Behold the era of software companies that are literally disgusting: Goldbely, with the name and business sense of a cartoon Bond villain, just snagged a big check for an unfathomably unappetizing idea. For only $100, you can get an authentic Philly cheesesteak shipped to your Silicon Valley office, and then puke.

TechCrunch says "you really should see (and taste)" Goldbely in order to "grok" the dystopian, impossibly decadent foodie experience, but it's actually pretty simple: you pay an exorbitant price ($80 for 16 Ben's Chili Bowl hot dogs, $60 for a Katz's Delicatessen corned beef platter) for famous local foods. Those restaurants pack up the chow like organs, sealed on dry ice or cooler packs or just completely frozen, and it's shipped express anywhere in the country.

It's a cute idea if you think of it only for a moment before thinking of something else, but consider the reality: you're paying markups in the hundreds-of-percent range for what's essentially cold leftovers. A perfect fit for the luxury-on-demand venture capitalist or affluent engineer, and yes, there's nothing like a Philly cheesesteak, authentic Buffalo buffalo wings, or Brooklyn pizza—unless those things have been sitting in a box. Is fantastic pizza that's been frozen, put through the mail, and then reheated substantially better than good pizza you could just go pick up when you want it? If it is substantially better, is it worth paying $30 per pizza? Even the food we order and receive within an hour from Seamless can be gloppy and congealed—I shudder to think of unveiling a saucy sandwich after it's been freighted on an airplane.

But a crew of investors disagrees, and gave Goldbely three million dollars to keep going. It also appeals, of course, to the Hacker News set:

Once you've sent the consummate bottle of scotch, round of golf, cigars, etc to long time clients / vendors it's remarkably hard to figure anything else out.

Never heard of these guys, will spend at least $500 this holiday season on corporate gifts once I try them out myself ;)

Very cool idea, can't wait to try it.

The laziness economy meets the gimmick economy, and together they are strong.