Ordering collection and delivery in Galway, the fairer way

The fairer way to order takeaway in Galway is to collect when you can, and to order through an app that takes a small cut rather than a large one. Delivery apps commonly charge places around 30% of each order; on Mosey a place pays 1.5% on a collection order and 6% on a delivery order, so far more of what you spend stays with the people who cooked it.

That difference is invisible on your receipt and very visible in a small kitchen's accounts. Here is how to order well, whichever way you do it.

Why does the app you order through matter?

When a commission takes close to a third of every order, a place has three choices: absorb it, raise its prices on the app to cover it, or stop offering takeaway. None of those is good for you, and the first is often not survivable for an independent.

A low commission changes the arithmetic. On Mosey:

• Mosey adds no markup to the menu. The food costs what the place charges for it.
• Tips go to the place in full. Mosey takes nothing on a tip.
• You pay a small booking fee per order, shown before you pay, and any delivery charge the place sets. Nothing is added after checkout.

You are still paying for convenience. You are just not paying a third of the bill for it.

Collection or delivery: which should you choose?

Collection is the quiet winner, and it is worth defaulting to whenever you are within a short walk or drive.

• It is cheaper. No driver to pay for, and no delivery charge.
• It is usually faster. Food goes from the pass to your hands, rather than waiting for a driver to be free.
• The food travels less. Chips that spend five minutes in a bag are a different thing from chips that spend twenty-five.

Delivery earns its keep on a wet night, when you are minding children, or when the place you want is across the city. That is what it is for, and there is nothing wrong with using it. Browse Galway places that take orders on the Galway hub.

How does delivery work on Mosey?

Each place runs its own delivery, which means each place sets its own terms:

• Delivery areas. A place decides where it delivers. When you enter your address, it is checked against those areas before you build a basket, so you find out straight away if you are outside them rather than at checkout.
• Delivery fee and minimum order. Set by the place, and they can differ by area.
• Estimated delivery time. The place sets the time you see, so it reflects their kitchen rather than a guess.
• Drivers. Either the place's own, or drivers shared by a nearby place that already runs them. Either way you are dealing with the place you ordered from.

You can also add a tip for up to a day after the delivery arrives, and the place keeps all of it.

What happens after you place an order?

An order is a request until the place accepts it, so you will not be told it is confirmed the moment you pay. You are told when the place accepts it, and the order then moves through the kitchen: prepared, then ready for collection or out for delivery.

• If nobody accepts it in time, it is cancelled and refunded automatically. You are not left waiting on food that is not coming.
• If you change your mind, you can cancel in the first couple of minutes for an automatic refund. After that the kitchen may have started, so it is the place's call.

Full details are on the Order Ahead page.

How to order fairly from any Galway place

You do not need any particular app to be a good takeaway customer. A few habits make a real difference to a small kitchen:

1. Order direct where the place offers it. Its own phone line, its own counter, or a low-commission app all leave more of the money in Galway.
2. Collect when it is easy to. It is the single biggest saving, for you and for them.
3. Order early on busy nights. Friday and Saturday evenings are when kitchens fall behind. Ordering before the rush, or scheduling a time, gets better food.
4. Give the place real information. Mention allergies directly to the place, and make sure your address and phone number are right.
5. Tip where it reaches the kitchen. On Mosey every cent of a tip goes to the place.
6. Rate what you ate. A rating with a photo of the actual food is the cheapest marketing a small place can get, and it helps the next person choose.

Ordering for later, and for groups

Two features save more time than people expect:

• Scheduled orders. You can order anything from half an hour to a week ahead, where a place offers time slots. Ordering at lunchtime for a seven o'clock collection means you are not competing with everyone who gets hungry at seven.
• Group orders. One person starts an order and shares it, everyone adds their own food from their own phone, and each person can pay their own share. The order does not go to the kitchen until everyone has paid.

Orders also count as a visit towards a place's rewards, if it runs them, so ordering in does not cost you the free coffee. If you are watching what you spend, the guide to finding specials and deals in Galway covers the cheaper times to order, and some places run lower prices on collection during quieter hours.

Supporting the places you would miss

Galway's food is a lot of small operations: family places, cafés, trucks that turn up at the same spot every week. Following the ones you like on Mosey means you hear about them, and if you have a favourite truck the guide to following your favourite food trucks in Galway is worth a read.

Next time you order in, check whether the place takes orders on Mosey, and collect if you can.