Takeout in Vancouver: the BC delivery fee cap, pickup orders and wet-weather demand

For many Vancouver restaurants, takeout is no longer a side business. It covers the rainy weeknights, the slow months and the customers who love the food but not the parking. The question is how much of each takeout order you keep, and whose customer the diner becomes. The cap itself is explained in the guide on BC's delivery app commission cap; this guide is about the decisions that sit around it.

What does the BC delivery fee cap cover?

British Columbia was the first province to put a permanent cap on what food delivery companies can charge restaurants. Under the Food Delivery Service Fee Act, which came into force on January 1, 2023, the fees a covered delivery company charges a restaurant for its core ordering and delivery services are capped at 20 percent of the order's value, made up of 15 percent for delivery services and 5 percent for other fees, not counting taxes and gratuities. Optional services you choose, such as marketing, are treated separately. The law also says delivery companies cannot cut driver pay to make up for the cap.

This is a summary, not legal advice, and the details (what counts as a service, how the order value is measured) matter. Read the Act or ask an advisor before relying on it in a dispute.

Why do pickup orders deserve their own maths?

A delivery fee is partly paying for a courier. A pickup order has no courier at all, yet some marketplaces still charge the restaurant a commission on it. Check your own statements to see what you pay on pickup orders, and whether the cap applies to them. Treating pickup as its own channel, with its own ordering link on your website and social profiles, is often the single biggest saving available.

There is a second reason. On a marketplace, the customer sees your competitors beside you on every order. On your own link, the customer is ordering from you, and you know who they are and how often they come back.

Should you leave the delivery apps entirely?

Probably not, and nobody should tell you to without looking at your numbers. Marketplaces bring customers who have never heard of you, and that is worth something. The practical approach most independents take:

1. Keep marketplace delivery for discovery and for customers who will only order there.
2. Move pickup to your own link, and tell customers at the counter and in the bag.
3. Use your own drivers for delivery if you have the volume, with zones and fees you set.
4. Compare what you keep per order on each channel every month, not just total sales.

How do you move regulars to your own takeout link?

People order where it is easiest. Make your link easier:

• A short address on your website, Instagram bio and Google listing
• A card in every bag with the link or a code
• A reason, such as a stamp on every direct order or a dish that is only available direct
• Reliable pickup times, because a fifteen-minute wait at the counter undoes the convenience

Do not price-match your own menu against the apps in a way that confuses people. A clear menu with clear prices builds the habit faster than a discount.

When does takeout matter most in Vancouver?

Takeout demand in Vancouver follows the weather more than the calendar. From November through March, a wet evening sends people home early, and the ones who still want your food want it without a walk in the rain. Summer is the opposite: patios and long evenings pull people out, and takeout often dips. Plan around that. Cap pickup slots higher in the wet months and lower in summer, keep the menu that travels well front and centre in winter, and use the quieter summer weeks to move your regulars onto your own link before the rain comes back. The guide on how to get more customers for a Vancouver restaurant covers the seasonal calendar.

What should you check about takeout packaging in Vancouver?

Packaging rules for takeout have changed in recent years. The City of Vancouver has stopped regulating single-use items such as bags, foam, straws and utensils itself, because provincial and federal rules now cover the same ground. Those rules have been introduced, challenged or revised, so check the current federal and BC requirements before you order a large stock. The guide on the single-use plastics ban has the federal side.

Beyond the rules, good takeout packaging does three things:

• Keeps food at its best: vented boxes for anything crisp, sealed tubs for sauces and soups.
• Survives the trip, including a bike or a bus in the rain.
• Gives the guest only what they need, such as cutlery on request, which cuts waste and cost.

A soggy box of fries is a worse advertisement than no takeout at all.

What should you measure?

For each channel, track orders, average order value, fees paid and repeat customers. The repeat number matters most: a customer who orders from you directly every week is worth more than ten one-off marketplace orders, because the relationship and the margin are both yours.

More from Vancouver: Dine Out Vancouver bookings and selling gift cards.

More in the Canadian guides for food businesses.