"Independent" Restaurant Reviews?

[hmspector]

Is anyone aware of a source of independant restaurant reviews for Brazil or Argentina like Gault Millau or Michelin (but on a smaller or less widely published scale)?

Thanks

hm$

[saltshaker]

I'll offer up my website as one source, www.saltshaker.net (look over on the right side for the Restaurant Review index, and then you can click to read each).

Primarily restaurant reviews for Buenos Aires, but I think I'm pretty independent...

Don't know of anyone who I'd really call "independent" other than that down here. There are some sites like www.guiaoleo.com.ar and www.restaurant.com.ar that offer ratings and info like hours, addresses and phone numbers. But the former is somewhat moderated and commentary from users (a la Zagats) often get removed if the site owner disagrees with them, and the latter is advertiser driven...

Is anyone aware of a source of independant restaurant reviews for Brazil or Argentina like Gault Millau or Michelin (but on a smaller or less widely published scale)?

Thanks

hm$

←

[Gaucho]

I agree that Guia Oleo is not perfect, but I think that its still the best "independent" review tool available to date. Im not sure that a completely unmoderated forum would be better.

[saltshaker]

I'm not sure I'd agree. My personal experience with Guia Oleo, and that of several of my friends is that the site owner simply declines to post commentary that he/she(?) doesn't agree with; other comments have been edited to say things that I or they didn't say. Often I find the information is out of date or just plain wrong, often with things as basic as address, phone number, and/or type of cuisine.

Actually, one of the more interesting sites I recently discovered is elcuerpodecristo.com which is unmoderated user forums. While the discussions can get a bit intense sometimes, and there are certainly fewer restaurants covered, I find I get a better picture of the restaurants that are. Unfortunately, for many folk, especially those who are just visitors, the site is completely in castellano.

[Gaucho]

Thanks for the recomendation on this other site, I will check it out.

I havent had a case where my comments were edited or distorted on Guia Oleo, but after your warning I will be on the watch. I think almost all my comments have been published. I also havent had a case where the telephone or address were wrong, but I guess I havent been using the website to explore new places. Ive been adding my reviews as I visit places.

[AlexForbes]

As for Brazil, the number one source of independent restaurant reviews is Veja São Paulo,

www.vejasp.com.br

You can also go to Gula magazine's site, www.gula.com.br and click on Gula indica, which every month has 3 reviews of 3 new places.

all in Portuguese, of course!

Edited June 26, 2006 by AlexForbes (log)

[Gaucho]

Alex, how does your cited resource rate Gero´s in Rio de Janeiro...?

[PatyGirl]

I wouldn't say Veja is exactly an independant reviewer. It's a magazine, as is Gula, - they're both a bit biased.

I don't know of any independent websites, but I'd suggest looking at the orkut forums,- there's one for rio and one for sp, and one for every other major city I suppose.

Here's the link for the rio forum which I moderate:

http://www.orkut.com/Community.aspx?cmm=175047

Here's the link for the são paulo forum:

http://www.orkut.com/Community.aspx?cmm=3305707

They're both in portuguese, but I'm sure if you post in english you'd get a few replies.

PS. The general consensus is that Gero is very, very good.

[PatyGirl]

HM,

for Rio you could take a look at Guia de Restaurantes Danúsia Barbara, published yearly.

[AlexForbes]

Danusia Barbara???? She is far from being an independent critic.

There are 3 independent restaurant guides in Brazil.

First, Guia 4 rodas, the equivalent of the Michelin.

Second, Veja Rio,

and third, its sister magazine

Veja São Paulo

I worked as a senior editor and restaurant critic for 7 yrs. at the company

that publishes all 3, the Editora Abril, and was for many years on the

jury that chooses Veja's top restaurants of the year, and I can

guarantee they are as independent as they come.

[PatyGirl]

Alex, I'm not saying Veja Rio and SP are not good references (they're what I use on a daily basis), but I just don't think they're "independent", in the sense of what HM was inquiring after - ie: small scale, less widely published. They are both widely published magazines, with huge circulation numbers, that discuss a variety of topics, one of them being food.

Guia 4 Rodas is also huge, but seems to be more along the lines of what HM is looking for. As you said, it’s similar to what Michelin started out as.

I agree Danusia Bárbara isn't perfect either, but when she started many, many years ago, she was independent, and I do believe she still is. She seems to handle her position very seriously.

[Ronaldoebt]

There is a Michelin about Brazil comming soon

[AlexForbes]

Hi Ronaldo, please tell us more! When is it coming out, and how do you know?

As for the "who's independent" discussion, I will say, once again, that Brazil's

number one resource for independent ratings, the equivalent of the Michelin,

is the Guia 4 Rodas. Period. Nobody in the industry would disagree.

Numerous anonymous inspections, a large team of inspectors eating year-round

all over Brazil, etc.

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