With Bite Squad, wait is long but worth it

The Miami Herald reviewed seven of the most popular restaurant delivery services in Miami-Dade county.

Using the app

Enter your address into the Bite Squad app, and you’ll get a list of restaurants that deliver to your location, sorted by distance.

Restaurant options

More than 100 restaurants were available on the app, and that included both local joints and chain restaurants like Chili’s. Only about 15 of the restaurants closest to me offered free delivery. Bite Squad also has a liquor delivery option, but that service wasn’t available in my neighborhood.

Delivering to

Miami Springs

Ordering

I chose Jacalito Taqueria Mexicana on West Flagler Street and Ponce De Leon Boulevard. It was one of the closest restaurants listed, despite being more than 5 miles from my neighborhood. I ordered both steak and chicken tacos, a burrito and a quesadilla. It gave me options on what kind of tortilla I’d like. I also ordered chips, and in a field for special requests, I asked for their salsa verde. The app summed up my order, plus tax, and gave me the option to add a tip. I received a confirmation email detailing my order as well.

Tracking your order

I placed my order at exactly 6:44 p.m.

A GPS map appeared showing my distance from the restaurant, with a quoted delivery time of 7:46 p.m. I was able to follow the driver as he set out on his delivery. At 7:51 p.m., I checked the map again and saw the delivery time had been adjusted to 8:06 p.m.

Delivery time

The meal arrived at 7:56 p.m., a bit later than the original estimation, but I chalked it up to crummy weather.

How it arrived

Arrived in separate takeout boxes. The food was warm and the salsa came in small, plastic containers. The chips were crispy and the tortillas were soft, not soggy.

Delivery fee

Delivery for restaurants closest to me was free on orders over $20. Otherwise, delivery costs varied based on distance from the restaurant. (On its website, Bite Squad likens it to using a taxi: The further a restaurant is, the more you pay.) The delivery prices were always clearly listed in my order summary.

Overall experience:

The Bite Squad app was very simple to use. The nearest restaurants were not particularly close to my house, though, and the estimated delivery time was an hour after I ordered. I would use the app again, but next time, I’ll order before I leave the office to ensure an earlier delivery time.

This story was originally published November 2, 2016 at 6:00 AM with the headline "With Bite Squad, wait is long but worth it."