The Infatuation

What it does

The Infatuation is a restaurant discovery platform that helps users find where to eat and drink through expert-curated guides and reviews. Instead of crowdsourced ratings, the app focuses on editorial content, offering lists like 'The Hit List' for new spots and 'The Top 25' for the best in a city. It combines this content with powerful search and organizational tools, allowing users to build and save personal lists of places they want to try or love.

Where it shines

The app excels at blending rich, editorial content with practical utility. The home feed (01:05) immediately presents engaging guides that feel more like magazine articles than simple listings. The saving mechanism is another highlight. At 01:33, the user saves a restaurant, and instead of a simple bookmark, they can organize it into multiple, intention-based lists like 'Want To Go' or 'Favorites'. This turns the app into a personalized dining planner. The search experience (04:53) is also strong, with a split map-and-list view that makes geographic discovery intuitive.

UX highlights

The home feed combines a top-level map with large, image-heavy cards for curated guides, encouraging content discovery.
Restaurant pages (01:25) feature a horizontally scrolling image gallery and clear tags for price, cuisine, and neighborhood.
The multi-list saving feature allows for nuanced organization, letting users create custom lists for any occasion (02:08).
Filtering options in the map view are comprehensive, including the ability to show only saved spots, which is great for planning (05:42).
A dedicated 'For You' tab suggests content based on user tastes, while the 'New York' tab focuses on location-specific guides.
Users can add personal notes to saved restaurants (06:04), adding another layer of personalization.

Monetization & growth

Monetization is not driven by a direct user subscription in this video. Instead, the app features a deep integration with Chase. This partnership is highlighted during onboarding (00:09) and on the main feed, offering 'exclusive content' and perks to Chase customers who connect their account (06:42). This co-branded strategy likely serves as the primary revenue and growth model, attracting a valuable user segment without a traditional paywall.

Who it’s for

The Infatuation is for people who are serious about dining out and value curated, trustworthy recommendations over algorithm-driven or crowd-sourced reviews. It targets users who enjoy the storytelling aspect of food and want to plan their dining experiences, whether in their home city or while traveling. The Chase partnership also suggests a target audience of affluent consumers who value premium perks.

Notes & opportunities

The app forces a sign-up (00:16) before the user can access any content, which could be a point of friction for new users wanting to browse first. While the content is high-quality, the app could benefit from more interactive elements within the guides themselves. For instance, allowing users to filter or sort restaurants directly within a guide like 'The Top 25' could make the lists even more useful.