By Laura Forman

Uber Technologies suddenly has even more riding on food delivery.

The company on Monday said it was laying off 3,000 employees and would close more than three dozen offices in an effort to navigate the coronavirus crisis. The cutbacks mean that the ride-hailing giant, which operates food-delivery arm Uber Eats, needs a deal more than ever with rival Grubhub.

In the past month, Uber has cut roughly a quarter of its global workforce. Notably, on Monday the company also said it was evaluating strategic alternatives for its autonomous-driving and freight businesses. Any withdrawal from these initiatives would be a dramatic step. Uber has already invested hundreds of millions of dollars in autonomous driving, and has touted it as a big future growth driver.

Uber now appears to be tripling down on food delivery, which has been a saving grace for its top line amid the pandemic. The company reported ride volumes were down about 80% at their nadir in April, but gross bookings for its Eats business were up 52% from a year earlier in the first quarter.

Uber has been working to merge with competitor Grubhub since early this year, but has balked at Grubhub's asking price, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

Such a deal would be likely to greatly alleviate what analysts say has become an unsustainably promotional environment in the industry. As such, it could accelerate Uber's path to profitability, a goal which the pandemic has brought even more into focus as ride-share volumes have declined. JMP Securities analyst Ronald Josey predicts a Grubhub merger could bring more than $800 million of operational efficiencies to Uber Eats. It would also catapult Uber Eats into a dominant position atop current leader DoorDash, according to data from Edison Trends.

But this feast won't come easily. In addition to price haggling, regulatory pressure could also get in the way. Many cities such as Seattle and San Francisco are capping the commissions delivery platforms like Uber Eats can charge their restaurant customers. New York City, where Uber and Grubhub already have a commanding combined market lead, looks likely to keep its own limits at least for several months, if not permanently, following the pandemic.

Uber continues to trade at a significant premium to trucking and rental-car companies, as it is still seen as a technology play. Without its most cutting-edge side businesses to buoy its valuation, the restaurant business becomes all the more important to staying a growth company Uber will have to pay up just to keep up.

Write to Laura Forman at laura.forman@wsj.com