Hazel is an iOS app that pairs people at UCLA who cook with people who want a home meal. One person cooks in their own apartment and the other joins them.
Nobody is told to talk. Hazel asks two people to eat together and never asks them to talk. The app states one goal, that two people eat, and leaves the conversation to them. In place of a nationality dropdown, the profile asks what you grew up eating.
The clock. Each meal has a 45 minute countdown that both people agree to before it starts. When it ends, either person can go. At zero the screen stays blank.
Money. Guests were once going to pay the cook for ingredients. Hazel's terms now forbid any payment, because in California a meal cooked at home and sold is a food business that needs a permit.
The word. The step where a guest asks to eat with a cook was first called an ask, then a request. Both words meant one person wanted something and the other granted it, so it is now called a join.
Faces. In the feed, each cook appears as three meal photos, a kitchen and a dining room, with the face last. The face is there so a guest knows who is opening the door.
Nobody is told why. When a cook could not cook around a guest's allergies, the guest used to see the reason in red in the chat. I removed that line, and the guest now sees no reason.
Two strangers, one apartment. A meal at someone's home is the product, so Hazel cannot move the meeting to a public place. The address stays hidden until both people confirm on the day. After the meal, each person answers whether they felt safe, and the person rated never sees the answer.
You can see how Hazel works at eatwithhazel.com.