It’s bloggers versus critics in ‘cash for couscous’ food fight
WHEN established food critics and the hungry new kids on the block clash, it’s going to be a bun fight. Petra Starke explores the pay-per-review debate.
WHEN New York Times restaurant critic Ruth Reichl reviewed Le Cirque in 1993, she enlisted the help of an acting coach, costume designer and makeup artist to transform her into “Molly Hollis”, a frumpy school teacher from Michigan.
Known and feared by every chef in New York, Reichl was forced to go to such lengths every time she visited a restaurant to avoid any preferential treatment, and ensure an honest critique. And, as recounted in her bestselling memoir, Garlic and Sapphires, the difference in service she received as Molly, compared to when she returned later as Ruth, was startling.
“Nobody goes to Le Cirque just to eat. People go for the experience of being in a great restaurant. Sometimes they get it; sometimes they don’t. It all depends on who they are,” she wrote in her eventual double-headed review.
Of course, this was before Instagram.
Forget going undercover, these days there’s a smorgasbord of food bloggers happy to put themselves front and centre of a restaurant review – quite often literally, smiling in selfies next to their pizza and cocktails, or presenting YouTube video critiques from the dinner table.
In fact food blogging has become something of a cottage industry, with hundreds of self-styled social media “influencers” – many with tens of thousands of followers – Instagramming their meals.
But whether they’ve actually paid for said meals is not always clear. And with the now undeniable marketing power that social media wields, some are even charging for their services.
So can food bloggers be trusted as impartial reviewers, or is it all just cake for comment?
The Australian’s restaurant critic John Lethlean doesn’t pull any punches on the subject. He sent the Adelaide blogosphere into meltdown earlier this month when he posted his own Instagram review of local food blogger and “fashion influencer” Karylle Banez, known just as Karylle, accusing her of seeking “cous cous for comment”.
Lethlean’s post pictured a message Karylle had sent to an unnamed Adelaide restaurant, asking not only for free food to photograph and share with her 57,000 Instagram followers, but a cash payment too.
“I was wondering if you were interested in me visiting and trying a few complimentary items from your menu to post on my Instagram and for a write up on my blog,” the message read. “I usually charge $200 for a visit, but I really enjoy modern cuisine so I would be happy with $120 for this visit.”
The backlash was swift.
“I might try this when doing my next grocery shop - offer Woollies a review in exchange for $200 worth of groceries plus charge a discounted service fee of $120. This girl is #inspo,” wrote one commenter.
There was support for Karylle too, with some commenters seeing no difference between her blog posts and Lethlean’s own reviews.
For her part, Karylle responded with a selfie at a Hyde Park pizza restaurant captioned with the hashtag “#f---onlinebullies”. The restaurant, and the fashion brand of her dress, were both tagged.
Sean Connolly, head chef and owner of Sean’s Kitchen, welcomes food bloggers but says the concept of paying one for a review “would be completely weird”.
“We get contacted on a regular basis by bloggers, but the best bloggers are the ones that come in under cover and pay,” he says.
“I’ve never been approached by anyone with a dollar figure for an experience, and I don’t think a dollar figure should ever be put on it. I don’t agree with cash for comment.”
Nikki Friedli, manager of East Terrace hotspot Africola, is more blunt.
“The concept of a restaurant essentially bribing you to say nice things is repugnant,” she says.
“It instantly muddies the waters, trading a free meal for a good review. It sets an unhealthy precedent for restaurants and for diners. Restaurant margins are slim and if you have respect for the industry, you’ll be happy to pay for your meal and review it on your own time.”
They’re views not widely shared by many local food bloggers, who mostly see nothing wrong with accepting freebies or cash in exchange for a positive post, as long as they’re disclosed.
Nathan Morelli of local blogging collective On The Chopping Board admits the group has been paid for posts – recent “collaborations” include Krispy Kreme and East Tce Brazilian restaurant B’Churrasco – but that any deals or freebies are always made clear to their 24,000 Instagram and Facebook followers through use of the hashtag “#sponsored”.
Gemma-Marie Corti and Vanessa De Chellis of Adelaide Food Bloggers, which has around 16,000 followers on Instagram, have adopted a similar strategy when working with clients such as Fruchocs and Uber Eats.
Ms Corti says while most of the duo’s posts are “from our own self-funded food adventures”, it’s only fair bloggers should receive payment or free product when working in partnership with a brand.
“If you wanted a television or radio commercial you’d be required to pay,” she says.
Karylle herself sees nothing wrong with being paid to post and, unlike some other bloggers, doesn’t see the need to disclose such arrangements.
“I charge for my time,” she said when contacted by Sunday.
“To take several photos, edit them, upload them to my social media channel, brainstorming and writing captions so that my followers will engage, writing a review and uploading photos on to my blog all takes time.
“I don’t disclose to my followers if I have been paid or not because I have only recently started using my Instagram for business purposes and as I said before I am being paid for my time.
“Sponsored content is disclosed when there is a contract in place and the marketer/brand has control over the material which is not the case when I work with a business.”
But if you think snapping photos of burgers and pizza with your iPhone is a fast track to fortune, think again.
Sophie Miller, who has more than 46,000 Instagram and Facebook followers through her blog The Streets of Adelaide, says while she has received “a lot of free food and opportunities” from local businesses and PR companies, she’s only been paid four times in four years. And she thinks she knows why.
“I would love to be paid to eat! A lot of other food bloggers in Adelaide are. Isn’t that the dream?” she says. “I personally feel I don’t meet the usual beauty standards that a lot of the bloggers have.”
For food photographer Duy Huynh, who has around 30,000 Twitter and Instagram followers as blogger Duy Dash, Instagram audiences’ demand for perfect aesthetics is the very reason he no longer posts in exchange for freebies. Put simply: freebies don’t make good photos.
“I’ve become very strict about what now goes on my social media platform, which comes down to if I get the opportunity to photograph to a very high standard,” he says.
One Adelaide restaurant that has well and truly harnessed the power of Instagram aesthetics is eastern suburbs cafe 50SixOne.
The cafe hit the social media jackpot when it opened two years ago thanks to its “freakshakes”: towering milkshakes topped with wildly decadent extras like lollipops, doughnuts, biscuits and whole chocolate bars drenched in whipped cream and sprinkles. They were catnip for Instagrammers, providing invaluable publicity for the business which has since expanded to locations in Mount Barker and Prospect.
“Social media is a huge part of why 50SixOne is where it is today,” says owner Simon Flocco, who is friends with Karylle, who appears in several of the restaurant’s Instagram photos. “One hundred per cent, influencers and food bloggers can be a good marketing tool.’’
Mr Connolly, meanwhile, says bloggers are no substitute for a trusted food journalist.
“They’re not journalists. I will always give them respect, however they’re not journalists, ” he says.
“They’re just different. It’s like comparing a Masterchef with a chef. A reality show singer with a rock star. Bloggers and journos – you can’t compare the two. How many years has John (Lethlean) been working in the trenches? It’s just never going to be the same.”
More important than both, according to Lee Boys, owner and manager of Glenelg’s The Organik Store & Cafe, are regular customers.
“My little heart sings when I see people taking photos of our food for social media,” she says. “Those non-bloggers are very important as they are unsolicited and organic – excuse the pun.”
Ultimately whether food bloggers and social media influencers are the new breed of restaurant re-viewers, or just another form of online advertising, it seems they’re here to stay. As to whether they should, Ms Friedli winner of the 2018 Citi Service Excellence Award, doesn’t mince words: “Sure, but they’re welcome to do it on their own money and pay for a meal like everyone else.”