Best discovery app for restaurants and cafes, but could tighten up a bit.
I’ve been using Corner quite a bit over the past 5 months and it’s absolutely become my fav discovery app for restaurants, cafes, boutiques, etc. If you want to find spots that are *really* iykyk and off the beaten path, then this probably won’t catch most of them. However, it is a great amalgamation of hip Instagram/TikTok spots for if you’re traveling to a new city for the first time. I think the biggest hurdle that Corner has is their approach to UI and the user experience. They give the user a lot of freedom in how they curate “their Corner”. The app takes a list-based approach, but things can get messy and overwhelming fast. It almost feels like they give the user so much rope that they can easily hang themselves. For example, if you want to make a list for spots in your city, then you’ll obv start adding restaurants, cafes, clubs, boutiques, museums, etc. But now that creates a new problem of having everything mixed into one list. It just feels sloppy. I also have the problem of having places I frequent as well as bucket list spots in one list - it feels messy. So the current solution is to create multiple lists (I.e. New York cafes, New York lunch spots, New York museums, etc.) But you can also see how THAT can feel sloppy. A solution could be master lists and sub lists. For example, ‘Toronto’ could be the master list and Cafes, Breakfast Places, TDL, Spring Trip, etc could be your sub lists within it. All that being said, I’ve gotten used to the current format and am having fun with it, but it was daunting at first. I’ve also recommended the app to friends + family, but when they try to use it, they get overwhelmed and give up shortly after. Last improvement I hope they make is to live up to the “Build YOUR Corner” tagline. I don’t really mesh with the vibe of most of the people on this app, and that’s fine. Yet, you see a bunch of people’s comments and lists even if you’re not following them. I think it’d be nice if you could get like 10-15 friends on the app and create your own little closed off bubble where recommendations will have higher value to you. Aka, *your* Corner. Love this app and hope to see it succeed!