What Not To Order Out
That warm meal you ordered looked perfect on the app, but by the time it arrived, not so much. Delivery doesn't always play nice with certain foods. As more people eat at home, it's worth knowing what spoils the ride. This article lays out 20 foods that don't survive the trip well.
1. French Fries
Steam sabotages crispness. Once locked in a delivery box, your fries become limp and lifeless—more like sad potato strips than the golden crunch you crave. Fast food chains try ventilation tricks, but results vary. Choose wedge or waffle cuts if you must risk delivery.
Pixzolo Photography on Unsplash
2. Ice Cream
Meltdown is inevitable. By the time this dessert reaches your doorstep, it's morphing into a sticky soup. Without dry ice or rock-solid insulation, even premium pints lose their chill. Melted flavors blend unpredictably, especially in sundaes or layered treats like mochi or cake rolls.
3. Fried Chicken
Glory turns to gloom when that crackly crust gets sealed in steam. What left the kitchen crunchy now sweats itself into sogginess. Breaded or battered, the heat-trap effect spares no style. To preserve texture, ask for pieces packed separately from sides and sauces.
4. Egg Dishes
Scrambled, poached, or sunny-side up—eggs revolt in delivery. Overcooked edges and rubbery centers await after a ten-minute ride. Your unwrapped omelet might resemble a bath towel and heat retention is the villain. Stick to hard-boiled versions if you need egg-based options to go.
amirali mirhashemian on Unsplash
5. Soft-Shell Tacos
Wrapped tightly and steaming, tortillas become damp washcloths and fillings lose integrity in mere minutes. You may open your taco only to find it completely disassembled upon arrival. Corn shells hold up better than flour but still collapse under heat and time.
6. Nachos
On arrival, nachos often resemble a soggy paperweight. Originally a snack designed for immediacy, they suffer under the weight of their own toppings. Order ingredients deconstructed to rebuild crisp layers yourself—if your provider even offers that courtesy.
7. Sushi
Raw fish demands balance: too warm and the texture's off; too cold and the rice hardens. Even worse, jostling in transit turns your maki into abstract art. Nigiri fares slightly better than rolls, especially when packed snugly with cooling packs.
Riccardo Bergamini on Unsplash
8. Steak
Resting becomes overcooking en route. That medium-rare you ordered is medium-well by the time it lands. As trapped heat continues to cook the cut, it dulls the flavor and ruins the texture. Ask for it undercooked by one level if you must send it traveling.
9. Seafood
Delicate and unforgiving, seafood demands swift consumption. Grilled fish dries out fast and fried shrimp steams themselves soggy in minutes. Even shellfish like mussels or scallops suffer texture loss. Delivery turns subtlety into slop—scallops rarely make it through city traffic intact.
10. Pasta With Cream-Based Sauces
Heat and motion split emulsions and leave greasy puddles where velvety richness once lived. Fettuccine Alfredo turns gummy; carbonara becomes scrambled eggs. Consider the fact that even restaurants hesitate to box these. That hesitation tells you everything you need to know.
11. Pancakes
Fluffy stacks turn dense and rubbery during delivery. Trapped moisture makes them sweat, while syrup soaks straight through. What starts as breakfast bliss arrives like a sponge cake in a sauna. For better luck, order French toast—it handles travel with slightly more grace.
12. Waffles
Waffles arrive resembling microwaved sponge tiles—limp, soggy, crunchless, and unevenly heated. Their structured grids hold steam too well, causing collapse. Add toppings, and suddenly you've got culinary quicksand on your hands. If texture matters to you, make this one a dine-in-only dish—no exceptions.
13. Baguettes
The crust-to-chew ratio defines a good baguette, but humidity kills that charm. In transit, the crust softens, and the interior goes stale fast. Within 90 minutes, the texture and flavor drop significantly. Not even a low oven can undo delivery's quiet sabotage.
14. Croissants
Flaky layers flatten under pressure. Butter-rich doughs absorb ambient moisture, turning crispy curves into pastry puddles. Almond croissants fare slightly better thanks to density, but plain ones rarely survive. Ask yourself if you would mail a croissant. If not, then don’t deliver it.
15. Salads With Dressing Applied
Wilted lettuce, mushy croutons, and soggy spinach. Dressing accelerates breakdown, especially with acid-heavy vinaigrettes. By the time it's in your hands, the texture's long gone. Separate containers may sound fussy, but they're the only barrier between crisp greens and a compostable mess.
16. Avocado-Based Dishes
Oxidation is the enemy. Avocados brown fast, even inside burritos or bowls. Exposure to heat worsens texture, turning creamy flesh into grainy mush, and this fruit's vibrance dulls quickly unless sealed airtight. Avocados weren't made to travel but to vanish quickly from your plate.
Bakd&Raw by Karolin Baitinger on Unsplash
17. Eggplant Parmesan
Saucy and cheesy, eggplant parm doesn’t travel well. Its bread soaks up tomato like a sponge and makes the whole dish a sloppy, melted slab. Layered dishes like this need careful timing. Delivery adds too many minutes, and the structure collapses within them.
Karen and Brad Emerson on Wikimedia
18. Fried Mozzarella Sticks
Stretchy cheese and a hot crunch are the dream, but once boxed, the mozzarella stiffens and the crust sweats. Bite in, and you'll find goo turned into glue. For that satisfying pull, you've got a three-minute window from fryer to mouth.
19. Tuna Sandwiches
Bread absorbs and tuna seeps - it's a soggy meal waiting to happen. Toss in pickles or tomatoes, and you've got a structural collapse mid-bite. If you insist on ordering tuna, choose a toasted roll and ask for condiments packed separately.
20. Fresh Berries
With soft skins and fragile flesh, berries bruise on a whim. Even the weight of their own pile can crush the ones beneath. Combine with summer heat and condensation, and mold isn't far behind. These aren't built for the back of a delivery bike.
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