 | Arabella S.( 20s, Female, United Kingdom )Dear Julie,
Not only do I wholeheartedly agree with you, but I would also like to point out the glowing ten star reviews some dumps get over and over again by single-post reviewers and Squaremeals' own dated and somewhat superficial reviews, talking about dishes that haven't been on the menu for years. I advice you to instead start reading foodie blogs. They are much more balanced, honest, up to date and detailed.
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| Permanent link to this post 19 July 2011 |
 | Hi Julie, To respond to the last question in your post, reviewer prizes are awarded on a quarterly basis and advertised in each issue of our magazine (and, when space allows, on the website). We also hand out ad hoc bottles of Champagne to regular reviewers – the last person to receive one was Sabrina's Passions, who posted her 100th review in April. We always tweet about these prizes, so it's worth following us on Twitter to keep up with who's won what! Also, last week I published a story on Square Meal's homepage to update readers about what's happened with the Martell Amateur Critic of the Year Award so far – you can have a look at it here: martell-amateur-critic-year Best wishes, Nicky Evans
News and Online Editor
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| Permanent link to this post 25 July 2011 |
| Hi Arabella, I'd just like to reply to your point about Square Meal's ‘dated’ reviews. Every year we update each review listed on the site and in our annual guide, and add all new openings that we think will be of interest to our readership. This annual updating is a huge overhead, in terms of time and cost, and requires lots of street pounding from both members of the editorial team and freelancers, both in London and in the rest of the UK. We're also in close contact with the restaurants on our site, and they inform us of any changes, temporary closures and the like that happen throughout the year. This is really important to us because our aim is to give our readers the most accurate and up-to-date information that we can. Our reviews try to give readers an overview of the type of restaurant and food diners can expect when they visit. Obviously many menus vary according to the season, and some change weekly and even daily, so we don't pretend to guarantee that the dishes we describe in our reviews will necessarily be on the menu on your visit – but they will all have been featured on a menu in that restaurant at some point in the last year. Best wishes, Nicky Evans
News and Online Editor
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| Permanent link to this post 25 July 2011 |
| Thanks Nicky, but I have to say it is a bit lame for the reviews to appear on the website, but mention of any prize giving is only made on the website “when space allows”. I'm a bit of a pedant and have no desire to join in the Twitter craze so I guess the announcements of the plaudits will have to remain a mystery to me. Not that it particularly matters any more – I've decided to take Arabella's advice and now seek out restaurant blogs and sites that are better balanced than some of the reviews and reviewers now finding their way onto Square Meal. Another practice I've noticed is the first time reveiwer who starts with “having had many wonderful meals in this establishment, I just have to tell the world about the awful meal I had there last night” – perhaps if you had told the world about the fab meals, the restaurant may have been more successful with the increase in bookings that may have resulted from your good review…
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| Permanent link to this post 15 August 2011 |
 | MissSushi( 30s, Female, London&Paris )Dear Julie,
I agree with your analysis and just like you and Arabella, I have also stopped using Squaremeal in favor of food blogs, since most reviews published here are so obviously fake. Twitter is indeed not for everyone – myself included – it's imposing, relentless and daft.
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| Permanent link to this post 28 August 2011 |
Posts: 1 | Victoria B.( 30s, Female, United Kingdom )Sorry to come late to this. I am reasonably new to the online world of reviewing. I have always used square meal for my map of London restaurants and occasionally for outside London. I think that there are obviously some reviewers that use this as a pr and marketing opportunity – but – i have written a few reviews in a row as I don't always get the time to write straight after the meal. I think that Square meal should consider a more in depth conversation between reviewers – a helpful yes/no button is neither here nor there. With regards to twiiter and food blogs – I have just joined twitter and will see how it pans out and I think that most food bloggers are either tools of marketing and PR or out for a free lunch – most of whom have never worked in the hospitality industry or know about food. I only say that as a child of a restaurateur growing up in a world where the critics were trained, educated and interested in the food and the establishment.
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| Permanent link to this post 7 December 2011 |
