UCL School of Management

1 December 2023

UCL School of Management alumni and LocalMeal founders launch app

In the final year of their BSc Management Science programme, Isabella Mandich, Derin Mutlu and Noah Deron founded LocalMeal, a restaurant discovery platform that promotes smaller and independent businesses that are often overlooked by consumers for more established chain restaurants. Now just two years later, LocalMeal have not only gained thousands of followers on social media, but they have also officially launched their first-ever app, allowing customers to instantly access restaurant recommendations in London.

Designed specifically to filter out chain restaurants, the LocalMeal app is centred upon authenticity and provides visibility to the independent hidden gems that don’t always receive the spotlight that they often deserve. Since its conception, LocalMeal has gone on to receive thousands of followers on Instagram and has even been selected by Innovate UK EDGE as a startup with IP/Commercialisation potential.

Discussing this important next step for the business, the founders told us, “We are so happy to have finally brought our vision of LocalMeal (which was originally a university project) to life through the launch of our beta app! It’s been so special to already see our community using it to discover and share local restaurants all around London. We hope this launch is only the beginning and that LocalMeal will become the go-to restaurant discovery platform for independently-owned restaurants.”

Visit the LocalMeal website or download the app. Alternatively, you can find out more about the business’s journey so far

Last updated Friday, 8 December 2023