Zomato UAE to shut down, customers redirected to Talabat

Food delivery, dining and restaurant discovery service, Zomato will be shutting down its UAE business from November 24.

Meanwhile, users will be redirected to the food delivery app Talabat. The company confirmed the development to Gulf Business in a statement.

As per Zomato’s official statement. “With new features like Vibe check and additional offers via Zomato Pay, we have renewed our focus on restaurant discovery and dining out, and as a result, it will no longer be possible to order food in the UAE through our app, from November 24th onwards.”

The statement added, “We are proud of and grateful for the Talabat-Zomato partnership and the role we played in supporting many great local restaurants in growing their online businesses on our platform, whilst at the same time delighting customers with their favorite meals, delivered by committed Talabat riders.

Customers can continue to order from their preferred restaurants on the talabat app, including many of their Zomato loved brands such as Bikanervala, Puranmal, Filli, Dyar Al Sham, Chicking, Wok Boyz, amongst many others. Restaurant partners can also choose to join talabat to grow their businesses, while offering their customers the delivery experience talabat brings.

As an organisation, we are well-positioned to support our people adequately and are here to enable this transition in the best way possible for their careers. The severance package extended includes financial and outplacement support along with due healthcare benefits.”

The report added that any pending amount or refund credits owed to restaurants or users by Zomato will be credited to them by December 30, 2022.

Zomato’s mail also said that it would launch Zomato’s loyalty programme ‘Zomato Pay’ along with its ‘Vibe Check’ feature on its app. “We are redefining the way our customers experience dining out through the launch of a new feature called ‘Vibe check’ along with ‘Zomato Pay’ which will further enhance the value for our customers as well as restaurant partners,” the mail said.

‘Vibe Check’ has already been trialled across India and acts as an Instagram stories-like platform where restaurants can post updates and videos to users.

Zomato Pay is expected to replace the Zomato food ordering app in the emirates and will give users the chance to pay using the app in participating restaurants.