Inspiration
As a lifelong vegan, I grew tired of scrolling generic apps listing “vegan options” at non-vegan spots. I wanted a platform that only shows fully vegan restaurants, with reviews from actual vegans who understand the lifestyle. Traveling made this need even clearer—reliable vegan dining shouldn’t be a hassle.
What it does
VeganRestaurant Finder locates 100% vegan/plant-forward spots via GPS or search. It offers filtered browsing (cuisine, allergens, hours), vegan-only reviews, travel mode for trip planning, and alerts for new local openings. All venues are verified vegan.
How we built it
We designed a mobile-responsive React frontend with intuitive map/list views. Backend uses Node.js + MongoDB to store verified restaurant data. Integrated Google Maps API for location search, Firebase for user auth, and built a review system limited to self-identified vegan users.
Challenges we ran into
Strictly verifying 100% vegan status required manual curation and constant database updates. Balancing detailed filters without cluttering the UI took multiple iterations. We also solved location-permission fallback logic for users who deny GPS access.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
Creating a truly vegan-only platform with trustworthy reviews. Travel mode became a fan favorite for users planning trips, and new-restaurant alerts help communities support local vegan businesses quickly.
What we learned
Vegan users value trust and specificity above all. Curated, verified data beats generic aggregation every time. We also learned how critical smooth location fallback flows are for user retention.
What's next for This project
We’ll expand global venue coverage, add offline travel maps, refine allergen filtering, and introduce a community-suggested venue verification system to keep the database growing accurately.
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