Facebook is testing a new “Order Food” feature that allows you to connect to local restaurants and order food directly on the platform.
In October, Facebook announced that it would be launching a new feature that allows users to order food on the platform from restaurants and other businesses that use Delivery.com or Slice. Users could order food through the Facebook Pages of the businesses in question by clicking on a special “Start Order” button.
Now, the company is testing a similar feature to a select few users in the United States, with a new “Order Food” button on both on mobile and desktop. If you have the feature, it will appear as a hamburger icon on your sidebar – colourful on desktop, and blue and white on mobile. The whole process, from ordering to paying happens directly from within Facebook, without the need to leave the platform.
Order Food on Facebook. #Facebook pic.twitter.com/wnC0lb64UC
— Jose Gutierrez (@fbjag) May 18, 2017
The new “Order Food” feature is really great for situations when you don’t know what you want to eat. Simply click and find a list of restaurants in your area, complete with the type of cuisine they offer, a photo, their price range, and user ratings. You can also easily get an idea of whether each restaurant offers delivery, pickup or both.
TechCrunch’s Sarah Perez explains the process that one user went through to order a calzone recently:
[quote]when you tap through to being your order, you’re able to browse the menu, add items to your cart, edit your order, add a suggested tip, then pay within Facebook, in a mobile experience powered by either Delivery.com or Slice.
After payment, a confirmation screen appears letting you now that you’ll also receive an email to confirm your order and a time frame when the order is expected to arrive or be ready for pickup.[/quote]
For now, the feature is still being tested, so it might be a little “buggy” to say the least. Perez also mentioned that Facebook has confirmed that the feature is related to the one announced in October, and that Facebook is simply testing another way for its users to discover new things to eat nearby. And because it’s just a test, all users might not ever get this new feature.
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