DoorDash warns restaurants over Bites listings

The tension surfaced this summer when DoorDash sent a form letter to Bay Area restaurants, saying it had heard from 'several partners' who were added to Bites without their knowledge. The letter warned that restaurants may not have agreed to Bites' terms or pricing structures, may not control their menu accuracy, and that depending on the state such practices could be illegal. DoorDash spokesperson Lisa Singh said 'some restaurant partners raised concerns' about appearing on Bites without consent, and that no action was needed if they had opted in.

Bites' pitch is that platforms like DoorDash are the middleman, forcing restaurants to raise prices to cover commissions. Its founder and CEO, Bala Subramaniam, says the company heard from 14 restaurant partners who received a letter, and that some restaurants not listed on Bites wanted to join after learning about it. Restaurateur Jay Jayaraman, who has 13 restaurants on Bites, says 80 percent of his orders came from DoorDash before; now he estimates 65 percent come through Bites and 25 percent from DoorDash, and that his margins are higher with Bites.

The broader fight is over what happens when diners stop visiting apps and order through LLMs instead, which would strip delivery platforms of the ability to show boosted listings, offer deals, and monetize via ads. DoorDash's ads business hit $1 billion in 2024, while Amazon's ad business generated $19.8 billion in the second quarter of this year. DoorDash itself has signaled agentic ordering is a priority, announcing in September it was working on a way for diners to order within iMessage. Whether this shift materializes depends on customers and service providers agreeing it is the future — a test Jayaraman is still weighing, saying he wants a live demo from Bites before turning on ChatGPT ordering.