i’ve always maintained that the restaurants in philadelphia are among the best in the country, and I will fight anyone outside Cavanaughs who says any different. the michelin guide finally came to their senses and decided to take the acela down from new york to grace us with their presence. In both quality and diversity, we’ve got all the cuisine bases covered. But when it comes to food reporting in the city, we’ve got more problems than the eagles kickoff return team, septa’s financial viability, joe callahan’s publicist. philly Social media influencers are seduced with promises of free meals, money, and getting to play the front 9 at merion east with Steven starr. Their positive videos about new restaurant openings simply can’t be trusted. I recently read a philly mag restaurant review that was criticized for being unfairly harsh (which inspired this post). Even if the review itself wasn’t as bleak as the headline, it made me think twice about the critic’s objectivity.
So how do we, average philadelphians, sort through this strangely rigged media gimmick without bias or favoritism? Most of us just want a quiet place to take our parents out for brunch so they can talk about how our talented cousin just completed med school in boston, while they not-so-subtly ask why I never finished studying for my Lsats. well, mom, have no fear: I’ve got a simple, 3-step guide to help us cut through the noise.
- TALK TO your friends (IN REal life!) – while i am not a baby boomer, every so often I have to admit that their advice should be considered. it’s as simple and straightforward as it sounds: trust the opinions of your friends and family, and you’re probably gonna be pointed in the right direction.
- do not listen to ANy social media influencer – i call this my adam schefter edict – assume they are getting paid way too much, that they have ulterior motives, and they are not genuine at all. If you stop giving them attention, they’ll lose their weird shred of influence.
- if you have to look online, check google reviews/yelp – not that these sites are much better than social media companies, but at least they’re aggregations of real, anonymous patrons that give their opinion without financial compensation.
Will we ever get to a place where we’re rid of tiktokers pretending to enjoy $54 steak frites that they take one bite of before spitting out? Probably not. but we should at least attempt to find the balance between that horror show, and getting upset about an overly critical review from a pompous local food blogger.