- GrabFood will be launching in Malaysia on May 28 to replace UberEATS.
- Differences include a reduced delivery radius, addition of rewards points, and a brand new layout.
- GrabFood is already available on app stores, but many users may find its current form rather basic and clunky.
It’s official: UberEATS is out of the picture, and their presence in Malaysia will be replaced with GrabFood starting from May 28.
GrabFood will be entering the market with more than 300 merchants available on its app, with names such as KGB, Makirito, La Juiceria, Jumble Chef, Inside Scoop, Devi’s Corner and other familiar names available to order from.
This is the most recent development following Uber’s shocking exit from the Southeast Asian market. It was announced that Grab has gobbled up the former UberEATS team as part of their acquisition deal. Many of the former UberEATS Malaysia team now serve GrabFood.
Despite stiff competition, Uber’s well-known name and strategic expansion have helped the food delivery service gain traction among Klang Valley-ites. Many are now eyeing the newly minted GrabFood carefully, wondering if it’s a viable replacement for what they’re hungry for.
How will GrabFood differ from UberEATS?
1. Areas of service
Now that the delivery service is starting afresh, GrabFood delivers to less areas now compared to UberEATS’ most recent delivery radius.
Based on their most recent press release, GrabFood will only be available in Mont Kiara, Sri Hartamas, Bukit Damansara and Bangsar.
Previous UberEATS users from areas such as Subang Jaya, Petaling Jaya, Bandar Utama, TTDI and Bandar Sunway will have to wait for the service to return to their areas.
GrabFood stated that more areas will follow in the coming weeks.
2. Rewards points
Every GrabFood order gives users GrabRewards points. These points can be redeemed for ride discounts, to vouchers from various food places, and even services like haircuts and petrol.
For every ringgit spent, Grab grants 5 GrabRewards points. It remains to be seen if the rewards would translate to future GrabFood orders as well.
3. From a user’s perspective, it’s easier to scroll through food options.
The layout is not as intuitive as UberEATS (perhaps because GrabFood Malaysia is still not officially launched) but we think the layout is more convenient once you’ve figured it out.
Do note that we are previewing the Android version of the app, as the apps currently look different for Android and iOS users.
On UberEATS, you have to click on a restaurant and enter a new page before you can scroll through its food options. Meanwhile, GrabFood lets you scroll through both restaurants and food options on the same page.
Other than that, many of UberEATS’ unique features will be making a comeback in GrabFood.
Functions that will remain include:
- No minimum orders
- An RM5 flat delivery rate no matter where you’re located
- You can schedule orders up to five days in advance, or set a specific time for the food to arrive
In fact, GrabFood has picked up on UberEATS’ side-mission: delivering food from smaller, locally-owned restaurants alongside the big franchise names.
According to a Grab press release, their own research into the areas that GrabFood has penetrated reveals that the service can be a revenue game-changer, especially for small businesses.
GrabFood wants to get vendors from shops or stalls that are located in more remote and under-served areas onto their platform—which was a focus of UberEATS Malaysia as well.
That being said, GrabFood has some early access drawbacks to fix.
Item photos can be squished or low-quality, and the design of the app does seem rather clunky.
An article previously written by SoyaCincau reveals that there are more issues with use as well; they could not identify how to switch to the GrabPay wallet once card information is already saved, for one thing.
They also noted other problems, like the app not displaying the delivery person’s plate number of vehicle type, and a display problem on the deliveryperson’s side.
Since GrabFood does not deliver to our area, we are unable to verify whether this is still the case today.
Unfortunately, instead of continuing to use an UberEATS that already has an expanded delivery radius and a more streamlined app, for now Malaysians are pushed back to a more rudimentary service (albeit with a link to GrabPay and GrabRewards, which is possibly the biggest user benefit from the transition).
Here’s to hoping that Grab has these problems fixed by their May 28 launch.
Feature Image Credit: GrabFood
