What do Pad Thai, Green Curry, and Tom Yum actually cost across UK cities? Real prices compared — dine-in vs delivery — and the hidden markup most restaurants don't talk about.
Average markup across all surveyed dishes. Higher % = restaurants passing more commission cost to delivery customers.
| City | Avg Dine-in | Avg Delivery | Markup | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds | £10.49 | £12.87 | +23.0% | 15 dishes |
| Manchester | £10.88 | £13.26 | +22.4% | 15 dishes |
| Bristol | £10.51 | £12.76 | +21.8% | 15 dishes |
| Birmingham | £10.62 | £12.86 | +21.6% | 15 dishes |
| London | £12.08 | £14.58 | +20.9% | 15 dishes |
Which dishes get marked up the most on delivery apps?
| Dish | Avg Dine-in | Avg Delivery | Markup | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Rolls | £6.45 | £7.97 | +23.9% | 15 prices |
| Pad Thai | £12.34 | £15.16 | +22.8% | 15 prices |
| Tom Yum | £8.18 | £9.99 | +22.0% | 15 prices |
| Green Curry | £13.28 | £16.09 | +21.2% | 15 prices |
| Massaman Curry | £14.31 | £17.13 | +19.7% | 15 prices |
Behind the numbers: our methodology, sample sizes, and data sources.
All prices were collected on 3 June 2026 from a combination of official restaurant websites, Google Business Profile menus, and delivery platform spot-checks. Dine-in prices were taken from restaurant-owned channels — official websites or verified Google Business Profiles — to ensure we captured the base menu price, not a platform-inflated version. Delivery prices were manually verified across Deliveroo, Uber Eats, and Just Eat for the same dish at the same restaurant on the same day. Delivery fees and service charges were excluded from our price capture — we recorded only the menu item price as listed on the platform.
Delivery platforms actively block automated scraping, so every delivery price was verified through manual browsing. Where a platform listed a different portion size or a "delivery exclusive" variant, we used the closest matching standard portion and noted any differences.
We surveyed 75 dish-price pairs across 5 cities: London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, and Bristol. For each city, we sampled 3 restaurants and collected dine-in and delivery prices for 5 staple dishes (Pad Thai, Green Curry, Massaman Curry, Tom Yum, Spring Rolls) — totalling 15 data points per city. If a restaurant did not offer a particular dish, we excluded that pair rather than estimating.
The 5 cities were chosen to represent different regions and market conditions: London (capital city, highest rent and wage base), Birmingham (midlands, large population), Manchester (north-west, strong food scene), Leeds (Yorkshire, growing Thai sector), and Bristol (south-west, higher-than-average cost of living).
Prices are snapshots — they change frequently, especially on delivery platforms where surge pricing and promotional discounts can shift the effective price. Premium, regional, or large-portion variants were not captured. Our sample covers 5 cities and 5 dishes — this is a directional benchmark, not a comprehensive census. London prices reflect Zone 1-2; outer London typically runs 10-15% lower. Regional city prices are city-centre averages.
London's lower markup percentage hides a much higher absolute price gap.
London's average dine-in price of £12.08 is 14% higher than the next most expensive city (Manchester at £10.88) and 15% above the non-London average of £10.50. Yet London's markup percentage (+20.9%) is the lowest among the 5 cities surveyed. This is not contradictory — it reflects a different pricing strategy.
London operators factor platform commissions (30-32%) into their base dine-in prices rather than adding a visible surcharge on delivery. A London Pad Thai at £13.45 dine-in and £16.00 delivery (+19.0%) carries a similar absolute surcharge (£2.55) to Leeds (£10.95 → £13.50, +23.3%). But the London diner pays £2.50 more at the table before delivery is even considered.
The practical implication: London customers absorb the commission cost whether they dine in or order delivery — it is baked into the menu price. In regional cities, the surcharge is more visible as a separate markup, which may influence ordering behaviour.
What drives the +21.9% average markup — and where the money goes.
On a typical £13.50 Pad Thai ordered via Deliveroo at a 32% commission rate, the restaurant receives approximately £9.18 before VAT. After ingredient cost (~22% or £2.97), the restaurant keeps roughly £6.21. That £6.21 must cover rent, wages, gas, electricity, insurance, and everything else — leaving a net profit of typically 4-6% on the full order value. Without the delivery markup, the restaurant would operate at a loss on every delivery order.
Here is how the markup breaks down by platform:
The difference between platforms explains why some restaurants incentivise direct orders or Just Eat over Deliveroo/Uber Eats — the margin difference is substantial.
How to set menu prices that protect your margins across both channels.
A healthy gross profit margin for Thai food is 65-75% (food cost at 25-35% of selling price). Pad Thai with a raw food cost of £2.80 should be priced at a minimum of £11.20 for a 75% GP, or up to £14.00 for 80% GP. Most UK Thai restaurants in our survey priced Pad Thai at £10.95-£14.50, suggesting food cost percentages in the 20-28% range — healthy by industry standards.
If a dish costs 30% in food cost and the platform takes 32%, your combined cost of goods sold + platform fee is 62% — leaving only 38% to cover everything else. To maintain a 65% gross profit after platform fees, the delivery price needs to be approximately 40-50% higher than the equivalent dine-in price. Most restaurants in our survey applied a 10-25% markup, which partially — but not fully — covers this gap.
Our recommendation: calculate your target net margin first, then work backwards through platform fees and food cost to determine the correct delivery price. If the resulting price seems too high for your market, consider removing that dish from delivery platforms entirely, or switching to a lower-commission platform like Just Eat (14%) for your core menu items.