
Food bloggers dish up plates of spicy criticism (Yelp's far reaching influence) - danielha
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/03/25/MNGV9ORDSH1.DTL
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rfrey
I was intrigued by the reference to the "good ol' days" when reviewers would
let a restaurant have 30 days to work out the kinks.

I have a friend from Vietnam who started a restaurant in my hometown, which
has a Vietnamese population of around 30-50,000. He told me, just before
opening, that the first 3 days would make or break the shop. That's the way
that community worked: hundreds of people would descend on a new restaurant
and then go tell all their friends and relatives. So he put tons of effort
into the first days. Sounds just like... Yelp!

Rules change, people adapt. The restaurants should read PG's essays on
listening to early adopters.

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danielha
Personally, I love Yelp. I've discovered some great hole-in-the-wall places
that make me feel like I'm in the know. Some critics can be exceptionally
harsh, though, and it's interesting to witness the quick impacts they have on
businesses.

