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A few days ago, I was diagnosed with Viral Exanthem, a viral infection that caused me to develop rashes on my arms, chest and face area. While it wasn't a serious condition, our company doctor advised me to stay at home for the next five days so I wouldn't infect other people. This led me to do my weekly grocery earlier than usual so I could stay at home and not worry about getting hungry.
On that weekend, I stocked up on fresh fruits so I could regain my strength and have a stronger immune system. It was also Sinulog weekend so it was sad that I happened to miss my second Sinulog in Cebu-- the first one was because I was lazy. And since it really didn't matter to me either way, I relished on the idea that I would get to avoid the rush of people on Cebu's streets.
A day before my 5-day house arrest was over, I had a huge craving for Broccoli. I tried to recall the last restaurant where I was able to enjoy a dish of my favorite vegetable and Big Mao came to mind. But since I wasn't "technically" allowed to leave the house, there was no way for me to buy broccoli anywhere.
That's when I remembered I had downloaded FoodPanda app on my iPhone.
When I browsed through the app a few months ago, I noticed that they offered Big Mao as one of the restaurants where I could order and have my food delivered to me. I realized this was the perfect opportunity for me to try the app and satisfy my craving.
When you open the app, you'll be directed to a search function where you input your city. The app will then pull up all the restaurants that they have partnered with for food delivery. As soon as you have found a restaurant you like, you can already see their menu along with the price of the dish.
With just a few taps, I was well on my way to getting my Broccoli with Garlic Overload (P189) delivered to me. I decided to get their Beef Steak Chinese Style (P279.00) and an order of Hong Kong Style Chicken Feet (P75)as well. The delivery charge was around P40. I figured it was a good option instead of paying P75 (one way) to go to Ayala Center Cebu and buy from Big Mao. Plus, I wasn't really allowed to leave the house so having food delivered to me was always a good option.
Once I had finished my order, my total bill was around P583 (including the delivery charge). I had also met Big Mao's minimum delivery amount, which was P100. As soon as I had finished ordering on the app, a representative from the app had called me up and confirmed my order.
A few minutes later, someone knocked on my door. It was the delivery guy from FoodPanda. I was ready with my P600 bill and hungry stomach. He gave me my food and I handed him my cash. The only problem was, he did not even acknowledge that I had change left. He just said 'Thank you' then started to leave.
This was the only thing that turned me off from the app. I would have gladly given him the change as tip IF he acknowledged the fact that I had one and even given me my money. I wondered what would have happened if I had a P1000 bill instead of spare change.
Anyway, that was the only thing that I found wrong with FoodPanda. I enjoyed the fact that it was so easy to order from them and they had displayed the information on their app. Plus, their delivery charge wasn't too high compared to meeting a minimum amount for delivery. It kind of reminded me of Quick Delivery and City Delivery when I was still in Manila, without the crazy minimum amount. I just wish they would add more restaurant options soon.
If you're interested to order from FoodPanda, these are currently the Cebu-based restaurants available on their website:
Yellow Cab
D' Original Razon's
Island Grill
Big Mao
Conching's Native Chicken
Gojo's Lechon
Japengo Modern Japanese Restaurant
Paray's Lechon Cebu
Fat Cow's Burgers and Malt's
La Bella Pizza Bistro
Jojie's Pa-initan Central Megavalue
Soul Bistro
Pueblo Mexicano
Sizzling Chef
Each restaurant has its own minimum delivery amount and delivery charge. If you want to know more about FoodPanda, you may visit their website or download the app here.
