Val's Vegan Kitchen
Designing a dual-interface mobile ordering experience for a real restaurant
Overview
Val's Vegan Kitchen is a mobile ordering application designed for a real restaurant client. Working directly with the restaurant owner gave our team access to the restaurant's menu, business requirements, and continuous feedback throughout the design process. Every design decision had to support the restaurant's day-to-day operations while delivering an intuitive experience for its customers.
The application was designed around two distinct user groups: customers placing orders and restaurant staff managing daily operations. Customers needed a fast, personalized ordering experience that made browsing, customizing, and reordering meals effortless. At the same time, restaurant staff required efficient tools to update menus, manage inventory, adjust item availability, and respond to changing operational needs. The challenge was creating an experience that met the needs of both user groups while maintaining a cohesive product that felt consistent from end to end.
Role
UX Designer
Team
4 people
Timeline
2 Weeks
Tools
Figma, Sketch
Methods
Interviews, Prototyping
Year
2026
The Problem
Restaurant ordering apps often prioritize one user while overlooking the needs of the other. Customer experiences are designed for speed and convenience, while staff management tools frequently prioritize functionality at the expense of usability. Val's Vegan Kitchen required both within a single, cohesive product that balanced customer convenience with efficient restaurant operations.
For customers, one of the biggest pain points was reordering previous meals. Returning users had to navigate from the Home screen to their Account page, open Order History, and manually locate a previous order before they could place it again. What users expected to be a single action became a multi-step process that introduced unnecessary friction into one of the app's most common tasks.
Restaurant staff faced similar usability challenges. Managing menu availability, pausing orders, and updating menu layouts required navigating through multiple screens, while the lack of clear confirmation made it difficult to know whether changes had been successfully saved. These friction points highlighted the need for an experience that was intuitive for customers and efficient for restaurant staff.
3-4
Taps required to reorder a previous meal in the original design, compared to one tap in the final solution
2 User Experiences
Designed a single product for customers placing orders and restaurant staff managing daily operations.
Real Client
Designed in collaboration with the restaurant owner using real business requirements and feedback.
Research & Key Findings
We conducted usability testing with both customers and restaurant staff, asking participants to complete realistic tasks such as placing an order, locating dietary information, reordering previous meals, and managing menu availability. Throughout testing, we observed how participants completed key tasks, where they hesitated, and which interactions caused confusion. These findings revealed recurring friction points across both the customer and staff experiences.
Insight 01
Reordering was too slow
Participants consistently looked for a faster way to reorder previous meals, expecting the feature on the home screen. Instead, they navigated through multiple screens before reaching their order history, creating unnecessary friction.
Insight 02
Important menu details were difficult to find
Users with dietary restrictions expected allergen information and dietary filters to be surfaced earlier in the ordering process. Instead, they had to inspect individual menu items, making it difficult to quickly identify meals that matched their needs.
Insight 03
Staff needed clearer system feedback
Restaurant staff often questioned whether availability updates had been applied. Without immediate feedback, participants repeated actions and lost confidence in the interface, especially during busy service periods.
"How might we design a restaurant experience that supports both customers and restaurant staff without increasing complexity for either group?"
How Might We
Every interaction should make ordering easier for customers while reducing operational effort for restaurant staff.
Design Principle
Process
Every major design decision was grounded in insights gathered during user testing. Rather than refining the interface based on assumptions, we iterated on customer and staff feedback to simplify common workflows, improve information visibility, and reduce friction across both experiences.
Decision 01
Reduce Friction for Returning Customers
User testing revealed that returning customers expected a faster way to reorder previous meals. Instead of surfacing this action, the original experience required users to navigate through multiple screens before reaching their order history. We explored several redesign concepts before introducing an "Order Again" card directly on the home screen, giving customers immediate access to one of the app's most common tasks.
Decision 02
Prioritize Operational Efficiency
While customers interacted with the app occasionally, restaurant staff relied on it throughout the day to manage menus and respond to changing restaurant conditions. Working closely with our client made it clear that staff needed quick access to these operational tasks during busy service. Rather than adapting the customer interface for staff use, we designed a dedicated management experience centered around their daily workflows. Menu editing, inventory management, preparation times, and operational controls were consolidated into a centralized dashboard, allowing staff to complete routine tasks quickly and with confidence.
Decision 03
Improve System Feedback
User testing revealed that restaurant staff were often unsure whether operational changes had been successfully applied. Actions such as updating menu availability, changing menu layouts, and pausing orders provided little visual feedback, causing participants to repeat actions or hesitate before moving on. To address this, we introduced clear confirmation states for critical tasks, giving staff immediate feedback that their changes had been saved successfully.
Final Solution
The final solution delivers two connected experiences within one product, giving customers a seamless ordering flow while providing restaurant staff with efficient operational tools.
A faster path from craving to checkout
Discovery
Discover meals faster
Customers can browse featured items, popular categories, and personalized recommendations from a single home screen, making it easier to find meals without unnecessary navigation.
Customization
Customize with confidence
Detailed ingredient information, dietary labels, modifiers, and suggested pairings help customers personalize every order before adding it to their cart.
Checkout
Checkout with clarity
Customers can review their selections, adjust quantities, view costs, and explore suggested additions before checkout, keeping everything they need to confidently complete their order in one place.
More than just ordering
The experience extends beyond checkout with features that keep customers connected before, during, and after every order.
Menu Browsing
Promotions
Loyalty Program
Community
Order Status
About Us
Operational control in one place
Management Dashboard
Manage the menu effortlessly
Restaurant staff can edit menu items, pricing, modifiers, and availability from a centralized interface designed around their daily workflow.
Menu Administration
Respond in real time
Preparation times, out-of-stock items, and order availability can be updated immediately, helping staff adapt to changing restaurant conditions throughout the day.
Operations
Operate with confidence
Clear confirmation states and organized operational tools provide immediate feedback after every action, reducing uncertainty during busy service periods.
Additional Management Tools
Beyond the primary workflows, the management interface included additional tools that gave restaurant staff complete control over daily operations.
Item Detail Editor
Menu Layout Editor
Availability Report
Reflection
Working with a real client on a dual-sided product taught me that good design isn't just about the interface. It's about understanding who actually uses it, what they're trying to accomplish, and when they need it. Every decision throughout this project had to support two completely different user groups with different goals, workflows, and priorities.
Designing around real workflows
Working with a real restaurant gave us practical constraints that shaped decisions across both sides of the product. User testing helped us simplify key workflows, including reducing the reorder process from three to four steps to a single action
Balancing two distinct users
Customers and restaurant staff had completely different goals, which made designing a single experience impractical. Creating dedicated interfaces allowed us to prioritize speed and simplicity for customers while giving staff the control they needed for daily operations.
Real constraints make better design
This project taught me that adding more functionality does not always create a better experience. The strongest improvements came from understanding what users were trying to accomplish and making those actions easier, clearer, and faster.
Next Project
Customers and restaurant staff had completely different goals, which made designing a single experience impractical. Creating dedicated interfaces allowed us to prioritize speed and simplicity for customers while giving staff the control they needed for daily operations.