A new app aims to connect people with great LA home-cooking as easily as Uber can get them a ride.
By Carolyn Kamii
When a former professional chef asked her husband to develop an app so she could share her home-cooked dishes, George Mathew knew his wife Serelyn had conceived an exciting business concept. Today, the idea has transformed into Foodie Shares, a novel food marketplace available via iOS app.
Foodie Shares connects home-based chefs in Los Angeles, many with professional backgrounds and culinary school training, with hungry foodies around town. It allows chefs to list available dishes so customers can search for them by cuisine type, specialty or dietary restrictions. Customers who register for a free membership on the app can either buy dishes on demand or reserve them for a future date, plus message their chefs with comments or questions. After, they can rate their purchases in terms of quality, service and value.
“We want to present authentic forms of cooking, where chefs do not feel pressured to modify their creations to satisfy the palate of a mainstream audience,” says Foodie Shares co-founder Ryan Hoffman.
The app makes home-cooked authenticity conveniently available to those not in the mood to measure two parts egg to one part milk with the hopes of making quiche. “While busy people tend to eat out, many still desire to eat home-cooked foods,” says CEO George Mathew. “Now they can have home cooking without having to resource ingredients, shop, and cook.” Foodie Shares offers delivery through third-party partners or allows customers to pick up at the chef’s home.
Special food needs are taken care of, as well. Foodie Shares offers options for dietary specifications including Paleo, high healthy fat, sugar-free, gluten-free, organic and vegan.
“Foodie Shares makes the interaction between chef and food lover much less anonymous, and we’re thrilled to be able to change the way foodies engage with chefs and vice versa,” says co-founder Ryan Oehm. Customers can follow chefs, get updates and remain in contact. The company’s goal is not just to close each sales transaction. Foodie Shares believes in the importance of establishing a community, making it different from a food delivery service.
Foodie Shares is continuing to expand its coverage area and is excitedly anticipating the forthcoming launch of its Android counterpart. Learn more at foodieshares.com.
Last modified: July 27, 2017
