A Single-Dish Restaurants are Delisted by Zomato

Zomato, a prominent player in the foodtech industry, has cracked the whip and delisted several "potentially fraudulent" restaurants after consumers reported several single-dish restaurants on the platform.

"We have removed all of these eateries from our site after identifying them as possibly fake. We have also looked into any other restaurants that have a very small menu on Zomato and may have listed restricted goods or devised a method to list prohibited things in order to address this more thoroughly," Zomato stated in a post on X.

Further Strengthening its Security

The business claimed that by utilising generic cuisine names like "Merry Berry" and "Naughty Strawberry," among others, many of these eateries were able to "game" Zomato's checks. In order to prevent such occurrences in the future, Zomato stated that it has reinforced its fraud checks even further. The foodtech giant reiterated its policy, stating that all eateries listed on its platform must have a permit from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). According to the report, the business "actively" prevents products like alcohol, cigarettes, cigars, and vape pens from being featured on its marketplace.

This comes days after an X user in Chandigarh reported several eateries selling a single meal at exorbitant pricing with "nonexistent addresses." "Something really shady is cooking on @zomato," the person wrote, tagging the local police.

How the Issue Caught the Eye-Balls?

According to the X user, he attempted to place an order from one of the aforementioned restaurants but was not delivered. He posted, "I attempted to place an order, but it was automatically cancelled after a while, and the restaurant is now showing as closed." It is important to note that Zomato is the market leader for meal delivery services.

In a recent report, broking firm Motilal Oswal stated that Zomato's 58% market share in the food delivery sector increased its lead over Swiggy, which was just launched. Swiggy held a 42% market share, the broking added. In the meantime, Blinkit, a significant player in quick commerce owned by Zomato, maintains its lead in the quick "10 minute" delivery sector with 46% of the market, followed by Zepto (29%) and Swiggy Instamart (25%).

Some X users expressed gratitude for the change, while others called for stricter measures to be taken against these dishonest eateries.

An X user commented, "It's good to see an update from your side regarding the issue that was raised by some users."

So you didn't check those restaurants' FSSAI licenses? asked another. 

Another person claimed, "I don't believe Zomato even visits the restaurant or cloud kitchen. It must be completely online."

"If these eateries were selling illegal goods, you should contact the police right once; "delisting" is certainly insufficient," said one X user.

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