Ahead of the upcoming Diwali festival, Zomato has rolled out a new feature called Host Mode in India that allows guests to order food without seeing menu prices.
Host Mode in Zomato
The idea for this feature came when a LinkedIn user recently suggested that Zomato should have a “Mehmaan Mode” that makes prices disappear so that the phone can be passed around by the host without awkwardness, allowing guests to order at ease. This suggestion caught the attention of Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal, who promised to roll out the feature soon.
As promised, Zomato is rolling out a ‘Host Mode’ in India on the platform. The utility allows hosts to pass their device to guests so that they can browse restaurant menus and select dishes without viewing item prices, reserving the final bill review and payment step exclusively for the host.
By concealing monetary figures throughout the selection stage, the feature seeks to eliminate cost-related hesitation when one individual is paying.
How does the Host Mode work?
- Enable the Host Mode feature via a “Host Mode” chip present on the home screen header, directly on a restaurant’s menu page, or under Profile > Your Preferences.
- The user confirms the selection by tapping “Switch on Host Mode.”
- Item prices, total tallies, and bill estimates are removed from restaurant listings, dish descriptions, and the shopping cart. A prompt confirms: “All prices are hidden in Host Mode.”
- Guests can pass the phone around to browse and add items to the shared cart without price visibility.
- To finalise the order, the host selects “Exit host mode to review bill.” The app will require device authentication (like fingerprint scanning or facial recognition) to reveal the full itemised pricing, applied discounts, delivery fees and final payable amount before the order is placed.
If the ‘Host Mode’ feature is not visible to you, try updating the Zomato app.
