After attracting a cool $100 million of investor cash to be used to fuel international expansion, the Boston-based ezCater acquired GoCater, a Paris-headquartered corporate catering platform. Shortly after the news broke, we spoke with ezCater Founder Stefania Mallett who said the French acquisition was the first move as the company works to establish further beachheads across Europe. “We have always said we would be international,” she said of the company’s open-book expansion plans. “The people we acquired have proven to be, in just a short time, very capable, very insightful, […]
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The fast-growing Middle Eastern concept Naf Naf Grill has been putting a lot of work into its delivery infrastructure and is now open for business.
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There are lots of reasons to pay attention to culinary trends coming out of Denmark. First of all: Noma, the restaurant claiming the No.1 restaurant in the world distinction for four years is in Copenhagen, along with three-star Geranium and other Michelin Star Restaurants. Organic and vegetarian options are prominent on most menus and outdoor dining along the canals provides one of the longest bar scenes in the world. Because they bike everywhere—we were told there are two bikes to every person in Copenhagen—Danes build up an appetite for good […]
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Feeling a little underpowered? Be careful what you wish for, as a new patent from IBM shows the technology giant wants no yawn left behind as it develops a drone that can detect tired souls and immediately swoop in with a hot cup of coffee. In a patent filed with the U.S. government last month, IBM says coordinating drone-based coffee drops would require a fully autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle connected to an electronic processing circuit that “identifies an individual among the people that may have a predetermined cognitive state based […]
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As McDonald’s and Wendy’s continue expanding third-party delivery at a growing number of locations, the mega-chain restaurants are reporting average check sizes 1.5 to two times higher than traditional, dine-in customers according to a new report from Stephens. “We have seen early adopters of third-party delivery attract incremental traffic and penny profits, which we believe is evidence of the pent-up and growing demand for this convenience proposition,” said Stephens Analyst Will Slabaugh. “We believe early successes by most brands are signaling that third-party delivery can be a meaningful piece of […]
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Foodsby, a Minneapolis-based office catering company, raised $13.5 million in a Series B funding round led by Piper Jaffray Merchant Banking. Greycroft Partners, Corazon Capital and Rally Ventures also participated, and this latest round increases Foodsby’s total raised to $21 million. In a statement, Foodsby’s founder and CEO Ben Cattoor said, “We have established a successful model for new market entry with a tried and true combination of talent and technology. We look forward to building on our early successes and learnings to deliver continued growth for our investors and […]
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After less than a year of partnering with same-day grocery delivery service Instacart, supermarket giant Kroger announced it’s expanding the service to another 75 markets by late October. That increase means Instacart will be available at more than 1,600 Kroger stores and makes the San Francisco-based company Kroger’s main delivery provider (it uses Uber and Shipt in some markets). “We are redefining the customer experience through Restock Kroger by rapidly accelerating our customer coverage area for seamless shopping, giving our shoppers the choice of stores, delivery, curbside pickup or ship […]
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In a move to keep customers on its own website and app, Chipotle began offering direct delivery without sending customers to a third-party service platform. Still powered by Doordash, the in-app delivery order function is now available in all 70 markets at the more than 1,800 Chipotle restaurants that Doordash serves. “Fans have long been requesting Chipotle delivery, and as part of our commitment to make it easy for our customers to get the delicious food they love when, where and how they want it, we’re rolling out our own […]
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Ordermark, a fast growing provider of online ordering solutions for restaurants, announced the close of a $9.5M Series A funding round. Led by Nosara Capital, the latest round brings in new investors including Vertical Venture Partners, Techstars Ventures, Riverpark Ventures, and Matchstick Ventures—joined by prior investors including TenOneTen, Mucker Capital, Act One Ventures and AARD Capital. “This has been a growth year for Ordermark, expanding to reach hundreds of top restaurant brands nationwide, and launching new tools to make it easier and more cost efficient for restaurants of all sizes […]
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With insight from four restaurant industry and some anecdotes from the Food On Demand editorial team, financial services and research firm Cowen released its latest delivery report suggesting the restaurant delivery market is still accelerating as more investment dollars continue flowing into the category.
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