NEW REPORT: Why Mobile Order-Ahead Is The New Frontrunner At Saratoga

With the advent of mobile-order ahead technology and the popularity of mobile devices, speedy and convenient on-demand services are increasingly becoming mandatory for restaurants and other food service providers to survive, let alone thrive, in today’s mobile-centric, consumer-driven marketplace.

Whether a family looking for a quick and easy meal or a fan taking in his or her favorite sporting event, consumers have shown an interest in getting foods of all kinds more conveniently and quickly, thanks to the influence of mobile devices.

The September edition of the PYMNTS Mobile Order-Ahead Tracker, features headlines surrounding food service companies turning to mobile ordering and delivery services to make their customer experience faster and simpler than ever before.

Around the Mobile Order-Ahead world

Mobile delivery services may represent the peak of simple and convenient mobile food services, bringing meals — and, in some instances, beverages — directly to customers’ doors. Over the past month, several restaurants looked to offer increased delivery options to patrons.

Eatery chain BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse, for instance, announced its (over 21) customers in select California markets can now have popular alcohol options delivered along with their takeout orders — all as part of a new partnership with delivery service DoorDash.

Meanwhile, consumers in Bengaluru, India, now have a new food delivery option from a company that knows a little bit about on-demand consumerism. Ridesharing giant Uber expanded the company’s online food ordering and delivery service, UberEATS, into the region. The service debuted in California in 2014 and has since been rolling into other markets, and the company plans to offer UberEATS in other cities in India in the near future.

To read about the latest news and trends in the Mobile Order-Ahead space, check out the Tracker.

Why Mobile Order-Ahead may be a winning wager at the Saratoga Race Course

It seems that an old track can, in fact, learn new tricks. At the New York Racing Association’s (NYRA) Saratoga Race Course in upstate New York, which first hosted horse racing in the summer of 1863, attendees can now order and pay for meals, clothing and other merchandise from  the NYRA XP app on their mobile phones.

That means less time standing in line waiting and more time taking in the action on the track. As Bob Hughes, chief operating officer for the NYRA, explained to PYMNTS in a recent interview, installing mobile ordering technology at a unique and expansive venue like the Saratoga Race Course — all told, the complex at Saratoga holds 50,000 spectators and spans 350 acres — presented distinct challenges for the track’s mobile order-ahead team.

“It’s all changing constantly, and in a venue that is fairly large and spread out,” Hughes said. “It’s a very dynamic menu of services and options that the app has to be able to account for every day.”

To read the full story, download the latest Tracker.

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To download the September edition of the PYMNTS Mobile Order-Ahead Tracker click the button below.

About the Tracker

The PYMNTS Mobile Order-Ahead Tracker serves as a monthly framework for the space, providing coverage of the most recent news and trends, along with a provider directory highlighting the key players contributing across the segments that comprise the mobile order-ahead ecosystem.