Welcome New Readers!

Holy Smokes! I had 200 hits on this thing yesterday!! When I started, I figured I may have a few friends check it out and perhaps get the stray unknown reader now and then. But to have the people at VisitGainesville.com not only following, but re-posting some recent reviews kinda blew my mind. I figured, since so many of you are new, that you should understand where I'm coming from.  

The Thumb System: Here's how I rate restaurants.
5 thumbs up : Excellent! Love it! Eat here multiple times a week!
4 thumbs up : Very Good! Not quite perfect. Eat here one-two times a month.
3 thumbs up : Good. It does the job and nothing to really complain about. Eat here only when you're in the area and can't think of anywhere else.
2 thumbs up : Not bad. I would think about trying somewhere else first if I had the choice. Eat here rarely.
1 thumb up : Meh. It's calories. I would definitely try to eat somewhere else if I had a choice.
0 thumbs up : Not worth my time. They're not even trying. (skip 1-4 thumbs down, because at this point, who really cares?)
5 thumbs down : Terrible  

Opinionated, Over reactive, and Bawdy I'm letting you know up front that I'm not going to like some places that you love. As long as you're OK with that, so am I. For instance, I HATE Boca Fiesta & Tim's Thai. I don't think Satchel's Pizza is as great as you do. And don't even get me started on Chopsticks. You can read these reviews by browsing my archives. I'm trying to find a way that you can search for specific old reviews, but for now check out the links on the bottom right.  

What do you like? I like fresh, healthy, appropriately seasoned, and well thought out food. I don't eat alot of meat, so we may have some issues here if you're a big time carnivore. I stay away from fried foods and cream sauces. I find poor service inexcusable. I'm not interested in pickled jalapenos in a fish rice bowl. Just give me real food.  

What makes you the expert? Nothing. I know what I like and what I don't like. That's the only reason I started this blog. I really hate bad dining experiences and wanted a forum to vent. I also LOVE great dining experiences. I hope to counterbalance the negativity I inject into the internet with something positive. If you've ever noticed, no local publication (GVL Sun, Alligator, InSite, Local News, etc) EVER says anything negative about a local restaurant. There is certainly a strong sense of community in Gainesville, but I feel it comes at the cost of honesty. It seems that most people in a position to criticize in this town don't want to hurt an entrepreneur's chances of succeeding, so they'll always give positive reviews. Not me.

So, there you have it. Up next, I'm going to do a review of The Gelato Company. I don't like them. The review will not be pleasant. Repeated fair warning: We will not agree on some things, but that's what makes the world go round.