Now, they're focusing on a much simpler and straightforward service. It's a Google Maps based mashup which shows you interesting locations, venues, business and discounts near you, and lets you plan meet-ups with your friends. What makes it different than Google Maps is the fact that its search is not purely keyword-based. Instead of merely searching for a certain term, you can browse a geographic area and explore interesting locations nearby.
Its rating system for certain locations is also interesting. It's not absolute, but comparative; the rating engine rates the popularity of a certain venue compared with similar locations in the city. For example, if you're looking for a car repair shop, it'll be rated compared to other similar venues, while most other similar sites offer a fixed one-to-five-stars rating system.
If you register on the site, Zoodango will provide personalize venue ratings, with an algorithm predicting which venues you might like or dislike based on your previous interaction with the site.
And now for the downsides. Zoodango's intelligent rating system currently works only in Seattle, Spokane, Portland, San Francisco, and San Jose, which is hardly enough. Furthermore, the way I'd like to use this application is on my mobile, be it a BlackBerry, iPhone or any other smartphone, and I don't see mobile versions of Zoodango anywhere on the site. What Zoodango currently offers might suffice as a proof-of-concept, but it's not enough, I fear, to give it enough traction to become really popular.