Some owners' classy, clever and angry written responses to recent low-starred reviews have gone viral. Meanwhile, Yelp says it has stepped up efforts to remove unfair reviews and it is encouraging its diner-members to show compassion for restaurant owners before they push the publish button.
Over the past decade, North County restaurant owners Roddy and Aaron Browning have looked upon Yelp, the high-profile crowd-sourced reviews platform, as something of a necessary evil. A diner's positive 5-star review will make their day, but a negative 1- or 2-star review will ruin their week. But since the pandemic began in March, the Brownings and many other local restaurateurs say recent bad reviews on Yelp — many of them for county-ordered safety and service requirements beyond their control — are making the struggle to survive even harder. Some owners' classy, clever and angry written responses to recent low-starred reviews have gone viral. Meanwhile, Yelp says it has stepped up efforts to remove unfair reviews and it is encouraging its diner-members to show compassion for restaurant owners before they push the publish button.