skip the line | Geek Life: Augmenting Reality

I love apps that help me shop through brick-and-mortar stores, like how I can order a coffee and a treat at Starbucks, Tim Hortons or Second Cup simply through their funds-loaded apps on my smartphone. We are literally getting to a point in life where you don't need a physical wallet anymore. In theory, you could go about your day and shop wherever you need to, and only utilize your smartphone for payment options. Cool right? Ritual is a food app that does such a task in Toronto, particularly within the downtown from King West to the Discovery District, and has become a great addition to the sans-wallet revolution. What I love about Ritual A great selection of restaurants to choose from, including: freshii, The One That Got Away, Buna's Kitchen, Magic Oven, Ichiban Sushi, and many more. Over 100 restaurants and cafes to enjoy from, check out the full-list on Ritual.co. Curated Collections- while there isn't an organized list of restaurants, based on food categories, there are a few curated lists to give you inspiration of what to try, including: "It's a Wrap!", "That Friday Feeling" and "Delicious + Nutritious" to name a few. You find these collections by clicking on any restaurant, and scrolling down to the bottom where it says "Collections". Easy ordering, with a great list of options to select from for your order. It looks like you can order from each restaurants' full menu, instead of truncated choices. Special discounts and perks - Ritual has a rewards program of sorts, once in a while they'll gift you things like 20% off your next coffee and lunch, or Secret Menu items that aren't available to the general public without the app. Receipts - it's a fabulous way to keep track of how much you've spent on dining, and where. What I Would Love To See In Future Updates While the app has an incredible start, there are a few things that would make this app shine that are missing right now. Paypal is not yet a payment option - I don't know if I'm just biased here, but apps that don't have Paypal as an option are a bit less useful to me. I just don't like adding a credit card to an account regardless of how safe it may be. Just a hang up of mine, perhaps, but considering 1 in 4 Torontonians currently have a Paypal account right now, I might not be the only one with that same thought. Preference Organization - When Jay and I go out for a meal downtown, our first question to each other is, "What do you feel like eating?" Italian? Sushi? a Burger? Currently all the restaurants are listed by three options: popularity, alphabetically, and distance, all without much of an idea of what kind of food they serve. While that doesn't matter much if the restaurant is "Nora Shawarma", where you know you'll find a kabob or two, it gets a bit more difficult if the restaurant is called "The Loving Hut" where you'd unexpectedly find Pad Thai and quite a bit of avocado and tofu. Fix for the "Didn't find what you're looking for? Search here." shown at the bottom of the screen - doesn't work actually... good thing there's a search icon at the top of each page anyway. Get $10 to try Ritual! Use my promo code AERYN8153 and you'll get $5 just for signing up, and another $5 after your first order. Download the app now for Android or iOS, and be sure to follow Ritual on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for updates and special surprises!

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Toronto-Centric App Review: Order a Meal With Ritual

Technology. Collectibles. Travel.

Technology. Collectibles. Travel.