Online ordering for restaurants and takeaways in the UK, with the commission question answered first

Direct ordering for a UK takeaway: what actually changes

Most UK takeaways did not choose the marketplaces; the marketplaces arrived, customers followed, and the commission became a line everyone complains about and nobody can do much with. A direct site does not undo that. It gives you a second door, next to the marketplace one, with no percentage on the way through.

Start with collection, not delivery

The cleanest direct order in the UK is a collection order. The customer orders on the way home, pays by card, and walks in when the status says ready. No driver, no commission, a card fee of pennies per pound. For a Chinese takeaway, a chippy, a kebab house or a curry house with a strong collection trade, this is where the first hundred direct orders come from, and the takeaway ordering page is about exactly that.

Delivery on your own site needs your own driver, because Porter, the courier Tuckly connects to, does not operate in the UK. If you already run a driver on Friday and Saturday for marketplace self-delivery, the same person can take direct orders too. If you do not, leave marketplace delivery on and let the direct site handle collection.

Allergens: the part you cannot skip

Allergen information is where UK food businesses have the strictest obligations online. Government guidance updated in July 2026 is clear that for orders placed online or by phone, allergen information must be available before the purchase is completed and again when the food is delivered. The first half is handled on the menu: write the allergen content into item descriptions and dietary notes, and keep them accurate when a supplier changes. The second half is about what goes in the bag: a printed slip, a label, or a note on the receipt.

Natasha’s Law, in force since 1 October 2021, covers prepacked-for-direct-sale food such as sandwiches and salads packed on site before the customer orders. Calorie labelling, from 6 April 2022, applies to businesses in England with 250 or more employees and includes online menus and third-party apps. Most independents are outside its scope, but a growing chain should plan for it.

Payment: a card fee, not a percentage of the business

On a direct order the only percentage is your card processor’s. Stripe’s UK pricing page (checked October 2026) lists 1.5 per cent plus 20p on standard UK cards and 2.5 per cent plus 20p on EEA cards. Other processors publish their own rates. Tuckly does not take anything on top, and the pricing page says what the subscription is.

The till, honestly

Square publishes open APIs and processes payments in the UK. Lightspeed Restaurant’s K-Series API is reserved for partners and approved merchants. PayPal Point of Sale, which Zettle became, publishes free product library, inventory and purchase APIs, with the quirk that POS folders can only be managed in its own interface. The integrations directory tells you, for each system Tuckly lists, whether orders can be pushed in today, whether a menu sync exists, or whether the status is still “talk to us”. A system not on the directory is not integrated, however familiar the logo.

What to do before Friday

Put the ordering link on your Google Business Profile. Print a QR on the next batch of box labels or menus. Tell the regulars at the counter that the website is cheaper for you and the same price for them. Then compare the next month’s marketplace statement with the one before. The guide to encouraging repeat orders covers what to do once the first regulars have moved.