Food delivery services are just an integral part of the new normal now that seems to be ongoing with MCO2.0. Many of us have been reliant on the big names like GrabFood or foodpanda, but may be itching for a change.
So, I’ve compiled a list of 11 alternative food delivery services in Klang Valley and listed their pros and cons, and added in more thoughts for those I’ve tried.
Bear in mind that the merchant and delivery experiences shared might differ person-to-person. This is because I live in the central location of PJ with more restaurants available to me.
My colleague, however, lives in Cheras which is a more Southeast region of Klang Valley and had a drastically different experience when testing.
1. AirAsia food
AirAsia food was launched in May 2020 as an addition to their existing super-app which I’ve previously reviewed and was fond of. The platform covers a 60km radius within its final delivery destination.
You can choose to pay with BigPay or a credit card, and use your AirAsia BIG Points to reduce the fee. They also have an option to send orders as a gift to a different address.
Pros: Large coverage area for more options.
Cons: No real-time tracking on the map of where your rider is.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
2. Beep
Otherwise known as “Beepit”, Beep was launched by StoreHub. Beep covers deliveries in Klang Valley, including the Federal Territories of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya. I had a wide variety of options suggested to me, many of which were around my own neighbourhood.
Minimum order requirements are determined by the restaurants themselves instead of the app. Some merchants may also offer free deliveries when you spend over a certain amount.
You can choose to pay with your debit or credit card, online banking, or e-wallets like Touch N’ Go, Boost, or GrabPay.
It also allows for a self pick-up option to pre-order and pay for your food. You can also schedule your orders for a later delivery time.
Pros: Wide variety of merchants and delivery fees are stated upfront.
Cons: Slow ordering process as OTPs are required.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
3. Bungkusit
Primarily a service to help you run errands and deliver packages like Lalamove, they also deliver food. Their service is available in Klang Valley, Penang, Terengganu, Ipoh, and Johor.
What makes them special is they let you order food from restaurants that aren’t listed on their app. You’ll just have to input your pick-up and drop-off locations and be specific with your order instructions. For instance, “One Ala Carte Spicy McChicken Burger, please.”
You can choose to pay at your drop-off point (your end location) as paying at the pick-up point is not ideal for a business transaction. However, it seems that cash on delivery (COD) is the only payment option.
Pros: Order from any restaurant, even those that aren’t listed.
Cons: Only accepts COD.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
4. DeliverEat
Founded in 2012 by Penangites, DeliverEat is available to residents in Klang Valley and Penang. They have some good options to choose from which I find are similar to GrabFood.
You can see an estimated duration of when to expect your orders from every restaurant. There are also reviews by other customers who’ve ordered from the merchant that you can read.
For one delivery fee, you can combine orders from multiple restaurants within the same mall. You can pay through online banking, credit card, and COD. There’s also the option to order food for a later date and time.
Pros: Combine orders from multiple restaurants in one mall for a single delivery fee.
Cons: Slow delivery times and difficult to lodge complaints, according to PlayStore reviews.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
5. GemSpot
Gemspot started as an app to make it easier for diners when it comes to table booking. They can also deliver food and send gifts like flowers and hampers to loved ones.
The app currently only caters to Klang Valley, and deliveries are free for orders within 25km. You’ll have the option to choose between self pick-ups or deliveries and schedule orders for a later time too.
Each restaurant shows details of their operating hours so you’ll know what the cut-off time is to order your food. You can also read reviews from other customers.
Pros: Shows you cut-off times for deliveries during the MCO.
Cons: Limited coverage and options.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
6. EASI
Rebranded to EASI, it used to function under the name Hungry. On top of delivering food, you can also use the app to deliver packages like Bungkusit.
They cover areas in Klang Valley, Penang, Perak, Johor, Pahang, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Sabah, and Sarawak.
EASI’s UI shows a preview of each restaurant’s popular items without having to click into each merchant’s page. It’s a great function when clueless about what to eat and browsing to see if anything sparks joy.
Options here are plenty and I found some familiar names I frequent too. You’ll also get to see reviews from other customers here.
I had a fairly standard delivery experience with a regular 30-minute wait time upon testing it myself. Where it lacks for me though, is the inability to track my order.
Pros: Preview of each restaurant’s popular items while browsing.
Cons: Inability to track orders being delivered.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
7. LOLOL
On top of food deliveries, LOLOL also lets you make restaurant reservations and deliver packages.
It delivers to areas in Klang Valley, Malacca, and Johor, and you can opt for self pick-up or delivery at a later date and time when making your order.
The app also clearly shows a restaurant’s distance from your location and its corresponding delivery fees.
I personally found the options here limited as they were mostly from smaller Chinese coffee shops a few neighbourhoods away.
On the bright side, there’s no minimum order requirement for say, an RM7 chicken rice. Do be aware that your delivery fee could turn out to be more expensive than your actual food though.
COD and the app’s Wallet are the only 2 payment options here. Because you’ve initially signed up to use the app, there’s no need to register for a separate e-wallet. Simply top-up the exact amount you need with your credit/debit cards.
Pros: No minimum order.
Cons: Limited options and high delivery fees.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
8. Packed
Working with Malaysian street food vendors, Packed offers various cashless payment methods to customers. They have merchants from Klang Valley, Melacca Kedah, Sarawak, and Johor.
While browsing your options, you can filter them by cuisine, cost range, and whether you’d like to have it delivered or self collected. You can opt to pay with credit or debit cards or e-wallets including Boost, GrabPay, and Touch n’ Go eWallet.
I found that their options were few and more skewed towards Malay cuisines. My colleague in Cheras had even more limited options with many that were closed.
She also experienced a hiccup with the food’s delivery due to a logistics issue from Packed. Upon calling their customer service, they were able to rearrange her food’s delivery and even covered the replacement cost.
Pros: Ability to filter by price and responsive customer service.
Cons: Expensive delivery fee and limited choices.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
9. Quicksent
Created by Quinton Group, Quicksent promises to deliver your meals within 60 minutes of ordering it, which was my experience when using it. The app also lets you buy groceries and send parcels.
They deliver to areas in Klang Valley, Perak, Kedah, Penang, Negeri Sembilan, Melacca, Johor, Terengganu, Pahang, Sabah, and Sarawak.
Restaurant options listed here were skewed towards Chinese cuisines for me. When checking out, I only had the options to pay through QuinPay or COD.
The latter option had a delivery fee that was 2 times more expensive than the e-wallet, but I went ahead anyway.
In terms of order tracking, the app would send me notification updates which is a feature I highly appreciated.
Pros: Order tracking notifications.
Cons: Limited payment options.
Download on: Play Store.
10. QuikEats
QuikEats lets you filter restaurants by dietary preferences such as Halal, Pork-Free, and Pure-Veg ones. It also clearly states a merchant’s distance from you, along with expected delivery times and charges.
They have a good variety of merchants here and the best part is, you can order from multiple stalls in the same coffee shop for a single delivery fee.
It’s a great feature to have, especially for those ordering food for families who might want different dishes.
For payment, you can choose online banking or e-wallets like Boost, Touch n’ Go eWallet, GrabPay, and MAE. Delivery charges can get very high, and there’s an additional 6% tax on every order.
Pros: Single delivery fee when ordering from multiple stalls in a coffee shop.
Cons: High delivery fees and tax charges.
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
11. RunningMan
RunningMan has no minimum order requirements and offers delivery fees that start from RM1, but it’ll be tough to enjoy that low cost since it depends on your distance from the restaurant.
They cover areas in the Klang Valley including Federal Territories like Putrajaya and Cyberjaya. You can choose to pay through online banking, credit or debit cards, COD, or Touch N’ Go.
While I had a good variety of merchants around me listed on the app, it wasn’t the case with my colleague. She said that she only had options for Chinese cuisines in her area.
When she ordered her food, she faced another hiccup as the restaurant and RunningMan had a misunderstanding with its location. Customer service was able to alleviate the problem and delivered the food to her, albeit late upon her request.
Pros: Cheaper delivery fees and responsive customer service.
Cons: Misleading delivery fee claims, according to PlayStore reviews (but I’d say they’re just claims that are easily misunderstood).
Download on: Play Store and App Store.
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| Merchants | Pros | Cons |
| AirAsia food | Large coverage area. | No real-time tracking. |
| Beep | Delivery fees are stated upfront. | Slow ordering process. |
| Bungkusit | Order from restaurants that aren’t listed. | Slow delivery times. |
| DeliverEat | One delivery fee when ordering from multiple stores in a mall. | Slow delivery times. |
| GemSpot | Shows cut-off times for deliveries during MCO. | Limited options. |
| EASI | Preview popular items while browsing. | Inability to track orders. |
| LOLOL | No minimum order. | Limited restaurant options. |
| Packed | Filter by price. | Limited restaurant options. |
| Quicksent | Order tracking notifications. | Limited payment options. |
| QuikEats | One delivery fee when ordering from multiple stalls in a coffee shop. | High delivery fees. |
| RunningMan | Responsive customer service. | Easily misunderstood delivery fee claims. |
After trying out a few of these apps and fully experiencing their UI, UX, and delivery services, I would say that EASI is my top choice. I like the fact that my options are laid out in front of me while browsing without having to click into each merchant.
It quickens the process as I can easily find something that catches my eye, especially if I’m unfamiliar with some restaurants.
- You can read other apps we’ve written here.
Featured Image Credit: LOLOL / DeliverEat / Bungkusit
