Aug 10, 2023
Imagine a restaurant that feels more like your living room — a comfortable, inviting, and familiar place.
As you look around, you notice people enjoying food inspired by cuisines from all over the world. The dishes not only please the taste buds but also impress on the eye.
Welcome to Papila, a beloved restaurant in Bucharest, brought to life by Maria Burachu and Gabriel Herdean.
This restaurant has captured the hearts of many and received praise from local and international culinary experts.
At Papila, delightful flavours and heartwarming ambience create an unforgettable dining experience.
But the restaurant’s delicious food doesn’t just delight customers on the premises. It also gets delivered straight to the doors of hundreds of hungry customers in Bucharest every day with the help of Bolt Food.
Acknowledging the significance of a solid online presence in today’s digital age, Papila understands that providing customers with seamless food delivery is just as essential as creating a welcoming physical space.
In this blog post, we discuss how partnering with Bolt Food helped Papila boost sales and tap into a new realm of possibilities for their restaurant.
For Papila, delivery is a crucial aspect that has had a significant impact on the success of their restaurant.
Many of their repeat customers have yet to visit the restaurant but order their food daily via the Bolt Food app. They even have a specific term for such customers: “The Invisibles.”
“We value our delivery customers just as much as those dining in. Our team takes great care to ensure dishes are cooked perfectly and packed strategically to maintain the quality and taste, whether you’re dining in or enjoying our food from your home.”
Maria Burachu
As the pandemic brought about a shift in consumer behaviour, with more guests desiring to enjoy Papila’s dishes from their homes, the restaurant decided to partner with Bolt Food.
“When the pandemic began, customers still wanted to order our food, but circumstances prevented them from dining in. This became an additional motivation for us to explore delivery options, and after careful consideration, we chose to partner with Bolt Food.”
This partnership significantly boosted demand for Papila and created a domino effect that positively impacted various other aspects of the restaurant.
“It changed everything for us. Increased orders allowed us to revamp our kitchen operations and make new investments. We can now serve our customers more efficiently, even during peak times.”
Since joining forces with Bolt Food, Papila has witnessed a surge in sales volume.
“Our sales have increased significantly. We estimate by around 50%.”
Joining Bolt Food helped the restaurant cater to its existing customers and tap into a new segment of clients who preferred having their food delivered.
Partnering with Bolt Food gives restaurants a significant advantage – expanded user reach.
“Bolt Food is crucial for our business growth. It helps us reach people who can’t visit us in person due to distance, work, or other commitments. We’re delighted for this opportunity to expand our reach and serve more customers.”
As part of the Bolt super-app — which includes ride-hailing and scooter, e-bikes, and car-sharing rental services — we cross-advertise our restaurants, giving them valuable exposure to millions of customers.
“50% to 60% of our clients now come through Bolt Food.”
We also feature partner restaurants in regular campaigns, such as the annual restaurant awards, providing businesses with additional visibility and exposure.
Papila was crowned the winner of the “Lunchtime Favourite” category in our Restaurant Awards.
But the impact of partnering with Bolt Food extended beyond the customer base, with noticeable changes in order sizes.
“When customers gain trust in a restaurant, they order repeatedly and in larger quantities.”
At Bolt Food, we strive to offer our partner restaurants the best support to thrive in the competitive food industry.
The primary tool to achieve this is the Bolt Food Partner Portal — an exclusive online space designed to give restaurants increased control and complete visibility of their operations.
The Partner Portal empowers Papila to manage its visibility and operations seamlessly. From tracking orders and managing menus to monitoring real-time performance, the portal puts the power in the hands of the restaurant.
“The Partner Portal’s insights help us understand our customers better. We review data weekly, tracking revenue, ratings, and busiest days to continuously improve our restaurant’s performance. There’s a tonne of valuable information to work with.”
With access to critical metrics like unique users, average order value, revenue, and conversion rates, restaurants can make informed decisions and fine-tune their strategies for success. This is precisely what Papila appreciates about the platform.
For a beloved restaurant like Papila, which operates at full capacity every day, having a reliable delivery partner is of high importance, and that’s precisely what they’ve found in Bolt Food.
“The platform is consistently reliable, with no bugs, and very intuitive, making it a breeze for us to manage our operations effectively.
We truly appreciate the support from our dedicated account managers, who are always available to assist us, keep us informed about new features, and regularly check our progress. With Bolt Food, we genuinely feel cared for.”
For those considering partnering with Bolt Food, Papila has a valuable tip to boost your sales on the platform:
“Ensure you have captivating, high-quality images that accurately showcase your menu offerings. Visuals are key in enticing customers and creating a delightful dining experience, even in the virtual world.”
Ready to put Papila’s tips to the test? Join Bolt Food today to unlock a more extensive customer base and increase profits for your restaurant.
