Case Study

3 Ninjas Pizza

From a text message to a fully branded website and ordering app in two weeks. Built on HD Food and the HD Growth Plan.

The Client

3 Ninjas Pizza is a wood-fired pop-up pizza operation based in Hull and East Yorkshire. Three friends who travelled to Naples to learn traditional techniques, now running kitchen takeovers at pubs, weddings, festivals, and football tournaments across the region.

They make 10 inch hand-stretched pizzas with 48 hour fermented dough, stone baked at 350 degrees. Fresh mozzarella, Mutti tomatoes, the real deal. Not a frozen base in sight.

How It Started

It started with a text message. The lads behind 3 Ninjas Pizza got in touch about building them a website and an ordering system. They were doing pop-up pizza nights at pubs and venues, taking orders verbally, and it was getting out of hand on busy nights.

Two weeks later they had a fully branded website at 3ninjaspizza.com and a dedicated ordering app at order.3ninjaspizza.com. From zero online presence to taking real orders with real payments. Two weeks.

That's what happens when you build on a platform designed for exactly this.

The Problem

Pop-up food is chaos by nature. You rock up to a pub on a Friday night, set up the oven, and suddenly there are 50 people wanting pizza at the same time.

Before the ordering app, that meant long queues, shouted orders over loud music, handwritten tickets getting lost, and customers with no idea when their food would be ready. Cash and card machines slowing everything down. Kitchen staff stressed. Customers frustrated.

They needed a way to take the queue out of the equation entirely.

What I Built

A bespoke website at 3ninjaspizza.com and a dedicated ordering app at order.3ninjaspizza.com. Both built on HD Food.

The Menu Admin

The Menu Admin

The 3 Ninjas team manage their entire menu from the HD Commerce admin. Items, prices, descriptions, dietary tags, availability. Add a new special, mark something sold out, change a price. All instant, all from their phone or laptop.

Inventory Tracking

Inventory Tracking

Real ingredient tracking. Mushrooms, pepperoni, mozzarella, dough balls, pizza boxes. Know exactly what you've got before you set up at a venue. Know what you need to order before the next event.

How It Works

1

Scan the QR Code

Printed QR codes on tables at the venue. Customer scans with their phone camera. No app download needed.

2

Browse and Order

The full menu loads instantly in their browser. Tap to add items, see dietary info, customise their order.

3

Pay Instantly

Stripe checkout with Apple Pay, Google Pay, or card. Payment confirmed in seconds. No cash. No card machine queue.

4

Kitchen Gets It Instantly

The order appears on the kitchen display in real time. No tickets to lose. No orders to mishear.

5

Customer Tracks Progress

Real-time updates on their phone as the order moves through preparation. They know exactly when to collect.

The Ordering App

The Ordering App

This is what customers see when they scan the QR code. The full 3 Ninjas menu on their phone. Pizza images, descriptions, prices, dietary tags. Estimated wait time at the top. Tap to order. No app download needed, but the PWA install prompt means they can add it to their home screen for next time.

Simple Checkout

Simple Checkout

Order summary, name, phone number. That's it. No account creation. No email sign up. No friction. The customer sees exactly what they're ordering and how much it costs. Enter a name so the kitchen knows who to call, and pay.

Stripe Payments

Stripe Payments

Special requests for allergies or dietary needs. Then pay securely via Stripe. Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay. 256-bit SSL encryption. Money goes straight to the 3 Ninjas Stripe account. No middleman. No commission.

A Real Friday Night

A Real Friday Night

This is the order history from a single Friday night event. Real customers, real orders, real payments. 10 orders, 9 completed, card and cash. Names, items, totals, timestamps. Everything tracked automatically.

No handwritten tickets. No mental arithmetic. No chasing payments.

The Customer Experience

No App Download

Works instantly in any browser. PWA, so it feels native.

No Account Needed

Scan, order, pay. No sign up, no login, no friction.

Real Time Tracking

Visual progress timeline so customers know exactly where their pizza is.

Dietary Info

Vegan, gluten free, allergens. All clearly marked on every item.

Apple Pay and Google Pay

One tap payment. No fumbling with cards or cash.

Persistent Cart

Navigate away and come back. Your cart is still there.

Push Notifications

Push Notifications

When the pizza is ready, the customer gets a push notification straight to their phone. "Your order is ready! Order #50 is ready for collection." No shouting names across a pub. No awkward hovering at the counter. Their phone tells them.

The Kitchen Side

Live Order Queue

Orders appear the moment payment clears. Real time, no refresh needed.

One Tap Bumping

Move orders through stages with a single tap. Received, prepping, ready.

Service Control

Open and close ordering with one toggle. Sold out an item? Mark it instantly.

Prep Time Control

Busy night? Increase the estimated wait time so customers know what to expect.

Allergen Alerts

Special requests and allergens clearly highlighted on every order.

Any Device

Works on any tablet, phone, or screen. No special hardware needed.

The Kitchen Queue on Mobile

The Kitchen Queue on Mobile

The kitchen queue runs on any phone or tablet. This is the actual app the 3 Ninjas team use at events. Active orders, completed orders, total revenue for the night. All in real time. Tap to bump orders through stages. "Bowery Opening" event, 7 orders, £124 revenue. All from a phone in their pocket.

Orders Rolling In

Orders Rolling In

This is what a busy night looks like. Push notifications stacking up on the lock screen. Order #55, #56, #58, #59, #60, #61. Each one with the customer name, item count, and total. The kitchen knows what's coming before they even open the app.

No more wondering if there's an order up. No more missing a ticket. Every order accounted for, every payment confirmed.

The Results

No More Queues

Customers order from their seat. No standing around waiting to place an order. The queue is gone.

No More Errors

Every order is written, paid, and confirmed before it reaches the kitchen. No mishearing over loud music.

Faster Throughput

Kitchen sees what's coming and can prep ahead. Orders flow instead of arriving in bursts.

Better Experience

Customers track their order in real time. No anxious hovering at the counter wondering if they've been forgotten.

Built for Pop-Ups

This is not a system designed for permanent restaurants and forced to work for mobile food. It was built specifically for the way pop-up food businesses actually operate.

QR Codes Are All You Need

Print them once. Take them to every venue. Customers scan and they're ordering.

Zero Hardware

No POS terminals. No card machines. Uses devices you already own.

Works Anywhere

Phone signal or venue WiFi. That's all you need to take orders.

Multi Venue Ready

Different pub tonight, wedding tomorrow, festival next week. Same system, works everywhere.

On When You Are

Toggle service on at setup, off when you're done. No monthly minimums. No wasted costs.

Handles the Rush

50 orders at once? No problem. The system doesn't get flustered even if you do.

Built on the HD Growth Plan

3 Ninjas Pizza launched on the HD Growth Plan. A bespoke website, a dedicated ordering app, and all the features above for £500 setup + £15/month + 10% on orders. The full platform, with a low barrier to entry.

Learn About the Growth Plan

Want This for Your Food Business?

HD Food gives you a bespoke website and your own ordering app. Takeaways, restaurants, cafes, pop-ups. No commission fees. No Just Eat. No Deliveroo. Your customers, your platform.

See HD Food
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