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A meal costing R130 at one restaurant and R79 at another across the street was enough to make University of Cape Town (UCT) student Dylan Steiner question how much people were paying to eat out.
The 20-year-old first-year business science student wondered why diners had to guess whether a restaurant meal was worth the money. That moment inspired him to develop ‘Bites’, a free food discovery app that lets users compare menu prices, browse food photos, read reviews and find affordable places to eat.
“I was like, there’s no way I didn’t know that this is nearly half the price across the road,” said Steiner.
“That’s when it clicked in my head that I should be able to create an app where people can upload prices and then more easily compare, so they never have to go to an expensive restaurant again.”
For Steiner, the idea is particularly relevant to students and young people who want to enjoy eating out without stretching their budgets.
“The core question Bites is trying to answer is: if you order this, are you getting scammed? Is it worth it or not?” he said.
Turning the idea into a working app has taken more than just time behind a computer. Steiner has personally visited about 700 restaurants in Cape Town, photographing menus and recording prices to build a database that diners can use before choosing where to eat.
The process also gave him an opportunity to explore the city while introducing restaurant owners and staff to his project. To make the work more manageable, he developed software to help upload and organise the menus, allowing him to build the database more efficiently.
But collecting the information is only one part of the challenge. Menu prices change, and an app designed to help people make informed choices needs to keep up.
Steiner said restaurants would be able to update their menus and prices while users could submit photographs if they found differences between listed prices and those displayed at a restaurant.
The app also has a system designed to identify unusual prices. Prices submitted by multiple users can be compared, while figures that appear far outside the norm may be flagged or excluded to reduce the risk of misleading information.
Bites also allows users to consider reviews, ratings and photographs, helping them look beyond the cheapest price to judge whether a meal offers good value for money.
I think it’s worth it if I can get South Africans and students more affordable restaurants and make eating out cheaper and more accessible for everyone.
— Dylan Steiner, University of Cape Town student
An inexpensive meal is not necessarily a bargain if the portion is too small or the quality disappoints.
Steiner did not have a background in software development when he started building Bites. Instead, he used artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help write much of the code behind the app.
He focused on the design, features and user experience, refining the product over several months until it matched what he had imagined.
“The hardest part was more my vision and how I wanted the app to look and feel,” he said.
“Enacting that vision was the most difficult part, and it took many months of refining to get it done.”
Balancing the project with university has also required commitment. Steiner spends about five hours a day working on the app alongside his studies.
His motivation comes partly from seeing the financial pressures students face and how difficult it can be to find good restaurants that fit within a limited budget.
“I think it’s worth it if I can get South Africans and students more affordable restaurants and make eating out cheaper and more accessible for everyone,” he said.
Bites is free to download and use and Steiner intends to keep it that way.
His longer-term business model could involve subscription fees for restaurants wanting verified profiles, with additional features that would allow businesses to promote deals, monitor reviews and access information about how customers interact with their offerings.
Since launching in Cape Town, the app has recorded more than 2,000 downloads.
Steiner said his immediate priority was to grow its user community and establish that the model works before expanding into other cities.
Johannesburg, Durban and Pretoria are among the possible next destinations. If the concept succeeds, he hopes to take Bites to international food destinations such as New York, London and Barcelona.
Ultimately, he wants the app to become a go-to resource for people deciding where to eat, whether they are searching for an affordable lunch, looking for a new restaurant or comparing prices in their neighbourhood.
Steiner hopes his experience will encourage other young people to pursue ideas they might otherwise dismiss because they lack technical skills or experience. He believes advances in AI have made it easier for people without traditional software development backgrounds to start building their own products.
“I think the technology in 2026 is so advanced that if you really think you have an idea that can succeed, just try your best to get it done.”