Uber Eats has started piloting ‘dine-in’ as an option when ordering food on the app, alongside delivery and pick-up.
The platform, known for providing a take-away delivery service which encourages diners to eat restaurant food at home, is now turning the tables by offering a choice to dine in at some of the restaurants on its books.
Launched in the US in November, the feature allows customers to pre-order and pay for their dishes before arriving at the restaurants to eat them. The best part is that the app doesn’t charge you a service fee, but it does allow you to tip the wait staff if you've had a positive experience.
Restaurant guests can choose dine-in instead of the usual pick-up or delivery options
Food giants such as McDonald’s, Starbucks and Taco Bell already run a similar service on their apps, which help to streamline the service for both restaurants and diners. It also allows guests to experience the restaurant itself and enjoy meals in person, helping restaurants to stay afloat in what is a struggling time for the industry.
TechCrunch reported that the pilot is said to boost the tech company’s transportation app, Uber, by upselling driving diners to and from restaurants, as confirmed in May 2019 by Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi who said: “We are very, very early in the stages of exploring the many, many ways in which our Ride business can help continue to build our Eats business.”
Uber to upsell the ride app to dine-in customers on Uber Eats
Uber Eats currently only offers the option in San Diego, Austin, Dallas, and Tucson and describes the service in the FAQ section of their site as: “A Dine-in order is when you place an order through the Eats app and you go to the restaurant to collect it. You can then choose to sit in the restaurant to eat your food.”
The app goes on to say that customers will be notified of the restaurant’s distance, rating, price and preparation time of the meal, giving the estimated time when the meal will be ready.
The new feature allows you to order and pay ahead
The development is currently only running in the USA at the moment, and Uber Eats hasn't announced any plans to roll out the feature internationally. In the past though, the company has used the US as a testing ground before rolling out new features, so let’s hope it’s successful and comes to our shores eventually.
If all this USA talk has got you craving some American cuisine, have a look at our best North American restaurants.