Hot Dish Review

Hooray! For my official 100th blog post I thought it would be appropriate to clarify my stance on reviewing food and restaurants.

Hmmm….well. If you are a restaurant critic every restaurant manager worth a damn knows who you are and what you look like. Trying to maintain anonymity is simply silly and somewhat narcissistic. Are you really that important? Is writing about food really that serious? No.

In fact, the publication I write for on a regular basis prints write-ups, not reviews. There is a difference. The restaurants that I visit know I’m coming and that I’m doing a story. Generally, the food and often the drinks, are comp’d. Does that affect the service? Probably. And not always in my favor I might add. Maybe I make some servers nervous. To meet the chefs and be recognized by managers and bartenders all over town is not a bad thing. Being treated like a VIP is, in fact, awesome!

Are music critics held to the same standards? Or people that write book reviews? No, it’s just ridiculous.

What I write here is what I really think. Sometimes it’s not so nice. I blog on the same comp’d meals that I write articles on for AFD. I do the unthinkable and write after just one visit. Yes, that’s right. Often, an article is based on one enormous meal.

So what?

(I felt it necessary to use a photo of my child to maintain anonymity….I knew you would understand.)