Inspiration
We all know the pain of decision fatigue when it comes to finding the right thing to cook. Scrolling through endless lists of recipes, getting overwhelmed, and ending up ordering take-out. At the same time, dating apps like Tinder have proven how fun and addictive a simple swipe interaction can be. We thought: why not bring that same excitement to discovering food? That idea became CraveCrush, a way to explore meals effortlessly, pair them with the perfect vibe, and make cooking fun again.
What it does
- Swipe left to pass,
- Swipe right to “crush” a recipe and add it to your matches,
- Each match comes with a curated song, making the cooking experience more immersive. ## How we built it
- Frontend: Built with Expo + React Native, making the app run smoothly on both mobile and web.
- Backend / Data: Integrated with recipe APIs to generate sets of meals, and stored user likes/swipes using a global store.
- Media: Embedded YouTube music player to pair songs with recipes.
Challenges we ran into
Time constraint, a lot of bug fixes, and unfamiliarity with a new TechStack.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We were able to finalize a great MVP in a matter of a few hours, showcasing our adaptability and technical aptitude.
What we learned
- How to troubleshoot dependency conflicts in Expo/React Native projects.
- The importance of designing platform-agnostic state management.
- How to scope ideas: focusing on the “swipe-to-discover” core made the project achievable under time pressure.
- That playful UX (like swiping) can make even everyday tasks like meal planning feel exciting.
What's next for CraveCrush
A cloud based database would be a great next step, bug fixing is important and making it a great app for the end user.
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