YELP AND PETITION CREATOR FACE OFF OVER REVIEWS RELATED TO DELIVERIES
The pandemic has put the nation’s restaurant industry on the ropes, and many owners say a rise in negative online consumer reviews related to poor delivery service by thirdparty apps is hitting them below the belt.
To battle these businessdamaging, 1- and 2-star reviews, a Bay area sign company named Raydiant has launched a national petition to stop review sites like Yelp! and Tripadvisor from publishing reviews for delivery issues that are not the restaurants’ fault. But the advertising campaign for the newly launched petition, Karen’s Killer Reviews, has Yelp officials seeing red.
Raydiant has posted billboards on pedicabs in San Diego, buildings in San Francisco and taxicabs in New York featuring what Yelp officials say is a fictional 1-star review made to look like it was published on the Yelp platform, about a fake restaurant from a customer named Karen in San Diego’s Sherman Heights neighborhood. The reviewer pictured in the false ad is Kate Gosselin, the reality TV star whose bilevel hairdo became a signature of “Karens,” the nickname on social media for White female consumers prone to baseless complaints.
A Yelp spokesperson told the U-T that the ratings company has worked diligently since the pandemic began to flag and analyze low-starred reviews for unrelated customer complaints over issues like face masks, social-distancing regulations and delivery service.
The Yelp official said that between March 11 and Sept. 15, Yelp restaurant reviews that mention delivery received 4- or 5-star ratings twice as often as they received 1- or 2-star ratings. Also during that time, less than 6 percent of all Yelp restaurant reviews mentioned delivery.
In many cases, these reviews are removed from the Yelp platform. But in the meantime, it can mean lost revenue for restaurateurs.
Mike Rosen, founder and CEO of San Diego’s Crack Shack fried-chicken restaurant chain, said last month that his third-party delivery business has risen sharply since the pandemic began and customers’ complaints related to delivery issues have risen with it. In some cases, delivery workers will arrive late at a restaurant to make a pickup and some will make multiple delivery stops, so the food is cold by the time it reaches the customer.
“I’ve been on the end of receiving these complaints,” Rosen said. “But I can promise that if you come and pick it up, it will be prepared hot and fresh.”
Raydiant hopes to collect 100,000 signatures for its petition, and it is engaging the help of restaurant owners who have been targeted by unfair reviews. For details, visit karenskillerreviews.com.
Wiz Khalifa unveils HotBox in San Diego
Rapper Wiz Khalifa has teamed up with Nextbite this month to launch HotBox by Wiz, a delivery-only restaurant chain available in San Diego and just six other U.S. cities.
Working from restaurant kitchens in Oceanside, Carmel Mountain Ranch and Mira Mesa, HotBox is offering countywide food delivery via Uber Eats, Postmates, DoorDash and GrubHub. The comfort food menu features brisket burnt ends, chicken wings, mac ’n’ cheese, chili, turkey burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads and desserts.
The service is now available only in San Diego, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Denver, Houston and New York City, but new locations will be added in the months to come. Visit hotboxbywiz.com.
Con Pane reopening delayed
The planned reopening of Con Pane, the hugely popular bakery restaurant at Liberty Station that was set to return in September, is still on track but has been delayed due to pandemicrelated uncertainties.
David Cohn — whose Cohn Restaurant Group, purchased the restaurant and all of Con Pane founder Catherine Perez’s recipes — said that staff training has begun at the restaurant that shuttered in January. But the state’s new colored tier system, which could trigger the reclosing of all restaurant dining rooms if COVID-19 cases rise, makes it risky to rush into the reopening process.
“Depending on where we are in the governor’s color tier system, we certainly plan to open before Thanksgiving,” Cohn said in an email.
Heineken tests Bask seltzer in San Diego
San Diego is one of just two markets in the U.S. where Heineken USA will begin selling its new IPAstyle hard seltzer brand Bask beginning Thursday.
The product, which will be sold locally at Vons, Albertsons and other beverage-specific stores, is available in Original Hops, Blood Orange and Lemon f lavors. It’s made from a blend of yeast, hop oil and citrus favors. The only other market where Bask is available is the greater Boston area. Visit baskipaseltzer.com.