Rog T's Food Blog #5 - Why I hate Deliveroo (* Other delivery services are also hated)

 The reason I write this blog is because of my love of food. I'm not snobby about food, I prefer the burgers at Burger King to most of the 'posh' chains. My idea of heaven is lunch in the Pie and Mash shop. Having said that, I also love top quailty restaurants, who serve food that is creatively prepared and have a wow factor. Another key ingredient is that the ambience should be comfortable and non intrusive. I hate loud restaurants were noise echoes around and you can't hear what your companions are saying. I also love cooking at home, experimenting and finding new tastes.

You may think I'd have been delighted with the rise of Deliveroo and all of the other delivery services. What could be better than eating delicious, restaurant prepared food in the comfort of your own front room? Well, in my book, everything. Firstly, the idea of delicious food turning up in plastic conatiners repulses me. The second is that it is invariably slightly cold and soggy. When it comes from a kitchen, to your table, it takes about 20 seconds. When it has to be slung in a plastic container, transported on a bike to your house, the decanted onto a plate, it is about 20 minutes. If you got tepid, soggy food in a restaurant, you'd send it back. When it comes from a delivery service you just scoff it down and ignore the fact that it is mildly revolting. 

There are some foods that seem to just about cope with being delivered. Pizza's seem to work. Fish and Chips as well. But when it comes to decent restaurant food, for me, the slopification of the food is something beyond my comprehension. Even things such as McDonalds get ruined, as the chips become soggy, as does the bun. In some cuisines, some dishes survive contact with the plastic box. In Indian food, curries and rice just about manage, but most grilled meats, starters etc go soggy, The same with Chinese food. 

Then there is the effect these delivery services have on the restaurants they procure food from. I find the hordes of delivery drivers constantly coming in and out highly irritating if I am eating and it also irks me when my dinner is late and a stream of deliveries are going out. I get why restaurants feel they need to top up their turnover with deliveries, but when it detracts from the core business, I feel it is a bad move. The reason we pay silly amounts of money for food at nice restaurants, is because it makes us feel a bit special. When it comes out of plastic containers, it is anything but, and it gets us out of the habit of eating out. As a business owner, I am always wary of making moves that make our business cannabalise itself. When the dodgy plastic containers go out of the door, so does all of the profit on drinks and the notion that the restaurant is special. 

Just my point of view, biut if you want slop from a plastic container, just buy a microwave meal from M&S or Tesco's and save yourself a fortune.