SCOUT
Scout is a people-driven food exploration platform that helps discover restaurants, cafes etc. and connect individuals through shared interest shared interests and community recommendations. It addresses food exploration as a people-first problem built on the idea that human guidance and shared experience matter more when discovering food in new or unfamiliar places.
A platform for Food Discovery, Community and Connections
UX/UI
DESIGN
Year
2025
Duration
6 weeks
This gap inspired me to design a platform where food is the starting point of discovery and human connection.
Why Food?
Food is more than just eating, it’s about experiences, connection, and comfort.
Problem Area
To explore the challenges and unmet needs in food discovery/exploration for food enthusiasts especially interstate students and young professionals in new cities.
Opportunity
Existing food apps focus on unreliabe leads and ratings, not authentic experiences.
Authenticity Doubt
Food outside one’s native state often feels “less authentic,” leading to hesitation or safe choices.
Exploration Feels Risky
Budget limits, travel effort, and fear of disappointment make new food feel like a gamble.
Taste Filters Everything
Exploration is heavily preference-driven. Tailored recommendations feel more trustworthy.
Review Fatigue
Online platforms feel overwhelming and unreliable. Personal recommendations carry weight.
Social Alignment Matters
Food is social but mismatched preferences make planning frustrating.
Passive Users Exist
Not everyone wants to actively engage. Low-effort participation is essential.
Key Insights
Through primary research, I spoke to a number of people in my target audience to understand how they navigate food in a new city. Their responses revealed clear patterns, friction points, and decision triggers.
Insights revealed one thing clearly
food discovery isn’t spontaneous. It’s filtered, cautious, and socially driven.
A platform that allows users to explore food experiences through a trusted community while also enabling food-first connections with like-minded peers. The app is built on people-first discovery and optional social matching, so users never feel pressured to connect with people just to get value from the platform.
Where food meets people
Thus,
Scout.
Secondary Research
Surveys & Interviews
Primary Research
Affinity Mapping
Stage A
Card Sorting method
Stage B
Competitor Analysis
User Journey
Mapping
Solution Direction
User Persona +
Empathy Mapping
Pain Point
Analysis
Information Architecture
Task Flow & User Flow
Paper Protoyping
UI Branding
Stage C
Medium Fidelity Prototype
High Fidelity Prototype
Low Fidelity
Protoyping
Component Library
Stage D
Kartik Kale
Age 20
Pain Points
Overwhelmed by online reviews and ratings
Fear of wasting money on bad food choices
Struggles to find friends who match his food plans
Ritika Sharma
Age 26
Goals
Eat well without exceeding a student budget
Build confidence in trying new places
Connect with people who share similar food interests
Goals
Explore authentic cuisines beyond cafés
Connect with people through food and culture
Build a local food community in a new city
Pain points
Online recommendations feel generic and inauthentic
Limited local network for food discovery
Avoids reels/ads, making discovery harder
| Food Discovery
Helps users discover food through people rather than places. Instead of scrolling through endless listings, users can swipe to see individuals sharing their experience of a particular cuisine or food scene in specific places.
| Food Connection
Connect enables one-on-one matching between people who want to explore food together. Matches are based on cuisine interest, intent, and availability making food exploration guided, social, and more confident.
| Food Community
Builds a shared space around food interests where people exchange experiences, insights, and recommendations. Community building strengthens trust, belonging, and long-term engagement
Scout structures food exploration into three core ideas:
Find places, connect with people & build your community.
Colours & Typography
Purple
#5B518E
#F8BC16
Yellow
Key Colours
Neutral Colours
White
#FFFFFF
Gray 10
#F1F1F1
Gray 30
#D9D9D8
Gray 50
#8C8C8C
Gray 70
#414141
Colour ramps
Typography
Onest
Font name
Font weight
Bold
Regular
Medium
SemiBold
h1
Title
32 px
Bold
h2
Subtitle
18 px
Bold
h3
Subtitle
16 px
SemiBold
h4
Subtitle
14 px
SemiBold
p1
Body
12 px
Regular/
Semibood
p2
Body
10 px
Regular/
Semibold
p3
Byline
8 px
Regular
Sizes
/Food Discovery
Swipe through food stories and recommendations shared by people you follow, just like a living feed of real experiences.
01
Swipe, save, react, and apply filters (cuisine, budget, vibe, distance) to refine your search.
02
Tap into any post to explore the full restaurant profile -menus, reviews, location, and who else has been there.
03
/Food Connect
Swipe through food stories and recommendations shared by people you follow, just like a living feed of real experiences.
01
Like, save, react, and apply filters (cuisine, budget, vibe, distance) to refine your search.
02
Tap into any post to explore the full restaurant profile -menus, reviews, location, and who else has been there.
03
/Food Community
Swipe through food stories and recommendations shared by people you follow, just like a living feed of real experiences.
01
Like, save, react, and apply filters (cuisine, budget, vibe, distance) to refine your search.
02
Tap into any post to explore the full restaurant profile -menus, reviews, location, and who else has been there.
03
Onboarding
Screens
The onboarding process gathers basic profile details and food-related preferences to build a personalized food profile for each user. This profile becomes the foundation for their in-app identity and appears in the My Profile section.
By understanding individual tastes, dietary choices, and interests early on, the platform can tailor recommendations, connections, and community interactions creating a food discovery experience that feels relevant, social, and uniquely suited to each user.
By making these preferences visible, users can discover, follow and connect with like-minded food enthusiasts and build more meaningful interactions.
User's unique food identity
The profile section is organized into three switchable tabs - Food Identity, Posts, and Communities giving a complete overview of each user. It showcases their tastes, shared content, and communities joined making it easier for others to connect.
Profile Screens
