An Aldi customer shared her frustrating DoorDash experience on the internet. Viewers say this is far too common, especially when the Dasher is a man.
Sarah Pirie-Nally (@sarahpirienally) posted a video stating she ordered seven of Aldi’s high-quality store-brand Wagyu burger patties from DoorDash, but was disappointed to see that the Dasher replaced them with seven packs of four patties. “So now I have 28 burgers,” says Pirie-Nally.
Overwhelmingly, the comments section was filled with users echoing her frustration with similar stories.
“I ordered 4 individual carrots and got 4kg bags of carrots,” wrote one user.
“Last fortnight I ordered burger patties and a pack of buns and apparently the burgers were out of stock which is fine but they replaced them with another pack of buns?” added another. Like????? What…….”
How Common Are Poor Substitutions On DoorDash?
While precise company-wide substitution statistics aren’t publicly disclosed, consumer reporting data indicates that a significant portion of deliveries go astray. Industry analysis suggests that 10–15% of all food delivery orders on apps like DoorDash experience some kind of issue. These range from missing items to incorrect substitutions and frustrating customer service twists.
A U.K. consumer survey of online grocery orders found that nearly a third of shoppers received unsolicited substitutions in their most recent order, including bizarre swaps such as dog treats for steak and sanitary pads instead of sandwich wraps. That doesn’t mean Dashers are wilfully sabotaging groceries, but it does underscore an issue where inventory mismatches, app interfaces that hide substitution preferences, and Dashers trying to make substitutions work collide spectacularly.
Do Customers Specifically Have Issues With Male Grocery Delivery Drivers?
Some comments also specified that they specifically have issues with male DoorDash drivers picking poor substitutions.
“I doordash and some of these people have absolutely 0 concept,” commented one individual. “Like I’ve had multiple people get excited because it’s a woman doing their groceries and not a man.”
In fact, stories about male Instacart or DoorDash shoppers substituting the most unusual items imaginable have made national headlines. Additionally, customers on social platforms openly say they prefer female shoppers because they “get it right more often.”
Research on actual shopping behavior shows that while men are increasingly active in grocery shopping, and sometimes use delivery services more than women, the idea that men are inherently worse at picking groceries is more a social stereotype than a hard statistic. One study of grocery habits notes differences in how men and women engage with shopping tasks, but it doesn’t support the notion that men are categorically worse at choosing quality items.
AllHipHop reached out for comment to DoorDash via email and Pirie-Nally via TikTok direct message. This story will be updated if either party responds.