Online restaurant reviews on sites like Yelp and Urban Spoon have become an integral part of the restaurant industry today. Central Standard host Gina Kaufmann explores the credibility of these user reviews. Do they change the way chefs and restaurant staff manage their business?
"When it started out, I took it [reviews] very very personally," says Howard Hanna, chef of The Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange. "It hurts to read that something you've poured yourself into and tried really hard to create, in fact work your whole life to create, to hear somebody make fun of it or really hate it or just miss the point of it is hard to read."
Hanna, Cody Garrelts of Bluestem and Rye and Patrick Ryan of Port Fonda read some of their worst Yelp reviews aloud at a recent fundraiser.
"There's definitely a place for it [online reviewing,] and whether we like it or not it's a really important part of our business," says Hanna.
Guests:
- Howard Hanna, executive chef and co-owner at The Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange and partner in Ça Va
- Darnell Holloway, senior manager of local business outreach at Yelp, Inc.
