Have you ever seen one of your favorite restaurants get rated abnormally low on review sites like Yelp or Tripadvisor? 46% of customers say that positive online reviews influence them to dine with those restaurants. Positive or negative reviews left by previous customers can greatly impact the reputation of businesses, either directing the public to a great new spot or waving caution signs for everyone to see. We decided to test this rating system to find out whether we can truly trust local reviews on restaurants in the area.
Best Rated Restaurant: Wally’s Cafe
Going into this, we were excited to try Wally’s Cafe, since it was rated as the sixth best restaurant in the greater Sacramento Area. It is also rated 4.8/5 stars on Yelp. There were many raving reviews for this restaurant, from the authenticity of the food to the welcoming atmosphere and customer service.
As soon as we entered the restaurant, we were immediately greeted by a waiter and seated at a table. He seemed sort of nervous, which in return made us feel a little awkward, but he was nice and checked up on us during the meal, asking if everything was okay. He gave us our menus and utensils right away and offered complimentary warm lentil soup, which was nice. The soup wasn’t anything too special, considering it was free, but it was savory with undertones of earthy flavors. It almost tasted like nutty chili. We gave them a 4/5 for customer service.
Off the bat, we were automatically impressed with the quick and efficient service. Once we sat down, we inspected the actual building, looking at the state of the restaurant as well as the cleanliness. The restaurant, although small and said to be a “hole in the wall,” by Yelp reviewers like Matthew K, was extremely clean and tidy. We gave the cleanliness category a 5/5.
Once we got our iced water, we were ready to order. We got the Beef Kabobs ($24) and the Chicken Shawarma Plate ($21). The food took about 10-12 minutes to come out, but once it did, it’s safe to say we were not disappointed. Each of our plates were huge, and included not only our main dish served with rice but also a good amount of side salad and two dipping sauces.
The Chicken Shawarma Plate had copious amounts of chicken and rice, which was nice when considering the price. The chicken itself was very flavorful and rich, but it got pretty repetitive and tiring after a few bites. Paired with the sauce and warm fluffy rice, it was no shock that this dish was 9.5/10. When dipped in the Tzatziki sauce, the flavors of the chicken were automatically elevated, making it, at the moment, a 10/10 but only with the sauce. The salad looked and tasted extremely fresh, with the tomatoes perfectly juicy and the lettuce itself refreshing and crunchy.
The Beef Kabobs were served on barbecue skewers and paired with a mound of yellow rice and salad. The beef was perfectly tender and had a rich and savory seasoning. The only downside was the fact that the pieces of meat were large, which made it awkward to eat off the skewer and was also a bit hard to chew. But in general, with a piece of beef, and a bit of rice all slathered in Tzatziki sauce, this plate was the perfect fulfilling lunch.
At the end of our meal, we were once again given a complimentary dish, being the Turkish-Ottoman dessert Baklava. The pistachio filling and honey syrup in between the sweet wafer-like layers, called filo dough, made the dessert flawlessly delicious. The dessert itself was perfectly crunchy and bite-sized, which was great. It was the highlight of the meal.
Overall, our experience at Wally’s was very positive, but we weren’t wowed. The food was good, however, it was pretty expensive especially for being students. We came to the conclusion that Wally’s was a 4/5 star experience.
Worse Rated Restaurant: IHOP
Next, we decided to visit the International House of Pancakes on Stanford Ranch Blvd. This IHOP has a 2.6/5 stars on Yelp. When we went, the restaurant was empty, most likely because it was a Sunday at 7 p.m.
We were greeted within a few minutes and asked to pick a seat. We went straight to the first table we saw. The table was filthy with syrup and egg crumbs scattered across the table. This was strange to us because about seven employees were standing around in the kitchen, none of them making an effort to tidy up the place. Taking a look around, we noticed that even though the place was void of anyone, there were “CAUTION: Slippery When Wet” signs everywhere around the restaurant when the floors were not mopped or clean whatsoever. For this restaurant, the cleanliness category received a 2/5 from us.
Although many staff members were roaming around, we still had to ask for napkins, silverware and to get our order taken. The staff seemed to be almost hiding out in the back. The waiters and host that served us were very nice, giving decent service and a friendly attitude. After looking through the menu, we decided to ask our waiter what the most popular item was to give it a try. He seemed tense and told us he didn’t know, so we ended up ordering the Fresh Berry Crepes to share. This overall experience with the staff led to a 2.5/5 rating.
The total was $14.73, pricey for crepes with two strawberries cut up. There was a slice of lemon on the side, which was weird because it seemed like it was just there to dress the dish up since it was unnecessary. We asked for chocolate sauce, which made the crepes more appealing. The crepes themselves were squishy and warm but lacked a lot of flavor. The strawberries did not seem fresh despite claiming to be so on the menu. They were also stingy on the strawberries, with only around six slices for the crepes. It was only until we received the chocolate sauce that we ended up eating more of the crepes. All these factors led to a 3/5 rating from us.
For a restaurant that’s been around for 66 years and claims to specialize in American breakfast foods. IHOP failed to meet its quota. So, overall, IHOP gets a rating of 2/5.
Our experience was not what we expected. We thought the ratings were harsh but accurate.
Ending Thoughts:
While we agreed with many of the Yelp reviews for Wally’s about their service, we don’t think that it deserves such a high rating as 4.8/5. Maybe it was the food we ordered, but for an almost 5-star restaurant, we expected more affordable prices for teenagers, since a lot of us are on a budget or don’t have jobs. Wally’s was not exactly that case. While it was good, the high Yelp ratings are, in our opinion, generous.
However, the IHOP reviews were spot on. We went at night, so the restaurant was dead. However, despite the absence of anyone, it was still very messy. Only one worker would come out of the kitchen from time to time to clean the tables, but again, we didn’t see most of the employees since they were in the back talking instead of serving their customers.
We discovered that what makes or breaks a restaurant’s success is its customer service. On Wally’s Yelp, a satisfied customer, Tom B, wrote, “I want to highlight the service and care as they do so very much to satisfy and stay on top of everything. They are kind, helpful, personable, and very attentive.” However, IHOP has loads of complaints about their wait times and poor employee interactions. Maybe if IHOP had better employee appearances throughout the evening, it wouldn’t have been such a dreadful experience- but in our case, it was. It’s all relative because both restaurants have good and bad ratings based on subjective customer interactions. In the end, both restaurants had their ups and downs, but it was still interesting to see and find out the reality behind the ratings and see what it was really like for ourselves.
BY: AMELIA CHU & KIERA GREGORY
