Skip to main content

Uber’s cautious UberEATS expansion continues with launch in home city

san francisco housing crisis tech tax street
Morenovel / Shutterstock
If your next Uber ride in San Francisco comes with the aroma of a recently cooked meal, that’s probably because your driver has just been out delivering for UberEATS.

Uber rolled out its meal-delivery service in its home city this week, offering hungry customers the chance to order from curated menus linked to popular dining spots for a $3 delivery fee, though that’s being waived for the first month. The meals themselves cost around $8 to $12.

With lots of startups battling it out in San Francisco’s packed meal-delivery market, delivery time is key, with Uber promising its hungry customers a wait of no more than 10 minutes. Keep in mind, however, that food drop-off is currently only curbside, so you’ll have to step outside your office or home to collect your order. You shouldn’t have to hang around though, as you can track your driver’s progress via the Uber app.

For now, the San Francisco service is only offered for customers in the Financial District and neighboring South of Market between 11am and to 2pm on weekdays, though this could change depending on demand.

The company better known for delivering people to destinations rather than food launched UberEATS last year (as UberFRESH), and now operates the service in five U.S. cities – San Francisco, Austin, Chicago, New York and L.A. – as well as Toronto, Canada and Barcelona, Spain.

One of the ideas behind UberEATS is to provide Uber drivers with earning opportunities at times of the day when riders may be thin on the ground. The service also means drivers remain downtown for when business picks up later in the day and more people start requesting rides, according to a source who discussed the service with the Wall Street Journal.

Customers can order via UberEATS by tapping on the plate-setting icon in the regular Uber app, choosing their meal, and placing the order. Food and delivery costs are automatically charged to your credit card just like with any Uber ride your take.

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Uber puts Eats back into its ridesharing app to tempt you to order more meals
uber eats redesigned app lets you track your order with cute graphics

Uber launched its stand-alone Uber Eats app in 2016, breaking it out of the Uber app two years after the launch of the meal-delivery service. Now it’s folding elements of the Eats app back into the main Uber app.

News of Uber’s efforts to gently coax its riders into ordering from Eats was confirmed by the company to TechCrunch this week.

Read more
Postmates expands to 1,000 more cities to take on DoorDash and Uber Eats
postmates takes on uber and others with speedy meal delivery service

Postmates is continuing to expand its on-demand delivery service at a rapid rate, with the company announcing this week a move into 1,000 more cities across the U.S.

That means it now has a presence in more than 3,500 cities throughout the country, a significant increase from the 350 or so cities that it served in July 2018.

Read more
One of the best budget phones just got even better
Google Pixel 7a in Snow showing home screen.

Phone deals feel extra sweet when they involve a discount on an already great value phone. That’s the case with the Google Pixel 7a which is currently on sale at Amazon for just $349. Usually priced at $499, it’s even better value while it’s $150 off. It’s unlikely to stay this price for too long and it’s already proving popular, so if you want to get in on the action, do so now. If you’re not certain, take a look at what we have to say about it below.

Why you should buy the Google Pixel 7a
The Google Pixel 7a is a big upgrade from its predecessor and while our review pointed out that its increased price was an issue, that’s no longer something to worry about while it’s on sale. One of the best cheap phones, it offers a lot of great features. One immediate thing to notice is its 6.1-inch OLED display. It’s a full HD screen with a 1080 x 2400 resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for durability. It also has a 90Hz adaptive refresh rate so you get smoother scrolling and a generally better experience when watching videos or playing a game.

Read more