Food Truck Delivery: How to Get Started on Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Delivery Platforms
Delivery now accounts for over 30% of fast-food revenue in many European markets. Yet the vast majority of food trucks still don't use this channel. Too complicated? Not profitable enough? In reality, adding delivery to your food truck business is perfectly doable — as long as you approach it smartly.
This guide walks you through how to add Uber Eats, Deliveroo or other platforms to your food truck, which dishes to offer, how to stay profitable despite commissions, and which mistakes to avoid at all costs.
Why Your Food Truck Should Offer Delivery
Delivery solves the food truck's fundamental problem: dependence on physical location. When it rains, when your usual spot is cancelled, or simply between services, delivery lets you keep selling.
The concrete benefits:
- Additional revenue: €300 to €800/week in extra turnover is realistic for an active food truck in an urban area
- Free visibility: your food truck appears on the app in front of thousands of users in your area — marketing you only pay for per order
- Smoothing out activity: delivery fills the gaps (afternoons, slow days, bad weather)
- Testing new markets: before driving to a new neighbourhood, test it via delivery to validate demand
Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat: Which Platform to Choose?
Each platform has its own characteristics. Here's a practical comparison for food trucks:
| Criteria | Uber Eats | Deliveroo | Just Eat | |----------|-----------|-----------|----------| | Average commission | 25-30% | 25-30% | 15-25% | | Geographic coverage | Very broad | Major cities | Medium | | Order volume | High | High in city centres | Moderate | | Food truck signup | Possible with fixed address | Possible with shared kitchen | More flexible | | Activation time | 1-3 weeks | 2-4 weeks | 1-2 weeks |
Our recommendation: start with one platform only (whichever dominates your area). Master the order flow, optimise your menu, then add a second platform after 4 to 6 weeks.
The Key Point: Pickup Address
Platforms require a fixed address for rider pickups. Two solutions for a food truck:
- Shared kitchen (dark kitchen): rent a workstation in a shared kitchen for a few hours per day (€150-500/month). You produce exclusively for delivery there.
- Fixed recurring location: if you have a daily fixed spot (covered market, industrial estate), you can use it as a pickup address during your service hours.
Adapting Your Menu for Delivery: The Golden Rules
Never put your full menu on a delivery platform. Delivery has its own constraints:
What Works for Delivery
- Dishes that travel well: burgers, bowls, wraps, saucy dishes, composed salads
- Leak-proof packaging: invest in containers that don't leak and maintain temperature (budget: €0.40-0.80 per order)
- Combos and meal deals: platforms favour restaurants that offer bundles (main + drink + dessert) because the average basket increases
What to Avoid
- Fried items that go soggy: chips, tempura, spring rolls — unless you use special ventilated packaging
- Plated-to-order dishes: anything that loses its presentation after 20 minutes of transport
- Too much choice: 6 to 10 items maximum on your delivery menu
Adjusting Your Prices
The critical rule: mark up your delivery prices by 15 to 25% compared to your dine-in prices. This is standard practice and widely accepted — customers know it. This markup partially offsets the platform commission.
Concrete example:
- Burger on-site: €10.00
- Burger on delivery: €12.50 (+25%)
- Platform commission (30%): -€3.75
- You receive: €8.75 (vs €10.00 on-site)
- Packaging cost: -€0.60
- Actual net: €8.15 — a reduced margin but additional volume that doesn't cannibalise your physical sales
Organising Logistics Without Disrupting On-Site Service
This is trap number one: delivery that disorganises your physical service. Here's how to avoid it:
1. Set Distinct Delivery Time Slots Don't let orders come in during your lunch rush. Use the platform settings to:
- Open delivery from 11am to 11:45am (before the rush)
- Close from 12pm to 1:30pm (on-site rush)
- Reopen from 1:30pm to 3pm (after the rush)
3. Dedicate a Packaging Zone Even in a food truck, isolate an area for delivery assembly: stacked packaging, pre-labelled bags, a deposit zone for riders.
4. Use a Dedicated Tablet Don't manage orders on your personal phone. A dedicated tablet (even a second-hand one for €100) with the platform apps prevents forgotten orders and mistakes.
Measuring the True Profitability of Delivery
Many food truckers quit delivery after a few weeks thinking "it doesn't make any money". In reality, they simply didn't measure correctly.
Key metrics to track every week:
- Net delivery revenue (after commission): aim for a minimum of €250/week for the channel to be viable
- Average basket: below €15, you're losing money. Push the combo deals.
- Orders per hour: below 3 orders/hour, the channel isn't dense enough. Change your time slots or your zone.
- Packaging cost per order: don't exceed 5% of the selling price
- Cancellation rate: above 5%, you have a preparation time problem
Costly Mistakes Food Trucks Make with Delivery
After working with many food truck operators, here are the most common mistakes:
- Accepting all orders during the rush: result — on-site service degrades and you lose loyal customers
- Not marking up prices: you absorb 30% commission on your normal prices = working at a loss
- Ignoring negative reviews: on platforms, your rating determines your visibility. Below 4.5/5, your orders drop dramatically
- Offering too many dishes: every added dish complicates your logistics. Fewer dishes = fewer mistakes = better ratings
- Forgetting hidden costs: packaging, tablet, potential shared kitchen, time spent on dispute management — factor everything into your calculations
Conclusion
Delivery isn't a replacement for your food truck business — it's a complementary channel that, when well managed, can add €1,000 to €3,000/month to your revenue. The keys to success: a reduced, adapted menu, marked-up prices, controlled time slots, and rigorous profitability tracking.
Start small: one platform, 6 dishes, 2 time slots per day. Measure for one month. Adjust. Then scale up.
Try FoodTracks for free to track your on-site and delivery sales in a single dashboard, and identify the most profitable time slots in your week.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can a food truck sign up for Uber Eats or Deliveroo?
- Yes, provided you have a fixed pickup address for riders. The two most common options are renting a station in a shared kitchen (€150-500/month) or using a fixed recurring location (covered market, industrial estate) as a pickup address during service hours. Registration typically takes 1 to 4 weeks depending on the platform.
- How much can delivery earn for a food truck?
- An active food truck in an urban area can realistically generate €300 to €800 in additional weekly revenue through delivery, or €1,000 to €3,000/month. After deducting commissions (25-30%), packaging, and ancillary costs, additional net income ranges from €600 to €2,000/month. The key is to mark up prices by 15-25% and limit the menu to the most profitable dishes.
- Which food truck dishes are suitable for delivery?
- Dishes that travel best are burgers, bowls, wraps, saucy dishes, and composed salads. Avoid fried items (chips, tempura) that go soggy during transport, unless you use special ventilated packaging. Limit your delivery menu to 6-10 items maximum and offer combo deals (main + drink + dessert) to push the average basket above €15.
- How do you prevent delivery from disrupting on-site food truck service?
- The golden rule is to set distinct delivery time slots: open delivery before and after your on-site rush, but close it during peak hours. Use the platform's pause settings. Also dedicate a packaging zone in your truck and use a separate tablet to manage delivery orders without disrupting your main workflow.
