Congratulations! You are in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand. Bangkok is famous for many things; nightlife, pollution, traffic, activities, tourist hub, and food. Some people find it overwhelming. Some people find it fun and exciting. But I believe one thing we can all agree on is that when it comes to food options, Bangkok is probably one of the best places to be in the world.
Going out to restaurants and street food stalls could be fun and exciting. But after a while, having excellent food delivered to your place 24/7 with no need to deal with the worst traffic jam in the world is pretty amazing.
So whether you are new to Bangkok or have been here for a while, here is the ultimate guide for you to choose the best food delivery service.
A few things to note before we get started
- This blog is my personal experience ordering daily from the center of Bangkok (Ekamai area). Your experience might be different depending on your location.
- Each service has its pros and cons. Please see for yourself which one works for you!
TLDR:
Foodpanda (3.5/5): The perfect option for anti-social people! (Probably your best option if you don’t speak Thai)
Grab Food (4/5): Flexibility comes with responsibility
Lineman (3/5): Unlimited options with endless communication
Get (-/5): It’s there as an option
Foodpanda
The perfect option for anti-social people!
My Rating: 3.5/5
Ordering
Food panda is my number one option when I’m busy. Since you can simply place an order and wait for the phone call when your food gets there. The menu is well-organized in both Thai and English. There’s no confirmation needed, and you don’t need to talk to anyone if you don’t want to. No worries if you don’t speak Thai.
Restaurant Options
Foodpanda has been trying to add more street food options, but the majority here will be more upscale restaurants. Most of the restaurants have Foodpanda reviews attached to it, but I’d say it’s a great idea to double-check with Google reviews. Sometimes you might find a big contrast between those two.
Speed
Unless it’s during rushing hours like office lunchtime, Foodpanda has been pretty good with their time estimation. Sometimes you might need to wait for your order for a long time after the restaurant has prepared it because there’s no driver to pick it up.
Payment and fees
You can pay both by credit card and cash. There are a lot of free delivery options. Some restaurants might charge around 40 THB or about 1.3 USD.
Cons
If something goes wrong, like your delivery man getting lost, it’s tough to get in touch with him. Customer service is also not great. They have both Thai and English chat support, but it could take you up to 20 minutes to talk with someone. A lot of times, their answer is, “we understand, but we cannot do anything.”
Another thing that makes me frustrated every time is their full-screen promo pop-up, offering promo codes that rarely work.
Grab Food
Flexibility comes with responsibility
My Rating: 4/5
Ordering
Comparing to Foodpanda, Grab Food offers you more flexibility. After you place an order, Grab will look for a driver nearby to pick it up. For some restaurants, your order will go directly to the store. For other places, your driver will need to go there in person to order food and wait for you. The benefit of Grab is that you can tell your driver if you need anything extra from the menu or have any additional note both by chat and calling. If you don’t speak Thai, Grab has an auto-translation by Google, but as you know, the translation could still be confusing. Since Grab drivers get paid by each ride, not by salary like Foodpanda, they don’t like to go to places that are too far or busy restaurants that require a long waiting time. They would also need you to send a confirmation message after your order, which adds an extra layer to your ordering process.
Restaurant Options
Grab has more variety options than Foodpanda, including both upscale places, chain restaurants, and street food. They have just started a review system, so there are not as many reviews yet compared to other services. Many menus are still in Thai.
Speed
The delivery time depends on your location and the restaurant. Grab has a rider assigned to your order, so you can be sure that he will be there to pick up your food when it’s ready.
Payment and fees
You can pay by credit card, cash, and Grabpay Wallet, which is integrated with your bank account. The delivery fees vary by restaurant and the area, but most of the time, it’s between 10THB (0.32USD) to 50THB (1.61USD).
Cons
Grab drivers are picky sometimes. They get paid around 40THB each ride, so time is essential to them. You need to send a confirmation message when ordering, so if you disappear, they can get the money that paid for your food back from the company. Plus, the driver will be very frustrated if the restaurant has a long queue or if you take over 5 minutes to get your food when it’s delivered.
Lineman
Unlimited options with endless communication
My Rating: 3/5
Ordering
With Lineman, drivers will need your attention every step of the way. After you place an order, a rider will call to confirm your order. Then he will ask you to confirm the order price on the screen pop-up. He might call again if something is wrong. The menu on Lineman is also not as well-organized as other apps since it comes from crowd-sourcing. If you order from their partner restaurant, it will be more straightforward and similar to Foodpanda or Grab.
Restaurant Options
Lineman has the most restaurant options since you can order from pretty much every restaurant on Wongnai (it’s the Thai version of Yelp or TripAdvisor). The review is trustworthy and legit from the real users.
Speed
Similar to Grab, Lineman has a driver assigned to your order, which means your delivery time depends on the restaurants.
Payment and fees
Most of the places only accept cash, and you can only order up to 1,000 THB (32.29 USD) per order. The cost is significantly higher than other options since it’s charged by distance. You can look for their partner restaurants, which offer a 10THB (0.32USD) delivery fee.
Cons
As mentioned, Lineman needs you to be there with your driver through the whole process. A basic level of Thai is required. But if something goes wrong, their customer support line is pretty good with helping you out quickly.
Get
It’s there as an option
My Rating: -/5
Ordering
To be honest, I don’t use Get much since all the options above already provide everything I need. Get is the newest provider in Bangkok. The menu is improving but not yet fully organized. Ordering is like Lineman or Grab; you will have a driver assigned to your order. You can also chat with your driver through the whole process.
Restaurant Options
Most of the time, there is only a Thai menu. According to my mom, Get has better restaurant options, especially local places, and offers more promotions.
Speed
Similar to Grab and Lineman, Get has a driver assigned to your order, which means your delivery time depends on the restaurant.
Payment and fees
For the partner restaurants, your delivery fee will be 10THB (0.32USD). Other than that, Get charges by distance. And they only accept cash.
Cons
I can’t say much since I haven’t been using this personally. But I think the menu could be improved a lot, for example, grouping items and offering an English menu.
I hope this blog helps your life in Bangkok to be better! I’d be curious to know your experience dealing with food delivery in Bangkok as well! Please leave a comment and share this if you think it’s useful! 🙂
