Hatchware Builds Digital Restaurant Menu System on Cloudant DBaaS

BOSTON, Aug. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Cloudant, provider of a globally distributed database-as-a-service (DBaaS), today announced that Hatchware is using Cloudant to power a new content management system (CMS) that makes it easy for restaurant owners to update and display menus on large video panel installations, so customers can easily read menus in-store and search them online. Hatchware began development work in April 2013, and the service will soon launch in Q4 2013.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130821/NE66021-INFO)

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120509/NE04144LOGO)

Hatchware is designed to create visually appealing menus that can be updated from a simple interface on restaurant owners' mobile phones and tablets. Special offers and item availability can be updated in real-time, and those changes are automatically reflected on menus displayed on the restaurant's website. Menus are text-searchable and tailored for mobile or full-screen Web browsers, so customers can easily research items ahead of time or find and place their orders while they're waiting in line. Pairing Cloudant's NoSQL DBaaS with its own innovative application design, Hatchware is able to deliver restaurants its digital platform at the same cost it takes to design and produce a traditional menu display.

"Running Hatchware on Cloudant's database service allowed us to develop our application fast and start iterating with proof-of-concept customers, instead of worrying about servers and network infrastructure," said Jeff Charette, Developer and Principal at Hatchware. "Coming from a background heavy in SQL and relational database systems, Cloudant's compatibility with Apache CouchDB and high availability gave me confidence that I could design the Hatchware platform to scale big from day one. To me, Cloudant's one of the only NoSQL services out there solving real-world problems and providing a production-ready database right now. The same people who built Cloudant are the experts running it 24x7."

Using Cloudant allowed Hatchware to design its CMS application stack in nearly 100 percent JavaScript. Front-end code is written in JavaScript and packaged as a CouchApp. Cloudant MapReduce indexing is expressed in JavaScript, and server-side code uses the Node.js framework. This design lets Hatchware take advantage of Cloudant's database replication capabilities, which allow the CMS to replicate menu changes to video boards franchise-wide or in a specific region.

"We're seeing a wide range of consumer, B2B, and enterprise Web applications that fully embrace JavaScript, Python, and other Web-friendly languages and frameworks," said Alan Hoffman, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Cloudant. "Pairing that architecture with a database service like Cloudant, which is itself made accessible as a Web service, makes it easy to scale applications and integrate them with new features. For example, Hatchware uses Cloudant Search, which is built into our service and based on Apache Lucene. Hearing about Menuat, a new mobile app from Jeff and the folks behind Hatchware, it sounds like they plan to make heavy use of our search and upcoming geospatial indexing features. We're excited to see what they build."

• Visit https://cloudant.com/blog/delicious-menus-with-hatchware-and-couchapps-on-cloudant/ for a blog post and infographic on Hatchware's innovative application stack.
• For a free Cloudant account, go to https://cloudant.com/sign-up/ to get started.

About Cloudant
Cloudant provides the world's first globally distributed database-as-a-service (DBaaS) for loading, storing, analyzing, and distributing operational application data for developers of large and/or fast-growing Web and mobile applications. Cloudant's DBaaS is a managed service that helps developers eliminate the delays, costs, and distractions inherent in working with databases and their administrators, while providing unmatched scalability, availability, and performance. This capability accelerates time-to-market and time-to-innovation because it frees developers from the mechanics of data management so they can focus exclusively on creating great applications. Cloudant is privately held and backed by top-tier investors including Avalon Ventures, Devonshire Investors, the private equity firm affiliated with Fidelity Investments, In-Q-Tel, Rackspace® Hosting, Samsung Venture Investment Corporation, Toba Capital, and Y Combinator. For more information, visit www.cloudant.com.

General inquiries and sales:
[email protected]

Media inquiries:
Mark Daly
Davies Murphy Group, Inc.
(781) 418-2411
[email protected]

SOURCE Cloudant