People

Lieferando Pride Guide

Pride is on the menu

Safe spaces should not be difficult to find: that's why we have created the Lieferando Pride Guide. This guide features restaurants on our platform in which queer people can feel safe and welcome. The restaurants we have chosen are actively committed to inclusion and safety, and offer a friendly atmosphere for all guests. By promoting these restaurants, we want to increase the visibility and acceptance of the LGBTQIA+ community and take a stand against intolerance and violence.

Our goal is to ensure that all people are treated equally, regardless of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. The project will continue beyond Pride Month – because we are committed to the LGBTQIA+ community all year round.

Find a restaurant

Our motivation

Queerphobia worldwide and in Germany

Unfortunately, violence against queer people remains all too common. It might be 2024, but homosexuality is still a crime in at least 67¹ countries. And even the extremely liberal city of Berlin has seen an increase in queerphobic violence. Between the start of the year and the end of April 2024, 265² proceedings had been opened in cases related to queerphobia. Last year, 1014 cases and reports involving anti-LGBTQIA+ incidents were recorded in the capital alone – an increase of 29% compared to the previous year³.

Attacks on the queer community are increasing throughout Germany. According to the Bundeskriminalamt [Federal Criminal Police Office], 1499 crimes based on the victim's sexual orientation were reported to the police in 2023. This represented an increase of 49.15% compared to the previous year⁴.

We are horrified by these numbers. It is up to us – as individuals, but also as a company – to work for the community and to demonstrate vociferously that these numbers are not acceptable.

Everyday hatred in restaurants

In our survey conducted by market research institute YouGov, 1049 people from the LGBTQIA+ community across Germany were interviewed and the results show a worrying discrimination against queer people in restaurants. Figures that we urgently need to change. Figures that are not acceptable in 2024. Figures that only encourage us to work harder for the LGBTQIA+ community!

71%

of transgender people feel uncomfortable in restaurants and 57.9% have been treated unfairly because of their gender identity.

1049

people from the LGBTQIA+ community across Germany were interviewed.

13%

of homosexual respondents reported that they have had 3–5 negative experiences in restaurants within the last 12 months due to discrimination

61%

of transgender people prefer to have their food delivered at home

How does the Lieferando Pride Guide work?

The restaurants in our Lieferando Pride Guide have been carefully selected as establishments that provide a safe and inclusive atmosphere for the LGBTQIA+ community.

Our selection criteria cover several important aspects:

Recommendations from the queer community
Active LGBTQIA+-friendly communication by the restaurants themselves
Inclusive company policy
Positive reviews and feedback on LGBTQIA+-related issues

Are you a restaurant that would like to feature in the Lieferando Pride Guide? Then email prideguide@lieferando.de

Find LGBTQIA+-friendly restaurants near you

Use the search function to find participating restaurants in your city

Our LGBTQIA+ initiatives

Working for the LGBTQIA+ community is a key part of our company culture. Our internal JET & Proud community shares its initiatives, events, and ideas with all employees. Our Inclusion, Diversity and Belonging team is committed to making our company an open, diverse workplace for everyone. This not only involves internal HR processes and policies but also support from our LGBTQIA+ partners and external initiatives.

We also want to support LGBTQIA+ people in the wider community: in recent years, we have given young designers the chance to win EUR 15,000 in starting capital for their careers as part of the Lieferando Drag Design Competition. In 2022, drag icons Bambi Mercury, Tamara Mascara and Olivia Jones personally delivered orders on our orange bikes to promote a charity auction for World Central Kitchen.

We are proud sponsors of Pride Parades in Berlin, London, Amsterdam, Wroclaw and Dublin and, for those who are unable to take part in the parades, we bring the celebration to our offices worldwide.

Last but not least, this year we have created the Lieferando Pride Guide, which aims to contribute to the greater visibility and safety of the queer community throughout Germany.

Our vision for an inclusive community

Lucas Marquez Morato Fedrigo, Co-Country Lead, JET & Proud

The topic of Pride is particularly important to us at Lieferando and Just Eat Takeaway.com. We are proud to promote an inclusive culture that celebrates diversity. Pride lasts not just for one day, but 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, every day, every week.

As a co-country lead at JET & Proud, I am particularly pleased about the commitment of all our employees who actively work to support the LGBTQIA+ community. Supported by company management and our Inclusion, Diversity and Belonging team, we promote initiatives such as gender-neutral language and workshops.

Our new Lieferando Pride Guide is another example of our commitment. With this guide, we want to make sure that EVERYONE, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender identity, feels welcome and safe.

JET & Proud Community

The LGBTQIA+ network at Lieferando and Just Eat Takeaway.com is actively committed to providing a supportive and inclusive environment for the LGBTQIA+ community. At Lieferando, we believe that companies should play an active role in promoting an inclusive and open society. Initiatives such as the Lieferando Pride Guide are hugely important, as they promote safe places for LGBTQIA+ people and highlight the community's local favorites.

As a diverse and inclusive company, Lieferando and Just Eat Takeaway.com are committed to hearing and respecting all voices. In doing so, we are not only creating a better working environment, but also a fairer and more open society that promotes harmonious and productive coexistence, and helps to create a more diverse, tolerant, and quite simply more compassionate world.

Sources
¹ - Federal Foreign Office
² - Federal Foreign Office
³ - Berliner Tagesspiegel
⁴ - BMI Publication: Politically motivated crime in 2023 – Nationwide case numbers – Page 11

Contact
Ann-Kathrin Donwald
ann-kathrin.donwald@justeattakeaway.com

Tips: How to behave correctly as restaurant staff

Classic mistakes
Unfortunately, queer people experience discrimination not only from other guests, but also from restaurant staff. 53% of respondents who have experienced discrimination in restaurants reported that this came from restaurant staff. In addition, 29.9% even said that the discrimination was at the hands of the restaurant owners. This shows that discrimination can even come from those who are responsible for the safety and comfort of all guests.

Transgender people in particular reported bad experiences with staff: 57.6% said they had had negative interactions with restaurant employees. And only 18% of queer people reported that a staff member intervened when other guests were queerphobic.

The consequences of such behavior are far-reaching: Queer people are forced to leave restaurants, avoid certain places or avoid restaurant visits entirely and have their food delivered home. These figures show that not only do restaurant customers need to adjust their behavior, but restaurants also need to actively put measures in place to create an inclusive and safe environment for all guests.

The top five steps restaurants can take if they wish to be identified as queer-friendly:

Employ queer workers
Train employees to raise awareness of LGBTQIA+ issues
Display LGBTQIA+ friendly symbols
Have a feedback and complaints system to report discriminatory behavior
Provide gender-neutral toilets

Great role models

However, many restaurants are already actively promoting the LGBTQIA+ community – and we would like to briefly introduce three of them here.

One restaurant setting the standard is Snack Jack in Neckarbischofsheim. Employees here receive training on LGBTQIA+ issues to ensure that all customers are treated with respect. Snack Jack also has a zero-tolerance policy against discrimination and does not use gender-specific language.

Another example is Hellas Grill Eilbek in Hamburg. They have been celebrating Pride Month for 6 years. They regularly print political statements against discrimination on their takeout boxes and visibly display the Pride flag. The owner, whose son is active in the LGBTQIA+ scene, supports AIDS charities and sponsors numerous LGBTQIA+ events.

Rocket Rice Milchreis in Cologne also demonstrates a strong commitment to the queer community. Ever since it opened, rainbow stickers have decorated the door and the restaurant is always suitably decorated on Christopher Street Day (Cologne's annual Pride celebrations). The restaurant also regularly shares posts on Instagram that highlight the diversity and tolerance of its customers and employees.

How to behave as a guest at a restaurant

Classic mistakes
Our survey has clearly shown that members of the LGBTQIA+ community often do not feel comfortable in restaurants, and one reason for this is the behavior of other guests. Such behavior includes derogatory whispering, which 47% of homosexual respondents have experienced, and staring, which 34.1% of homosexual respondents have experienced. In addition, 40.9% of homosexual respondents have noticed other guests making derogatory gestures, and 22.7% have noticed others deliberately moving to stand or sit further away from queer people. All of these behaviors make queer people feel uncomfortable in restaurants – and understandably so!

The behavior of restaurant customers toward transgender people is particularly frightening: 94% of the transgender people surveyed said that they have experienced queerphobic behavior from other guests in restaurants. We have to change that! Urgently. So, here are 5 tips on how to behave more respectfully toward queer guests when dining out.

The top 5 ways in which other guests can ensure that they are being respectful toward queer guests:

Do not make offensive or inappropriate comments. These include offensive words such as "faggot" or "tranny", but also comments that reinforce stereotypes, such as "he looks so feminine". Unsolicited opinions, for example saying something like "Why do you have to show off your sexuality like that?" are inappropriate and disrespectful.
Avoid offensive behavior such as staring or whispering. Be aware that, in addition to offensive actions like staring, whispering or even pointing at someone, deliberately ignoring them or pointedly moving away from them is equally hurtful and disrespectful.
Show solidarity in the event of discrimination. Show support to those affected and make it clear that you consider such behavior from other guests to be unacceptable.
Use respectful and inclusive language. Sentences such as "This is so gay" or "Don’t be a girl" are still far too commonplace in our society and contribute to discrimination. Be aware that your words have meaning. So, try to use language that includes everyone. For example, you could say "folks" instead of "guys".
Use the correct pronouns. Just because you think a person looks "more male" or "more female", that does not automatically mean that the person in question identifies as that gender. If you are unsure which pronouns a person uses, it's best to ask. This shows interest and respect.

Don't be so German – stop staring
We Germans love to stare. But please, let's stop. 34.1% of homosexuals and 45.5% of transgender people find it disturbing. And rightly so. Or do you like to be stared at? Probably not. So let's abide by the motto, "Treat others as you wish to be treated," and all stop staring now. Deal? Deal!