Everyone’s been there – scrolling through delivery apps at 9 PM, stomach growling, dreaming of that perfect meal showing up at your door. But here’s the thing: some foods just weren’t meant to travel. The online food delivery industry is expected to hit $200 billion by 2025, yet most people keep making the same costly mistakes that turn their dream dinner into a soggy disappointment. What seems like a great idea on the app can quickly become an expensive lesson in what not to order.
Ordering when you’re absolutely starving
Picture this: it’s 8 PM, you just got home from work, and you’re so hungry you could eat a cardboard box. This is exactly when you shouldn’t be placing that delivery order. When you’re starving, patience goes out the window, and every minute feels like an hour. You start checking the app every two minutes, wondering why your food isn’t there yet.
The reality is that delivery takes time – the food has to be prepared, picked up by a driver, and then navigate through traffic to reach you. This whole process can easily take 45 minutes to an hour, sometimes longer during peak times. Instead of ordering when you’re hangry, plan ahead and place your order before you’re absolutely starving. Your mood (and your delivery driver’s rating) will thank you.
Getting anything fried or crispy
French fries are probably the biggest delivery letdown of all time. Those golden, crispy beauties you see in photos turn into limp, soggy disappointments the moment they’re sealed in a container. The same goes for fried chicken, onion rings, tempura, and basically anything that depends on being crispy for its appeal. The steam from hot food gets trapped in the container, creating a sauna effect that kills any hope of crispiness.
Fried calamari is another prime example – what starts as tender rings with a perfect crunch becomes chewy rubber with soggy breading falling off in chunks. Some restaurants try to combat this with ventilated containers, but most don’t bother. If you’re craving something fried, either pick it up yourself or choose a restaurant that’s less than 10 minutes away. Better yet, save the fried food for when you can eat it fresh at the restaurant.
Ordering food that spoils quickly
Sushi is a perfect example of food that has a very short window of perfection. While a pizza can sit in your fridge for days and still be decent reheated, sushi needs to be eaten the same day you order it. The rice starts to harden, the fish loses its fresh taste, and the whole experience becomes mediocre at best. The same principle applies to any raw or barely cooked foods that depend on freshness.
Salads with dressing already applied are another disaster waiting to happen. The greens start wilting immediately, and by the time it reaches your door, you’re looking at a sad, soggy mess. If you’re ordering these types of foods, make sure you’re hungry enough to finish everything in one sitting. Otherwise, stick to foods that keep well like pasta dishes, stews, or hearty soups that actually improve with a little time.
Getting steak or premium cuts of meat
Ordering a steak for delivery is basically throwing money away. Even if the chef cooks it perfectly to your requested temperature, it’s going to continue cooking in that hot container during transport. Your medium-rare ribeye will arrive as a well-done disappointment, and there’s no going back. The same applies to any premium cut of meat that you’ve paid good money for.
Fish faces the same problem – delicate proteins that require precise timing don’t survive the delivery journey well. A perfectly flaky salmon fillet becomes dry and overcooked, while more delicate fish like sole or flounder can turn into mush. The expensive proteins you’re paying premium prices for just aren’t worth it when they’re going to be compromised by the time they reach you. Save the steak dinner for when you can eat it fresh off the grill.
Ordering breakfast foods after morning
Breakfast foods are notorious for not traveling well, especially eggs. Omelets, eggs Benedict, and scrambled eggs have about a two-minute window of perfection before they start going downhill fast. By the time they reach your door, they’re often rubbery, cold, or separated in unappetizing ways. Pancakes and waffles turn into dense, lukewarm hockey pucks that no amount of syrup can save.
Bacon is another breakfast item that suffers during delivery – it either gets soggier sitting in its own grease or becomes so crispy it’s like eating cardboard. The only breakfast items that work for delivery are things like bagels, breakfast burritos, or wraps where everything is contained and protected. Even then, it’s hit or miss. If you’re craving breakfast foods, you’re better off making them yourself or hitting up a nearby diner.
Getting nachos or cheese-heavy dishes
Fresh nachos are a beautiful thing – crispy tortilla chips piled high with perfectly melted cheese, fresh toppings, and warm beans. But the moment they go into a delivery container, physics takes over. The cheese hardens and creates a concrete-like shell over everything underneath, the chips get soggy from steam and moisture, and the whole thing becomes an unappetizing mess.
The same thing happens with cheese fries, loaded potato skins, and similar dishes. The cheese that looked so appealing in the restaurant photos becomes a congealed nightmare that you’ll need a chisel to separate. Sour cream separates, guacamole turns brown, and what was supposed to be a delicious indulgence becomes a disappointing waste of money. Save the cheese-heavy dishes for when you can eat them fresh at the restaurant, where they belong.
Ordering from restaurants too far away
Just because an app shows you a restaurant doesn’t mean you should order from it. That amazing-looking Thai place that’s 45 minutes away might seem tempting, but your food is going to spend almost an hour in containers, getting cold, soggy, and generally deteriorating. Even foods that normally travel well start to suffer when they’re on the road for that long.
Distance also increases the chances of something going wrong – wrong turns, traffic jams, multiple stops for other deliveries. The longer your food spends in transit, the worse it’s going to be when it arrives. A good rule of thumb is to stick to restaurants within a 15-20 minute radius of your location. Your food will be fresher, warmer, and you’ll get it faster. Plus, you’ll be supporting local businesses in your immediate area.
Getting ice cream or frozen desserts
This one should be obvious, but people still do it. Ice cream, frozen yogurt, milkshakes, and ice cream cakes are all terrible delivery choices. Even with insulated bags, frozen desserts start melting the moment they leave the freezer. By the time they reach you, you’re looking at expensive soup instead of the frozen treat you ordered.
Milkshakes are particularly bad because they separate as they melt, creating an unappetizing mixture that no amount of stirring can fix. Ice cream cakes turn into a disaster zone of melted ice cream and soggy cake. Even supposedly “frozen” desserts like gelato don’t survive the journey well. If you want frozen desserts, either go pick them up yourself or choose something that doesn’t depend on staying frozen, like regular cake or cookies. Some desserts work for delivery, but frozen ones definitely don’t.
The key to successful food delivery is understanding that not every restaurant dish translates well to takeout. Some foods are meant to be eaten fresh, hot, and immediately. By avoiding these common delivery mistakes, you’ll save money, avoid disappointment, and actually enjoy your delivered meals. Stick to foods that travel well, order from nearby restaurants, and plan ahead instead of ordering when you’re starving.
