Self-titled “food critics” are a dime a dozen on the Internet nowadays, but what if I want to get an actual food critic’s opinion? I mean someone who actually gets paid to critique food. Well, that’s where Facebook wants to be of assistance. Rather than turning to users to crowdsource restaurant reviews, the social network has a new “Critic Reviews” section that will actually give you a professional opinion on a restaurant, with links to the critic’s actual website.
In this post-Yelp era, everyone’s become a food critic. But now Facebook is looking to showcase reviews from people who actually get paid to eat for a living, above the crowdsourced noise. On Tuesday, The Verge first reported that thousands of restaurants will start integrating reviews from actual food critics on their mobile Facebook Pages. Facebook has partnered with five established publications to source these professional reviews, including Bon Appetit, Conde Nast Traveler, Eater, New York magazine, and the San Francisco Chronicle. The “Critic Reviews” section is now right above user reviews and includes images and a short blurbs pulled right from media outlet. Clicking on the critic the module takes you to the full review on the publisher’s website. “Since reviews are such an important part of helping people make informed decisions about what to do locally, we’re excited to be incorporating a new way for people to use Facebook to find the best real-world experiences,” a Facebook spokesperson told The Verge. Even though Pages is really an advertising outlet for businesses, Facebook claimed that negative reviews will be included if provided by the publication.
