Lunch. An important meal in my day. I might have one, or two (depends on how hungry I am). If I don’t pack my lunch from home, I often use quick food delivery services to get food, pronto. Anyway, folks stop by my desk to see what I’m chowing on, or elevator passengers peek at what I’m toting and ask ‘Where’d you get that?’ And then I’ve gotta explain where and how I got it. So now I can say, just check my blog.
So there are two main quick food delivery services I use. No, not Seamless. I use UberEATS and Caviar FastBite, depending on which has a better menu.
How it works?
Check the apps, see what 2 or 3 items are on the menu, tap, order, meet delivery person curbside, eat.
What I like about it?
I get food outside of my delivery zone – like my favorite spot for burgers – Burger Joint, Baohaus, and more.
Caviar Fastbite
Delivery zone: From around 45th Street to FiDi, river to river.
Cost: $15 and under. Delivery fee $2.99. No tip necessary.
Hours of operation: Weekdays from 11.30am to 2pm.
Estimated delivery time: 15 minutes or less.
Actual delivery time: Of all the times I’ve ordered, on average 8 minutes for delivery.
Menu options: About 4 items, changed daily. Today they had a Three Chicken Taco Combo with Guacamole from Otto’s Tacos, a Steak Sandwich from El Colmado, Buttermilk Battered Chicken Sandwich and California Kale Salad with Grilled Chicken and Avocado from Genuine Superette.
Ordering: Open your Caviar app. Click Fastbite. Select the item(s) you want to Order, review the cart, and tap “Place Order.” Like other apps, you’ll see a map showing you where the delivery person is, and you’ll receive a text alert to let you know your food has arrived.
The Food: Depending on what you get, sometimes the food gets a little soggy from sauce and condensation (example: burgers with sauce). But overall, the food is great.
Sign up and get $5 off your first order in Manhattan. https://bnc.lt/l/7RvNvYU2GZ
Otto’s Tacos
Photo credit: Caviar NYC
UberEATS
“Local favorites, delivered in an instant”
Delivery Zone: Available in Manhattan, between 14th Street and 59th Street
Cost: Prices vary. No tip necessary.
Hours of operation: Weekdays from 11am to 2pm.
Estimated delivery time: 10 minutes or less.
Actual delivery time: The food never arrived during our test run.
Menu options: Today they had 2 options: Ivan Ramen’s Tokyo Shoyu Ramen and Cafe Clover’s Butternut Squash Salad. Sometimes they throw in a freebie, like today I received a Splendid Spoon Soup with my order. I like how it denotes if an item is dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, etc.
Ordering: Just open the Uber app, tap the EATS logo. Select the item(s) you want to Order, review the cart, and tap “Place Order.” It’ll do it’s Uber thing and ping couriers in the area. This is the tough part…waiting for the acceptance. After the courier accepts your order, you’ll see a map showing you where he/she is and the estimated delivery time. They usually deliver on foot with their carts, or today, I just had my order delivered by a bike courier. You’ll get text messages and/or phone calls to let you know their whereabouts because sometimes there is a delay on the Uber app.
The Food: Great food. I’ve had some delivery mishaps with curry spilling outside of the food container. Not the courier’s fault though.
There have been times where I’ve gotten my food and grumbled, “That’s all!?” So depending on the vendor, portions may not be filling (ahem, Cafe Clover).
Extra Credit: If you’ve been unsuccessful with ordering just because the Uber guys have been busy delivering to other folks, you might get a coupon/credit applied to your account.
Cafe Clover
Photo credit: UberEATS
In summary, you can’t go wrong with either. It all depends on what you’re craving. I find myself ordering through UberEATS more just because the menu is more appealing.
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