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SHRUTHI SUNDAR
PROJECT 05 // PRODUCT CONCEPT
05 // PRODUCT CONCEPT RESTAURANTS · REAL-TIME AVAILABILITY · SPONTANEOUS INTENT

DINE-IN NOW

"It's 8:17 PM. I want dinner."

01 // THE FRAGMENTED JOURNEY

The actual user question is not restaurant discovery, but: "Can I walk into this restaurant and eat there right now?" Today's journey: Google Maps says "Open" → Swiggy shows delivery → Dineout offers a 9:30 PM slot → Call restaurant → "Sorry, no walk-ins tonight."

02 // THE BREAKTHROUGH

OPEN FOR DINE-IN NOW. A single real-time binary status switch that hostesses can flip in 1 second, showing spontaneous walk-in table availability on a live map within a 15-minute radius.

PRODUCT ARCHITECTURE

Designing for Spontaneous Intent

01

1-Tap Hostess Switch

Zero complex POS integration required. Hostesses toggle a simple green/red switch on a tablet at the host stand whenever immediate walk-in tables open up.

02

15-Minute Dynamic Hold

Diners can claim a 'Head Over Now' 15-minute table hold token, giving restaurants committed foot traffic while preventing phantom no-shows.

03

Automatic State Expiry

To prevent stale data, the "Tables Open" status auto-expires after 45 minutes unless the restaurant explicitly re-confirms with a single tap.

04

Spontaneous Intent Filter

Only shows restaurants within immediate walking/driving range (max 15 min travel time) to ensure the availability matches physical travel feasibility.

PRODUCT HYPOTHESIS

"Collapsing 4 fragmented apps and phone calls into a 10-second walk-in decision."

A design concept examining two-sided real-time market dynamics between hungry spontaneous diners and host stands.