Chowly

Chowly is a Chicago-headquartered restaurant technology company founded in 2015. Its original product integrated third-party online ordering and delivery platforms — such as Grubhub, Uber Eats, DoorDash and Postmates — directly into a restaurant's point-of-sale system, so that orders are transmitted and confirmed automatically rather than re-keyed from a stack of tablets. The company describes more than ten years of integration work, 150+ delivery apps connected to POS systems, and status as a DoorDash Preferred Integration Partner.

The product has since expanded into a broader platform marketed as covering "everything outside the four walls." Ten tools are managed from a single dashboard: an SEO-oriented marketing website, commission-free online ordering on the restaurant's own domain, Google Business Profile management, Google Ads management, third-party marketplace integration, email marketing, branded iOS and Android mobile apps, AI dynamic pricing for third-party menus, SMS customer surveys, and a POS-integrated loyalty program in which points are earned online and redeemed at the register. Additional features include automated delivery dispute management, AI index pages intended to surface restaurants in Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT, and AI-assisted selection of delivery drivers.

The company positions the platform around moving order volume from commission-charging marketplaces to first-party channels, and publishes customer case studies citing commission savings and increases in direct orders. It offers a money-back guarantee if first-party sales do not increase within six months.

Founding story

Sterling Douglass began asking restaurants about their operating problems in 2015 and repeatedly heard that their Grubhub tablets did not communicate with their POS systems. He and Justin McNally founded Chowly in Chicago to solve that disconnect with a single integration, replacing manual order entry and multiple delivery tablets. A 2018 account also names Brian Duncan among the company's co-founders. The name derives from the phrase "let's get some chow" and the founders' aim to keep restaurant technology simple.

Business model

Chowly sells software to restaurant operators, integrating delivery marketplaces with POS systems and providing first-party ordering, marketing and guest-engagement tools from one dashboard. Onboarding is presented as a structured 90-day sequence: POS connection and menu syncing in week one, website launch and Google Ads activation around day 19, and a dedicated customer success manager per account.

Sources describe commission-free ordering for restaurants on their own channels, indicating that restaurants pay Chowly for the software rather than a percentage of order value; specific pricing is not stated.

Traction

Company materials cite 17,000+ restaurant locations, 3,000+ brands, 50+ POS integrations, 150+ connected delivery apps, and a 4.8/5 G2 rating from 100+ reviews. A 2019 executive profile states the platform was processing over one million orders per month; in 2018 the software was used by over 1,500 restaurants in 200 cities across the US, Canada and Mexico. Published case studies report outcomes such as 51.7% direct order crossover and $94,000 in first-year savings at Taco Nazo, a 256% revenue increase at Taqueria El Tapatio, and $121,000 in annual commission savings at Liv's Juice & Acai Bar.

Latest developments

Recent additions include AI agents for SEO, Google Business Profile and Google Ads management, AI dynamic pricing, automated delivery dispute management, and AI index pages aimed at inclusion in Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT results. Company content published through early 2026 focuses on shifting order volume from third-party marketplaces to first-party channels and on automating menu management across DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub.