4 ms·

Some of the best restaurants are the ones that are hopelessly bad at this kind of marketing and instead get by with great cooking. Small towns sometimes have th

Some of the best restaurants are the ones that are hopelessly bad at this kind of marketing and instead get by with great cooking. Small towns sometimes have these gems hiding away if you can find them.

namelessoracle 6y ago
In fact people i know and myself see not using these tricks as a stronger signal of good food. After all the restaurant is going all in on their food instead of any tricks for the items on their menu.
- lordnacho 6y ago
  I always joked that my parents' restaurant was authentic due to the spelling errors on the menu. I think it's actually for some truth to it, and perhaps Berksons paradox is the explanation. If you either make good food or market well, and there's selection based on a frontier of a mix of the two, you end up creating a correlation even where none existed in the underlying set. So places with crap marketing that survive are likely to be doing so because the food makes up for it.
  - Raidion 6y ago
    See every cheap (but tremendously tasty) mexican food taco truck or stand! I personally have noticed an "uncanny valley" of restaurants, where I'd much rather eat cheaply (see Chick-fil-a, taco trucks, local pizza shops, or a lot of Asian spots) or expensively (locally renowned restaurants) and ignore most everything in between. It's hard to pay 25 dollars for an meal when it's going to be good but nothing special, when you could pay ~15 for something you'd enjoy just as much. The higher end resturants provide the "novel" experiences and flavors that make spending $35+ worth it.
    - benjohnson 6y ago
      Agreed! This quote from Noel Coward springs to mind: "I'll go through life either first class or third, but never in second."
    - openthc 6y ago
      I went to Ontario (California) for a consult gig. My host asked what I wanted for dinner and I suggested tacos. So he took me to some mall, with the fanciest Mexican resturant I've ever seen -- and all these really cool looking people in the outdoor seating, with fancy drinks. I said: "Ali, fuck this place. let me try" -- then we poped to this place: Fredy's Tacos (https://www.yelp.com/biz/fredys-tacos-restaurant-ontario https://www.yelp.com/biz/fredys-tacos-restaurant-ontario). My guy was a little nervous to get in there. Tacos == BOMB!; Tortas == AMAZING!!! And the beers (Pacifico) were in a cooler outside the counter area, so when I said "un otro" the cook (Fredy?) just pointed like "get it yourself". `11/10 experience, muy authentico
      - kingsuper20 6y ago
        >I went to Ontario (California) for a consult gig. When I was forced to travel for work now and again, my instincts were always to find a bar with a decent food menu. It's usually as good (better?) plus it was easier to buy a properly sized meal without all the extra filler. Also, extra bonus points for things that are a hassle to make at home (typically sushi). Restaurants lose their sparkle as you age. The Sysco truck goes to practically all of them anyway. There's something to be said for the super old school diners (typically Mexican restaurants in the places I grew up in), but those are towns that scarcely any HN readers would have wandered into.
      - pvaldes 6y ago
        > when I said "un otro" just pointed like "get it yourself" I can understand why. Next time don't use that, is incorrect (would translate as a strange "an, other"). The correct way would be either just "otra" (another) or "una más" (one more), generally followed by a casual "por favor". Take in mind that beer is feminine in spanish so you have to use "otra" (not "otro"). Many other alcoholic drinks are masculine, but are often served in a coup or bottle, that are feminine nouns. You can ask for "otro vino" or "un vino" but "una copa de vino" (a glass of wine) is also common. To use "un más" instead the correct "uno más" (one more) would be also a common mistake.
        openthc 6y ago
    - chiph 6y ago
      One of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Austin is just a walk up window with anti-theft bars on it: https://goo.gl/maps/dDpAuAfpW41BANxS9 https://goo.gl/maps/dDpAuAfpW41BANxS9
vostok 6y ago
How do you find these small town gems in the US? I've lived in a very expensive city and a medium cost of living city in the US and the lower quality of restaurants is the biggest difference for me. There are some very famous and very expensive restaurants, but even those places have been disappointing too frequently. It's often something really basic like the food being too salty. This wasn't as much of a problem in the very expensive city. It's unlikely that my taste buds have gotten more sensitive because I lived in the more expensive city at a younger age and taste buds get less sensitive as you get older to my knowledge. Almost every attempt at finding a small town gem has not really worked out for me in the US. In countries like France, I know that I can find small town gems just by checking the Michelin guide. I can go to Vonnas (population 3000) and find a great restaurant just by checking the Michelin guide. I would love to do that in the US.
- ghaff 6y ago
  In the US, it's probably most likely to be regional food. Like I've had good Southwestern food in smaller places in New Mexico. On the other hand, not really middle of nowhere small. In my experience, the pickings are pretty slim in most small towns.
  - vostok 6y ago
    I would love to hear how to find these places! I'm in the midwest, but I'm willing to travel for food. Southwestern, tacos, Boreal, tagine, American, sandwiches, Polish, sushi, Tamil, no cuisine. It's all good to me. Some farms and wineries have restaurants out here, but they don't have too many reviews so it's hard to tell if they're good or not.
    - ghaff 6y ago
      If you're staying in a B&B, the host will often have a list of recommended places. Yes, reviews are hit and miss, although still better than nothing. You do have to sort through a lot. I live in a small town and the pickings in general are slim. But, there's a good restaurant (yes, attached to a winery) maybe 20 minutes down the road.

namelessoracle 6y ago

In fact people i know and myself see not using these tricks as a stronger signal of good food. After all the restaurant is going all in on their food instead of any tricks for the items on their menu.

lordnacho 6y ago
I always joked that my parents' restaurant was authentic due to the spelling errors on the menu. I think it's actually for some truth to it, and perhaps Berksons paradox is the explanation. If you either make good food or market well, and there's selection based on a frontier of a mix of the two, you end up creating a correlation even where none existed in the underlying set. So places with crap marketing that survive are likely to be doing so because the food makes up for it.
- Raidion 6y ago
  See every cheap (but tremendously tasty) mexican food taco truck or stand! I personally have noticed an "uncanny valley" of restaurants, where I'd much rather eat cheaply (see Chick-fil-a, taco trucks, local pizza shops, or a lot of Asian spots) or expensively (locally renowned restaurants) and ignore most everything in between. It's hard to pay 25 dollars for an meal when it's going to be good but nothing special, when you could pay ~15 for something you'd enjoy just as much. The higher end resturants provide the "novel" experiences and flavors that make spending $35+ worth it.
  - benjohnson 6y ago
    Agreed! This quote from Noel Coward springs to mind: "I'll go through life either first class or third, but never in second."
  - openthc 6y ago
    I went to Ontario (California) for a consult gig. My host asked what I wanted for dinner and I suggested tacos. So he took me to some mall, with the fanciest Mexican resturant I've ever seen -- and all these really cool looking people in the outdoor seating, with fancy drinks. I said: "Ali, fuck this place. let me try" -- then we poped to this place: Fredy's Tacos (https://www.yelp.com/biz/fredys-tacos-restaurant-ontario https://www.yelp.com/biz/fredys-tacos-restaurant-ontario). My guy was a little nervous to get in there. Tacos == BOMB!; Tortas == AMAZING!!! And the beers (Pacifico) were in a cooler outside the counter area, so when I said "un otro" the cook (Fredy?) just pointed like "get it yourself". `11/10 experience, muy authentico
    - kingsuper20 6y ago
      >I went to Ontario (California) for a consult gig. When I was forced to travel for work now and again, my instincts were always to find a bar with a decent food menu. It's usually as good (better?) plus it was easier to buy a properly sized meal without all the extra filler. Also, extra bonus points for things that are a hassle to make at home (typically sushi). Restaurants lose their sparkle as you age. The Sysco truck goes to practically all of them anyway. There's something to be said for the super old school diners (typically Mexican restaurants in the places I grew up in), but those are towns that scarcely any HN readers would have wandered into.
    - pvaldes 6y ago
      > when I said "un otro" just pointed like "get it yourself" I can understand why. Next time don't use that, is incorrect (would translate as a strange "an, other"). The correct way would be either just "otra" (another) or "una más" (one more), generally followed by a casual "por favor". Take in mind that beer is feminine in spanish so you have to use "otra" (not "otro"). Many other alcoholic drinks are masculine, but are often served in a coup or bottle, that are feminine nouns. You can ask for "otro vino" or "un vino" but "una copa de vino" (a glass of wine) is also common. To use "un más" instead the correct "uno más" (one more) would be also a common mistake.
      - openthc 6y ago
  - chiph 6y ago
    One of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Austin is just a walk up window with anti-theft bars on it: https://goo.gl/maps/dDpAuAfpW41BANxS9 https://goo.gl/maps/dDpAuAfpW41BANxS9

vostok 6y ago

How do you find these small town gems in the US? I've lived in a very expensive city and a medium cost of living city in the US and the lower quality of restaurants is the biggest difference for me. There are some very famous and very expensive restaurants, but even those places have been disappointing too frequently. It's often something really basic like the food being too salty. This wasn't as much of a problem in the very expensive city. It's unlikely that my taste buds have gotten more sensitive because I lived in the more expensive city at a younger age and taste buds get less sensitive as you get older to my knowledge. Almost every attempt at finding a small town gem has not really worked out for me in the US. In countries like France, I know that I can find small town gems just by checking the Michelin guide. I can go to Vonnas (population 3000) and find a great restaurant just by checking the Michelin guide. I would love to do that in the US.

ghaff 6y ago
In the US, it's probably most likely to be regional food. Like I've had good Southwestern food in smaller places in New Mexico. On the other hand, not really middle of nowhere small. In my experience, the pickings are pretty slim in most small towns.
- vostok 6y ago
  I would love to hear how to find these places! I'm in the midwest, but I'm willing to travel for food. Southwestern, tacos, Boreal, tagine, American, sandwiches, Polish, sushi, Tamil, no cuisine. It's all good to me. Some farms and wineries have restaurants out here, but they don't have too many reviews so it's hard to tell if they're good or not.
  - ghaff 6y ago
    If you're staying in a B&B, the host will often have a list of recommended places. Yes, reviews are hit and miss, although still better than nothing. You do have to sort through a lot. I live in a small town and the pickings in general are slim. But, there's a good restaurant (yes, attached to a winery) maybe 20 minutes down the road.