What's age got to do with it?
I walked in to the office this morning, took a sip of my coffee, opened my e-mail and started my day off on the wrong foot.
Someone sent me an e-mail about a restaurant review I'd written more than two months ago. I gave the restaurant a negative review and one reader is still dissatisfied with my opinion. One of the first things this person mentions is my age, calling me a "worldly 26 year old." And while "worldly" is a term that could be considered complementary, in this reference I wasn't flattered.
In actuality, I'm still a week shy of being 26, but the comment made me think. What is the cut off age to having a valid opinion? When I turn 30, will people stop being shocked that my arguments have a leg to stand on?
I've never claimed to know it all and being 26 certainly lacks some life experience. But, it seems to me being young is the first weapon used against me when someone disagrees with what I have to say.
When someone disagrees with what an older reporter writes, I'm sure their age and experience never come into question. So whether or not I liked the shrimp I ate more than two months ago, what's age got to do with it? And more importantly, what can I do about it?
Someone sent me an e-mail about a restaurant review I'd written more than two months ago. I gave the restaurant a negative review and one reader is still dissatisfied with my opinion. One of the first things this person mentions is my age, calling me a "worldly 26 year old." And while "worldly" is a term that could be considered complementary, in this reference I wasn't flattered.
In actuality, I'm still a week shy of being 26, but the comment made me think. What is the cut off age to having a valid opinion? When I turn 30, will people stop being shocked that my arguments have a leg to stand on?
I've never claimed to know it all and being 26 certainly lacks some life experience. But, it seems to me being young is the first weapon used against me when someone disagrees with what I have to say.
When someone disagrees with what an older reporter writes, I'm sure their age and experience never come into question. So whether or not I liked the shrimp I ate more than two months ago, what's age got to do with it? And more importantly, what can I do about it?
posted by Stephanie Netherton at 10:05 AM
7 Comments:
No offense, but restaurant reviews seem a little silly to me to begin with. I mean, sure, it's nice to talk about the setting and atmosphere and stuff, but most of it is just opinion...and those opinions can hurt businesses that may actually have decent food.
Sammy, I thought you weren't supposed to be using the internet at work?
OK, but look at it this way. If there is a movie you really want to see and it gets a bad movie review, is that going to stop you from seeing that movie? No. The same goes for restaurant reviews. If you really want to eat there, you will regardless of what a reviewer has to say.
You're comparing apples and staplers here. With movies, we have previews, we have actors and directors and such. With restaurants, we have nothing to base their food on. Now, if they sent samples to my house before I tried their restaurant, that'd be a different story. Instead, all we have is a newspaper writers opinion.
To take this further (that's right, I'm not done yet), let's use a movie example (you brought this on yourself). Two movies came out over the past two years that were about Truman Capote. Both had respectable actors, and both had nice previews. However, Capote won awards and got better reviews, so I watched it, and have not seen Infamous (and probably won't unless I watch the other 400 movies on my Netflix queue first). Same thing goes for someone comparing two Mexican restaurants or something...even though some people love Trejos and I absolutely hate it, while I love El Chico and most people hate it. It's not the same, because it's food. People can stand a crappy movie, but not a crappy meal.
I can't believe this is still a issue. I was driving by this restaurant the other night and there was alot of cars there. It didn't look like your review closed it down. You gave your opinion, which is the job they gave you to do.
Okay, here's my complaint about local food reviews. Every time I read one I get the feeling that posted above the reviewer's desk is a note that says "don't be too negative -- they could be an advertiser." Even the "bad" reviews seem nice.
But then I'm running into the same problems when I do a post on a meal I've eaten. I'm always torn on how "truthful" to be. I ate at a local establishment recently that everyone loves but this place tried to pass off PINTO beans as RED beans. I guess the tact I'll take for now is "damn them with faint praise."
It seems we've gotten a bit off track here. The question was whether or not Stephanie's age should have anything to do with her opinions regarding the restaurant. The answer is, of course, no. Unfortunately, people feel they have to attack the person as well as the opinion. When you do turn 30, Stephanie, they'll just find something else to attack - your political beliefs, the fact that you're female, what kind of car you drive - anything they can find to make it personal. The guy that wrote the email was just trying to hack you off. In the business you're in, you have to learn to shrug it off. At least you know he's reading! Quite frankly, it was refreshing to read a bad review. Honesty is a beautiful thing.
Kathryn,
I see what you are saying, sometimes reviewers choose to play it safe and writing a bad review is difficult. But, I try to be as honest as possible, even if it sends some harsh e-mail my way.
Naya,
You are absolutely right. Every reader isn't always going to be delighted by what I have to say. And this business sometimes requires thick skin. I feel my only disservice to readers would be if I sugar coated my thoughts. And, it's not like this tummy difficult to please!
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