Feature Spotlight: What Travel Eat Actually Does

Travel Eat does a few things and tries to do them well. Here's a practical look at each feature and how to get the most out of it.

Menu Scanning

This is the core of the app. You point your camera at a restaurant menu and it reads the text. It works with printed menus, chalkboard menus, and even most handwritten ones (though very messy handwriting can be hit or miss).

Tips for better scans:

• Hold your phone steady and make sure the text is in focus
• Good lighting makes a big difference, especially with handwritten menus
• You can scan one section at a time if the full menu doesn't fit in frame
• If a scan looks off, try again from a slightly different angle

The app processes the text on the spot, so you'll see results in a few seconds.

Translation That Understands Food

This is where Travel Eat differs from a general-purpose translator. The app supports 36 languages, but more importantly, it translates with food context.

What does that mean in practice?

• Dish names get translated into descriptions you can understand, not just literal word swaps
• Regional names for ingredients get mapped to ones you'll recognize
• Cooking methods and preparation styles are explained, not just transliterated
• If a dish name is a cultural reference (like "ants climbing a tree" in Chinese cuisine), you'll get the actual description: glass noodles with seasoned ground pork

This matters because food vocabulary is one of the hardest things to translate accurately. A generic translator doesn't know that "crudo" on an Italian menu means something different than "crudo" on a Peruvian menu.

Dietary Filters

If you have dietary restrictions, whether by choice or necessity, this feature is probably the most important one for you.

You can set filters for:

• Allergies -- nuts, shellfish, dairy, gluten, soy, eggs, and more
• Diets -- vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian

Once your filters are set, scanned menu items get flagged. Dishes that conflict with your restrictions are clearly marked, and dishes that are safe are highlighted. The app looks at the actual ingredients in each dish, not just the dish name, so it catches things that aren't obvious.

A note on accuracy: The dietary flags are based on typical preparation of each dish. If you have a serious allergy, always confirm with the restaurant staff. The app is a helpful first pass, not a medical guarantee.

Scan History

Every menu you scan gets saved automatically. This is useful in a few ways:

• Revisiting restaurants -- If you found a dish you loved, you can look it up again without rescanning
• Remembering what you ordered -- Handy when you want to recommend something to a friend but can't remember the name
• Offline access -- Saved scans work without an internet connection, which is great for travel in areas with spotty service

You can browse your history by date, and delete scans you don't need anymore.

Offline Mode

Saved scans are fully available offline. This includes the translations, ingredient breakdowns, and dietary flags. You don't need to rescan or reconnect.

New scans do require an internet connection for translation processing. But once a scan is saved, it's yours to access anytime.

Getting the Most Out of Travel Eat

Here's a quick summary of how to use the app effectively:

1. Set your dietary filters first -- Do this before your first scan so you get relevant flags right away
2. Scan before you sit down -- If a restaurant posts their menu outside, scan it to check if there are good options before committing to a table
3. Save menus you like -- Your scan history is searchable, so build it up as you travel
4. Use offline mode strategically -- Scan menus at your hotel on wifi, then access them later without connectivity

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Have a question about any of these features, or something you wish the app did? Let us know at support@traveleat.app.