Some nights, often when the weather was especially nice, I made less than $30. On my best night-the strip club night-I took home almost $90 after an exhausting four-hour sprint. I wondered what would happen if I got hit by a bus while out on a delivery. I never had reason to believe the amount I received didn't match the receipts, though I heard from other riders that tip skimming and receipt withholding did sometimes occur with other delivery apps. Sometimes, when I was out for a delivery at the end of a shift, they would add the in-app tips up without me present. Usually, the manager or owner did this in front of me, physically going through the printed-out receipts, adding up the tips, and then paying them out from the register as a lump sum. In-app tips would be counted up either at the end of the night or at the end of each delivery run, and then paid out in cash. The shifts were all four to six hours long, and the restaurants directly paid me a base shift rate of $20 to $40 in cash, which was supplemented by cash and in-app tips. In my first week on Mike's list, I snagged one weekly shift at a gourmet pizza joint and a few subs at a handful of different places. I never learned his last name, and I'd been working for him for two weeks before I met him in person. Mike coordinated delivery for several North Brooklyn restaurateurs, who all paid him in cash. If you replied first, the shift was yours. 'Cool,' Mike responded, 'I'll put you on my list.' Mike texted all of his riders whenever a shift became available. The buddy told me to text a guy named Mike and tell him I was looking for delivery work. When I moved to New York City in the summer of 2014 without a job or a plan, my roommate suggested that I talk to a cycling buddy of his. In many cases, the 'moms' bringing food to the customer's front door aren't officially employed by the restaurant, or by anyone.ĭelivery work is most lucrative when it is dangerous and unpleasant one rider told me he made $300 during a freak November blizzard.

But who exactly is 'us'? Seamless receives a commission from restaurants for every order placed on their platform, but it's up to the restaurants to coordinate delivery. The role of your mom will be played by us,' reads one of the ads in the company's current subway campaign. To the customer on the receiving end of a Seamless delivery, the informal network of labor that makes the app possible is not necessarily visible. As a member of the shadowy hoard of riders delivering North Brooklyn's Seamless orders, I was beholden to no one.

No one seemed particularly concerned, though, as long as I showed up for my shifts on time. Staffers who contributed to this compendium include Erika Adams, Emma Alpern, Matt Buchanan, Sonia Chopra, Terri Ciccone, Serena Dai, Patty Diez, Brittany Holloway- Brown, Luke Fortney, Amanda Kludt, Jaya Saxena, Robert Sietsema, Ryan Sutton, and Tanay Warerkar.I was beyond unqualified for this job. Note: This map is an updated version of one originally published on March 23. Remember to tip well and call before using a delivery platform such as Seamless or Caviar, which comes with hefty fees for consumers and restaurants. It’s not an exhaustive list - check in on the Instagrams and websites of your favorites, too - and details such as hours and menu items may change, as restaurateurs adapt to reduced business and a new business model. Here are some of the favorite places of Eater staffers that are still offering takeout or delivery to some extent. But many are also opting to stay open in hopes of bringing in some revenue to cover costs such as rent and taxes, while others are using it as a way to employ a few staffers. It’s not an easy time for restaurants most of them in New York have temporarily closed, an important measure to help curb the spread of COVID-19 in NYC.

Seamless food delivery brooklyn