New Houston-born app OpenToBites connects users over meals in 16 cities
Friends and Food
A Houston-born social is connecting foodies and social butterflies for shared meals. OpenToBites launched on Android on June 18 and iOS on June 22, and is available to use for free in Houston and beyond.
Founded and operated by Houston developer Kelvin John, OpenToBites allows users to connect over meals in 16 cosmopolitan cities. That includes Austin and Houston in Texas, plus other American cities like Denver and New York, and even international destinations including Paris, Tokyo, and Sydney.
The app is built on a simple concept, and a press release emphasizes that it's for anyone who wants "friendly company."
“We built OpenToBites in response to several trends, including the rise of solo travel and the demand for social experiences that don’t feel like dating, networking, or large organized events,” said a spokesperson in the release. “We are not a dating app. We are offering shared food and conversation for people who want simple, in-person meal company in a public setting.”
When signing up, users provide their first name, an optional profile photo, and a short bio. They mark themselves as a traveler, a local, or both, and have the option to select their age range or opt out.
Once a profile is created, the user can search for existing meals or create a meal happening within the next 72 hours. To find an existing meal to join as a guest, they select the city, date, and apply filters for the number of seats, type of cuisine, and whether they want to share food with the table or order their own.
Since someone has to get the party started, users can also take the initiative to start a meal as a host. They'll choose the date, time, and restaurant — anything is on the menu, as long as they can link to the restaurant on Google Maps or its own website.
This divides users into "host" and "guest." Guests request to join a table, and a host can decide to accept the request or not. Guests aren't able to see the exact restaurant until their request is accepted, so hosts have a "helpful note" field to fill out with more information about the restaurant.
A similar app called Timeleft launched in Austin in 2024, acting as a friendship matchmaker for small groups of strangers who answer personality questions, meet at a restaurant for dinner, and decide if they wanted to stay in touch.
Though OpenToBites has a similar concept, it seems to work more like Couchsurfing, an app that connects travelers on their own terms. OpenToBites also emphasizes the immediate over the long-term — the meal itself is the social goal.
OpenToBites is available for free on the App Store and Play Store; the app plans to grow each current city's user base before adding new locations.
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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.