These last few months have been awful. I run a pizza restaurant and more people have been ordering delivery instead of take-out. It's free delivery and that's something customers have always praised. I don't want to charge for delivery like the big chains, but my gas cost have tripled in the last couple months. Any thoughts? Ideas: Should I stop reimbursing my drivers? Should I raise the minimum order requirement ($10 right now)? Should I limit the distance my drivers will go (right now, I pretty much go anywhere within reason)?

I think that you have some good ideas for limiting your costs. The first thing that I would try out is changing your delivery area, I know a lot of places that are doing this right now with the gas prices. If that doesn't seem to cut it maybe you could restructure your menu and raise those prices while still keeping free delivery?

I think that worldtravler had an excellent idea with adjusting your menu prices. This is what I have done a few times in the past when the gas prices get out of wack. The benefit to this is people usually do not notice it and then when the gas prices go back down you can always cut the prices back again.

I agree with the above poster.  Make slight adjustments in the prices to help off set the cost.  That way in store customers help pick up the cost of the gas as well.  Also, you could set it up so you tell them on the fone that they can come in and pick it up @ a slightly lower cost (the old price) and explain the whole gas price thing.  Im sure they`ll understand.