Zomato Joins the 15-Minute Delivery Race, Adds New Tab for Customers

Online food aggregator Zomato has ventured into the fast delivery market by introducing a 15-minute delivery option on its app. A dedicated “15 mins delivery” tab now appears in the app’s Explore section, providing customers with a list of food options that can be delivered within this timeframe.

Currently, the 15-minute delivery feature is not available for all orders. As observed, the restaurants listed under this tab are located within a 1.5 km radius from the delivery address. It remains unclear whether this feature has been rolled out nationwide.

Fierce Competition in Quick Delivery

This development comes a month after Zomato’s competitor Swiggy launched its 10-minute delivery app, ‘Bolt,’ which aims to expand into tier 2 and tier 3 cities. Swiggy’s Bolt allows users to order food from popular restaurants and QSRs (quick-service restaurants) within 10 minutes. The service initially debuted in six cities: Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune.

In December, Blinkit, Zomato’s grocery arm, launched a food delivery app called Bistro, shortly after the debut of its rival, Zepto Cafe. While both Bistro and Zepto Cafe promise 10-minute deliveries of snacks, meals, and beverages, Bistro operates via cloud kitchens, whereas Zepto is focusing on opening physical restaurants.

A Second Attempt at Quick Delivery?

Interestingly, while Bistro marks Blinkit’s first foray into this space, Zomato’s new 15-minute delivery is its second attempt following the earlier launch of ‘Zomato Instant.’ In 2022, after facing customer backlash, Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal clarified that ‘Instant’ was limited to nearby locations and standardized, popular items.

Since there has been no official announcement regarding the new 15-minute delivery option, it remains to be seen whether this is a reboot of Zomato Instant or an entirely revamped initiative.