A Node.js RESTful API server for the TasteMonash restaurant discovery platform. Provides secure authentication, review management, business operations, and automated deal management for the Monash University dining community.

• RESTful API design with Express.js
• Role-based authentication (customers vs business owners)
• Anonymous review system with multi-criteria ratings
• Restaurant and business management
• Image upload and cloud storage integration
• Search and filtering capabilities with pagination

• PassportJS authentication strategy
• Session management with MongoDB storage
• Encrypted authentication cookies
• Role-based access control middleware
• Input validation and sanitization

• Scheduled jobs for deal expiration management
• Database indexing for optimized queries
• Error handling and logging
• File upload processing with Multer

• Runtime: Node.js
• Framework: Express.js
• Database: MongoDB with Mongoose ODM
• Authentication: PassportJS
• File Upload: Multer
• Cloud Storage: Cloudinary
• Job Scheduling: Node-cron
• Environment: dotenv

• Node.js (version 16 or higher)
• MongoDB (local installation or cloud instance)
• npm or yarn package manager
• Cloud storage account (for image uploads)

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/Nutty1704/eprp-backend.git
cd eprp-backend

2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Create environment configuration:

cp .env.sample .env

4. Configure environment variables in .env:

Start the development server:

npm run dev

The API will be available at http://localhost:5000

Start the production server:

npm start

1. Follow existing code organization patterns
2. Maintain RESTful API conventions
3. Add appropriate middleware for new routes
4. Include proper error handling