Commission-Free Online Ordering for Canadian Restaurants

From your website to your kitchen

A guest already knows your restaurant. They open your website, choose dinner and place an order. Your team should receive the items, modifiers and pickup details where they prepare the food.

That is the job of Dashi Online: a branded ordering path connected to your POS, kitchen and guest record. The restaurant stays at the centre of the purchase.

For pickup, the guest collects the order from you. If you offer delivery, confirm the available delivery service, coverage and charges for your location before turning it on.

Direct ordering and marketplace discovery do different jobs

A marketplace can introduce someone who has never heard of your restaurant. Your own ordering page gives someone who already wants your food a direct way to buy it. Compare the value of the guest and the cost of fulfilling the order, not just the software’s commission line.

Direct pickup

Your restaurant brings the guest through its own website, search presence or other channels. Count software, processing, packaging, promotions and staff time.

Direct delivery

The same direct ordering path also needs a delivery arrangement. Confirm coverage, courier charges, who pays them and who handles a late or failed delivery.

Marketplace orders

The marketplace may provide discovery and other services under its agreement. Keep the channel where its value to the restaurant justifies its full cost.

Dashi Online is not a promise of a ready-made diner audience. Your restaurant still needs to make its direct link easy to find and give guests a reason to choose it again.

More orders should not mean a bigger software commission

You bought the ingredients, prepared the food and earned the guest. On direct Dashi Online orders, Dashi takes no percentage of that sale. A busier night does not create a larger Dashi commission bill.

That is a specific promise: 0% Dashi commission on direct orders. It does not mean every cost of selling online disappears. Compare the software plan, payment processing and any delivery service separately.

See Dashi pricing and ask for the complete cost of the setup you intend to use.

Use your own order numbers

Start with a recent statement. Note your order count, average order value and percentage commission. Multiply those together to see the commission attached to those sales.

Then compare what it would cost to take the same orders directly: software, processing, any promotions and the same pickup or delivery arrangement. Keep those extra costs in the calculation.

Use the commission calculator with your own figures. Treat the result as a comparison, not a forecast that every guest will switch to ordering directly.

An order you would not otherwise have received can still be worth paying to acquire. Direct ordering is especially useful for guests who already seek out your restaurant.

What to bring to a direct-ordering demo

Bring a recent channel statement and a small version of your menu. This is Dashi’s buyer checklist, not a savings forecast. Ask each provider to show the same order and return a complete quote in Canadian dollars.

• The guest’s route: your website address, mobile ordering link and the channels you plan to keep. Show where a guest currently starts and finishes an order.
• The real menu: modifiers, sold-out items, preparation times, pickup instructions and any delivery limits. Confirm who maintains these after launch.
• The complete bill: software, processing, setup, optional courier costs, promotions and applicable taxes. Keep pickup and delivery costs separate.
• The kitchen destination: your current POS, printers or kitchen display. Have the provider demonstrate the quoted connection and identify anything that needs replacement.
• The guest record: show what happens after a test order, which details connect to the guest and how communication choices are represented.
• A problem order: test a cancellation or refund and ask who handles payment, order and courier issues.

See the Dashi Online product page for the direct-ordering workflow, then check the proposed scope against your restaurant’s existing setup.

Make the direct link easy to find

A direct ordering page needs a clear route from the places guests already find you. Start with your website’s main navigation and a visible “Order online” button on mobile.

• Link directly to ordering from your restaurant’s social profiles.
• Keep opening hours, menu availability and pickup instructions current.
• Put your ordering address or QR code on your own takeaway packaging.
• Try placing an order on a phone before sending guests to the page.

The guest should know which restaurant they are ordering from, what the total is and how they will receive the food before they pay.

Run one order all the way through

Bring a few real menu items to the demo. Include a modifier, an unavailable item and a pickup order so you can see the details your team needs during service.

1. Open your branded menu on a phone and choose an item.
2. Add a modifier and check the total before checkout.
3. Follow the test order into the POS and kitchen.
4. Check the guest confirmation and pickup instructions.
5. Ask the team to show the cancellation, refund and support process.

Confirm your menu setup, payment arrangement and launch responsibilities. The point is to see your own restaurant’s order work from beginning to end.

Change the ordering link after the team can run the order

Before replacing a live ordering link, inventory your menu, ordering hours, website access, open orders, scheduled pickups and any outstanding refunds or credits. Ask what can be imported and what must be recreated; an export from one provider is not proof of a working import into another.

Rehearse with the people accepting and preparing the food. Confirm the order alert, timing, kitchen ticket, payment record and guest confirmation. Agree who changes each public link, who approves the launch and what to do if an order does not arrive.

You may be able to keep an existing channel, but do not assume it will share menus, availability or guest records automatically. Confirm each connection in the proposed setup. Use the restaurant migration checklist to plan the change before setting the date.

Common questions