Pantry

Pantry helps people find food near them that’s open when they need it. It’s currently available for San Diego County under an open-source license.

A view of the user

Nearly 48 million people in the U.S. experienced food insecurity last year—about 1 in 7 households. The person using Pantry is one of them. They need to find food, and they need to know what to expect before they go: Is it open? Do I need to bring ID? Will there be anything left? Every unanswered question is friction that can delay action—or stop it entirely. They deserve a tool that gives them certainty, not a list of places that might be closed when they arrive.

Store Locator mental model

Food banks typically help people find distributions through a map—a “store locator” showing nearby resources based on location. This works well for retail, ATMs, or gas stations, where access is predictable. Food distribution is different: hours are irregular, schedules shift weekly or monthly, and eligibility varies by site. Proximity-first design assumes the constraint is where. Temporal-first design recognizes the constraint is when.

The common store locator map (left) buries critical information about hours and availability, forcing users to click through each location to find out if it’s open. Pantry’s temporal design (right) surfaces open locations first, reducing cognitive load and helping users make decisions faster.

Temporal design

Pantry matches the user’s actual decision tree: I need food by tomorrow, what are my options? Instead of a map, it’s a list filtered by time, starting with what’s open now.

Users can still set their location to anchor results by proximity, helping with route planning without the cognitive load of an embedded map. Details about each distribution—hours, requirements, directions—are progressively disclosed, keeping the default view focused on what matters most: what’s actually available.

Early user feedback

• Pantry launched recently in beta. I’m gathering qualitative and quantitative feedback to inform future improvements.
• Initial responses from users and community organizations have been positive, highlighting the app’s ease of use, clarity, and speed.