BIKRAM RAI

After a long tiring day, you come home starving, only to find that you are home alone and your fridge is empty. You are too tired to cook, and might have to settle for a noodle dinner. But wait, with foodmandu.com, you can enjoy food from your favourite restaurants, without stepping out of your house.

Foodmandu.com is an online portal that allows you to order food from restaurants all over Kathmandu, which will be delivered right at your doorstep. The site lists over 70 restaurants, and you can browse through their menus and pick your favorites. Foodmandu has roped in the most popular food joints in Kathmandu, including the likes of Roadhouse, Bawarchi and Delicias de France. A couple of clicks and a Foodmandu delivery boy will come cruising with your steaming order. Foodmandu also takes orders over the phone.

"Most restaurants here don't have home delivery services, we are simply allowing them to outsource," says Manmohan Adhikari. The idea struck him when, at his previous job, he had limited lunch options and wished restaurants would deliver his order at his office.

An IT enthusiast, Adhikari saw an opportunity and began foodmandu.com. The price listed is the same as the restaurant's menu and minimal delivery charges are levied for long distances. Foodmandu delivers within Ring Road and few kilometres beyond. Sixteen months since it began, the service is in high demand, keeping their 10 delivery boys busy throughout the day.

The volume of orders used to be equal online and over the phone when the service began, but traffic is now heavier online. "It is easier when people use our site to order- they can browse menus, give clearer instructions and we can maintain their database for the future," says Adhikari. Although Foodmandu now operates on cash basis, the site plans to incorporate online payment services.

Visit www.foodmandu.com or call 4241732

Paavan Mathema