The Reason Restaurants Have a Love/Hate with Influencers

Time for a bathroom selfie at Bonnie's!

I’ve been a content creator and social media strategist working with restaurants for a long time. I know a thing or two because I’ve seen a thing or two (can you say that without singing “we are farmers” right after? I can’t).

But I digress. This classic combination based on bartering has gone from a necessary marketing piece to a case by case basis. Why? Because “influencers” ruined it for themselves by overpopulating the species. Mild exaggeration, but only mild.

When I first started doing this work, there were only a handful of influential people in the space that you could follow and trust. I was one of them. Not to toot my own horn, but I’ve been around a long time and have been writing about food in this city since 2008. So when restaurants found a way to market their business through us “foodies” and realized that the cost was only that of a meal, everyone jumped on board. You can save hundreds, even thousands of dollars on advertising. Win win, right? Not quite.

So…where did it all go wrong? Well, once again, I think we can blame Instagram.

The Bathroom at Bonnie’s in BK is primo

When people (especially younger people) found out they just had to learn how to take a decent photo to get free food in one of the most expensive cities in the world, it didn’t take long for “food influencers” to pop up EVERYWHERE.

I’m glad in a way that I was at the forefront of such a movement, and it was cool to see so many people want to be a part of it, but after a while, I had to wonder if they were in it for the right reasons. And like most things, the truth has a way of revealing itself.

I’d go to restaurant “influencer events” and watch dozens of people photograph everything but not eat any of it. I’m all for portion control but it started to feel inauthentic to me, not to mention wasteful, which is why I made it a point to advise my clients on how to approach this.

If you want to invite influencers in, I support it and think it’s helpful to any marketing strategy, but you have to vet them. I look through their profiles, their content, and their comments. I’m auditing the shit out of these people. And what am I looking for?

Well, if you’re in a pod group, you lose a few points. Sorry, but it’s true. I know that pod groups can still mean eyeballs on the content, but ultimately it’s not as strong as someone with a loyal, engaged audience. And you can tell almost immediately who is in a pod group and who isn’t. If you’d like more info on that one, leave a comment and I can tackle that next week! I also look at the overall content - photo style, writing abilities, and if they have an audience in the demographic/location we want to reach.

I also advise my restaurant clients to keep the “offer” or “comp” to one or two drinks per person. The amount of times they have had to cut influencers off for getting wasted on their dime is really sad. And not for nothing, it ruins it for the rest of us who are out here just trying to do our jobs. I rarely have more than 1-2 drinks during a comped meal.

Listen, I use my “influencer card” to help get reservations sometimes (like Bonnies because it was impossible and I don’t have a 401K so these are my benefits) but I don’t even ask for comps anymore. If I do, it’s rare. Especially after Covid and watching how badly restaurants struggled, the last thing anyone should be doing is taking advantage.

And FYI, I have made the case for the other side of this (aka the influencer POV) a while ago, which you can read about here. It’s not wrong at all to ask for a comp, but there’s a way to do it. Showing up late with 2 extra friends, having infinity drinks and wasting food is not it fam.

So just a few tidbits to keep in mind, and feel free to pass this along to your restaurant friends.

Also…here’s some pics from dinner at Bonnie’s. You really need to go if you can get in there. One of the best meals I’ve had in a while, and can confirm it lives up to the hype. Don’t sleep on the Tinned Dace Fish Dip with saltines (not pictured). Just trust me. If you like chopped liver pate, you’ll dig it.

Cha Siu McRib - steamed ribs, cha siu glaze, chinese hot mustard, b&b pickles, milk bun

X.O. Cheung Fun - seared rolled rice noodles, dried scallop & shrimp xo sauce, bean sprouts and chives

Fuyu Cacio e Pepe Mein - fermented bean curd, black pepper and pecorino