In the Kapoe district of Ranong province, one can find the charming Baan Rai I Arun -- a small, cottage-style resort built from lumber and bamboo directly harvested from the area. Inside, the resort is fitted with a classy array of rustic furniture. Outside, it is surrounded by a garden with mountains in the background, making it feel pleasantly faraway from life beyond the resort.
The resort has gained a reputation for its signature design concept drawing from simplicity and harmony with nature, offering a peaceful and cozy feeling. It is also known for its garden, with homegrown vegetables planted around the premises.
The owner of the resort is a former architect who left his job in the city to return to the countryside where he grew up. Upon his return, he decided to team up with his parents, who work as farmers, to develop a resort.
The resort has been open for only a few years now, but its reputation has built up fast, with visitors drawn to its homey, nostalgic look.
Recently, however, the owner has expressed a weariness over all the hype. Last week, he issued a message asking celebrities, reporters, bloggers, TV producers and any public figures to stop contacting the resort to request free accommodation and free food with the promise of a written review in return.
The owner explained that in past instances in which he had turned down such requests, his response was met with heavy disappointment. He said the reason he rejected these requests was that his family had poured lots of energy and money into the business, and wanted to be compensated proportionally.
Given the family is not rich -- and the media people requesting such freebies were likely much richer than they -- they wanted to focus on running the resort rather than simply advertising it, the owner added.
It is a joke stripped of humour that these people -- many of whom enjoy better fortune and opportunities in life -- seek out places like these to stay, dine and procure experiences for themselves, but want to do so without spending a single dime.
While some places may still welcome these people's requests, it is usually only with an underlying resentment beneath their welcoming-looking smiles.
These people do not limit their requests to hotel and resorts --critics and influencers often write reviews in exchange for free food under the guise of impartiality, apparently showing no shame in the ethical issues involved.
Let's take a look at this scenario involving three key stakeholders -- the restaurant, food critics and the readers of such reviews. What types of benefits can these reviews produce?
First, we have the restaurant. These businesses need reviews to publicise their presence, gain popularity and score relevance in today's competitive culinary world in which new restaurants seem to pop up daily.
Restaurant owners usually know their standing and target customers, from high-income to low-income people. High-end restaurants owners will seek out reviews from leading media platforms that are likely read by the upper class to attract luxury-seeking customers. These customers are attracted to top-notch chefs who offer trendy menus with unparalleled services. They are also often based in fashionable venues frequented by big spenders.
Part of the appeal of the review is it lets restaurant owners promote their business without the costs of purchasing ads. The business owners also do not need to create artwork and copy to accompany the article since these will be supplied by the reviewers. The review can sometimes take up as much as a whole page, featuring long, detailed descriptions with appetising word choices that conjure fuller pictures of what luscious delicacies are being served up.
These collaborations usually start out with a restaurant business issuing invitations to food critics, or vice versa -- the writer reaching out to the restaurant for a review.
Regardless of who makes the first move, these are implicit acts of deal-making -- it is widely understood the visit will be free. The writer will pay back in publicised compliments.
Then there are some restaurants who bypass the critics entirely, preferring to have celebrities dine at their restaurant instead. Actors and musicians are usually seen as having good taste, making their choices influential among the public. Restaurants using this method will take photographs of celebrities or actors that come eat at their place, frame it, and attach it to a wall, drawing attention to their high-flying clientele.
Then you have your ordinary-looking restaurants host to chefs of exceptional talent. These restaurants tend to garner their own cult of followers naturally. They are not interested in seeking out praise from critics, and may go as far as to ask their regular customers not to write any reviews or recommendations on social media to avoid the business being swarmed; thus, alienating their regular clientele.
Writers and critics at leading newspapers are considered influential figures in shaping the public's taste. With their influence, they can choose from any number of restaurant invitations that they get. These reviews are usually well written, using elaborate language to amplify your appetite, speaking of "top-notch culinary adroitness" or "otherworldly restaurant settings".
Behind these indulgent word choices, however, is a big incentive to thank the restaurant for its free service.
Once a big critic has written their restaurant review, the owner owes them a favour. The next time this critic pays a visit, whether coming alone or going with their family, the restaurant may feel obliged not to charge them any money.
As high-flying media professionals, chances are they already receive a large paycheck -- so it's like publications hire these writers to simply go and eat for free.
Readers still benefit by getting insight into the restaurants featured, including the style, decoration or the novelty foods on offer. The most important piece of information of all may be how much each plate featured costs as they can then calculate if the experience is even affordable.
This article does not intend to be pessimistic, nor an insult against food critics. Not all of them act in the way I have described in the first case of the resort. Some of them do not always rely on free food for their profession, nor do they expect to be paid back for praising their subjects.
Still, this acknowledges an inescapable truth of the restaurant business – that powerful people, whether by wealth or word choice, can strongly shape public taste. It raises the question -- who is the restaurant review really for?
