On-demand restaurant ordering service AtHand has launched with an aim to make ordering lunch quicker and easier for consumers and operators.
AtHand allows consumers to click and collect restaurant items via an app, with no additional fees or waiting time.
Founded by former investment banker Parisa Mohajerani and former government policy advisor Majid Mostafavi, the platform differs from subscription-based services such as MealPal, in that consumers can order on-demand from the whole menu.
After launching 10 days ago, operators signed up include Island Poke, Detox Kitchen, Comptoir Libanais, Rum Kitchen, Le Bab, Tombo, Foley’s, BRGR.Co, PIDE and CLAW, with more in the pipeline.
Initially covering Soho, Fitzrovia, Covent Garden, AtHand is now live in Broadgate, Marylebone, Camden, with Canary Wharf and the City the next targets for expansion.
Mohajerani said the aim was to have coverage across London, and that they would seek Series A investment funding to realise their growth ambitions.
She told MCA the idea came about from a frustration with spending lunchtimes queueing up at cafes and restaurants.
She said: “The idea is you pick up your food in seconds at the touch of a button. No queues, no payment and no waiting around.
“We want to make every coffee shop and restaurant more accessible, whether picking up breakfast lunch or dinner.
“It came out of frustration, so many times getting lunch I’d have to leave because I didn’t have time to wait around. We thought there has to be a better way to do it.”
There is no minimum order, with no barrier for consumers to ordering, Mohajerani said, while also being fairly frictionless for operators.
Unlike lunch subscription services, there is no membership obligation, and so no requirement to pre-order.
She added: “We want to be all across London. Our aim is to make every restaurant as accessible for picking up a quick meal in seconds.
“We don’t see any reason why everyone shouldn’t have this as an option.”
