TikTok food reviewer Keith Lee has been exposing the hell that is the Atlanta restaurant scene.
As an Atlanta native, I can say that there has been a gradual shift in how many restaurants operate in the heart of the city. More establishments are focused on their ugly, played-out grass wall aesthetic and catering to celebrity appearances rather than actually serving quality, reasonably priced food.
You can almost always guarantee that you will have to wait over an hour to be seated, thirty minutes to an hour to be serviced, your drink won’t be refilled, and the food is just okay. Plus, the fees are almost as bad as Ticketmaster’s. Just like Keith Lee said in his review of Atlanta Breakfast Club, you’ll get charged a dollar just for some butter to put on the dry biscuits they served you.
Who is Keith Lee?
Keith Lee, who has over 14 million followers on the app, has been posting reviews since 2021. He’s known to use his platform to travel to restaurants that are struggling in various areas such as their marketing, many have great food they just need a boost in popularity. Since so many people recognize him in public he usually sends his wife or another family member to the restaurants to pick up food for him while he eats and rates the food in his car.
Occasionally, he’ll walk into the establishments, have conversations with the owners and staff, and even give huge tips to show his gratitude. He also does not allow restaurants to pay him for reviews or give him free meals in order to give an as authentic review as possible.
Lee Exposes Excessive Rules in Restaurants
Lee often leads each review humbly, asking people not to attack the restaurants or the employees when he has a less-than-fabulous experience. However, Lee’s week in Atlanta has caused chaos as former patrons of the restaurants he’s reviewing finally feel validated. The first restaurant that Lee visited was Atlanta Breakfast Club. His first criticism was the amount of rules that have been put in place before even ordering the meal, which has been a consistent theme for him throughout this week’s food tour. From restaurants claiming that they were closing suspiciously early and not taking orders (at 4 p.m.?) to not taking any online/over-the-phone orders.
The Issue of Catering to Celebrities
Another problem that he has run into is that restaurants will treat his family a certain way, saying that the wait is ridiculously long, but as soon as Keith walks in, they recognize him and their wait time goes out the window, rushing to grab him a table. The Real Milk & Honey, Kandi Burruss’ Old Lady Gang, and Toast all had surprise drop-ins from Lee where he was met with that attitude every time. He respectfully declined every attempt to get special treatment once his identity was revealed.
It’s shocking how many popular restaurants around town didn’t attempt to tighten up when the news that Keith was in town. Maybe this will be the wake-up call that the city’s restaurant scene needs. Atlanta, get it together! Now!