Zomato says it will take action against fraudulent eatery listings

Users on social media had complained of eateries on Zomato that only offered one dish [File]
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Zomato said it is taking action against single-dish restaurants listed on its food delivery platform after social media conversations surrounding the same.

Zomato said in an X post that it had “identified all such restaurants,” and delisted them, apart from looking into other eateries that had highly limited menus.

Social media users on X earlier posted screenshots of eateries listed on Zomato that had only one dish or so on their menus, often with a price that did not make sense.

Calling Zomato’s attention to the matter, some speculated that such eateries were a front for those selling drugs or other prohibited/restricted substances that violated Zomato guidelines or legal regulations.

“As per our policy, all restaurants listed on Zomato need to have a FSSAI license and we also actively block items such as alcohol, cigarettes/cigars/vapes from being listed on our platform. However, the restaurants highlighted were able to game our checks by using generic food names such as, ‘Naughty strawberry’, ‘Merry Berry’,” said Zomato on a post on X on November 20.

The platform added that it had strengthened its fraud checks as well. It is not clear whether law enforcement authorities will investigate the issue from their end.

Zomato this week was the subject of heated debate as CEO Deepinder Goyal announced a chief of staff position that would require the applicant to make an extravagant payment of ₹20 lakhs to the company, instead of receiving a first year salary and compensation terms that were in compliance with Indian labour laws.

The reactions were extremely varied; some defended Goyal’s job application post and compared it to an MBA degree, while others called him out for excluding talented applicants who might not be able to afford such a steep amount.

Goyal later clarified that he would not follow through with the demand for the payment, framing the monetary demand as a filter to weed out those would give up easily.