The $2 billion food delivery firm coveted by Uber just opened its first brick-and-mortar restaurant

A deliveroo worker cycles along a pedestrianised road in Liverpool, Britain, October 18, 2017. Picture taken October 18, 2017. REUTERS/Phil Noble

British food delivery startup Deliveroo has opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Hong Kong.
The "Deliveroo Food Market" will cater both to online orders and in-store customers.
Reports emerged in September that Uber was in acquisition talks with Deliveroo.

Deliveroo, the British food delivery startup last valued at $2 billion, has opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Hong Kong.

Named the "Deliveroo Food Market," the location will fulfil both online orders and serve customers in-store where they can choose from 15 different "dining concepts," CNBC reports.

The restaurant is an extension of Deliveroo's Editions, a programme which it launched in 2017 setting up pop-up kitchens to help restaurants deal with delivery demand.

"We find there is an opportunity to bring our online to offline model to our customers," General Manager of Deliveroo in Hong Kong, Brian Lo, told CNBC.

"Hong Kong is one of the most expensive rental prices, so the pressure on restaurant operators is very high and this model works very well for them," he added.

Deliveroo is reportedly being courted for an acquisition by ride-hailing giant Uber, whose Uber Eats service is a direct competitor of Deliveroo. However, recent reports suggest that Uber and Deliveroo had reached an impasse over Deliveroo's valuation.

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