Plyce - Advanced Restaurant Locator

Food locator application that uses Google Maps Places API to discover restaurants nearby with comprehensive filtering capabilities.

Core Diagram / Mockups

Features

Core Features

• 📍 Location-based restaurant discovery
• 🗺️ Custom location selection with radius adjustment (2-25km)
• ⭐ Restaurant ratings and reviews
• 🎬 TikTok integration for restaurant videos
• 📱 Mobile-first responsive design

Advanced Filtering (NEW)

Plyce now supports comprehensive restaurant filtering:

Filter Categories

1. Cuisine Types

   • Italian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Thai, French
   • Mediterranean, American, Korean, Vietnamese, Greek

2. Dietary Preferences

   • Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-Free
   • Halal, Kosher, Dairy-Free

3. Price Range

   • $ (Inexpensive)
   • $$ (Moderate)
   • $$$ (Expensive)
   • $$$$ (Very Expensive)

4. Service Attributes ♿

   • Outdoor Seating
   • Pet Friendly
   • Wheelchair Accessible
   • Delivery Available

How Filtering Works

The app uses a smart two-step filtering process:

1. Initial Search: Uses Google Places API to find restaurants matching location, cuisine, dietary, and price filters
2. Attribute Filtering: For service attributes (outdoor seating, pet friendly, etc.), fetches detailed information and filters results

This approach minimizes API calls while providing comprehensive filtering options.

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+
• Node.js 18+
• Google Maps API Key with Places API enabled
• Expo CLI (for mobile development)

Backend Setup

# Navigate to backend directory
cd Backend

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Create .env file with your Google API key
echo "GOOGLE_API_KEY=your_api_key_here" > .env

# Run the server
uvicorn app:app --reload --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8000

Frontend Setup

# Navigate to frontend directory
cd Mobile-Frontend/Mobile-Frontend

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Update API URL in src/services/ApiService.ts if needed

# Start Expo development server
npx expo start

API Endpoints

Restaurant Search

GET /restaurants/search

Query Parameters:

• lat (required): Latitude
• lng (required): Longitude
• radius (optional): Search radius in meters (2000-25000)
• cuisine (optional): Cuisine type filter
• dietary (optional): Dietary preference filter
• price_level (optional): Price level (1-4)
• outdoor_seating (optional): Boolean
• pet_friendly (optional): Boolean
• wheelchair_accessible (optional): Boolean
• delivery_available (optional): Boolean

Example:

curl "http://localhost:8000/restaurants/search?lat=43.6532&lng=-79.3832&radius=5000&cuisine=indian&wheelchair_accessible=true"

Batch Place Details

POST /restaurants/details

Request Body:

{
  "place_ids": ["place_id_1", "place_id_2", "place_id_3"]
}

Other Endpoints

• GET /restaurants/{place_id} - Get restaurant details
• GET /restaurants/{place_id}/reviews - Get restaurant reviews
• GET /restaurants/{place_id}/tiktok-videos - Get TikTok videos
• GET /health - Health check

🧪 Testing

Run the filtering feature tests:

# Make sure the backend is running
cd /path/to/Plyce

# Run test script
./test_filtering.sh

Documentation

Detailed implementation guide: FILTERING_FEATURE_GUIDE.md

Architecture

Plyce/
├── Backend/                    # FastAPI backend
│   ├── app.py                 # Main application with filtering endpoints
│   └── requirements.txt       # Python dependencies
├── Mobile-Frontend/
│   └── Mobile-Frontend/       # React Native (Expo) frontend
│       ├── app/              # App routes
│       └── src/
│           ├── components/
│           │   └── FilterPanel/  # Advanced filter UI
│           ├── services/
│           │   └── ApiService.ts # API integration with filtering
│           └── types/
│               └── index.ts      # TypeScript interfaces
└── FILTERING_FEATURE_GUIDE.md # Complete feature documentation

UI/UX Highlights

• Filter Button: Shows count of active filters with visual indicator
• Active Filter Pills: Display currently applied filters at a glance
• Smooth Animations: Modal transitions and interactions
• Clear All Option: Quickly reset all filters
• Responsive Design: Optimized for mobile devices

Example Use Cases

Use Case 1: Health-Conscious User

Goal: Find vegan restaurants with outdoor seating within 10km

Actions:

1. Adjust radius to 10km
2. Open filter panel
3. Select "Vegan" under Dietary
4. Toggle "Outdoor Seating"
5. Apply filters

Result: List of vegan restaurants with outdoor seating

Use Case 2: Accessibility-Focused Search

Goal: Find wheelchair-accessible restaurants with delivery

Actions:

1. Toggle "Wheelchair Accessible"
2. Toggle "Delivery Available"
3. Apply filters

Result: Restaurants meeting accessibility and delivery requirements

Use Case 3: Cuisine Explorer

Goal: Find budget-friendly Mexican restaurants

Actions:

1. Select "Mexican" under Cuisine
2. Select "$" or "$$" under Price
3. Apply filters

Result: Affordable Mexican dining options

API Key Configuration

Your Google API Key needs these APIs enabled:

• Places API (New)
• Place Details API
• Places API - Text Search
• Places API - Nearby Search

Performance Considerations

• Caching: Results cached when no filters active
• Smart Fetching: Place Details only fetched when service filters used
• Batch Operations: Multiple place details fetched efficiently
• Client-side Search: Text search doesn't trigger API calls

Troubleshooting

Backend Issues

• API Key Errors: Verify GOOGLE_API_KEY in .env file
• No Results: Check API quota and billing
• Slow Responses: Service attribute filters fetch additional data

Frontend Issues

• Connection Errors: Update API_URL in ApiService.ts
• Filter Not Working: Check network tab for API responses
• Cache Issues: Force refresh or clear app cache

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Areas for enhancement:

• Additional filter categories
• Saved filter presets
• Filter analytics
• Performance optimizations

Resources Used

• Google Maps Places API
• React Native & Expo
• FastAPI
• Community contributors