UMOMI is a personalized recipe app that allows users to connect with cultures around the world. From recipes around the world to postcards, this app focuses on celebrating diversity.
View Demo ↗Mobile App Prototype
Figma, Procreate
Cultural identities are often overlooked and communities feel increasingly disconnected even within cooking.
This was a submission for You Belong Here, UCI's annual Design-a-thon. Out of the 300+ participants, UMOMI won 'Most Creative Winner' and 'Best Presentation & Story Telling Winner'. Our team made the top 4 finalists!
I wanted to create an app where cooking didn't feel transactional but rather personal as if sharing a story with every recipe.
I led the user interface and user experience design for the project. I focused on branding, wire-framing, and prototyping.
The design process began by discovering the story. I spoke with users about their cooking experiences to try to uncover what they thought made recipes personal and meaningful.
I turned these into storyboards and userflowers. I wanted to explore concepts like postcards from different cultures and have the storytelling revolve around characters to make UMOMI feel more alive.
I started by designing interfaces that were 'warm' and 'inviting' to make the app feel more like a conversation about culture and diversity rather than just a recipe app.
We shared our prototypes to college students to see if there any other parts of the 'connecting with culture' that was missing to refine the experience.
To understand how UMOMI could help users reconnect with their cultural roots, we focused on college students from diverse backgrounds. Our goal was to explore how food and tradition intersect in their daily lives.
We conducted interviews with students aged 18-22 across various universities with each session lasting 10-15 minutes.
Many students shared how hard it was to find culturally meaningful food experiences through existing apps. These insights revealed opportunities for UMOMI to:
Cook at home
Feel connected to culture
Comfortable cooking
Main challenges identified:
Lacked knowledge of cooking methods
No access to proper cooking equipments
Struggled with access to ingredients
A cultural recipe app that guides you through global ishes and connects you to stories, traditions, and communities behind every meal.
We designed the experience around three core features: discover a recipe, cook with guidance, and unlock the story!
We crafted a visual identity that was warm and inviting to recreate the feeling of walking into a kitchen filled with the familiar aroma of home-cooked meals.
The color palette leans into soft oranges, greens, and pastel pinks, creating a cozy yet modern interface.
UMOMI begins with a personalized quiz for first users. This is designed to better understand users' needs and preferences.
The quiz includes questions about allergies and dietary restrictions, preferred cuisines, and budget range for meals.
This onboarding flow helps tailer recipe recommendations and ensures accessibility and inclusivity.
Each recipe explores new flavors while learning about traditional practices. Our aim is to have users reconnect with their roots or discover new ones through food and storytelling.
Each recipe is paired with a story. The story feature is to bring dishes to life through characters and illustrations. They also come with a personalized "letter" with a short history and cultural context of the dish.
