Uber Technologies has agreed to acquire ezCater, the US online platform for catering and workplace meals, in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.3bn. The deal was announced on 6 October 2026 and will bring catering orders onto Uber Eats. Uber said it expects the transaction to close in the coming months, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

What Uber is buying

According to Uber’s announcement, ezCater works with more than 140,000 restaurants across the United States. It generated over $2.5bn in gross bookings in the trailing twelve months, with growth in the high teens year on year. The average order is worth more than $400.

ezCater handles food for meetings, events and recurring corporate catering, and sells tools that let companies manage ordering and food spend. Uber said the business is profitable on a non-GAAP operating income basis and is expected to be margin accretive.

Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said in the release that “Catering is a big business, and can be a huge revenue stream for restaurants”. ezCater chief executive Nihad Rahman said the company would bring its catering and business-to-business expertise to Uber’s customers, merchants and couriers.

How the pieces fit

The stated logic is to combine ezCater’s catering specialism with the consumer and restaurant reach of Uber Eats and the corporate relationships of Uber for Business. Uber says restaurants should gain larger orders and new diners, and couriers additional earning opportunities.

Trade title Restaurant Dive noted that the deal follows Mr Khosrowshahi’s comment on Uber’s second quarter earnings call that large orders and pickup “present a massive addressable opportunity”. It also places Uber Eats more directly against DoorDash, which acquired the reservations and guest management platform SevenRooms last year for over $1bn and agreed in September to buy Grubhub’s college campus business for $300m. Restaurant Dive added that chains including Denny’s, Del Taco, Sweetgreen and Five Guys have added or expanded catering this year.

What is not disclosed

The release does not say how ezCater will be integrated, whether it will continue as a separate brand or what role its management will hold after closing. Restaurant Dive reported that the companies declined to comment beyond the release. No changes to restaurant commission rates or fees were announced, and no figure was given for ezCater’s revenue or number of corporate customers.

J.P. Morgan Securities is financial adviser to Uber, with Covington & Burling as legal counsel and Freshfields US advising on antitrust matters. Evercore and Davis Polk & Wardwell are advising ezCater.

THD’s reading

The following points are THD analysis, not statements from the companies.

  • Analysis: corporate catering is being absorbed by the delivery platforms. Drop-off catering for meetings is a segment hotels and conference venues also sell. With an average ticket above $400, the orders ezCater handles are the same working lunches and small meetings that hotel banqueting teams price for. A buyer with Uber’s distribution will make third-party ordering easier for corporate bookers.
  • Analysis: hotel restaurants with spare kitchen capacity gain a channel, at a cost. Operators that already list outlets on Uber Eats may find catering becomes one more switch to turn on. Commission terms after closing are the detail to watch, since they are not disclosed.
  • Analysis: platform consolidation narrows negotiating room. DoorDash now owns reservations technology and Uber is adding catering. Restaurant groups and hotel F&B departments are dealing with fewer, larger counterparties that hold both demand and data.
  • Analysis: timing is uncertain. The deal needs regulatory clearance and Uber has retained specialist antitrust counsel, so operators should not assume any change to ezCater’s current terms before closing.