Build a "Hostel/PG Food Review Website

Let's be honest – hostel food is a journey. Some days it's actually good (rare, but happens). Most days you look at your plate and think "what am I even eating?" And every single day, you have opinions about it. So why not build a place where you and your friends can share those opinions? In 2 hours, we'll build a food review site for your hostel mess.

Why this class exists: Every hostel has that WhatsApp group where people post photos of bad food and complain. But those photos disappear, the complaints get lost, and nobody learns anything. This app changes that. It's a permanent record. A place where students can warn others about today's inedible sabzi or celebrate when the mess actually cooks something tasty.

Hour 1 – Building the Review System:

We start from absolute zero. First, we'll set up a list of hostels or messes – maybe just your hostel initially, but the system will handle multiple. Then comes the fun part: the review form. Users can give a rating from 1 to 5 stars, write honest comments, and – most importantly – upload a photo of today's food. Because a picture of that mysterious curry speaks louder than words. We'll add a date stamp so everyone knows this review is from today's lunch, not last month. Then we'll display average ratings so at a glance, you know if it's a "skip mess today" situation.

I'll walk you through every line of code. We'll use HTML for structure, CSS to make it look clean, and JavaScript to handle the logic. The reviews will be stored in Firebase (super beginner-friendly database) so they persist and everyone can see them.

Hour 2 – Making It a Real Community:

Now we add the features that make people actually want to use the app. First, an upvote system – helpful reviews rise to the top. Then the feature everyone will use daily: a big button that says "Is it edible today?" with a quick yes/no from recent reviewers. No reading long reviews, just a quick check before heading to mess.

We'll also build a "Best Dishes" section. Because sometimes the mess nails it – maybe paneer day is legendary, or Wednesday's aloo paratha hits different. Students can nominate dishes, and the highest-rated ones get featured. And here's a twist: "Mess Worker of the Month." A way to appreciate the people who actually cook. If a worker consistently gets mentioned positively, they get a shoutout. Good vibes matter.

Finally, we deploy the site live. Real URL. Real website. Share the link in your hostel WhatsApp group. Watch as reviews start pouring in. You'll become the unofficial food critic of your campus – in the best way possible.

Who is this for? This class is for anyone who's ever eaten hostel mess food and had feelings about it. Hostel students, PG residents, even day scholars who eat in canteens. No coding experience? Perfect. You'll learn while building something you'll actually use. You'll leave with a real website, coding skills you didn't have before, and the satisfaction of creating something your whole hostel will appreciate.

What you'll need: Just your laptop. Bring photos of your worst mess meals if you have them – we'll use them for testing and laughs.

What you'll leave with: A working food review website. Live on the internet. Something to show friends. And maybe, just maybe, your feedback will help improve the food. (Okay, probably not, but at least you'll have a place to complain that isn't just disappearing into WhatsApp.)