iMenu — food ordering

The problem

Cafes and restaurants each have their own website. Hunting across them for a favourite dish is a chore. The client wanted an app that worked in as few taps as possible — every basic flow on one screen, no excessive scrolling, fitting any phone screen size.

Objectives

• Search restaurants and cafes by location
• Feature the best available foods
• Show restaurant details clearly
• Display customer reviews and ratings
• Call or chat with the manager
• Organise foods by social vote
• Use colours that drive appetite
• Keep navigation simple throughout

The process

1. Research
2. Synthesising research and competitor analysis
3. Paper prototyping
4. Layout design
5. Visual design
6. User testing and conclusion

01 · Research plan

By this point I knew the problem, the audience, and the goals. During empathy work I learned that users buy when they see social proof — and I picked up the techniques that drive customers to buy. The core mission: order food in as few taps as possible.

02 · Synthesising research

Across the audience and similar apps, the pattern was clear: people don't want to browse a huge restaurant-style menu in-app. They want their favourites surfaced. Showing featured / favourite foods on each merchant page would carry more weight than a full menu dump.

03 · Paper prototyping

Pen-and-paper first — fastest and cheapest way to iterate. I sketched as many ideas as came to mind, analysed them, and pulled out the key concept.

04 · Layout design

The client emphasised three screens:

• Explore. After sign-up, users land here. Recommendations based on location, prior rating, and distance.
• Merchant. From explore or search, the merchant page surfaces popular foods and ratings — order entry starts here.
• Menu list. Browse the full menu when needed. Add-ons via single-tap radio-style buttons.

05 · Visual design

From the feedback and synthesis, I moved to high-fidelity prototype design — a simulation of the final product. Prototypes test ideas cheaply before investing engineering time. Static screens built in Adobe XD, strung into a clickable prototype with realistic transitions and scroll.

Colour palette

The brief was simple: appeal to users and make them hungry. I researched the food industry, tested several palettes in the primary design, and settled on three.

Typography

Poppins throughout, mostly lighter weights. Typography consistency held across the whole app.

06 · User testing & conclusion

I guerrilla-tested the prototype on five people, running a scenario where they searched for a nearby restaurant and placed an order. The business owner helped run the test. People liked how the foods were sorted and how the ordering flow held together — encouraging signal.