The Week In (User) Reviews: The Review Ombudsman

Now, despite carrying a bit of inherent humor, this review basically sucks. Even if it’s a truism, the reviewer didn’t say anything further to support his suicidal boycott. There is no mention of any details, from food to ambiance to prices.

While there may be a fine line between which user reviews are acceptable and which user reviews are not, no such line exists between quality reviews and well, dumb ones. Idiotic reviews don’t share anything helpful with other prospective diners. Case in point: this review for a restaurant that shall remain unnamed:

you should probably kill yourself before you ever give these people your money.

Now, despite carrying a bit of inherent humor, this review basically sucks. Even if it’s a truism, the reviewer didn’t say anything further to support his suicidal boycott. There is no mention of any details, from food to ambiance to prices.

While there may be a fine line between which user reviews are acceptable and which user reviews are not, no such line exists between quality reviews and well, dumb ones. Idiotic reviews don’t share anything helpful with other prospective diners. Case in point: this review for a restaurant that shall remain unnamed:

A quality review–whether it be positive or negative–hits on many descriptive aspects of the restaurant in question, from the consumed dishes to the diner’s reactions to said dishes. For example, take this thoughtful, balanced review of Park Grill by Anna:

My husband and I came across this litte jem one Sunday morning after a wedding we had attended. Thank god we stayed the night or else we would never even know this place existed. I have seen the Park Grill sign on the second floor of this Embarcadero building for years but would never had ventured upstairs on my own. Now keep in mind we have only had breakfast here, but it does keep us coming back. I am completely stuck on the Eggs Benedict here. I consider myself a bit of a snob when it comes to Hollandaise sauce, and I have probably tried 90% of the Eggs Benny in the city, in my opinion nothing comes close to this place. They use a chive hollandaise here, and it is smooth and buttery, but not too tangy. I adore it. My husband has had the pancakes, the french toast, the omelettes, sausage and bacon….and much much more. We have yet to be disappointed. Not to mention that they have a SCREAMING cup of coffee here. I just love it.
This all being said, it is a bit on the pricey side…more than a bit in fact. With tip our breakfast for two usually come to about $60.00 so we try and save it for special occasions, or just a every once and awhile treat. DEFINITELY worth a try though!

Take note, dear users. This review highlights several high points of the meal–the eggs benedict, the coffee–yet at the same time elucidates some shortcomings of the restaurant–an absurd $60 pricetag for breakfast.

The main point of our MenuPages site is to help diners and restaurateurs alike succeed in their respective missions of eating and producing delicious meals; great reviews like Anna’s help all parties involved.

Thanks for all the great reviews this week, folks. Keep ‘em comin’ and keep ‘em quality.

The Week In (User) Reviews: The Review Ombudsman