SayFood

SayFood is a government-supervised platform that allows verified restaurants to operate on a reservation-only basis, limiting the number of guests at any given time to prevent overcrowding.

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THE PROBLEM

Restaurants play a central role in Europe’s day-to-day life and culture, and are a major source of employment. Many are likely to go bankrupt as a result of the pandemic, yielding significant damage to our economy and society. Many restaurants (particularly those with large premises) have a high fixed cost that increases the unit price they have to charge in order to break even. This pricing finds demand due to the value of the dining experience offered by the premises. Under a delivery-only scheme, their business model is no longer sustainable.

Restaurants are closed for a reason By bringing people together in confined spaces, they are likely to be a major contributor to spread. Recent evidence demonstrated how a single restaurant-goer may unknowingly infect several others in just a few hours. Under exponential growth, such infectivity rates quickly accumulate into a major outbreak, triggering a second wave that will enforce another national lockdown.

The higher the spread rate, the longer the restaurants will have to shut down for, and the quicker the return of the pandemic when they do open at last.

But if we manage to bring it down to a manageable level, they could remain open for longer periods of time.

This would save the businesses and their employees from financial collapse, and reduce the disruptive impact of COVID-19 on our culture and society.

For this to work, we need effective guidelines for preventing spread - social distancing, regular sanitisation, and avoiding interactions that can be performed via digital means.

To implement these measures, we need to be able to reliably monitor adherence at scale.

INSPIRATION

We were inspired by the story and concerns of our team member's parents who menage a very well-known restaurant in Krakow (Poland). Popular for its cozy space, delicious food and friendly waiters, the restaurant was severely hit by the lockdown and was forced to fire all its employees.

SOLUTION

SayFood is a platform that allows verified restaurants to operate on a reservation-only basis, limiting the number of guests at any given time to prevent overcrowding. The system is supervised by local governments, and only restaurants that comply with safety standards are enlisted. It is also a tool for customers to search for certified restaurants, make reservations. and easily report any violation.

HOW IT WORKS

Certification process

The platform allows to certify restaurants that comply with the local safety standards. Enlisting process: owners declare the implemented safety measures, and the number of clients allowed inside the restaurant, given the need for social distancing. An inspection team will go and check if the declared information is correct and if all safety measures are in place. the restaurant is certified.

Customer’s experience

From the customer's perspective, the platform offers a page where it is possible check the certified venues and the number of clients allowed inside the restaurant. Clients can book a table through our app. Existing ways of making a reservation can be easily integrated with the system, and availability is synchronised across booking channels in real time. An easy to remember reservation code is sent to the client, to verify the booking on arrival.

HOW WE BUILT IT

The demo application has been built using TypeScript with React JS framework on the frontend side and TypesScript with Express JS on the backend side. The demo application is served using Firebase infrastructure (hosting, cloud functions).

WHAT WE NEED TO CONTINUE

To take our idea forward, we need advice on best implementation routes and support to facilitate connecting with key stakeholders. At the present (early) stage, we think these may include:

PARTNERSHIPS

Governments

SayFood is a platform aiming at centralising the monitoring of safety standards implemented by restaurants. A collaboration with applicable authorities (potentially on EU level) would fast-track our route-to-market and help scale our operations to make a significant impact early on, when restaurants start reopening.

Existing providers of booking services

A partnership with existing online booking services would sharply increase our immediate customer reach. Booking websites can be seamlessly integrated with SayFood to verify restaurants’ certification and display real-time seat availability (capacity-limited to ensure social distancing).

TECHNICAL TEAM

SayFood’s goal is to mitigate pressing issues of economic impact and second-wave pandemic risk. Both are pressing issues that will begin to unfold over the next few weeks. To respond effectively, we need additional human resources to fast-track the development and deployment of our platform. This can be resolved by an external capital investment to support employee salaries, or by securing pro bono agreements for temporary assistance.

MARKETING & GROWTH

Depending on the outcome of potential partnership considerations, we may need additional funds for promotion via paid marketing channels.

CHALLENGES WE RAN INTO

  • A concern that persists is how fast government can implement this monitoring system. Basing on some research, we are confident about the fact that in order to allow thousands of businesses to operate again, there will be a commitment of speeding up the slow bureaucracy.
  • As an idea developed from scratch over the hackathon period, the main challenge was time management.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS THAT WE ARE PROUD OF

  • We developed a solution that has the potential to mitigate significantly the economic impact of lockdown.
  • Team work: we were a very diverse team, each of us has a different career path and skills set. The assignment of tasks was quite efficient.
  • Despite some issues and time challenge, we committed to continue until the end.
  • We are proud of our coders who managed to develop a basic demo in less than 24 hours.

WHAT WE LEARNED

  • We learned to use video editing tool in Canva, which may be useful in the future.
  • We learned the importance of having a team that has constructive discussions and good communication flow.
  • We learned that we need to manage time a bit better in time sensitive situations.
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