Greater Boston residents and visitors looking to discover and support Black-owned restaurants, bars and lounges; business owners who want to be included.
Product case study · Community directory · Editorial concept
Black Food & Bev
A culturally specific food-and-drink directory concept that combines category discovery, local search and editorial storytelling.
RoleUX direction · Content hierarchy · Visual design · Prototype
ScopeSearch, categories, featured venues, directory, owner CTA
DeliveredA focused discovery concept with community-led positioning
BuildSearchable responsive directory prototype
01 / Situation
The situation
A directory has to be useful before it is comprehensive. Visitors need a fast way to find a place, but the product also needs a point of view strong enough to feel like a community resource rather than an anonymous database.
Discover → Browse → Contribute
02 / Design logic
Design decisions
Combine search and browsing
A direct search handles known needs while cuisine categories support open-ended discovery. Neither mode is treated as secondary.
Lead with culture, not only utility
Editorial language and featured venues establish why the directory exists. The catalogue then carries the practical depth.
Make supply growth part of the interface
A clear business-owner invitation turns missing coverage into a participation route instead of hiding the limits of the directory.
03 / Structure
Interface blueprint
These diagrams map the real blocks, order and proportions used in the finished interface, making the layout decisions easier to inspect.
Discover01
Browse02
Contribute03
04 / Final interface
Final interface
05 / Business impact
What the work changes
A focused discovery concept with community-led positioning
The directory combines category browsing, keyword search, featured places and a route for owners to add a business. The content model is ready for real records, moderation and location data instead of depending on a hand-built feature list.
Measure how many searches lead to a useful place rather than another query.
Use failed searches to guide taxonomy and directory expansion.
Track submissions, review time and the share that become publishable records.