What Is Waitr and How Does It Work?

If you live in the southern US and want to explore new local restaurants while maintaining the convenience of delivery or pickup orders, Waitr can be a great option for you. Waitr partners with restaurants making food delivery and carryout fast and affordable.

Keep reading for more information about Waitr, including how it works and where it’s available!

What Is Waitr?

Waitr is a food delivery service that specializes in the southern US. Through Waitr, you can order delivery or carryout from your favorite local restaurants with no order minimums.

Waitr allows you to browse the local restaurant menus and customize orders to fit your taste and dietary needs.

If you’ve ever been frustrated by the lack of menu photos on other food delivery apps, Waitr may be a great option.

They allow restaurants to upload high-quality photos of all their menu items, allowing you to get a good look at each menu option before placing your order.

Waitr also offers both delivery and carryout, so you can choose the best option for your schedule and lifestyle.

In select locations, Waitr has recently begun offering grocery delivery, which can save you time running errands and ordering breakfast, lunch, or dinner, all on one platform.

Where Is Waitr Available?

Waitr is currently only available in the southern US but is always working on expanding its availability to more cities.

Waitr is available in select cities in the following southern states:

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Florida
• Georgia
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Oklahoma
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia

The easiest way to find out if Waitr is available near you is to enter your address into their website or the Waitr app.

However, if you’re looking for a full list of all the cities where Waitr is available, you can also visit their website.

If Waitr doesn’t currently operate in your area, you can request that they expand to your location by visiting their website or emailing them at [email protected].

What Are Waitr’s Delivery Hours?

Waitr’s delivery hours are from 7 am to 11 pm or 11:30 pm, depending on the day of the week.

However, delivery hours at any given individual restaurant may vary.

To see a specific restaurant’s delivery hours, select that restaurant on the Waitr website.

Near the top of the page, you should see a section that says ‘Waitr Delivery Hours,’ where you’ll be able to see that restaurant’s delivery hours on Waitr for each day of the week.

You’ll also be able to see that restaurant’s hours under the ‘Merchant Hours’ section.

If that restaurant’s delivery hours are over, but their merchant hours are still open, you may still be able to do a carryout order from that restaurant, just not a delivery order.

Waitr does not offer delivery on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

However, depending on the specific restaurant’s hours, you may still be able to do a carryout order.

Below is the table showing Waitr’s delivery hours.

Day	Waitr Delivery Hours
Sunday	7 am – 11 pm
Monday	7 am – 11 pm
Tuesday	7 am – 11 pm
Wednesday	7 am – 11 pm
Thursday	7 am – 11 pm
Friday	7 am – 11:30 pm
Saturday	7 am – 11:30 pm

Note that an individual restaurant’s delivery hours on Waitr may vary.

How Does Waitr Work?

You can place a Waitr delivery order on their website or the app. You can browse local restaurants near you, look at their menu items, and add your desired items to your cart.

First, you’ll need to enter your address to ensure that Waitr is available in your area.

Once you’ve confirmed that Waitr is available in your area, you’ll be able to browse local restaurants and decide where you’d like to order from.

Then, you’ll be able to browse menu items and add your desired items to your cart.

Before you check out, you’ll be asked to create a Waitr account, check out as a guest, or log into your account if you have one already.

You can choose whether you’d like your order to be a delivery or carryout and what time you’d like your order to be ready.

Finally, you’ll be able to enter your delivery address, phone number, and payment method, add a tip for your delivery driver and submit your order.

How Much Does Waitr Cost?

Individual restaurants set their own menu prices on Waitr. In addition to the cost of food, you can expect to pay sales tax, a service fee, a delivery fee ranging from $3.99 to $8.49, and a tip if you’re ordering delivery.

Each restaurant that partners with Waitr is given free rein to set its menu prices.

That means the price you pay for a menu item may be higher using Waitr than at the restaurant itself.

When you place a Waitr order, you’ll also be charged sales tax and a service fee, regardless of whether you’re placing a delivery or carryout order.

The service fee is calculated based on your order total and goes towards the cost of maintaining Waitr’s delivery network.

The service fee is not a tip and will not go to your delivery driver.

You’ll also pay a flat delivery fee if you place a delivery order.

While the delivery fee will not change regardless of your order size, it will vary from city to city or state to state.

Delivery fees may be as low as $3.99 per order or as high as $8.49.

Finally, if you’re placing a delivery order, you’ll also be asked to add a tip for your delivery driver.

If you’d prefer, you also can hand your driver a cash tip upon delivery.

If you follow Waitr’s Twitter account, you can take advantage of the promo codes they regularly tweet out, getting discounts on orders or even free delivery!

Can You Get Alcohol Delivered With Waitr?

You can get alcohol delivered from select merchants through Waitr.

As is the case with all food delivery services, the availability of alcohol delivery through Waitr may vary from county to county and from state to state.

If you order an alcohol item through Waitr, you will have to present a valid photo ID that matches the name you used to place the order.

If you cannot provide a valid photo ID with a matching name, you will not be able to receive your alcohol item.

What Payment Methods Does Waitr Accept?

Waitr currently accepts debit cards, credit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay as payment methods.

You can pay for your Waitr order using a credit or debit card from Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, JCB, or Diners.

If you’re ordering through the Waitr app, you can also use Apple Pay or Google Pay to pay for your order.

Unfortunately, Waitr currently does not accept restaurant gift cards, nor does it have its own gift card option.

You can use cash to tip your Waitr driver, but you cannot use cash to pay for your order.

How to Use Waitr App

You can place a delivery order using the Waitr website or the app.

All you need to do is enter your address, browse local restaurants, add items to your cart, choose delivery or carryout and enter your payment information.

Here are the steps to placing an order using the Waitr app.

Step 1. Enter your address to check if Waitr is available in your area.

Step 2. Once you’ve entered your address and confirmed that Waitr delivers to you, you can browse local restaurants in your area.

Step 3. Tap the restaurant you’d like to order from to browse their menu items.

Step 4. Tap a specific menu item to add customizations and add it to your cart.

Step 5. Once you’ve added items to your cart, tap ‘Review Order.’ At the top of the screen, you’ll select whether you want your order to be a delivery or carryout. Once you’ve selected your desired method and reviewed all the items in your cart, tap ‘Proceed To Checkout.’

Step 6. Now, you’ll be able to create a Waitr account or sign in if you already have an account.

Step 7. Next, you’ll be asked to choose whether you’d like your order to be prepared ASAP or scheduled at a later time. If you’re placing a delivery order, you’ll also be asked to enter your phone number and address.

Step 8. If you’re placing a delivery order, you’ll also be asked to select a tip amount. Towards the bottom of the screen, you’ll be able to see your order subtotal, delivery fee, sales tax, and service fee.

Step 9. Finally, you’ll be asked to enter your payment method. Once you’ve done that, you can submit your order!

Do You Tip Waitr Drivers?

You should always tip your Waitr driver, and the recommended tip amount is 15-20% of your order total.

You can tip when placing your order or tip with cash upon delivery.

Waitr drivers are independent contractors, not employees of Waitr or Waitr’s partner restaurants, and they often rely heavily on tips for their income.

When you place an order through Waitr, you can tip one of their recommended amounts calculated based on your order total or a custom amount.

If you’re placing a delivery order, 100% of the tip goes to your Waitr driver.

If you’re placing a carryout order, the tip goes to the restaurant’s account and is distributed to employees according to internal restaurant policies.

If you’d prefer to tip your Waitr driver in cash, you can also do that at the time of delivery.

According to Waitr, the average Waitr customer tips 20%.

We recommend tipping 15-20% of your order total, especially if you’ve received exemplary service.

How to Contact Waitr Customer Service

If you need to contact Waitr customer support, you can do so through their live chat or email address.

It may be worth browsing Waitr’s FAQ page first to see if there’s an answer to your question or issue.

If you can’t find the answer to your question or would prefer to contact someone directly, there are a few ways you can connect to Waitr customer support.

On Waitr’s Contact Us page, scroll down until you see the heading that says ‘I’m a Customer.’

Underneath, you should see a button that says ‘Chat Live With Us.’

The customer service live-chat screen will pop up when you tap that button.

Follow the instructions to chat with a Waitr customer support representative.

Alternatively, you can email Waitr’s customer service at [email protected].

Finally, you can tweet Waitr’s official Twitter account at @Waitrapp.

If you’re a merchant partnering with Waitr, you may also find answers to commonly-asked questions on their FAQ page.

Waitr’s customer service live chat option also caters to merchants and delivery drivers.

If you’re a merchant or delivery driver and want to speak to a Waitr customer service representative, you can call 833-609-1021 (for merchants) or 833-609-1036 (for delivery drivers).

Conclusion

Waitr is a great app for people living in the southern US to explore local restaurants and save time through delivery or carryout orders.

Waitr allows you to browse local restaurants, view high-quality images of menu items, customize orders to suit your dietary needs, and choose whether you’d like delivery or pickup.

For more information on food delivery services, check out the articles below.

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