
Munch On Me (YC S11) Is A Groupon For Food, Done Right - jwang815
http://techcrunch.com/2011/05/27/munch-on-me-is-a-groupon-for-food-done-right/
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yid
Interesting, but I wonder how merchants will put up with strong, Groupon-like
demand for a single item. Also, this stood out for me:

 _"Banking on the fact that restaurants can’t take stellar pictures of their
own food (food pics are a big deal), it sends out a professional photographer
to get the job done."_

Professional food photographers can make Wendys look delicious -- what happens
when I pay for a delicious looking Kung Pao chicken on the web, and the
restaurant delivers a more "everyday" experience, possibly made worse by the
increased strain of preparing the same dish over and over again? I'd tend to
feel a little ripped off by the site that sold me the deal, not necessarily
the restaurant.

Bookmarked to check back in six months...

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maxwell
In restaurants, top sellers, specials, and comps usually go out the best,
unless it's the last one in stock, or they're in the shit and they're rushing
them out a la minute. The random dish that sells 3 times a week has more of a
tendency to come out subpar. Places will probably weigh the marketing of these
deals, and, if anything, they'll out better than an everyday item.

~~~
Gunther
Agreed, also the ingredients used for the top sellers should be fresher since
they are being consumed at a greater pace. This reminds me of how Krispy Kreme
has one item that they are known for, the glazed donut, which brings in
customers who they are able to sell milk, coffee, and other assorted donuts.

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muppetman
You have to wonder how saturated this market can get before it's just not
viable anymore.

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pg
It's like search was in 1998: there's always room for something new if it's
better than what existed previously.

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ztan
While I think it's a clever spin. I don't see why Groupon can't do the same in
an instant if it proves to be effective. If that happens these guys just
become another Groupon clone competing on lower rates for merchants.

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pg
This is structurally quite different from Groupon. Which means Groupon would
have to change their model significantly to do it. Which means it's probably
not among the most likely things they'd do.

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ansy
Maybe I'm missing something. But I don't see what's so different other than
the deals are generally more restrictive. Isn't that just part of the wording
of the deal? Couldn't $10 for $20 worth of food just as easily be $1 for a $2
cup of coffee instead?

I even see a deal on Groupon Now which is $5 for a $9 sandwich.
[http://www.groupon.com/now/deals/5-for-9-at-nyc-bagel-
deli-2...](http://www.groupon.com/now/deals/5-for-9-at-nyc-bagel-deli-27)

That said, I fully agree it doesn't necessarily mean anything that Groupon can
do it, too. There's plenty of room for competition.

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hydrazine
Great question. The differences are subtle yet definitely worth noting.

To users, $20 worth of food doesn't tell them anything about what they're
actually going to buy when they arrive at the venue, whereas $1 for a $2 cup
of coffee specifies exactly what they'll get. You might also only spend $18.50
of your $20 credit and can't find something worth ~$1.50 to buy, which can
leave a bad aftertaste for some people.

Also, this allows merchants to prepare much more effectively by overstocking
on the items being featured. Or they could discount an already overstocked
item just to get rid of it.

All in all, people visit restaurants for specific (signature) dishes, not for
the restaurants themselves, so it all fits together.

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dilap
The name seems a bit...canabalistic.

~~~
100k
I thought Grub With Us was a bad name, but this takes the cake.

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Kilimanjaro
Hey guys, I want some honest feedback on a project I abandoned about the same
concept of local deals. Here is the url with some sample deals:

<http://www.deel.co/deals/city/nassau>

You know, I had the idea of posting all deals from big chains like cheesecake
factory, longhorns, roadhouse, mortons, houstons, etc. in the sense that they
post their weekly offers (like in print) and people get to know what to eat
when they go there. Nothing for free, just a billboard.

People would use the service as a help when deciding where to eat everyday,
and chains would benefit from their traffic (again, like in print). No stupid
games like being a major of nowhere or silly prizes like one free beer on the
31st of february at 8am only.

I was going be the most happy user since I would be using it every day going
for lunch with my coworkers, everytime the same question arises, where to go
today? tgi fridays? ruby tuesdays?

To make the story short (too late, I guess) we ran out of runway (a very short
runway indeed) and my cofounder and I decided to abandon the project for now,
with the hope of someday pick it up again when better times came.

As I said, I love the idea. Groupon et all don't tell me what's new at panera
bread or even mcdonalds and I really want to know (there is a real need)

Am I crazy? out of touch with reality? pipe dreaming? Or is that a project
worth pursuing to its fullest? I learned a lot about geolocation and lots of
stuff, can't deny that, but I dream on having my own business some day.

Advice?

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BasilAwad
Why would Munch On Me take publicity so early in the game when they don't even
have the volume to defend against copycats?

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jwang815
There will always be copycats. We haven't found any yet, but I will assume
that an identical copycat will have to start from scratch. As mentioned above,
there is a small chance that Groupon or another clone will change its entire
business model. Taking publicity when we're in 3 regions will not only help us
gain momentum when we entire new markets, but also gain new traction in
current markets.

