are relying solely on takeout and delivery orders right now, and likely, for weeks and months to come. Since businesses need as many eyes on their menus as possible and UberEats is a large platform, they’re caught in a Catch-22. 

Thus, Il Fornello boycotted the app last week to inform customers of the percentage they take, while this week they ask diners to make their own choice. Restaurateur Leemo Han (Hanmoto, Pinky’s Ca Phe, Seoul Shakers) didn’t abandon the app entirely either. While Seoul Shakers’ Instagram on Tuesday April 28 reads: “OK! With Uber Eats being so unreliable and ridiculous, we’ve decided to take matters into our own hands for the time being! We will be personally delivering to your homes and taking pre-orders via email and interac e-transfer!”, the restaurant is still using the delivery service in conjunction with their own. A message also posted on April 28 reads: “Yes, we will still be available on Uber Eats for the time being but we’re just making sure we got you covered in case it goes down again!” 

Call to arms

Asking customers not to use the app on a single day might have seemed hypocritical pre-COVID-19, but it simply proves that the survival of restaurants, bars, cafes, and other foodservice businesses rests on to-go food and drink orders. It’s all they’ve got right now, and for the foreseeable future.

The ideal would be for diners to delete delivery apps altogether, but this too, comes with challenges: Not all businesses want to or can hire their own drivers, and not every customer is able or willing to pick up their orders in person.

As reported earlier, the best way to support restaurants right now is to order from them directly, and if you can, pick up your order in person. As stated on 416 Snack Bar’s website: “also, for delivery using uber eats…although they take a fat chunk of what we charge and that sucks - go for a walk SAFELY if you can, and come get your food from us!” Placing your order directly also assists small businesses that aren’t on the apps in the first place.

Action Plan

You make a difference with the actions you take, so choose wisely.

1.   Support restaurants, bars, cafes and other foodservice businesses by ordering takeout and delivery when you can.
2.   Vary the days you order so places aren’t busy or overloaded only on certain days.
3.   Contact them directly to find out the best way to place your order.
4.   If you’re able, choose contactless curbside pickup.
5.   Post pics of your order on social media and include hashtags #TAKEOUTORONTO #DELIVERYTORONTO.
6.   Take part in the Toronto Restaurants Takeout/Delivery Challenge.