On April 4, Ward 7 resident Latoya Watson took to Spendrise to start a petition demanding more meal delivery companies provide equal service in the mostly black East of the River neighborhoods. At the time, companies including Postmates, Grubhub, Caviar and DoorDash didn't operate east of the Anacostia River.
Since then, the petition has gathered close to 800 signatures and Postmates has begun extending its services.
Now, Caviar is the next to roll out in East of the River neighborhoods.
"After hearing from diners, we turned on delivery service to Wards 7 and 8 earlier this week," a Caviar spokesperson said in an email Wednesday evening. "We look forward to exploring other ways to engage with District residents and businesses as we continue to expand our service in the D.C. area."
Watson moved to Ward 7's River Terrace neighborhood about a year ago. Within a week, the difference between delivery accessibility West of the River and East of the River was stark. Her neighborhood, and all of the neighborhoods in Ward 7 and 8, lacked access to grocery stores, healthy food options and delivery options.
And it isn't just meal delivery startups that lack equal access. Neither Pizza Hut nor Domino's delivered to neighborhoods across the Anacostia River, as The Washington Post reported. Amazon Restaurants also deals with the same problem.
The sole reliable delivery service was Uber Eats — until the past month. On April 19, Postmates sent DC Inno the following statement:
"We turned the zone on [April 13], and we’ll be expanding further into those Wards over the next couple of months," a spokesperson said in an email. "As a company, we’ve been proud to call the District home since we launched… The health of our product and platform offering is rooted in our zones, which are informed by the supply of our couriers, demand of our customers, merchant partnerships. We’ll be expanding these zones over the months of April and May."
At the same time, DoorDash also told DC Inno they've been rolling out service in Wards 7 and 8 since March 28. DoorDash's expansion into new neighborhoods depends on the recruitment of new drivers and users, but it's unclear which addresses the company reaches now.
"As we consider expanding to additional markets, key considerations include operational logistics — such as traffic and the availability of Dashers — and restaurant availability," a DoorDash spokesperson said in an email to DC Inno on April 19. "When DoorDash launches in a new market, it is common to have a gradual rollout across neighborhoods and surrounding suburbs. Based on a variety of factors, including restaurant density, we are able to expand our coverage areas."
The new roll out comes a day before Watson and Spendrise's virtual "Eat-In" for equal service, where people will order from Postmates, Caviar and other business that serve the District equally and post on social media.
