CaLDRON February 2014 - Valentine's Day Special | Page 73

COUNTER-POINT
CaLDRON: How would you define trained chefs. Despite this, do you
a food blogger and a food critic,
think they can objectively evaluate
respectively?
a restaurant’s menu and find flaws
in the way a dish is prepared?
Sameer Malkani (SM): There is no
perfect definition for a food blogger. SM: There are different categories of
However, a food blogger does not
food bloggers . Some only do restaunecessarily qualify as a food critic.
rant reviews while others have recipe
Food critics are normally associated blogs. Some food bloggers have a
with restaurants. A food blogger may culinary travel blog, while others have
have just a recipe blog experimenting a mixed blog. It clearly depends on
with his/her cuisine at home. Or, if
the kind of bloggers one looks at.
the food blog is only about restaurant By and large, a food blogger is exreviews, then the blogger through
posed to and has the quest for all
experience may cross the fine line, on things food. From restaurant tastings,
occasions.
recipes, cooking in their kitchen, reading about food, watching food shows
CaLDRON: Do you think all food on the TV to blogger meets, the expobloggers qualify as food critics or sure is high. This enables a particular
reviewers?
kind of food blogger to evaluate a
dish or food and judge it according to
SM: No, all of them do not. Food
him/her.
bloggers love their food. It is a passion for most of them, who very often Evaluation in food is subjective, alhave regular day jobs and normally ways. It differs from person to person
blog on weekends. Again, as I said
unless there is something drastically
above there are varied kinds of food wrong with a dish then most bloggers
bloggers, some who cross the line may might concur on an opinion. A blog
qualify as food critics or reviewers.
post by a blogger is clearly their opinion on a dish.
CaLDRON: Do people who have
trained in the hospitality industry CaLDRON: Do you think most
make for good food critics and
food bloggers are unnecessarily
reviewers?
critical of restaurants?
SM: Not at all! In fact, most food
critics or reviewers are not necessarily
formally trained in the hospitality industry. Most learn from expe rience.
Some have a background in culinary
arts. The love for food and the quest
for knowledge drives them. Food critics and reviewers could be from any
background. However the driving factor is food, its taste and their knowledge of it, besides the experience one
gains in his/her journey.

SM: No. Food blogging is a powerful
media and tool today in the industry.
Restaurants are aware of this and
so are food bloggers. In India, the
hospitality industry is still growing.
Restaurants have yet to understand
the nuances between different type of
food bloggers, reviewers and critics.

A couple of food bloggers may have
misused their power in being over
critical. This happens unknowingly or
without an in-depth understanding of
CaLDRON: Most food bloggers are the repercussions to that restaurant.
home cooks and not professionally But, it's very rare.
CaLDRON February 2014

CaLDRON: Do you think that food
bloggers are unbiased in their reviews of cuisines and restaurants,
as compared to the food reviewer
from a media company?
SM: Food bloggers are a media in
themselves. They are most definitely
unbiased about the food. The blogger
community is very strong and we at
FBAI plan to build relationships with
the community across India over
time. We also hone new talent and
are instrumental in kickstarting and
seeding over 12 food blogs in the past
month. This number will grow.
CaLDRON: Have you come across
instances where restaurants paid
food bloggers for favorable reviews?
SM: At FBAI, we haven't come
across any instances so far. However, that is not to say that they don't.
Also if a review is particularly negative, very often the PR agency or the
restaurant management connects
with the food blogger to 'request' for a
change in negativity.

Vinita Bhatia
Sameer Malkani is the
co-founder of
Food Bloggers
Association of
India (FBAI),
a community
where
food
bloggers can promote their
products and services, review
restaurants, disseminate news
and information, hold local
blogging events, meet other
Indian food bloggers, and promote their own blog.

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