6 Delicious Apps for Foodies

Oh, if only apps can be eaten! We apologize if that sounded weird. You see, we’ve been on this diet and everything is making us either hungry or angry. Don’t even get us started on carrot sticks, which health nuts say are like French fries, except that they never satisfy your cravings and just bring out your inner sociopath. It’s a good thing then that we still have our other outlet (read: writing) to keep us somewhat sane. So while we are still in our mad dieting phase, we thought it would be fun (not really!) to take a look at some of the best apps for foodies because, apparently, we just love to torture ourselves. Enjoy!

#1 Urbanspoon

Having friends or a significant other is usually fantastic until it’s time to decide where to eat. For the fickle-minded or just the guy or gal who wants to try something new, Urbanspoon can help you decide where to eat simply by shaking your phone. “Available in the US, Canada, and most major cities in the UK, and Australia,” Urbanspoon is free to download and is compatible with Android, Blackberry, Windows, the Kindle, and iOS.

#2 Hello Vino – Wine App

Do you know of any foodie who doesn’t love his/her wine as well? For the beginner wine consumer, the free Hello Vino app “will give you a recommendation for the perfect bottle of wine – anywhere, anytime.” Aside from helping you find the best wine to pair with a meal, this app also comes with wine reviews, a wine label recognition feature, and different search options. Use Hello Vino whether you’re at a restaurant, in a wine store, or if you’re hoping to give wine as a present.

#3 Cook’s Illustrated

Want to cross over from being a foodie to being a certified cook? Try America’s Test Kitchen’s Cook’s Illustrated app. Featuring 50 recipes covering anything from appetizers to main courses and side dishes as well as breakfasts and desserts, this app also comes with taste test reviews, recipe overview videos, and a shopping list feature that’s expandable to accommodate additional items. Cook’s Illustrated is available on the App Store and Google Play.

#4 Burpple

Oh you’re still using Instagram to take photos of food? We’re not surprised; but if you’re up for trying something new, why not give Burpple a whirl? Compatible with both Android and iOS devices, Burpple is an app that lets you post photos of food to boxes (read: albums), which gives “some semblance of order to [your] culinary collections.” With this app, you can opt to add details like location or date to give your food pic some context for other users.

#5 VegOut

You don’t have to be a vegetarian to enjoy vegetarian and vegan meals. Powered by HappyCow, VegOut costs $2.99 on the App Store and is said to be “a must have for any vegetarian who travels or is just looking for a new place to eat!” In a nutshell, the app provides users with the “largest international listing of vegan, vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly restaurants.”

#6 Dining Grades

Our friends always rib us for harping on the merits of a good virtual office phone (read more) and, of course, being paranoid about the food that we eat. Luckily for people like us (at least when it comes to the latter concern), there is an app that allows us to see if “the food at that swanky hotspot is both ‘in’ and edible.” Dining Grades, which is compatible with iOS devices and Android phones, helps users find clean restaurants in their area, displaying results by grade or alphabetically. The app also features a convenient Tip Calculator and uses a phone’s GPS to find nearby restaurants.