Seattle’s Restaurant Takeout and Delivery Map Expands to Tacoma and Other Cities

Nearly a month after the city of Seattle released an interactive map to help diners find restaurants still open for takeout and delivery during the COVID-19 crisis, the map has expanded out throughout the region. There are now 20 area cities participating in what’s billed as the #SupportPugetSoundSmallBiz map, each one working to add new places to the database: partners include Auburn, Bellevue, Burien, Issaquah, Kent, Shoreline, and Tacoma. To date, 2,600 restaurants are represented on the map across King County, Pierce County and Snohomish County.

The map allows people to search by restaurant name or zip code, or drop a pin to pull up information about the places in the immediate area. It then pulls up basic information about each restaurant and the services it offers, plus any links to third-party delivery apps, such as Uber Eats or DoorDash, if they’re available. Restaurants can still add their information into the database to show up on the map by emailing supportsmallbiz@seattle.gov.

Including regions further north and south of the city should provide useful info for those no longer traveling into Seattle proper regularly. The map was meant to ease the burden on many area businesses hurting economically due to Washington’s stay-at-home order, which is in effect through at least May 4, and possibly longer. But city policies, such as enacting a 15 percent cap on third-party delivery fees for restaurants, may have a more immediate impact. It remains to be seen whether other municipalities on the map will follow Seattle’s lead in that respect.

• Seattle Releases New Interactive Map Showing Restaurants Open for Takeout and Delivery [ESEA]
• Seattle Issues Emergency Order to Cap Delivery App Fees for Restaurants at 15 Percent [ESEA]