Restaurant industry insights: Zomato, Swiggy and running the business
Plain-English summaries of reporting and guides that matter to Indian restaurant, café and cloud-kitchen owners: platform commission and discount disputes, Zomato and Swiggy results, cost control, marketing, ordering channels beyond the aggregators and the wider HORECA market. Every figure is attributed to its source, and every article links to the original reporting.
Zomato & Swiggy
A ₹400 Order, a ₹220 Payout: The Deductions Behind Bengaluru's Zomato and Swiggy Boycott Threat
Bengaluru's hotel association threatened that its members would stop taking Zomato and Swiggy orders from August 15, 2026 unless terms changed, and The Week's report set out, line by line, what comes off a restaurant's bill.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyAre Zomato and Swiggy Really a Monopoly? The Case Against NRAI's Complaint
Harshit Rakheja's essay says the monopoly label oversells the problem with Zomato and Swiggy, yet an investigation by India's competition regulator has already found against the platforms on a related point.
5 min read Zomato & SwiggyCan ONDC Compete With Zomato and Swiggy? How the Network Works and Where It Struggles
Product manager Asad Abrar's 2023 breakdown treats ONDC as infrastructure with working parts, and sets out where the model is still exposed: delivery, support and how the network will make money.
4 min read Zomato & SwiggyCCI Investigation Into Zomato and Swiggy: What the Probe Found
The Tribune, carrying a PTI report, set out what the Competition Commission of India's probe of Zomato and Swiggy concluded after NRAI complained, and what still has to happen before a final order.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyHow Zomato and Swiggy Ended Up as India's Food Delivery Duopoly
An Investek analysis explains how a busy field of delivery apps shrank to two, and where each of the survivors gets its present advantage.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyIs Zomato Moving to Zero Commission? Where the Rumour Really Came From
Inc42 traced talk of Zomato scrapping restaurant commission back to Ownly, Rapido's food delivery arm, which takes no commission from restaurants to win them from Zomato and Swiggy.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggyNRAI's Complaint Against Zomato and Swiggy: What CCI Pursued in 2022, and What It Set Aside
The National Restaurant Association of India raised six complaints about the two delivery platforms; according to TechCrunch, the competition regulator set several aside and sent narrower conduct for investigation, treating one structural issue most seriously.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggySaid No to a Zomato Commission Hike? What Mumbai Restaurant Owners Reported Next
Several Mumbai restaurant owners told YourStory in 2023 about shrinking delivery radiuses, uneven commission demands and paid visibility that did not add up, and the piece also weighed other explanations for what they saw.
4 min read Zomato & SwiggySwiggy Bolt Explained: 10-Minute Meals, a 2 km Radius and 2,700+ Restaurants
Swiggy's 10-minute meal service depends on distance as much as kitchen speed, and TechCrunch's report explains how it was set up for restaurants and riders.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggySwiggy Commission and Payout Complaints: How Restaurant Partners See the Platform
Restaurants have pushed back hard on Swiggy's commission, discounting and payout reporting, while the platform spends on ten-minute meals and support schemes for its partners.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggySwiggy's Support for Restaurant Partners: Photoshoots, Hygiene Audits and Kitchen Equipment
Three programmes run through the Swiggy Owner app, each aimed at a different gap in how smaller restaurants operate and how they appear on the platform.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggyWhy 400+ Restaurant Brands Sent Delisting Notices to Swiggy Dineout
In October 2022, Inc42 reported a wave of well-known chains pulling out of Swiggy's dine-in discount programme, with NRAI putting the count at more than 900 outlets in a fortnight.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggyWhy Food Delivery Still Isn't Profitable in India: Zomato and Swiggy's Q2 FY26 Numbers
A decade into Indian food delivery, Storyboard18's review of the Q2 FY26 results finds Swiggy's loss growing and Zomato's profit shrinking, with low fees and small orders at the root.
4 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato and Swiggy Deductions: How ₹1 Lakh in Orders Can Shrink to ₹40,000
The News Minute's August 2026 reporting from Bengaluru sets out how discounts and extra charges eat into what restaurants actually receive, and what the platforms agreed to after a boycott threat.
5 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato and Swiggy Discounts: Why Restaurants Are Fighting Back
Restaurant complaints about aggregator discounting have turned into organised pushback, and a leaked antitrust probe lends them weight, though some commentators doubt the platforms are really the villain.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato and Swiggy FY25 Results: A ₹527 Crore Profit Against a ₹3,117 Crore Loss
IndMoney's line-by-line look at FY25 shows how far apart the two platforms' finances now sit, and why Zomato's profit comes with a footnote.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato Commission for Restaurants: What Decides a Rate Between 10% and 28%
Verdict Food Service's report sets out what decides a restaurant's Zomato commission, which fee changes are already live, and the outside and internal pressures sitting behind Eternal's review.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato from the restaurant side: fee hikes, Gold discounts and the CCI probe
Seen from the restaurant side, Zomato's story is one of rising commission, a discount programme restaurants pulled out of, and a regulator that found fault.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato Gold Logout: Why Restaurants Walked Away From 1+1 Offers
In August 2019, The Quint explained why restaurants were leaving Zomato Gold's 1+1 dining deal, one of the first public fights over aggregator discounts and one whose complaints keep coming back.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato Hyperpure, Instant and Street Vendors: What Zomato Is Building Beyond Delivery
StartupTalky's comparison of the two delivery apps spends most of its time on the projects Zomato runs outside core delivery, and several of them directly affect restaurant partners.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato vs Swiggy for Restaurants: Profit, Market Share and Where to List
One platform turned a net profit in FY25 and the other lost more money; here is how Zomato and Swiggy compare on the measures a restaurant should care about when choosing where to sell.
2 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato vs Swiggy Valuation: Why Investors Pay Twice as Much for Zomato's Sales
A Motilal Oswal analysis looks at the two delivery platforms the way investors do, and asks why the market prices them so differently.
3 min read Zomato & SwiggyZomato's Bistro and Swiggy's Snacc: What Platform-Owned Food Brands Mean for Restaurant Data
Entrackr's April 2025 investigation tested Blinkit's promises about Bistro against what actually shows up in the apps, found Snacc promoted in the main Swiggy app, and noted a CCI finding already on record.
4 min readRunning the Business
Five Restaurant KPIs to Check Every Week, Not Just When the Monthly P&L Arrives
Restaurant365 argues that a handful of numbers reviewed every week catches problems that a monthly P&L only reports once they have already happened.
2 min read Running the BusinessHow to attract new customers to your restaurant: 15 ideas sorted by what they cost
Fishbowl lists 15 ways to win first-time guests, and once they are sorted by what each one needs, a good share turn out to ask for consistency and effort rather than ad money.
4 min read Running the BusinessHow to Build a Restaurant Brand: Five Steps Beyond the Logo
SevenRooms links consistent branding to higher revenue and better staff retention, and sets out a five-step way to build a restaurant identity, with three real examples.
4 min read Running the BusinessHow to improve restaurant profit margins: where food and labour costs slip away
Food and labour costs rarely rise by accident; the money goes through specific gaps in buying, portioning and rostering that you can close.
3 min read Running the BusinessHow to Price Menu Items Using Food Cost Percentage
Toast's menu pricing guide works from cost data upwards: the core formulas, prime cost, the main pricing models and the psychology that shapes what a guest pays.
4 min read Running the BusinessHow to Reduce Restaurant Labour Cost Without Cutting Shifts
CrunchTime's case for fixing the wage bill with better forecasting, overtime alerts, cross-training and easy shift swaps rather than fewer people on the floor.
3 min read Running the BusinessMenu Engineering for a New Zomato or Swiggy Delivery Menu
A 2026 RetailPOS guide argues that a delivery menu should be sorted and priced before the listing goes live, not tidied up months later.
3 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant brand identity: what your colours, fonts and uniforms tell guests
Guests have worked out what kind of restaurant you are from your colours, lettering, uniforms and room before they have read a word of the menu, a Rewards Network guide argues.
4 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Costs in India: Riyaaz Amlani on Rent, GST, Licences and Break-Even
The Impresario CEO's Outlook Business interview on why restaurant margins were thin before Covid, with the cost ratios and break-even figures behind his argument.
4 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Customer Retention: Why the Fourth Visit Matters Most
Michelin-awarded restaurateur Josh Kopel explains the figures behind marketing for repeat visits, and why the fourth visit is the one that signals lifetime value.
4 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Expansion: Three Numbers to Stress-Test Before the Next Outlet
Ben Belflower's QSR Magazine framework for checking whether a restaurant's economics will hold across more units, before another lease is signed.
5 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Inventory Management: Five Habits That Keep Food Cost Under Control
Five stock-control habits, from par levels to buying alongside other restaurants, that expose rising food cost early, well before the monthly P&L does.
5 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Labour Cost Percentage: How to Calculate It and Keep It in Check
The formula for your labour cost percentage, typical ranges by format, six ways to manage it and three errors that push payroll up without anyone noticing.
3 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant marketing strategies that bring diners through the door
Restaurants that market well tend to put their money into a handful of channels that convert, behind a brand that feels the same wherever a guest meets it.
3 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant social media marketing: what each platform is good for, and how often to post
According to a Sprout Social guide, no fewer than 74% of diners now turn to social media when picking a restaurant, with Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, X and Snapchat each calling for different content.
4 min read Running the BusinessRestaurant Turnaround Plan: Diagnose the Problem Before You Rebrand
When sales stall, a new name and a new look can seem like the answer. A turnaround guide from Aaron Allen & Associates starts with diagnosis instead.
2 min readBeyond the Aggregators
Can a Cloud Kitchen Run Without Zomato and Swiggy? Counting the Cost
Restaurant India's 2026 analysis puts numbers on what the aggregators cost a cloud kitchen, and on what it takes to build the same things yourself.
4 min read Beyond the AggregatorsDirect Ordering for Restaurants: Relying Less on Zomato and Swiggy
More restaurants in India are setting up ordering channels of their own, not to walk away from Zomato and Swiggy but to depend on them less.
2 min read Beyond the AggregatorsHow Restaurants Cut Their Dependence on Zomato and Swiggy: Ordering, Payment and Delivery Alternatives
KrASIA's June 2021 report follows a Bengaluru outlet owner trying to shrink his reliance on the two apps, and the ordering, payment and delivery services restaurants turned to.
4 min read Beyond the AggregatorsNRAI's #OrderDirect Campaign: How Restaurants Built Alternatives to Zomato and Swiggy in 2021
The Week's May 2021 report caught the point where restaurants moved from objecting to aggregators to setting up their own ways to take and deliver orders.
3 min read Beyond the AggregatorsPOS-Integrated Online Ordering: What Running Your Own Ordering Channel Involves
Oracle's product page for its Simphony point-of-sale system sets out what it takes for orders from a restaurant's own website or app to flow straight into the till and the kitchen.
4 min read Beyond the AggregatorsWhy Indian Restaurants Are Moving From Paper Tickets to POS Systems
Restaurant India's reporting on the move from handwritten bills to point-of-sale systems, with Petpooja's growth figures showing how far the change has spread beyond the metros.
3 min readIndustry Watch
Dining Experience Trends in India: Why Consistency Counts for More Than Viral Buzz
Two Aspect Hospitality executives explain to Local Samosa how diner expectations, smaller cities and cost pressure are reshaping restaurants, and set out their goal of more than 1,000 outlets.
3 min read Industry WatchIndia's Restaurant Market in Numbers: Size, Growth, Delivery Share and Payments
Market size, growth by format, delivery share and payment habits, taken from Restroworks' round-up of statistics on India's restaurant sector.
4 min read Industry WatchIndian restaurant industry growth: what the numbers show
NRAI's figures put India on course to pass Japan and become the third-largest food services market worldwide by 2028, though the road there has been bumpy.
3 min read Industry WatchNRAI's March 2020 Advisory: Why Restaurants Were Asked to Shut Before Any Order
Deccan Herald's report on the restaurant association's call for a voluntary shutdown, the reasons it gave in its own statement, and the list of relief it asked for.
2 min readBuilding Community
Inclusive restaurant design: the four layers of a neighbourhood place that welcomes everyone
Ballard Beer Box, a Seattle brewery and pizzeria, sets out four layers of inclusive design and argues that a neighbourhood restaurant can become a "third place" for the people around it.
4 min read Building CommunityRestaurant Community Engagement Ideas: First Work Out Who Your Community Is
Escoffier instructors and chefs argue that community work starts with knowing exactly who lives and eats near you, then offer practical ways to act on that.
4 min read Building CommunityRestaurant community involvement: nine low-cost ways to earn local goodwill
The Specialty Restaurant Association sets out nine practical ways for a restaurant to build ties with its neighbourhood, using examples from UK operators such as Young's pubs.
4 min read Building CommunityRestaurant customer loyalty beyond discounts: becoming a neighbourhood third place
A discount can win a single visit; lasting regulars come from a restaurant becoming part of local life.
3 min read Building CommunityRestaurant Event Nights: Why Ticketed, Prepaid Bookings Are Becoming a Revenue Line
A TableMesh article, using Caterease and OpenTable data, explains why themed nights and group bookings now bring in real money, and how prepayment deals with no-shows.
3 min read Building CommunityWhy community engagement pays off for restaurants, and how to plan it properly
A guide from Sauce turns the idea of giving back locally into a plan: six returns to expect, four disciplines to settle first and a set of inexpensive ways to begin.
4 min readReading is the easy part
If something here sounds like your restaurant, tell us what you are seeing on Zomato, Swiggy or in your P&L and we will tell you where we would start.