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Why Do We Keep Getting Deliveroo and Uber Eats Orders for Things We Have Run Out Of?

Cafe delivery app menus show items sold out at the counter, so orders get cancelled. We connect the till to delivery apps so menus and sold-outs stay in step.

Updated 2 min readBy SpiderHunts Technologies

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Quick answer — TL;DR

Cafes on Deliveroo, Uber Eats or Just Eat often manage each app's menu on its own tablet. When the banana bread sells out at the counter or the price changes, the apps do not know, and orders arrive for things you cannot make. We connect your till to the delivery platforms, directly or through an ordering integration, so menus, prices and sold-out items are updated in one place and orders print alongside counter orders.

A tablet for each app and none of them right

Behind the counter there are three tablets, one for each delivery app, each beeping in its own way. At 11am the last slice of banana bread is sold over the counter. At 11:20 an Uber Eats order comes in for two slices. The barista has to go into the app, find the order, mark the item unavailable and adjust it, while the queue waits. The customer gets half their order and leaves a poor rating.

Meanwhile the price of a flat white went up in store last month. On one of the apps, it is still the old price, because nobody remembered to change it there. The seasonal soup you stopped doing in spring is still listed on another, and once a week someone orders it.

Why the apps drift from the counter

  • Each app's menu is edited separately, in its own partner portal.
  • Sold-outs at the counter are not passed to the apps.
  • Price changes are made on the till and forgotten on the apps.
  • Orders are keyed into the till by hand, or not at all.
  • Each tablet makes its own noise, adding to the chaos behind the counter.

What out-of-sync menus cost

Cancelled or part-filled orders hurt your rating on the platforms, which affects how often you are shown to customers. Wrong prices lose you money or confuse customers. Keying orders into the till by hand takes time and causes mistakes. And if delivery orders are not in the till, your sales figures and stock data are incomplete.

How we bring delivery into the till

  1. We check whether your till has a direct integration with the delivery platforms, or whether an ordering integration service is the better route.
  2. The menu for each platform is built from your till's products, with platform-specific prices where you want them.
  3. Price changes on the till update the platforms, so you change it once.
  4. When staff mark an item sold out on the till, it is paused on each platform straight away, and switched back on when you restock.
  5. Delivery orders arrive in the till and print on the bar and kitchen printers with a delivery label, so they are made like any other order.
  6. Sales from all channels show in one report, so you can see how delivery compares with the counter.
BeforeAfter
One tablet per appOrders in the till, printed with the rest
Sold-outs set on each appSold-out on the till pauses it everywhere
Prices changed in each portalPrices changed once on the till
Delivery sales separateAll channels in one report

If a platform or your till does not support a proper integration, we will tell you, and suggest the simplest workable setup rather than a fragile one.

Delivery that runs alongside the counter

The barista marks the banana bread sold out on the till, and it disappears from every app within a moment. Delivery orders print at the bar with the rider's collection time. The tablets can go in a drawer. Your till report shows counter and delivery sales together, so you can see whether delivery is worth the commission on each day of the week.

Is this your delivery setup?

  • You have a separate tablet for each delivery app.
  • Orders come in for items already sold out.
  • Prices on the apps differ from the counter by mistake.
  • Delivery orders are keyed into the till by hand.
  • Your ratings suffer from cancelled or incomplete orders.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

The questions readers ask us after this guide.

Still have a question?

Ask us directly — a senior engineer will get back to you.

Ask about your project

Which delivery apps can be connected?

The main platforms, where your till or an ordering integration supports them. We check your setup first.

Can we charge different prices on delivery?

Yes. Platform-specific prices can be set while still managing the menu in one place.

Will this lower the platforms' commission?

No. Commission is set by your agreement with each platform. This reduces admin and cancelled orders.

What drives the cost?

Whether your till has direct integrations, whether a third-party service is needed and how many platforms you use.

What do you need from us?

Your till details and access to each delivery platform's partner portal.

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