Have any of you read Food with the Dude? Well, it’s not your average food critic site, where someone who’s all stuck up their own ass gives a review/critique of the service in relation to their own personal snobbery.

If you want to become a reviewer and food critic, I think you need to follow The Dude. His unique approach is fair and covers multifaceted aspects of a restaurant, including accessibility, sanitation, food quality, and service. What I like most about it is that he keeps it fair.

Take a look at one of the more negative reviews about a restaurant that couldn’t quite get his mother’s steak right. Now, some of these food snobs who call themselves “foodies” because they’re too afraid of the word gourmand and couldn’t spell it if they tried could really afford to take a lesson from The Dude. He uses tact and thoughtfulness to express why service was not up to par, or why the food wasn’t as tasty as it could have been. Blame isn’t assessed, it’s analyzed.

The Dude keeps a rule of “Be Nice, Be Respectful,” and it works. When I read his reviews, I feel like I know exactly what to expect when I visit the restaurant he’s reviewing. He follows ethical critique which is a refreshing break from the bombastic style of “food critics” who just want to be crabby, snobbish bitches.

I suppose I could take a lesson from The Dude, myself, as I’m a bit crabby. But in all seriousness, I enjoy reading his reviews and am looking forward to a road trip to try out some of these places. If The Dude ever comes to Atlanta, I’ll be pleased as a pig at the trough.

This review style is the kind of succinct, straightforward writing I enjoy seeing in a review. He cuts out the nonsense and presents you with the real experience.

It’s a great example if you’re looking for inspiration on how to write your own reviews.

Nicely done, Dude.


I like to write about writing, and I do a little writing, myself. If you’re looking for something to read that’s a fun scare and enjoy Lovecraftian nightmares, check out my author page on Amazon. You can also follow me on Twitter and Facebook.