A Noida restaurant owner has slammed Zomato after the food delivery app offered zero payouts, charged arbitrary amounts and placed ads without consent. In a strongly worded post on X (formerly Twitter), the owner criticised the platform for its not-so-user-friendly practices, adding that he was pulling his restaurant from any listing on the app, whilst tagging CEO Deepinder Goyal. Responding to the viral post, Zomato told NDTV that all the marketing collaborations such as ads, promotions, and discounts etc., as well as commercials, are mutually discussed with our restaurant partners before being switched on, switched off or modified.
The user named Manish, who runs a restaurant called Saffroma in Noida Sector-26, specialising in biryani, kebab and mughlai, posted screenshots of the transactions to plead his case. The owner also called out Zomato's customer service as the point of contact (POC) ghosted him and his concerns
"Dear @zomato @deepigoyal I'm finally pulling my restaurant off your platform. Congrats! Your mystery service charges, surprise ad placements (without consent), and a POC who ghosts like it's a talent show-truly inspiring. Small outlets deserve better. Quality > commissions," he wrote.
"Is this how u support small businesses Mr @deepigoyal? 5 months into this business and I'm very clear about one thing...my case is just tip of the iceberg. There are countless stories of closed/failed businesses who relied solely on online platforms for orders."
In a statement to NDTV, Zomato said, "Our multi-factor authentication system ensures that partners retain full control and give explicit consent which is registered before any changes go live. We also maintain robust escalation mechanisms, allowing partners to raise concerns and receive prompt, satisfactory resolutions through the Restaurant Partner APP as well as centralised helpline numbers."
"We continue to see restaurants having confidence in our partnership and are taking a proactive step to improve and enhance our interactions and processes. For our smaller restaurant partners, we work extra hard to make it easier for them to grow with us. There are always opportunities to improve and we are committed to working on them, on-time," the statement further said.
Social media reacts
Mr Manish's plight resonated with other users who also shared their negative experience with Zomato and other food delivery apps.
"Even I am facing issues whereas I have seen big brands payouts with 0 charges for growth and ads I don't know how there deal works with Zomato maybe they pay separately," said one user while another added: "This makes no sense. What is that "investment in growth charges" they are deducting so much money under? You're basically giving stuff away for free at this point."
A third commented: "It was bound to happen. Zomato and Swiggy steal from both consumers and restaurants. Have been on the both sides."
(NDTV has reached out to Zomato for a comment.)
