For parents, time is of the essence, but sometimes a task as simple as deciding where to go for dinner or order take-out can sometimes seem overwhelming given the amount of information available on the web. Enter Nara, a new mobile app for discovering restaurants according to a user’s personal preferences, which the creators of Nara term the user’s “Digital DNA.”
Users of Nara are presented with several brief questions when determining a restaurant recommendation. They are asked which table setting appeals to them out of a list of photos (from hipster to formal), which cuisine they enjoy (from Mediterranean to American), and how they would most like to spend a day off. All of these questions help gauge personal preferences as well as the specific type of food the user is in the mood for.
Nara analyzes 150,000 restaurants, cafes and bars in 25 top U.S. and Canadian cities before suggesting personalized choices. Recently Nara added several exciting features that make the app even more user friendly for parents.
“We now have integrated menus for every venue, so when you go to the mobile app and you click on a recommendation, you can pull up menus on the details pages for most of the venues we have now,” said Thomas Copeman, chief executive officer and founder of Nara. “We’ve also integrated with Foursquare on both mobile and web, so you can pick up tips and reviews from Foursquare users who have checked into that venue before.”
According to Copeman, there’s also a new “Why” button that tells the user why that venue is recommended to them and helps them understand how Nara’s “thinking” helped them come up with that recommendation.
For families with small kids wanting to take a break from the ordinary but needing to order take-out, GrubHub will soon be added to Nara’s web application. If restaurants offer a GrubHub menu, users can order food for pick up via the app on the web.
For parents needing a date night or families seeking a culinary adventure, Nara is a great discovery tool.
“We’re all about taking the big data that’s out there and making it more personalized and unique to each and every one of us,” added Copeman. “We’re really working hard at untangling the web and making it more personal and actionable.”
More about Nara can be found at Nara's website, and the apps are available for free mobile download at the App Store and Google Play.
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