How to use SquareMeal
What’s My SquareMeal?
This is your own personal restaurant and bar guide, where you can store your own reviews, build private selection lists and tag your favourite fellow reviewers. You can also update your account and login details here, including your profile (where you can upload a picture of yourself).
Why should I register?
First of all, registration is free and only takes a few minutes. Once registered, you’ll have access to special online tools, allowing you to build your own mini-guide: create personal ‘favourites’ lists; rate and review places you’ve visited; book restaurants within three clicks.
We will never supply your email address or password to third parties. To find out more, read SquareMeal's Terms + Conditions.
I’ve forgotten my password. What now?
Simply click on the ‘forgot password?’ link and follow the instructions.
RATING AND REVIEWING RESTAURANTS + BARS
Tell me more about SquareMeal stars
SquareMeal stars are awarded to our ‘favourite restaurants’, on the basis of food, ambience, service and value. Two and three stars are given (more selectively) to the very best destination restaurants that bear comparison with the finest in the world, with three and four stars representing absolute ‘must-visit’ London dining destinations.
To view our star rated restaurants please click on the links below:
SquareMeal Bronze Restaurants
SquareMeal Silver Restaurants
SquareMeal Gold Restaurants
How do I rate and review a restaurant?
Once you’re registered, simply look up the SquareMeal review page using any of our search tools, then click the ‘rate this restaurant’ link on the right hand column and follow the instructions. If you want to re-review the restaurant, that’s fine, but only your most recent score will count towards the restaurant’s average. You can edit your existing ratings and reviews at any time. Please note, you’ll only be allowed 10,000 characters per review (that’s about 1,500 words).
What's in it for me?
Apart from the satisfaction of building a fan base and convenience of keeping your own notes in one place, SquareMeal has a case of Champagne for those reviews that we judge to be the most incisive, on a one-entry-per-review basis. So the more good quality reviews that you write, the better your chances of winning. The overall winner will receive the top prize of a meal for two up to the value of £200 at a restaurant of your choice.
How is the restaurant’s average rating calculated?
This is the average of the points each user has given the restaurant (up to a total of 50 points are available at each restaurant: 10 for each of the 5 criteria). The average is only calculated after a minimum of three users have rated a restaurant within the last 12 months (and is based on their most recent score).
I’m not happy with something I’ve read on a fellow reader's review. How can I complain?
Once you’re registered, you can submit your own comments in defence of a restaurant and/or request for another review to be removed by clicking the ‘request review removal’ link. This will take you to the ‘register a complaint’ tool. Reviews that are in violation of SquareMeal’s Rules of Conduct will be removed.
I want to review a restaurant that isn’t listed. How do I submit my comments?
If you’d like to share your views on somewhere not currently listed, simply email us at editorial@squaremeal.co.uk with the name (and postcode) of the restaurant, plus your comments. If we get lots of positive comments about a restaurant, we’ll consider listing it for the following year.
PRIVATE SELECTIONS: MY LISTS
Tell me more about ‘My Lists’
These are your own personal selection lists, which could be anything from ‘great for dates’, ‘possible party venues’, ‘places to try’ or ‘good to take clients’ – you can create up to 30 lists. No one else can view your lists – they’re completely private.
How do I create/add to a list?
Click the ‘add to my lists’ link (this appears in two main places: under each entry on any search results page,
or right at the very bottom of the individual review page). You can then add the restaurant to an existing list or create a new list – in which case you just need to give it a name (and an optional description).
(You can also create new lists from within My SquareMeal, but you’ll still need to search for the restaurants to populate them with.)
How do I remove items from an existing list?
Go to ‘my lists’, click ‘edit list items’ within the relevant list and then click ‘remove item’ for each restaurant you want to remove (or click ‘delete list’ within the relevant box if you want to remove the entire box.)
How do I email a list to someone?
Go to ‘my lists’, click ‘email list’ and follow the simple instructions.
OTHER REVIEWERS: MY FAVOURITE / MOST PROLIFIC / EDITOR’S PICKS
Tell me more about ‘My favourite reviewers’
You can add/remove your favourite reviewers via the link under the profile picture on any of their reviews.
(You can also add favourite reviewers if you’re looking at their profile, say on the ‘most prolific reviewers’ page as well as deleting your previous favourite reviewers via the My SquareMeal area).
Tell me more about ‘most prolific reviewers’
This is a roll-call of the users who have added the greatest quantity of reviews in the last six months (in descending order).
Tell me more about ‘editor’s picks’
A stand-out review that’s caught the eye of the SquareMeal editorial team. Credit given for insight, wit, word economy, intelligent observation and clarity. There’s an archive too, showing previous ‘editor’s picks’.
Tell me more about silver/gold/platinum reviewer status
Silver, gold and ultimately platinum reviewer status are given to users who have written more than just a handful of reviews or comments. Volume, quality and consistency of submissions are taken into account.
Silver rating: awarded to users who have written more than 10 reviews and comments. The quality and consistency of submissions are taken into account.
Gold rating: awarded to users who have written more than 20 reviews and comments. The quality and consistency of submissions are taken into account.
Platinum rating: awarded to users who have created a 'mini-guide' of 50 or more reviews and comments. The quality and consistency of submissions are taken into account.
SquareMeal reserves the right to edit or remove any post at any time.