CLEVELAND — Overnight snowfall in northeast Ohio was a welcomed sight to those in the food delivery business.

“When we see the snow start to fly or the rain start to fall, we lick our chops a little bit," said Tom Atkinson, a DeliverMeFood delivery driver.

What You Need To Know

  • For the last 25 years, DeliverMeFood has served as an online food delivery service in the Greater Cleveland area

  • The owner of DeliverMeFood said when winter weather hits, business typically doubles or even triples

  • But a major snow storm, like the one that hit the state Monday night, can put delivery drivers at risk

For the last 25 years, DeliverMeFood has served as an online food delivery service in the Greater Cleveland area.

It’s a local business that’s been around long before Uber Eats or Door Dash that supports over 120 local restaurants.

The owner of DeliverMeFood said when winter weather hits, business typically doubles or even triples.

“It definitely has an impact on us and we kind of do look forward to cold days. More cold days than snow days,” said David Umina, the owner of DeliverMeFood.



“The worse the weather, the better the tips and actually interestingly enough during the pandemic people have shown much more appreciation for the fact that they’ve got people giving them contact-free delivery,” said Atkinson.

But major snow, like the predicted up to 12 inches, is not a good thing even for the food delivery business because it can put drivers at risk.

Umina said his delivery drivers are prepared with winter tires and if the weather gets too bad, he’ll close down for the night and evaluate each county's conditions individually.

“It makes things very difficult. No. 1: Safety is first. So, if we’re at level three road conditions and emergency vehicles only obviously we will close rather than try to make a profit off of risking people’s lives,” said Umina.

The state was covered in snow, sleet and freezing rain Monday night, making road conditions especially icy Tuesday morning. Much of the state is still under a winter storm warning. Click here to see the latest forecast.