How London Restaurants Are Ditching Deliveroo in 2026

London's restaurant scene runs hot, but margins are thin — and delivery app commission of 30%+ is squeezing owners hard. Here's how the smartest London restaurants are taking back control in 2026.

The Deliveroo squeeze

For a busy London restaurant, Deliveroo can be a huge share of orders — but at 30-35% commission, much never reaches the kitchen. (Full numbers in our Deliveroo commission guide.)

What London restaurants are doing instead

The smartest operators aren't quitting cold turkey. They're using a smarter strategy.

1. Building a direct ordering website

A direct site lets customers order straight from the restaurant — no commission, just ~1.5% card fees. On a £30 order, that's 45p versus £9+ on Deliveroo.

2. Converting Deliveroo customers to direct

Every order goes out with a QR code: "Order direct next time and get 15% off." The restaurant easily affords it — they're saving 30% commission. Customer saves, restaurant keeps more, Deliveroo is cut out of repeats.

3. Building a regulars list

Collecting emails and numbers through direct orders builds a list you own. A "Friday night offer" text to 500 regulars drives instant direct orders.

4. Using Deliveroo for discovery only

Accept that first order at full commission, then convert that customer to direct ordering for everything after.

The maths

A London takeaway doing 400 orders/month at £30: all via Deliveroo at 30% = £3,600/month commission. Convert half to direct = £1,800/month saved = £21,600 a year.

The bottom line

London restaurants aren't abandoning Deliveroo — they're getting smarter. Use it for discovery, then convert customers to direct ordering where you keep your margins.

See how Bizzcraft enables direct ordering.