Bitfood: Streamlined On-Demand Food Delivery

October 20, 2017

There you are, trapped in an insidiously long work meeting that risks spilling over into your coveted lunch hour. The pangs of hunger are piercing your paunch without relent, and two sad realizations set in.

First, you won’t have any time to hop down to the corner bakery to wait in line and grab a sandwich – a pile of outstanding tasks looms over you forebodingly. Second, even if this meeting were to miraculously end now, you’d still need to hasten over to your desk, pore over the delivery menus, home in on a venue and dish, dial the delivery operator, articulate your order, communicate special requests, provide work address and directions, rush down to the nearest ATM to withdraw cash, and then watch the clock tick as the appointed delivery time – immediately – transforms to eternity plus some.

Food order and delivery can be a time-consuming process.

If only you’d known about Bitfood.

No, not the cryptocurrency and digital payment system known as Bitcoin, though it sure does operate in a similar vein.

Bitfood presents a fast, easy and effortless way of ordering from restaurants, thanks to a seamless smartphone app downloadable to [iOS] and [Android]. Start by creating a profile, using the GPS locator to set your delivery address. Then search for restaurants nearby, filtering by customer rating, cuisine, and/or food type. Select your grub, tailoring it precisely to your preferences. Specify time of delivery and payment method. Now sit back and leave it to Bitfood to process and relay your order. Restless? Track your order status from dispatch to delivery.

It’s supremely foolproof, and there’s a whole slate of othercool features, too. Choose either pick-up or delivery from local restaurants no matter where you are. Save all your favorite joints to a list for quick access. You can even repeat your previous order in just a few clicks! Browse through the latest promotions and offers from restaurants. Even consider depositing restaurant ratings and feedback to guide other Bitfood users.

Perhaps one of the most compelling functionalities is the “Dislike” setting, which allows you to record food items or garnishes you don’t particularly enjoy. Bitfood will make sure it cascades to all your future orders. Don’t you just love it when you don’t have to repeat yourself?

I gave the app a go and was impressed with its smooth, user-friendly navigation. Once I’d specified my delivery area as “Bachoura,” a yield of 22 delivery options (and 143 pick-up options!) stared back at me. Each notes a minimum order, delivery charge, delivery time, cuisine category, and payment method, accompanied by the restaurant logo for easy identification.

Clicking on the venue Bento, I was rerouted to a neat menu arranged by starters, salads, burgers, sandwiches, grills and more.

I selected grills, and a drop-down list of dishes coupled with descriptions and prices appeared. Here, all I had to do was click the + button adjacent to the dish of my desire (Grilled Chicken), and it was fed to my cart.

Once I was ready to check-out, I clicked the cart at the bottom of the screen, where I had the opportunity to modify my order with any other additions or requests. Thereafter, I confirmed my address: I could either single out a stored location in My Addresses or input a new location altogether. On the very last screen, I had the liberty of ordaining time of delivery and method of payment before finalizing my order. And voila!

Within mere minutes, I received a notification that my order had been accepted.

As the sacred hour of delivery approached, another notification informed me that my food had been dispatched.

The order arrived in timely fashion – seven minutes of delay hardly count in the ever congested metropolis of Beirut. Food was neatly packaged into a brown bag, to which was affixed a receipt with my name, contact coordinates, order details, and total amount charged.

Food comes neatly packaged with order details tacked on.

And just as I was tucking into my sustenance (or indulgence, however way you wish to view it), another notification informed me that the order had been successfully delivered.

One particular characteristic of Bitfood that distinguishes it from other food delivery apps is the featured roster of restaurants. You won’t so much find the typical chains that already operate exclusive apps as you will discover smaller establishments that span the bread and butter of Lebanon’s culinary scene. I’m talking about historic joints like Faysal Snack perched on Bliss Street just past the American University of Beirut. Those familiar with Faysal know that its supple manakish zaatar are the perfect brain stimulant before a treacherous day of AUB courses.

And how about the infamous Abou Abdallah in Dora, whose nutty fattet hummus, foul, and balila need no introduction? If you fancy an afternoon novelty, Glace Bachir now delivers ice cream through Bitfood with no posted delivery charge.

So take it from this resident foodie and overworked soul that Bitfood will enhance your quality of office life, freeing up agonizing half-hours that would be better channeled to Instagram, uh, I mean that quarterly financial report your boss has been badgering you about.

Whoever said technology is destroying human productivity never met Bitfood. Trust me, this is one app you’re going to want to bite into!