Doordash Warns Investors That Business ‘Remains Highly Uncertain’

Welcome to p.m. Intel, your bite-sized roundup of Bay Area food and restaurant news. Tips are always welcome, drop them here.

• SF-based delivery company Doordash made its first quarterly earnings report Thursday after its blockbuster IPO earlier this year. Yahoo Finance reports that the company’s sales were 226 percent higher than they were last year, but that Doordash admits that its outlook “remains highly uncertain” as vaccinations roll out and people return to restaurants. The Wall Street Journal reports that the national move to further regulate apps like Doordash, specifically with commission caps, means that fees tacked on for customers are growing higher and higher. “DoorDash’s continued growth implies consumers have been willing to shell out for its service because of Covid-19,” Laura Forman writes. “But once restaurants open back up, it is unlikely that this level of tolerance will hold.”
• The building that houses 46-year-old SF fern bar the Royal Oak is for sale, and with it, the bar itself. Building/bar owner Katherine Papageorge says she hopes the next buyer will keep the business going, but appears to have made her peace with a potential closure. [SF Chronicle]
• The co-owner of Ale Industries, Oakland’s oldest operating brewery, says “last year was the longest decade of my life.” [SF Business Times]
• Millbrae’s Wonderful Restaurant was closed Thursday, as its owner carpooled with his staff to ensure all received their first COVID-19 shots. [KRON 4]
• Non-profit food incubator La Cocina’s long-awaited Tenderloin food hall hopes to open in the spring of 2021. [Hoodline]
• The latest episode of Dishes of the Diaspora is out, and this one centers around San Francisco South African spot Amawele’s Cuisine. [KQED]
• The owner of SoMa queer club Oasis says they’ve spent their life savings in an attempt to keep the business afloat. [KRON 4]