A group of young Vietnamese people are running a website which introduces and pinpoints cafes and eateries to those interested.

The owners of the website tomago.vn, created by four young men aged from 19 to 26, offer abundant information on where to go for good meals and ideal places to have a great time to unwind, their menus, prices and discounts.

Its name, “Tomago,” derives from the word “tomato,” which has been chosen as the website’s icon.

The website is currently built on the database of more than 50 eateries and cafes in Ho Chi Minh City.

To do so, the group of four had to spend hours at some 100 cafes and eateries throughout the city for almost a year.

They tried the food and drinks themselves, offered to work with the owners, and took many photos of the places before selecting the best shots to post on their website.

According to Le Hoang Nhat, the group leader, his group has upgraded the website eight times to add more functions and make it user-friendlier.

One of their most-loved apps is Tomago TiK, which allows users to post their photos taken of bills at an eatery or café onto Tomago, have their points accumulated, and receive gifts or promotions from the eateries or cafes which cooperate with the group.

Nguyen Minh Anh, a 25-year-old finance specialist, finds this app particularly useful, as she used to throw away her point-accumulating cards. Tomago now does the job of storing them and linking the places for her, thus enhancing her benefits as a patron at several shops.

The website also boasts “Quan gan ban” (Cafes near you), which can pinpoint the cafes or eateries near where customers are so that they can take a look at their prices and menus.

The website owners also launched their own café, “Dom Dom” (Fireflies), which opens only on weekends, to gain first-hand experience in managing a café and to better understand the actual needs of café and eatery owners as well as customers.

Their shop has shortly become a rendezvous for the local youth, with their patrons usually crowding the terrace.

The Information Technology Park under the Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City says it will provide support for the group as part of its project to assist potential, youth-owned start-ups.

Le Van Viet, the owner of an Urban Station café in Go Vap District, also highly appreciated Tomago, particularly in enhancing interaction between eateries, café owners and their customers, which proves quite a challenge for small, separate shops.   Though working hard, sometimes late into the night, Tomago members, most of whom are IT majors and graduates, often suspend what they are doing during their weekly self-learning sessions in various subjects, including psychology and web design.

“I’ve matured a lot through working at Tomago, as I’m given tasks which I have never done before and finally managed to complete them. I have gradually found out what I want and need to do to achieve my goals, instead of hesitating to take on challenges,” member Nguyen Trung Nam said.

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