Cape Girardeau was introduced to a new food delivery service this week, called Waitr, as the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the company’s launch.

Waitr allows customers to order from local restaurants and delivers each order for a flat delivery fee of $5.

Cape Girardeau is the second city in Missouri to use Waitr behind Saint Joseph after being launched earlier this summer.

Waitr tends to operate in small and medium-sized markets in approximately 700 cities across the United States according to their website. The company focuses its connection on the people in the cities they operate in.

“We’re all about being local and being involved in the community,” regional marketing manager Jacqueline Poirrier said “That is what sets us apart from our competition,” regional marketing manager Jacqueline Poirrier said.

Waitr is currently available for ordering on both desktop and mobile app platforms. They have partnered with 20 restaurants with plans to add more in the future.

“We partner with local restaurants in the Cape Girardeau area to get the food and bring it to everybody in the community,” Porierr said. “Whether it's at home or their office, convenience is key.”

Poirrier described how the business is excited to launch in Cape.

“We come [to Cape] because we are already in St. Joseph, and so why not?” Poirrier said. “Why not move into another city where people are asking for it, the community is asking for it. We listen to our community, and so that is why we’re here.”

The Cape Chamber welcomes new businesses to help build a stronger presence in the community Chamber president and CEO John Mehner said. TheChamber suggested a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the company's launch into the market,Mehner said.

“We love new businesses in the area,” Mehner said. “There are others established like carGO that was started here and they also do food delivery... We like to see new businesses come to Cape, and competition is usually a good thing.”

When Waitr opens up a new market, Poirrier said the company expects to hire 100 drivers, creating jobs for the Cape community.

For more information or to download the app, visit www.waitrapp.com.