Why Restaurants Want Their Customers Back From Delivery Platforms

The delivery app pitch for small and midsize restaurants was simple: more orders, less friction.

And delivery platforms first positioned themselves as restaurant partners. They came in with high-tech platforms that individual operators wouldn’t have been able to stand up on their own. These platforms aggregated demand, standardized ordering interfaces, and solved the notoriously complex “last mile.”

For restaurants without delivery infrastructure, the value proposition was undeniable. Even those with in-house delivery saw apps as a way to tap into new customer segments.

But as the industry matures technologically, and formerly spear-tip capabilities become table stakes, a recalibration is underway. Increasingly, restaurants are rethinking the trade-offs embedded in the delivery economy. What once looked like a growth channel can now resemble something closer to disintermediation.

In effect, restaurants have been repositioned. Rather than acting as independent brands with direct customer relationships, they increasingly function as suppliers within a marketplace. The platform controls visibility, pricing dynamics, and, crucially, data.

The core issue emerging is no longer just the last-mile problem of delivery itself, but ownership of and connection to the entire customer relationship.

Read more: Loyalty Programs Drive Nearly Two-Thirds of Restaurant Delivery Decisions

From Channel Expansion to Dependency

Over time, the nature of the relationship between restaurants and platform aggregators has shifted. What began as an additional channel evolved into a dominant one. In many urban markets, a significant share of off-premise orders now flows through third-party platforms. For some restaurants, particularly fast-casual brands, that share can exceed 50%.

This shift has had structural consequences. Delivery apps don’t merely facilitate transactions; they mediate them. The customer experience from discovery to checkout to post-order engagement all takes place within the platform’s ecosystem. Restaurants fulfill the order, but the platform owns the interface.

Delivery apps, after all, are optimized for retention within their own ecosystem, not for the benefit of individual restaurants. Features like search ranking, sponsored listings and algorithmic recommendations prioritize engagement at the platform level. A customer who discovers a restaurant through an app is far more likely to remain a platform user than to become a direct customer.

This can result in a margin illusion where restaurants pay high commissions for access to demand they do not control and cannot easily retain.

Still, if margins were the only concern, the debate might remain a tactical one. Restaurants could adjust pricing, streamline operations or renegotiate contracts. But the deeper issue is strategic. It centers on data.

Without access to customer data, restaurants struggle to build direct relationships, personalize experiences or create effective loyalty programs. They become dependent not just on the platform’s logistics, but on its insights.

See also: Fast Food Chains Put AI to Work

Customer Data Becomes the Real Battleground

In traditional hospitality, the customer relationship is a core asset. Restaurants learn from repeat visits, preferences and feedback. That information informs menu development, marketing and service design. It is the foundation of brand building.

Delivery platforms disrupt this feedback loop. They capture granular data on ordering behavior, frequency, basket size and customer demographics. Restaurants, by contrast, receive only limited, often anonymized information. The platform knows who the customer is; the restaurant often does not.

The delivery landscape is unlikely to revert to a pre-platform era. The scale and convenience of major apps have reshaped consumer expectations in ways that are durable. But, with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven commerce and retail solutions, the sector could be entering its next era, one where restaurants are not just passive participants.

“In an agent ordering world, you’re going to be ordering from your TV, from your car, from your phone,” Savneet Singh, CEO of PAR Technology, told PYMNTS in an interview this month, noting that those orders can connect directly to the restaurant instead of passing through third-party marketplaces.

“That means the restaurant has the data, understands the customer’s preferences, and doesn’t pay a toll to another platform,” Singh added.

Findings in the PYMNTS Intelligence January 2026 B2B and Digital Payments Tracker, “Value-Driven Innovation: How Restaurants Are Adapting to Digital Expectations,” show that nearly two-thirds of restaurant delivery decisions are driven by loyalty programs.

“I think data is probably our greatest resource next to our people,” Kevin Vasconi, chief digital and technology officer at Papa Johns, told PYMNTS in a March interview.