—————————————————— Drive-Thru On Demand App Launches in Houston in 2017 | Houston Press

Tech

A New App Aims to Turn All Houston Restaurants Into Drive-Thrus

The app in a nutshell
The app in a nutshell Photo by Cyril Fluck
A Houston restaurateur named John Carlew, who has reportedly opened some 200 Chick-fil-a, Quiznos and Cicis locations all over the nation, and his partner/entrepreneur Chris Spradlin, are hoping to make a drive-thru our of every restaurant in the city.  The duo have created the mobile app, DRIVE-THRU On Demand, which will basically streamline the everyday takeout experience by allowing you to stay in the car and allowing restaurants to cash in on what is a purported multi-billion dollar drive-thru industry.

According to a press release, the app has already raised $300,000 and is currently seeking another $50,000 via an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign with an aim to launch by end of year.

The DRIVE-THRU On Demand download will be free. The app will offer users the ability to order food, pay, and also be alerted as to when the food is ready, at which point you can roll up on the restaurant and press the app's "I'm here" button like a poltergeist, while an employee brings it out to your car for a nominal $1.79 convenience fee, before deciding is he/she might duck behind the dumpster to finish off another unfiltered Camel before Carl the GM realizes they're gone. Thanks, Drive-Thru on Demand!

Actually, it does sound pretty handy for parents who don't have time to deal with unstrapping the kids from their Cheerio-crusted seats in the back of the minivan and all that.

The app’s Indiegogo campaign is up and running until August 20, offering people who donate to the start-up cost select perks and prizes, including early access to the app and "paybacks," the monetary kind, not the John Wick kind. You can also head to drivethruondemand.com to nominate Houston restaurants you'd like to see on the delivery app as well.

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Gwendolyn Knapp is the food editor at the Houston Press. A sixth-generation Floridian, she is still torn as to whether she likes smoked fish dip or queso better.