The restaurants in Reading with different brands on Deliveroo

But an investigation by the Chronicle into some of these brands has revealed they are not as new as they seem.

We recently revealed that a new vegetarian Indian restaurant launched with more than 40 names on Deliveroo and Uber Eats.

READ MORE: Reading restaurant with a ‘dark kitchen’ found to have 40 names on Deliveroo and Uber Eats

While most restaurants do not have multiple brands, having different names online has become a common practice.

At least a dozen of the takeaway options in Reading on Deliveroo and Uber Eats have the same address as restaurants you already know but with different virtual brands.

Most of these are big chains, like Pizza Express and Las Iguanas, but local independent Pierre’s Baguettes has also rebranded for Deliveroo (though it keeps its original for Uber Eats).

Some are obvious – Fridays is the Deliveroo name for TGI Fridays and Mac Shack by Bella Italia clearly states the virtual brand is part of Bella Italia.

Others have very different online names, such as Mac & Wings, a virtual brand Pizza Express created in partnership with Deliveroo.

In the case of Coco Di Mama, this is a brand with physical stores, owned by the same company as Zizzi, but has been trading as a delivery-only brand from Zizzi sites during the pandemic.

Reading’s Bluegrass BBQ even has two online brands: Maverick Burger and Maverick VS Saucybird.

Some of these virtual brands serve completely different menus and are effectively a completely different restaurant in the same kitchen, while others take parts of their original menus to create a more streamlined version.

Is it a clever way of making use of a kitchen or 'confusing' and 'lacking in transparency'?

Local restaurant blogger Edible Reading said: “I have nothing but sympathy for restaurants right now, and on one level I can see why they might resort to this tactic.

“Some dishes lend themselves to delivery better than others, so you can understand a restaurant working on a specific, more delivery-friendly set of dishes: burgers, or pasta dishes where everything might stay hotter longer.

“What’s odder is the choice to set up separate entities on delivery apps. It might make sense from a marketing (or accounting) perspective but flooding the market with these diffusion brands - when the restaurant is often also on delivery apps under their “real” name - is confusing for customers.

“There’s a lack of transparency here, too - I might take a punt on ordering from Blazing Bird, but if I knew they were Las Iguanas under another name I’d be more likely to steer clear.”

Blazing Bird in Reading, a virtual brand for Las Iguanas

Deliveroo says virtual brands allow restaurants of all sizes to create new bespoke menus for customers from their current kitchen, under new branding.

A spokesman added: “This concept helps restaurants reach new customers but without the costs and risk associated with starting an entirely new venture, leading to better choice for customers and stronger business growth for our partners.

"This has been particularly important during the pandemic.”

An Uber Eats spokesman said it has a "dedicated restaurant team who are focussed on supporting its partners and ensuring the best possible choice and highest quality food is always available on the Uber Eats app".

Just Eat says its restaurants can only operate with a maximum of two separate menus from one location and the food offering to the customer must be different between the two brands.

Here are the restaurants with different virtual brands on Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat:

Deliveroo:

PICTURED: A Deliveroo rider

• Mac & Wings (Pizza Express)
• Readings Breakfast (Pierre’s Baguettes)
• Blazing Bird (Las Iguanas)
• Maverick Burger and Maverick VS Saucybird (Bluegrass BBQ)
• Roosters Piri Piri (Poblanos)
• Souvlaki & Skewers (The Real Greek)
• Maverick Burger (7 Bone Burger Co.)
• Coco Di Mama Kitchens (Zizzi)
• Fridays (TGI Fridays)
• Biff's Vegan Burgers & Wingz (Brewdog)
• Mac Shack by Bella Italia (this one includes the name already)
• Yangtze (Chopstix Noodle Bar)

Uber Eats:

PICTURED: An Uber Eats driver

• Coco Di Mama (Zizzi)
• Yangtze (Chopstix Noodle Bar)
• Mac Shack by Bella Italia
• Chowout (My Wok)

Just Eat:

PICTURED: The Just Eat app

• Fridays (TGI Fridays)
• Coco Di Mama (Zizzi)
• Yangtze (Chopstix Noodle Bar)

As well as Reading-based restaurants with different brands online, there are also restaurants and other businesses from outside Reading or without a physical base which are now offering delivery in the town.

These include the following restaurants operating from Deliveroo Editions dark kitchen in Reading at Unit 57, Milford Road:

• Rosa’s Thai (London)
• Smack Lobster Roll (online only)
• The Athenian
• The Athenian Plant Based
• Burger & Lobster
• Shake Shack
• Pleesecakes
• The Great British Cheesecake Company
• The Ice Cream Store
• Trip CBD Store
• Jude’s Ice Cream
• Ben and Jerry’s Store
• Chilango
• VIP Very Italian Pizza

Deliveroo Editions are hubs where the company hosts collections of hand-picked restaurants, specially designed for delivery.

There is also a new trend of online-only vegan or plant-based versions of menus as separate brands, as shown by The Athenian Plant Based on Deliveroo.

Another example is My Wok, at 89 Friar Street, which has a vegan-only brand on Deliveroo called Vegan Out.