BentoBox's New Tool Connects Diners With Local Restaurants

BentoBox, a hospitality platform that empowers restaurants to own their presence, profits and relationships, launched Restaurants.Love, a website that helps diners support their local restaurants with online ordering.

At a time when restaurants are almost entirely reliant on online ordering to bring in revenue, it is vital that they keep every penny from pickup and delivery orders. Third-party services often charge commissions, taking away nearly the entire profit of an online order and making it much more difficult for restaurants to survive.  Cities move to cap third-party delivery fees. Seattle and San Francisco have capped the fees at 15% while proponents in Chicago are pushing for a 5% cap, while NYC supporters are asking Mayor de Blasio for a 10% cap. 

Restaurants.Love provides an easy-to-use directory that enables diners to order directly from thousands restaurants. By ordering directly, diners both save money on hidden third-party fees, which can make orders 91% more expensive, and ensure that restaurants keep the whole check.

Participating restaurants include neighborhood staples, such as Cheesetique in Alexandria, Va., Mucci’s Italian in St. Paul, Minn., and Union Square Hospitality Group in New York City. Many Restaurants.Love locations also offer a simple checkbox that gives diners the ability to contribute $1.99 to a COVID Relief Fund for the restaurant at checkout.

Other Restaurants.Love locations are even leveraging their websites to drive donations for healthcare workers. Reunion, an Israeli cafe in New York City, for example, encourages customers to order a "Meal for our Healthcare angels,” which Reunion then delivers to front-line healthcare workers in New York.