How We Pick Restaurants
In short: we eat at the restaurants, pay for our own meals, and rank them on the food. Restaurants can pay for a labeled Sponsored placement, but they can't pay to be ranked or reviewed.
How a restaurant gets on a list
- We build a directory from public information. Name, address, phone, hours and menu links come from the restaurant's own website or listing, and health inspection scores come from the Georgia Department of Public Health and the Gwinnett, Newton and Rockdale health department. We check that each place is open before we publish it.
- We read what diners say. For popular restaurants we read reviews on several sites and local press coverage, then write a short "what regulars order" note in our own words with links to the sources. We don't copy or republish other sites' reviews or star ratings.
- We visit. We order the dishes a restaurant is known for, note prices, wait times and parking, and take our own photos. Restaurants on our ranked "best" lists have been visited, and each visit is dated on the restaurant's page.
- We keep it current. Ranked lists are reviewed monthly and every page shows when its details were last checked. Closed restaurants come off the list.
Sponsored placements
Restaurants can buy a Featured listing, a Lunar New Year Spotlight or a guide sponsorship. Paid placements:
- always carry a "Sponsored" label;
- appear only in the separate Sponsored box, never inside a ranked list;
- never change a ranking, a review or a health score;
- use links marked rel="sponsored".
Restaurant owners can learn more on our For Restaurants page.
Affiliate links
Some pages link to products or services, such as grocery delivery or tours, through affiliate programs. If you buy through those links we may earn a commission at no cost to you. See our affiliate disclosure.
Corrections
Hours change and restaurants close. If something on our site is wrong, tell us and we'll check and fix it.