Feast for All
I designed a home party planning service to minimize the psychological burden on both hosts and guests when addressing dietary needs
Type
UX UI Design
Role
Design research / Prototyping / UX UI design
key features
Pain Point
Communication about dietary restriction at potluck parties is not always easy
When I planned to host a party at my home, I was excited about serving Japanese food to my friends. I used a Google Spreadsheet to ask about dietary restrictions. Some friends responded quickly, but one friend only told me the day before the party. He’s from a different country and felt uncomfortable bringing it up sooner. Because I had already bought my groceries, I had to purchase additional items. This made me realize the need for a system that lets people like him share their dietary needs without hesitation, and helps hosts accommodate them easily.
Finding good recipes for dietary-restriction friendly meal can be troublesome
Since vegetarian and vegan diets aren’t mainstream where I grew up in Japan, my knowledge of suitable dishes was limited. I tried making meat-free dumplings for my vegetarian friends, but accidentally used chicken stock, rendering them inedible for vegetarians. This experience made me wish for a service that lists dishes popular among people with dietary restrictions and helps me check whether my recipes include any prohibited ingredients.
survey
What can be done to make potluck parties welcoming and stress-free for people with dietary preferences, while maintaining a smooth experience for all participants?
solution
I designed a home party planning service to minimize the psychological burden on both hosts and guests when addressing dietary needs
2-Tap Dietary Restriction Sharing
Select your dietary restriction from icons, register for the party, and submit your info in just two taps.
Visualize Dietary Restriction Ratio
See what percentage of attendees have dietary restrictions—useful for planning potluck dishes.
Recipe Search & Dietary Alerts
Search a recipe, check potential conflicts with dietary restrictions of guests, and find alternative recipes.
storyboard
COMMUNICATION ON DIETARY PREFERENCE
PREPARE MEALS
wireframing & user testing
BEFORE TESTING - USER JOURNEY
Comment during user testing
after testing - simplified user journey
design principles
style guide
Colors
Typography
Shape
Spacing
USER TESTING #2 & REVISED VERSION BASED ON USER FEEDBACK
1.
Enlarged icon size and position
The initial icons were small and tucked away in a corner, making them difficult to tap. After referencing existing apps, we increased the icon size and provided more generous vertical and horizontal margins.
2.
Increased button size and introduced scrolling
The buttons were too small and numerous, negatively affecting usability. We enlarged them and redesigned the layout so that less frequently used buttons appear only when scrolling horizontally.
3.
Added more whitespace
The content was cramped, creating a cluttered appearance. We increased spacing between elements to improve readability and overall visual clarity.
key takeaways
- Through repeated user testing, I gained insights into which content mattered most to users. This allowed us to reorder elements and even eliminate some entirely
- I carefully chose wording that would make party planning enjoyable, whether or not dietary preferences were a concern. I focused on designing an experience that keeps users’ feelings in mind when they actually use the service.
Next steps
- Create a beta version of the app and adjust the layout so that frequently used features are easier to access.
- Experiment with displaying the proportion of users who have dietary restrictions, particularly in edge cases (such as when only one person is vegetarian), to see whether it provides reassurance or causes unnecessary stress for those users.