TVFoodMaps App: The Map to any Food-lovers Heart

  

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Appcelerator Titanium is used to construct a variety of apps, one of which is the ever-improving and oh-so-delicious TVFoodMaps application for the Android, iPhone and iPad. I think we all know at least one person whose hopes and aspirations come down to one thing: finding the perfect meal. There are dozens of cable network shows dedicated to this endeavor and they’ve all come to one satisfying conclusion: it’s not the destination, it’s the journey. The never-ending quest for the best is the food aficionado’s head fake- what he’s really after is to explore the creative combinations of favored flavors throughout the world; well, now his path has been paved and placed in the palm of his hand with the TVFoodMaps app.

TVFoodMaps has a database of every restaurant that has been featured on over twenty popular television shows from Man vs. Food to Rachel Ray’s $40 a Day and each restaurant that’s been featured over the last three years. This adds up to over 2,600 unique restaurants- a number that grows with each new episode. The app sorts the restaurant by the show that featured it and its proximity to your current location, working well for anyone traveling who wants to find a nice restaurant in their area. If you want to check out a restaurant before making the journey, you can view their menu which is also available in the app, along with links to both reviews and the restaurant’s website. The interface also allows you filter which restaurants appear on your map based on your favorite shows and it allows you to mark a specific restaurant as one you particularly hope to try.

Part of the charm and appeal of TVFoodMaps is that it’s an app that was created for food-lovers by food-lovers. The creation of TVFoodMaps started as a hobby for two brothers who set out with the goal to catalogue and unify television information for travelers looking for a place to eat. They developed the app on Appcelerator Titanium, which allowed them to apply their knowledge of JavaScript to make a core code for the Android, iPhone and iPad. It also allowed them to use the same SQL database they had created for their website, saving them the time of re-creating a back end entirely from scratch.

The current version of the application has already received a large amount of attention, with 150,000 total downloads over the iPhone, Android and iPad. Though they are currently seeing about twenty upgrades a day, from the free version of the app to the premium version- available for purchase within the app for $2.99- which removes the in-app ads and provides mobile alerts to app users when they are near new places from featured shows. But the co-creator of TVFoodMaps, Frank Apap, says he and his brother measure their success not just by the people willing to upgrade but also by the satisfaction of their users. As such, they are always seeking to improve the app and provide better service to their users.

The new version, scheduled for release sometime in the near future, has improved the stability and responsiveness of the app, changing the app to a sleek new look with new icons and menus, as pictured below. The functionality and battery life is also improved in the new version, which turns the GPS off when it’s not needed. And although the current version already utilizes the GPS, notification and background service features of the mobile device- TVFoodMaps has big plans to add route-based searching to show you the restaurants that are along the way to your final destination.

TVFoodmaps app downloads are available here: for the Android, iPhone and iPad.