Why DoorDash & UberEats Are Slowly Killing Food Trucks (And What You Can Do About It)

Let me hit you with some numbers that'll make you sick. Every time someone orders $20 worth of food from a food truck through DoorDash or UberEats, that vendor is handing over $6 to a company that did absolutely nothing except list them next to a thousand other restaurants.

I'm Katie Carswell, Social Media Strategist at Outbites. I've worked with over 40 food truck owners, and I've watched them bleed money to these delivery apps without even realizing how bad it had gotten. This is the story of how one of my clients, who runs a taco food truck in Austin, finally did the math. And why you need to do it too.

The Day We Finally Did the Math

I remember the call from my client. It was a Tuesday night after a slow shift. She was going through her books, and something wasn't adding up. She was slammed on DoorDash and UberEats orders coming in constantly but her bank account looked... sad.

So we pulled up her statements together. Three months of data. Grabbed a calculator. And started adding. What we found changed everything.

The Brutal Breakdown

Here's what we found. On an average day, my client was doing about 45 orders through delivery apps. Average order value: $23.

Let me show you the receipts:

But Wait, It Gets Worse

The commission isn't even the whole story. Here are the other ways I've seen these apps bleed food trucks dry:

• Customer data? Gone. My clients have zero way to reach their regulars. A customer orders 10 times through DoorDash, and the vendor never knows their name or phone number.
• Menu control? Barely. Want to 86 an item because you ran out? Good luck updating it across 3 different platforms while you're slammed.
• Pricing power? Forget it. Vendors have to raise menu prices just to break even after commissions. Makes them look expensive compared to restaurants eating the fees.
• Brand identity? What brand? These trucks are just another thumbnail between Chipotle and the local Chinese place.

After working with dozens of food truck owners, I've seen the same pattern over and over: They're not running their own businesses anymore. They're working FOR DoorDash, and paying 30% for the privilege of renting their own customers back to them.

The Breaking Point

The moment that broke my client? She had a regular customer (let's call her Dolly) who'd been ordering every Friday for months. One day Dolly came to the truck in person and said, "Wait, you're on DoorDash? I've been paying delivery fees this whole time?"

Dolly had NO IDEA she could just... walk up and order. DoorDash made it seem like that was the only option. And my client couldn't even text her when she was parked at her office building because she didn't have her number.

What We Did About It

I'm not gonna bullshit you with a "and then everything was perfect" story. Making the switch was scary for my client. What if customers couldn't find her? What if orders dropped?

But we ran the numbers together. Even if she lost 30% of her orders, she'd still make the same money because she'd keep 100% of the sale instead of 70%.

So here's the strategy we implemented:

Step 1: Got Her Own Ordering Platform

We moved her to Outbites (yeah, this is on their blog, but stick with me). $1 per order instead of $6. We did the math would save her over $1,000/month immediately.

Step 2: Told Her Customers

Put a QR code on her truck. I created social posts for her Instagram. We sent messages to everyone who'd ever given her their info. "Order direct, save money on fees, and I'll throw in a free drink."

Step 3: Built Customer Ownership

Started collecting phone numbers. Set up a loyalty program (included free with Outbites, which would've cost her $45/month with Square). Now when she's setting up at a new spot, she texts her VIPs.

Your Turn: Do the Math

I'm not saying this strategy is the only way. Maybe your situation is different. Maybe you're unique.

But I AM saying: do the actual math. Pull up your statements right now. Calculate what you're really paying in commission fees per month.

Ask yourself:

• What could I do with an extra $1,000-5,000 per month?
• Do I actually OWN my customer relationships?
• Am I building a business, or just renting my truck to DoorDash?

The Bottom Line

DoorDash and UberEats aren't evil. They built massive platforms. They spent billions on marketing. They made ordering food stupid easy.

But they're not YOUR friend. They're not looking out for small business owners. They're charging 30% because they CAN, not because that's what the service is worth.

And every dollar you give them is a dollar you're not investing in YOUR business. Your staff. Your equipment. Your future.

I've seen this story play out with over 40 food trucks. The ones who take control of their customer relationships and their ordering platforms? They thrive. The ones who don't? They keep bleeding money and wondering why they can't get ahead.

About the Author: Katie Carswell is the Social Media Strategist at Outbites. She's helped dozens of food truck owners build profitable businesses by taking control of their customer relationships and ditching predatory commission fees. Her clients have collectively saved over $500k in commission fees in the past year alone.