WhattaEat – Case Study

Project Overview

WhattaEat (short for “What to Eat”) is a social food discovery app that helps people quickly decide where and what to eat through short, authentic food videos from real diners.

I co-founded WhattaEat in 2025 together with Jose Acevedo. This is our current startup; a complete rebuild and evolution of an earlier idea we worked on in 2021. The app combines short-form video, community sharing, and location-based discovery to make deciding where to eat faster and more visual.

The Problem

Deciding where to eat is often more frustrating than it should be. Traditional apps rely heavily on star ratings and written reviews from strangers, which rarely answer the real question: “Would someone I trust actually recommend this place?”

Static photos and text reviews fail to capture the sensory experience of food; the sizzle, portion sizes, atmosphere, and energy of a restaurant. People increasingly discover food through short videos on social media, but those platforms aren’t designed to help someone actively decide what to eat right now, nearby.

The Solution

WhattaEat makes food discovery visual and social. Instead of reading reviews, users watch short, authentic videos of real dishes and restaurant experiences shared by local diners and creators. The app combines these videos with a map so people can quickly find great spots around them.

It bridges the gap between fun food content and practical decision-making: helping users preview the actual dining experience before they go.

WhattaEat aka Whatta Eat app showing the food discovery video feed.
WhattaEat aka Whatta Eat food discovery app showing the food emoji pins.
WhattaEat iOS app showing videos for the food search feature.

My Role & Process

As Co-Founder and CTO, I lead product development, iOS engineering, and technical direction. Jose Acevedo (Co-Founder & CEO) drives operations, and community growth.

We started with an earlier swipe-based version in 2021, but relaunched in late 2025 with a full pivot to a video-first platform. I rebuilt the core experience using modern iOS technologies, focusing on fast video loading, smooth map integration, and a clean interface that feels native to short-form content.

Challenges

  • Shifting from a simple swipe app to a full video + map platform while keeping performance fast and battery-friendly.
  • Building a community-driven content ecosystem from scratch; getting early users to create and share high-quality food videos instead of just consuming.
  • Designing a product that feels both entertaining and useful (like a decision-making tool) at the same time.

Key Features

  • Short authentic food videos from real diners and creators
  • Location-based map with video-tagged restaurants and food trucks
  • Easy sharing and saving of spots and dishes
  • Social discovery focused on trusted, visual recommendations
  • Support for local vendors and hidden gems

Technologies Used

  • Swift & SwiftUI
  • AVFoundation + video optimization
  • MapKit
  • Backend services for video hosting and social features

Promotion & Community Building

Early growth has come from organic sharing, creator partnerships, and leaning into Southern California’s vibrant food scene. We focus on highlighting small local vendors, food trucks, and neighborhood spots that often get overlooked by traditional apps.

Outcome & Learnings

WhattaEat is still in its early days, but we’re already seeing positive momentum since the video-first relaunch. The project has reinforced many lessons from my previous exit with ShredSpots:

  • Downloads are exciting, but real engagement and community contribution are what make a platform sustainable.
  • Food discovery is deeply social and visual: people trust what they can see and what their network recommends.
  • Pivoting based on real user behavior and market trends is powerful.

Building WhattaEat continues to shape how I think about location-based discovery and community platforms. It’s the most ambitious project I’ve worked on yet, and I’m excited to keep evolving it with Jose.

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