Forget Michelin stars, this TikToker wants to review one-star-rated food stalls for an 'alternate voice'
TikTok user Data Driven Foodie was on a mission: to find out if a soup stall in Bukit Merah View Hawker Centre truly deserved its 1.4 star rating on Google.
Data Driven Foodie, who only wanted to be known by his social media handle, asked to meet Stomp at Ah Ping Lao Huo Tang to try the soup lambasted by reviewers as "bland" and "tasteless".
The 29-year-old content creator shortlisted this one-star eatery using Google Maps data, even though one-star-rated stalls have reduced visibility on the application. The stall was unaware of his presence.
On the table: a bowl of black herbal chicken soup, with some wolfberries floating on the surface, and a small claypot filled with pig trotters.
Seconds after the camera rolled, the foodie took the plunge.
If it's edible, it's not a one-star
In a time where Google reviews matter, and food reviewers tend to focus on Michelin-rated eateries, Data Driven Foodie's approach stands out.
He intentionally chooses to hide his identity, as he wants the audience to focus solely on the food. The influencer with almost 23,000 followers has been posting about food since 2022, but decided last year to focus on eateries with a bad rap.
"I felt, why not use a bit of time to give one-star food an alternate voice, and tell my followers to give them a try?"
Ah Ping Lao Huo Tang is only the fifth one-star eatery he has tried, but he's already convinced that one-star food places do not deserve the low rating. Food is food, said the content creator, and so long as it's edible – and doesn't make him ill – he will not give it a one star.
Data Driven Foodie's approach is the polar opposite of food influencer Lucas The Boss, who has made a name out of "exposing" Michelin-rated hawkers. Conversely, it is the highly marketed and publicised eateries that tend to earn a lower rating from him — not because they're objectively bad, but because high expectations have already been set.
"Whatever I like may not be whatever you like, and I think that's fine," the TikToker and self-professed Average Joe said. "Whether or not (these places) deserve one star, I'll leave it up to my viewers to go and try for themselves."
Online "bashing" of stalls could happen for any reason, explained the foodie, who said bad food reviews tend to be exaggerated. "Maybe the person woke up on the wrong side of the bed, and didn't have their morning coffee. Or it's just angst."
Commenters on his posts also feel that some "poison pen" reviews are posted out of spite or by business rivals.
Ultimately, he hopes his positive food reviews will encourage hawkers, who work tirelessly to serve the community they're in.
Be adventurous and unbiased
Data Driven Foodie encourages everyone to have an open mind about food.
"Just give the one with the shortest queue a try, be adventurous. These are the places that give you the highest element of surprise, and maybe it'll turn out that your personal rating of the place is good."
These pleasant surprises are the rewards of buying food without bias and with "zero expectations," he said.
Data Driven Foodie has no plans at present to do paid collaborations, due to his limited bandwidth, and so his reviews can remain as authentic as possible.
His audience does not always agree with his reviews. A recent review of a char siew rice stall, whose owner had been accused in various Google reviews of overcharging customers, attracted mixed comments.
Some pointed out that the content creator had only been there once, and was not served by the female stall owner who "anyhow charge [sic]" customers and was rude to them.
In contrast, commenters on his recent cai fan stall review thanked him for his effort. " Hawkers have a hard life and I'm glad you offered a balanced perspective for this stall," said one.
The million-dollar question
His verdict on Ah Ping Lao Huo Tang?
"Now as I'm tasting the soup itself, it's not bland at all, there's flavour," said Data Driven Foodie. "The pig trotters are tender, and by all means it's not a one star."
"Five stars, for sure," he added, as he left a five-star rating on Google that raised the stall's rating from 1.4 to 1.6 stars.
Data Driven Foodie's advice: "Simply just don't believe everything you see online, try it out for yourself."
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