UI UX Design Project - UCSB Creative Lab Designathon
CookTopia
A community-building mobile app that connects people through their shared hobby of cooking and culture
About the project
CookTopia is a community-building mobile app that connects people through their shared hobby of cooking and culture. Its cover introduces the idea: cooking with no boundaries.
The Problem
Most cooking apps today focus on recipes alone, treating food as a solo activity for the chef only. Platforms don’t center the person behind the dish, the one who grew up making it, the one with the story and context behind it. Food-curious individuals have no easy way to find people who can genuinely teach them something new, and cooks have no place to share what they know.
SCREENS I WORKED ON
Onboarding — becoming a Local
CookTopia was built to directly address the prompt to cover both skills and learning goals. During onboarding, users identify which cuisines they share knowledge about, establishing the teaching aspect and their role as a Local from that land.
SCREENS I WORKED ON
Home & recipes — exploring as a Traveler
On the home page, users can explore different cultures through lands, establishing the learning aspect and their role as a Traveler to that land.
A passport for culinary growth
CookTopia’s most innovative feature is the passport profile system. Users can collect stamps representing cuisines they have explored and lands they have contributed to. This gives users a living record of their culinary growth, making the learning journey the center of the social experience.
Explore another project
© 2026 Stephanie Jing