into the home delivery space might have been
expected to incur very significant time and
money investment – but with this latest move,
the company isn’t even having to put together
its own vehicle fleet and delivery staff. That’s
because it’s instead partnered with three existing
delivery companies – Caviar, GrubHub and Uber
Eats – to fulfill this service through its app.
As explained in OpenTable’s press release for
the new service, diners using the company’s
app can now see a ‘Get it delivered’ button or
carousel when searching for restaurants or
visiting the profile page of any of thousands of
such establishments represented on the app.
The service is already available across some 90
cities in the U.S., with users who select delivery
being directed to the given restaurant’s favored
delivery service to complete the transaction.
Additional convenience is provided to the
customer by virtue of multiple delivery
options being shown for those restaurants that
work with more than one delivery provider.
Furthermore, OpenTable has expressed hopes
of also eventually being able to post estimated
delivery times and costs for each listed service.
All in all, then, such a service would seem to
make a lot of sense for the average diner, with
OpenTable CTO Joseph Essas having said it is
aimed at those whose plans may change or
who see that the weather isn’t playing ball at
the time they’re intending to dine out. “Instead
of canceling their reservation,” he commented,
“diners can now enjoy the meal they had
planned from home.”
So, a better experience for diners, another
avenue through which delivery companies