A restaurant is often only as good as its reviews. Whether we read an article recommending that new Italian place downtown or one of our friends won't shut up about it, most likely, we will still check out its online rating and read what other people think of it before deciding to go there.
However, the democratization of criticism isn't always a good thing. And the subreddit r/YelpDrama features plenty of reasons why.
A popular category among its posts is ridiculous restaurant reviews that prove the customer isn't always right. We're talking trashing a joint that wasn't even open when you "ordered" your food, or a one star because they wouldn't allow you to order water and eat the meals you brought there yourself.
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Hmm
Ewww! A Gay Waiter!
Another problem is with platforms like Yelp and TripAdvisor is the fact that they're full of fake reviews.
Plus, people are much more likely to leave a review when they've had a bad experience, distorting the overall restaurant's rating.
That can bring disastrous consequences, especially for smaller businesses that have just opened up – one 2020 study found that an early bad review can turn customers away in the long term, and that reviewing platforms actually have an in-built bias towards popular restaurants.
The Food At This Shop Sucked!
I Don’t Know Who You Got Your Food From Tonight, But It Wasn’t Us
A Not So Spicy Life!
As Giorgia Cannarella pointed out in Vice, the only other alternative, it seems, is reading food articles and blogs, hoping to land on an honest critique.
However, if you're familiar with the complex world of culinary criticism, you’ll know these things can also be hit or miss. Sometimes a new spot will get stellar reviews only to disappoint once you get there.
Business Owner Claps Back On Yelp User For Leaving A Negative Comment On His Restaurant
You Wouldn’t Bring Mcdonalds Into An Olive Garden?
My Food = More Important Than Your Life
Different people value different aspects of a restaurant – the decor, the ambiance, the price, the surprise factor, but, according to Slovenian food and travel blogger Kaja Sajovic, there’s actually more to the story.
"We all know that food journalists don't get paid enough to cover the cost of a restaurant dinner, so press trips have become a necessity to do our job," Sajovic said. "And this creates a lot of ethical dilemmas. Can you really give a bad review of a restaurant you've been invited to, with flights and hotels covered? I think it's difficult, and maybe even a little bit unfair."
“Influencer” Goes Out To Dinner
“Politely Restrained”
“The Customer Is Always Right!!”
User Writes 1 Star Review For Competing Restaurant
Of course, Sajovic is mostly talking about freelancers and bloggers. Journalists who get a steady salary and their expenses are always covered can be a lot freer when writing their reviews, but they are certainly the exception rather than the rule in the industry.
Food writer Paola Miglio, editor of Peruvian website El Trinche, said she's always made a point to be uncompromising with her opinions.
"If I don't like something, I say so. And I write it down, even when I’ve been invited [to the restaurant]," Miglio said. "In my three years as a food critic at a newspaper, I have only been bullied a handful of times by a restaurant owner or chef on social media. I've never felt the pressure to praise anything or anyone."
He’s Just Enjoying His Meal, Karen
”wtf, I Didn’t Want This Food, Why Would You Make Me Eat It??”
The Post That Started It
A*****e must’ve smelled his own booze breath blowing back in his face.
Some People Have No Shame
"There are few chefs who respond well and in-kind to criticism," food journalist Gabriele Zanatta, who writes for the Italian web magazine Identità Golose, explained.
Zanatta thinks that’s because cooks have historically been mostly hidden figures. It was only with France’s nouvelle cuisine movement of the 60s, which revolutionised international cooking, that chefs have become famous and “even achieved celebrity status over the last two decades,” Zanatta explained. "No wonder they’re intolerant to criticism! They had never been on such a pedestal."
3 Stars, Got Caught Shoplifting
Chicken Tenders Heal His Broken Heart (And Home)
I Applaud The Dj
One Star Because The Server Wouldn't Reveal Her Address
However, Zanatta also believes this chef-centric approach to food writing is slowly dying out. "We’re now paying more attention not only to the food but to all the other aspects that make a restaurant a restaurant," he said. In his experience, chefs nowadays are more willing to listen, provided that the criticism they’re receiving is not just a pretext for a food critic to flaunt their knowledge.
Thank You, Kathie
“It’s Not Their Fault”...gives Them 1 Star
“I’ve Been Coming Here For Years And It’s Literally The Best, But During The Pandemic They’ve Sucked! Also I’m Racist”
Chiara Cavalleris, editor in chief of the Italian food news site Dissapore, thinks that food journalists are not to blame for the state of things, but rather the food press in general.
She believes that news outlets are guilty of colluding with restaurant owners, an issue that has also come up in a scandal involving three-Michelin-star Florentine restaurant Enoteca Pinchiorri. In October 2021, its 77-year-old owner Giorgio Pinchiorri was sentenced to 4 months in prison for stalking a former employee, peeling back the veil on his restaurant’s toxic work culture. But none of the mainstream food press in Italy reported on it.
So is there such a thing as an accurate restaurant review? Who knows. But there's no shortage of absurd ones.
You Can’t Even Make Out In Public During A Pandemic
Bagel Drama
She Was Mad Her Tartare Was Undercooked
Not a great idea to order food if you don't even know what it is. Just ask!
Guy Got Booted After Throwing A Fit Because He Was Asked To Turn His Phone Volume Down. He Was Streaming A Football Game In A Nice Restaurant Full Blast. But The Server Was The Inconsiderate One. His Partner Looked So Embarrassed
Someone Reviewed My Workplace
Red Robin Needs To Wise Up
Trendy Asian Burrito Restaurant Near Me
They are doing it to be respectful, likely due to training. If someone addresses you as "sir" or "ma'am" it is acceptable to request that they refer to you in another respectful manner, a more casual manner, or perhaps, by your first name. Please bear in mind that their point IS to be respectful. If you prefer "Your Imperial Highness Mr. Poopy Head", it may not happen but it's OK to ask.
Was going to say the same. When you're in the service industry it is drilled into your head to refer to people as "sir" or "ma'am" and you wouldn't believe how angry a lot of people get when you don't do just so. For every person that has a complaint like this there would be about 10 complaints if they stopped using "Sir" or "Ma'am".
Load More Replies...As someone with they/them pronouns, I am not offended when someone calls me "ma'am" or "sir" I will literally answer to anything. I know that it's not the same for everyone, but I don't find it a big deal if someone assumes my gender because they don't know it. I haven't told them, so how would they?
The military? Where you have to do pushups if you don't call a superior officer "sir"? That military?
No, the military in the real world where only officers are called "sir." Occasionally, a private might slip and call a sergeant or some other non-comm "sir" and they might reply "Don't call me sir, I work for a living." THAT military. And despite what you've seen in movies, officers and non-comms are not permitted to arbitrarily punish subordinates with physical exercise like a basic training drill instructor would do. That is considered abusive treatment and an illegal order.
Load More Replies...Seems like he's over reacting a little but he is also fighting for inclusion so that's rad.
When you are a woman and someone repeatedly calls you sir to the point they r doing it on purpose. It really sucks. I completely understand this comment. Be happy if u don't.
i understand, but the other way: ive been aggressively ma'amed, even though im not a woman. im really disappointed that people here are so against gender neutral formal titles, or that they even think titles of any kind are needed in a restaurant at all. it really does hurt when "formal respect" is turned into a weapon.
Load More Replies...I actually agree with this. Most older women do not like to be called Ma'am because it makes them feel old, and you can never tell by looking at someone as to how they identify. Using Sir and Ma'am is also outdated, and not necessary. I personally do not take any offense, but there are plenty of people who would. The reviewer is actually spot on with this.
Unfortunately, we have not yet come up with a non-gendered honorific to show respect, but it would be nice if we could have one.
I use boss. Shows deference and respect without assuming gender
Load More Replies...I get it. I would never leave a bad review for it, but I get it. The rest of the world gets by without these pointless gendered greetings.
Quite right, stick to gender neutral terms like "it", "that", "thing" etc....
I like being called sir...I know my kids aren't going to respect me, so other people should pick up the slack!
This guy seems a little picky but seriously it is more polite to not assume a person's gender based on their appearance. If it is a formal restaurant then yes formal titles should be used but not everyone conforms to the stereotype that their gender is associated with.
I am rubber you are glue. You big fúcking baby.
Load More Replies...I work as a customer service agent. I love calling people sir. The way that I say it, it really means, "you a*****e", and I make that apparent. However, they can't complain cuz all I'm saying is "sir".
If the restaurants take this person’s advice, the next review will be someone complaining about the lack of respectful address by the waitstaff.
I am very confused about the kimchi issue. I am not a vegetarian, but sometimes order that way. But if I ordered a steak and the server asks if I'd like a salad with that, no one would bat an eye.
Sounds to me like someone had licked all the red off of his peppermint stick.
That saying from the military is intended as an insult to officers implying that they don't work and enlisted service members actually do all of the work. Officers in the military are addressed as either Sir or Ma'am or by their rank. Enlisted members are are addressed by rank. That's where that saying came from. Has nothing to do with gender equality or gender identity.
Though they’re being kind of an ass about it, they do have a point. Seems like the time has come to create a non-gendered term of respect equivalent to sir/ma’am. I mean, we created Ms to replace Mrs and Miss, so people wouldn’t know if a woman was married or single, because Mr doesn’t indicate whether a man is single or married, and because marital status shouldn’t matter in the majority of situations. So why not come up with an non-gendered alternative to sir and ma’am?
Good day human/mammal/snowflake, how can I be of assistance?
Load More Replies...For chrissakes shut up and stop trying to find reasons to b***h the way it's always been done get over it wasn't meant to be disrespectful That it was quite the opposite if they were in fact being rude then say they were being rude don't go after him for Madame Or sir how are they supposed to know Are we start are we to start calling everybody human a human thank you for human how are you human get over yourself
Hahahaha if I was as cringey American as you, I probably wouldn't be that vocal about it. How about you say what you wanna say, then fúck off and stop wasting everyone's time with honorifics that only serve to establish that the service person is beneath you in the social hierarchy. Actually, how about you just fúck off regardless, Donna?
Load More Replies...How about, "would you like to be a f*****g snob elsewhere, jerk off?" Is that better?
Hey I got a better idea. How about removing that log from your a**s? I guarantee without that discomfort, your food will taste better and hell maybe make you less salty too.
I've been with 2 of my doctors for well over 20 years. We've graduated from me saying "Yes Ma'am/ No Ma'am" to "Yes dear/no dear" They think it's funny. (We're all female BTW, not that it really matters) Maybe that's what this guy wants? Answer him with a yes dear or no dear?
f**k off with your transphobia. while i agree that this guy is a douchebag for leaving a bad review just for servers saying "ma'am" & "sir", that's absolutely no reason to invalidate people living their lives without hurting anyone. & guess what, idiot? you have a gender identity as well. literally everyone does, whether they're cis or trans. the difference is that trans people go about their lives minding their own business & you go out of your way to be a bigoted a*****e.
Load More Replies...Note: this post originally had 44 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
I think the internet would be a much better place if everything was done under our legal names. People would think twice about what they say and do.
Or if you could get socked in the lip, I bet 99.9% of all the disrespect would go away
Load More Replies...I like the ones where the businesses identify the reviewer and call them out.
Some of these are funny but in general, I'm not a fan of that. Businesses can lie just as much as customers. A number of times I've been pressured to change a review or had a negative review removed, which IMO makes the review site pointless.
Load More Replies...All of these people are self entitled morons who need to get a life ! Seriously wake up and start cooking yourselves !
I downvoted some that were just the rude poster. I liked the ones where they get a snappy reply back
What a bunch of self-entitles morons. Except the few legitimate ones. These idiots need to just stay the hell at home.
I think the internet would be a much better place if everything was done under our legal names. People would think twice about what they say and do.
Or if you could get socked in the lip, I bet 99.9% of all the disrespect would go away
Load More Replies...I like the ones where the businesses identify the reviewer and call them out.
Some of these are funny but in general, I'm not a fan of that. Businesses can lie just as much as customers. A number of times I've been pressured to change a review or had a negative review removed, which IMO makes the review site pointless.
Load More Replies...All of these people are self entitled morons who need to get a life ! Seriously wake up and start cooking yourselves !
I downvoted some that were just the rude poster. I liked the ones where they get a snappy reply back
What a bunch of self-entitles morons. Except the few legitimate ones. These idiots need to just stay the hell at home.