CRAVE

Inspiration

Inspired by problems we have personally faced, CRAVE was born out of frustration with group dining. As people who are vegan and gluten-free, we constantly found ourselves saying “I can’t eat there,” which made group planning stressful and exclusionary. We realized this wasn’t just our problem—it’s something many people with dietary restrictions or busy schedules deal with regularly.

What it does

CRAVE eliminates the “I can’t eat there” problem by helping groups find restaurants that work for everyone’s dietary needs and schedules. Users input their dietary restrictions, preferences, and availability, and CRAVE intelligently recommends options that satisfy the entire group—making planning effortless and inclusive.

How we built it

We built CRAVE as a full-stack platform that combines a user-friendly interface with intelligent filtering and matching logic. On the frontend, we focused on creating an intuitive experience where users can quickly input constraints and view group-compatible options. On the backend, we are using Gemini API calls to filter through menu data based on location, dietary restriction and availability.

Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest challenges was balancing multiple constraints simultaneously—dietary restrictions, preferences, and scheduling—without overwhelming the user. Designing an system that fairly represents everyone’s needs while still returning practical options required careful iteration. Another challenge was ensuring accurate restaurant data, especially for niche dietary requirements, such as specific allergies.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re proud of building a solution that directly addresses a real and relatable problem. Our platform successfully simplifies group decision-making and promotes inclusivity. We also created a clean, intuitive UI that makes what could be a complex process feel seamless. Most importantly, we turned a common frustration into a scalable product.

What we learned

We learned the importance of user-centered design—especially when dealing with multiple stakeholders in one decision. Iterating based on real user pain points helped us refine both the product and the experience. We also gained experience in balancing technical complexity with usability, ensuring that powerful features don’t come at the cost of simplicity.

What's next for CRAVE

We’re getting ready to launch our platform and expand our reach to more users. Next steps include improving recommendation accuracy, adding social features (like group voting), and expanding restaurant coverage. Long-term, we aim to partner with restaurants and offer personalized dining experiences for users with specific dietary needs.

Built With

• geminiapi
• replit