Will rising gas prices affect my DoorDash order in Columbus? What an expert says.

If you place an order for a Frank’s Alley Manhattan through DoorDash, you can expect to have that chili, beer cheese and potato masterpiece in 15 to 25 minutes.

“We have a very quick menu and delivery,” said manager Ross Horner.

So far, the spike in gas prices has had little to no effect on local restaurants like Frank’s Alley, but that may soon change.

Those using food delivery services in the Columbus area may soon see higher delivery fees and longer wait times, according to EntreCourier.com. The website, run by Ron Walter, helps independent contractors navigate the food delivery business by offering strategies, tips and tricks and tax advice.

“When it’s only 20 cents a delivery more because gas just went up a dollar, that’s not that drastic,” Walter said. “But, I think drivers will think it is. I think what’s going to happen is you’ll have a lot of drivers drop out and a lot of customers will stop ordering.”

If gas prices continue to rise, companies like Waitr, Uber Eats, DoorDash and GrubHub may increase their fees as well.

In California, Walter said he witnesses companies hide the hikes, though, by suggesting lower tip prices for drivers on the app after the state passed a law providing drivers with higher base pay.

Smaller tips could mean few drivers willing to fill the order and longer wait times to find a driver who will accept the order. Columbus resident Erica Tidwell drives for Doordash every weekday for breakfast and lunch rushes. Dashers always have the option to accept or decline an order.

“For me personally, that’s where my job as a dasher has changed due to the high price of fuel. I’m decling about 80 percent of the orders I’m offered every day because the payment isn’t even worth my time, gas, commercial insurance required for dashers and mileage put on my family’s vehicle,” Tidwell said.

Smokey Bones Bar & Fire Grill Manager Kurt Hoofnagle hasn’t noticed any major changes in food delivery services or extended wait times in the past few weeks. DoorDash set the restaurant’s average pick up time to about an hour.

“That’s been happening the entire pandemic,” he said.

Whether ordered from a third party, from the restaurant’s website or called in, the average preparation time for a Smokey Bones plate is about 15 minutes. The restaurant takes pick-up orders directly from their website.

“I personally prefer to pick mine up because it’s faster and cheaper,” Hoofnagle said. “If you order from those third party sites, a lot of times they charge more than what it costs in the restaurant on our menu. But if you go to SmokeyBones.com, you get the same food and prices there that you would get in our restaurant.”

Walter said the increased fees do not go to the drivers.

“Understand that on most of these deliveries, the most we’re getting is 3 or 4 dollars,” Walter said. “The tip is a big part of what a driver makes.”

This story was originally published March 9, 2022 at 9:00 AM.