TECHNOLOGY:SALLY AND JOHN MCKENNA have expanded their series of Bridgestone guides to Ireland's best restaurants with a Dublin edition for mobile phones.
Users can navigate the guide by area of the city, alphabetically or by restaurant type, such as Asian, Italian, French, casual or daytime.
The guide also enables them to phone to book a table directly and to get directions to each venue, including GPS co-ordinates, public-transport details and opening hours.
According to Conor Cahill of Fluidedge, the company that developed the site, the challenge was to create an edition of the guide in a format easily accessed on a mobile phone.
As a mobile-phone screen is tiny compared with that of a PC, Cahill had to rethink how people would find their way through the information.
He said there was the temptation to design a site that would look best on sophisticated newer mobile phones, such as the Nokia N95 or Apple iPhone, but that most people, foodies included, are are more likely to have older or less sophisticated models.
Designing a map of Dublin to show the list’s 100 restaurants was the biggest challenge, he said, as they are not distributed evenly across the city.
The service can be copied to a satellite navigation system, to allow customers to find their way to any of the restaurants in Dublin.
To access the guide, see www.bestofbridgestone.com/mobile.