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B.C. man won’t order from SkipTheDishes app again after a bad surprise

Click to play video: '‘Skip the Dishes’ order disappointing'
‘Skip the Dishes’ order disappointing
Our Consumer Matters reporter Anne Drewa has the story of a SkipTheDishes order that was less than the purchaser bargained for – Oct 28, 2019

A B.C. man who recently ordered a meal using the popular food delivery app SkipTheDishes says he made a shocking discovery when the order arrived at his home.

“I can’t believe what I saw — basically, half a cheesecake that someone had eaten,” Frank Fourchalk said.

The restaurant that prepared the dish says a photo indicates it was more likely dropped in transit.

The South Surrey resident says back in September, he placed an order with White Spot through SkipTheDishes.

“I ordered a hamburger with the fixings and fries, and the thing that I was most looking forward to was the cheesecake,” Fourchalk said.

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Immediately, Fourchalk says he called White Spot and emailed the general manager a photo of the cheesecake.

White Spot sent an email to Fourchalk stating: “Thank you once again for your feedback regarding your Skip order this evening. I’m sorry for the condition in which you received your dessert. That is definitely not normal.”

White Spot offered Fourchalk a $20 voucher off his next food purchase. Fourchalk says he had no response from SkipTheDishes.

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Consumer Matters reached out to both White Spot and SkipTheDishes on Fourchalk’s behalf to inquire about the condition of the cheesecake.

White Spot said “incidents of this nature are extremely rare,” adding “we unfortunately cannot say what happened to the cheesecake once it was picked up by SkipTheDishes. We suspect it was simply dropped in transit, but our delivery partner has not confirmed the cause of damage.”

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White Spot also told Global News it asked its staff to photograph a fresh portion of cheesecake in the same size take-out container as Fourchalk’s order and deliberately dropped the container to inspect the resulting damage.

“The side-by-side comparison suggests the dessert delivered by SkipTheDishes was simply damaged in transit — and not partially eaten or directly tampered with,” said the restaurant.

“Regardless of the cause, we are taking this opportunity to evaluate our packaging protocol for takeout meals.”

However, Fourchalk says he’s not convinced and will never use the food delivery app in the future.

“I would never ever use SkipTheDishes again,” he said.

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Consumer Matters: The cost of “free” apps

SkipTheDishes never responded to Consumer Matters, but Fourchalk eventually heard from the company. The company apologized and offered him a $20 voucher toward his next online order.

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Fourchalk says he doesn’t want financial compensation but rather better food quality control.

“I think we are all taking our chances unless the restaurants come up with a better way of sealing the food,” he said.

The B.C. Restaurant and Food Services Association says while food delivery apps are convenient, it’s important to hold them accountable.

“If you are using a third-party delivery [app] and if you feel at all that the packaging has been tampered with — and every once in a while it may be — then just refuse the delivery,” said association president and CEO Ian Tostenson.

“And put the pressure back on the delivery company to make sure they are on the same level of excellence as the restaurants are.”

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