Testing Out Delivery.com
![Green beans with pork in a tamarind sauce (back) and fried fish with a jumble of salted beans, ground chicken and shallots from Chez Sovan via way of Delivery.com.](https://www.foodgal.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/FishLede.jpg)
Green beans with pork in a tamarind sauce (back) and fried fish with a jumble of salted beans, ground chicken and shallots from Chez Sovan via way of Delivery.com.
These days, why bother driving to a store or restaurant, when you can get someone else to bring whatever you need right to your doorstep instead?
That’s the idea behind so many apps and Web sites now, including the new Delivery.com, now operating in more than 38 cities around the country.
It allows you to order provisions from markets, wine and spirits stores, and restaurants, as well as services from laundry and dry-cleaning shops.
I was asked to test it out with a $50 gift card. Because only restaurants are offered right now in my area of the South Bay, I decided to spend it all on a food delivery order from one of my favorite family-owned restaurants, Chez Sovan in Campbell. It’s one of the few Cambodian restaurants in the Bay Area, and its food is crave-a-licious.
The site is easy enough to navigate. Once you pick your restaurant, click on it to get a menu. Then, just click on each dish you want.
I chose: “Signature Salad with Shrimp” (with vermicelli noodles, shredded cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, and peanuts; $9.95), “Trey Chhean Chourn” (deep-fried fish fillets topped with salted beans, ground chicken, ginger, shallots, vinegar and cilantro; $11.95), “Kuy Tiew Cha” (tamarind-glazed noodles with pork, bean sprouts and peanuts; $11.95), and “Green Beans with Chicken” ($11.95).
Because I’d eaten these dishes at the actual restaurant many times, I was curious to see if they would hold up in transit to my house, about a 20-minute drive away in light traffic conditions.
I ordered the food the day before, setting it to arrive the next day at 6:30 p.m.
It arrived all right, though 30 minutes early. That’s better than 30 minutes late. But it also serves as a warning that if you want to order dinner to arrive shortly after you leave work, you may need to adjust the time because it may arrive before you actually get home.
The food arrived in take-out containers in great condition, still hot. What’s more, the dressing was packed in a separate container from the salad so that it didn’t get soggy, as was the topping for the fish, so that the fillets stayed crisp until ready to eat. I made my own steamed rice, and sat down to dinner in a flash.
![Tamarind noodles (back) and a vibrant salad of shrimp, cabbage, noodles and peanuts -- all delivered right to my door.](https://www.foodgal.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/ShrimpSalad.jpg)
Tamarind noodles (back) and a vibrant salad of shrimp, cabbage, noodles and peanuts — all delivered right to my door.
Another nice feature is that the tip is already included in your order paid online with a credit card. So that means you’re not left fumbling at the front-door with your wallet when your delivery person rings the bell.
Of course, all this convenience comes at a cost.
My food costs alone were $48.50.
Then, there was the delivery fee: $6.99.
And the “convenience fee”: $2.64.
And the “required tip”: $8.56
My total bill was: $75.15. So, I paid $25.15 out of pocket after using the $50 credit I had been given.
So all in all, having the food delivered to my door added an additional $9.63 over just driving to the restaurant to dine there or to pick up the food, myself. Though, some may argue the added cost is even more than that since many people don’t tip on take-out orders.
Is it worth all those additional bucks? I think the answer will vary by person, circumstance and restaurant.
For instance, my frugal husband said he’d rather just drive to get the food, himself. Another restaurant on my delivery list is an easy two-block walk from my house, so there’s no way I would ever justify spending nearly $7 to get food delivered from there. But what if you’re feeling under the weather or the weather, itself, is miserable, and you are craving comfort food that’s miles from your house? Then, Delivery.com might be just the ticket.
I think that’s what always stopped me from ordering from restaurant delivery services – all of the associated fees. That one seems to be the worst I have ever seen. Seriously – a “convenience fee” on TOP of a delivery fee? I wouldn’t pay that in a million years. Of course delivery is convenient – that’s a given. Do they think people don’t notice extra fees? I’m with your husband. I would rather just pick up the food. Or, better yet, go to the restaurant and have the night out.
There are soooo many of these delivery apps now. Americans are so lazy. I hate Americans. LOL (just kidding!) But seriously, the cheap guy in me will hardly use these apps. But there were a few nights when I came home from work and was so tired and a nice dinner from a restaurant sounded good. I think I would have paid for the delivery and tip. But it turned out with the app I tried the delivery would take too long since it was “peak time.” So that’s another thing to consider. How often would you plan to be lazy? 😉
Oh my gosh. “Crave-worthy” indeed! I haven’t been down there in ages, but now am drooling over the thought of their Amok. The things you ordered all look delicious too, Carolyn. Will add them to our “must try” list for next time — which, thanks to this post, I hope will be very soon!
I hardly order room service let alone delivery! But, if you’re desperate this is an option. 🙂