Interviews

Takeaway Fans: Guest #1 Nicola

Hungr Takeaway Fans- Nicola

BERLIN, NOVEMBER 25 2015

Welcome to the first edition of Takeaway Fans – Hungr’s Blog where we interview interesting persons trying out some of the city’s best takeaway.

About Nicola – Our first guest at Takeaway Fans

HUNGR: Welcome to the Hungr Blog Nicola. What are you doing here in Berlin?
Nicola: I’m in Berlin since a couple of days and I don’t know the city very well. Today I visited my brother at his office and we wanted have lunch together and spend time talking and sharing our little stories as we always do. We both have been traveling a lot and are both many experiences richer.

HUNGR: So Nicola – tell us what your first time was like!
Nicola: My first time with the Hungr App was something quite new. I was introduced to the concept by my brother and it’s actually pretty easy to order on Hungr. As an Italian it was great to get the full app in my own language as well.

HUNGR: What stood out for you?
Nicola: I went straight for a Lasagna and ordered a Pasta Aglio e Olio for my brother. The app suggested 3 restaurants ready to deliver I picked the one which was closer.
To be honest it made my day. In 5 minutes my order was placed and I could lean back and wait to get served.

Nicola’s Lasagna at lunch with his brother

HUNGR: As you know, you are our first guest on the Takeaway Fans blog. We really want to know what the food was like when it arrived!
Nicola: I worked as a Chef for many years and food what I am all about! There are several components of a great food experience: Appearance, texture, odor, taste are the most important characteristics to keep an eye out for.
My Lasagna arrived in a round container, similar to what in Italian it’s called “Terrina”… the only difference was the aluminium. Everything was proper and warm as it should be. The odor of the dish was a bit distracted from sitting in the kitchen next to the coffee machine but you can’t really blame that on the food 🙂
Already the first bite gave me confirmation that I had picked a good restaurant. I am honest when I say that the Lasagna was just as good as the one I make when I have time on Sunday morning – and definitely much better to any my brother ever made.

HUNGR: Happy to hear that! But what about the delivery time and price vs quality?
Nicola: As I said, I’m new in Berlin and I don’t know what is the typical speed for takeaway delivery in town, but my order arrived in 45 minutes! The quality was great and the price was as I would have expected it.

HUNGR: Do you any ideas to suggest to the Restaurant?
Nicola: Maybe one thing would be for the driver to better welcome the user and with a smile help communicate which dish is which so that I don’t have to guess and risk opening the dish belonging to somebody else than me.

Thanks Nicola for sharing your experience with us.

Hungr is currently running a food initiative in Berlin called “€5🍝🇮🇹” – look for these Emoji’s in the app and enjoy a full Italian menu at only 5€!
Hungr is a mobile only, so make sure to download the App and try the better way to takeaway!

Hungr – Welcome Screen

Hungr Takeaway Fans- Nicola

Raffaele from Hungr: Skype is the most social travel app (and other cool app tips)

It’s summer time and vacation for many people. This week, we talk to Raffaele from Hungr about his favourite apps for travelling and he reveals a special place from his best trip. Remember to sign up for Hungr here.

Vacation time is coming up – which apps and sites do you use to plan your trip?

My favourite service is actually Skype. My girlfriend and I live in different cities, so we use Skype to discuss and plan things like travelling. When we agree on a location, we start looking at Airbnb together trying to find the best solution. On Airbnb you can even find some local tips about the neighbourhood from people who have already been there. Then we move to TripAdvisor to see more information about the district. So may favorite travel tools are Skype, AirBnB and TripAdvisor. [Not all the tips on TripAdvisor are good, ed.]

Once you are actually on vacation, which travel apps do you use to get around and improve your travel experience?

I am still sticking to TripAdvisor. I don’t like to spend too much time on my phone, while I’m on vacation, but TripAdvisor is still a good tool to compare things. Also I use blogs. You can easily search for local blogs on your phone by typing name of the city of area plus blog. You have real people writing about their cites on blogs. I really trust the blogs.

Are you online or offline when you are on vacation and do you take pictures and video with your smartphone and if you do, where do you post them?

Nice question. I try to be offline because I like authentic experience. But at the same time once you get back to your AirBnB home, you like to share memories with your friends. Typically on Facebook. But lately, to tell the truth, the app I love most for travel and for everyday life is called 1SecondEveryDay. The app allows you to take the video you took the day and choose one second frame and put it in a calendar. Then the app creates a video from your frames. So right now, my favourite app is 1SecondEveryDay.

What was your best vacation ever and can we find pictures or video from that vacation on social media?

Again, nice question. My favourite trip so far has been to Barcelona in Spain. It was in June 2008. And of course you find pictures from the trip. I discovered a lot of different things on that trip, where I travelled alone. The city allows you to do everything. It’s sunny and it’s full of art. And I think the thing I love most about Barcelona is a place called Palau de la Música Catalana. Not so many people know about it, but you can find lots of pictures on the Internet, especially of the interior design. Discovering that magical place was part of making the Barcelona trip my favourite.

Thousands of people – millions of people actually – are coming to Berlin this summer. The German capital is becoming one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. What are your three best tips for all these visitors coming to Berlin?

Another nice question. First of all: take the bike. I ride my bike every day and during the summer it is extra wonderful. Riding on a bicycle will give you the best feeling of the city. Berlin is not just about clubbing. It is actually an amazing and relaxing place. It is not like Milan or Paris or other big cities. My second tip is having brunch in Prenzlauer Berg on a Sunday morning, where you will be surrounded by not so young people but you get another feeling of the city: young families with the will to procreate. To create life. You are literally sorrounded by baby carriages. My third tip is actually something I did not do myself yet. Kayaking in the river Spree! These are my three tips to all the visitors coming to Berlin.

You can follow Raffaele on Facebook here and on LinkedIn here.

You can follow Hungr.co on Facebook here and on Twitter here.

Photo credit: Portrait by Shixin Liang, The Contentmakers. Barcelona photo from Wikipedia.

This post and all the content therein is published under the Creative Commons CC BY license.

“I will never forget when Dortmund won Champions League” (and a cool tip for a dodgy sportsbar in Berlin)

Berlin is the center of the world this weekend with thousands of fans flocking to the already popular tourist destination. Also in the start up community, the atmosphere is tense and full of excitement for the game. We talked to Dimitrios Ploutarchos, Jack of all trades at Hungr, about his relationship with football.

Today we are talking about football. To get things started, which is your favourite football team and who is your favourite player?

My favourite football club in Germany is Borussia Dortmund and my favourite international team is F.C. Barcelona. My favourite player is Lionel Messi.

Do you follow any of the clubs and the players on social media?

Yes, I definitely follow my favourite clubs.

Which is the best football match you ever saw? And were you on the stadium or did you watch it on TV or in a sportsbar? Do you remember your favourite game?

Yeah, I do. It is actually quite some time ago. Maybe already 20 years now almost. It was in the nineties. It was the Champions League final between Dortmund and Juventus. Dortmund won the match 3-1. It is my favourite game. I watched it with my father. It was a great experience. It was so fun.

Do you use football apps to watch the game?

Yes I do. I use the Kicker app. I really like it. I also use the OneFootball app. But I really prefer the design of the Kicker app.

Do you go to any football games in Berlin and do you have any tips for sportsbars in Berlin?

I do sometimes go to the Hertha Berlin games in the weekend if there are some good teams coming to visit. For sportsbars, we sometimes go to this dodgy place in Neukölln called Finale. It is nice because it is always empty, so there is a lot of space to sit and enjoy the games.

Sportsbars are usually dodgy, aren’t they?

Yes, but this one especially.

We have a big game coming up in Berlin this weekend. It is the Champions League final and probably the biggest sporting event of the year in the world. Are you going to watch the game?

I am definitely going to watch the game. It is the best football match of the year. I am not sure who is going to win. I think Juventus is a very strong defensive and a tough team to play. But I really hope that Barcelona makes it. I love seeing their way of playing and want nice football being awarded with the title.

Are you going to update on social media during the game or are you offline?

I am offline.

Remember to sign up for the Hungr app here.

The Berlin startup scene is one step ahead of Amsterdam, but the Dutch city has more hipsters (and they really love “the soya sauce”!)

In this week’s edition of “Meet the Hungr team” we talk to Martijn Suister, Hungr’s man in Amsterdam. About his favourite apps, food (he really loves that soya sauce!) and the difference between Berlin and the Dutch canal city. Read more about Hungr here and be one of the first 1,000 signups here.

What is something that you can really get a craving for in Amsterdam?

What are your three favourite apps?

What are your three favourite social networks?

What is your favourite meal to order as takeway?

What is the biggest difference between the startup community in Amsterdam and in Berlin?

You can follow Martijn on Facebook here and on LinkedIn here.

You can follow Hungr.co on Facebook here and on Twitter here.

Photo credit: Portrait by Shixin Liang, The Contentmakers. Amsterdam hipsters photo by Mary Streepy.

This post and all the content therein is published under the Creative Commons CC BY license.

Meet the Hungr team: Twitter, sushi & beer

Eimear McCormack works for Hungr out of Dublin, Ireland. Recently, during a work session at the Hungr HQ in Berlin, we caught up with her and asked her a few questions about city life, apps and the Euro! Read more about Hungr here and be one of the first 1,000 signups here.

What is something that you can really get a craving for in Dublin?

What are your three favourite apps?

What are your three favourite social networks?

What is your favourite meal to order as takeway?

Unlike the UK, Ireland has the Euro – how do you feel about that?