With Thanksgiving approaching on Thursday, everyone's thoughts naturally turn to matters of the stomach. Innovators get hungry too and there are plenty of ways that technology can improve the food and beverage world. Take a look at some of the startups in the D.C. area using technology to improve or invent new kinds of food and drink services.
- Galley - Galley is a startup very much on the rise. The on-demand food delivery company crafts meals that stand out for creativity with an eye toward nutrition. They've become a mainstay of the startup scene in general thanks in part to its connections with the 1776 startup incubator. Galley also has meals sent out via the UberEats service, which is not a bad way to gain new fans through a competing delivery option.
- Javazen - As D.C. runs on caffeine but loves to stay healthy, it's no surprise that Javazen, started in a University of Maryland dorm, was chosen as one of Tech Cocktails best pitch award this year. The company offers blended mixes of coffees, teas and other ingredients to aim at a healthier, but still caffeinated, beverage. It's currently available at several organic grocery stores and online.
- Power Supply - Alexandria-based Power Supply offers a organic meals made by a network of independent local chefs and ordered on its online platform. It's particularly focused on the health-food fans, those on more rigorous fitness diets basically. The company has been performing very well in the last couple of years, bringing in enough cash to make two acquisitions recently, the D.C.-based Healthy Bites and Los Angeles-based eliteEATS.
- 5G Dispensing Systems - A very new startup, 5G applies advanced sensors and data analytics to the world of draft beverages. Instead of relying on the bartender's estimation of how long to keep the wine or beer tap open, 5G measures precisely how much comes out and stops over-pouring (aka a big reason bar tops are often sticky). It then analyzes the data to help restaurant and bar owners better plan their inventory.
- WeCook - Sometimes ordering one meal at a time isn't enough. WeCook lets you book a chef to make up for the fact that you don't want to spend your weekend preparing all of your lunches in advance, but want to be healthier than just going to Chipotle five days in a row. A graduate of the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute and UMd's student-run Startup Shell incubator, WeCook offers an ever-changing menu to pick from, and then the you can schedule a chef to come over and make the meals, up to 40 in one go. They bring all of the ingredients, equipment and even storage for the meals you're saving for later.
- Greenease - a mobile app-enabled startup, Greenease connects consumers with restaurants, cafes and grocers that are verified to use local and sustainable food. FOunded by GW alum Vanessa Ferragut, the startup has become a popular spot for checking on the background of food. The startup was chosen to go through New York's Food-X accelerator program, including getting $25,000.
