Palate is a free, monthly-updated online magazine dedicated to food and drink. Primarily UK-based but international in spirit, we publish long-form restaurant reviews, deep dives into food and drink-related topics, interviews with chefs and hospitality professionals, bar reviews, food travel tips and much more.
Founded in 2017 by two writers and bon vivants, the intention has always been to be an entirely impartial and independent digital publication (see below on our reviewing policy – we do not accept invites, free meals or any form of incentive in exchange for reviews). Palate has also always been keen to welcome emerging food writers as contributors.
Palate’s reviewing policy
Our reviews are honest opinion and not advertising. To remain unbiased we have a few principles we stick to: we do not accept any form of payment or incentive from restaurants or bars to promote them, we always pay for our own meals (plus service) like any other customer, and we never review restaurants, bars or other venues we know well already.
We also remain anonymous when reviewing. This doesn’t mean we wear disguises like Charles Duchemin in L’Aile ou la Cuisse, but we do review as covertly and incognito as possible (hence there are no pictures of our writers on here) and the places we visit are not told that they’re being reviewed. The intention is to give consumers as impartial a view as possible, free from any influence so they can make an informed decision. We feel this is especially important in a world where so much online content these days blurs the line between editorial opinion and advertising, and “influencers” fail to disclose their invitations or freebies, which only misleads consumers. While we’re still very happy to hear from PR agencies or restaurants directly to get places on our reviewing radar, we don’t accept invitations to review them.
Of course our reviews are just our opinion, and reflect just a snapshot in time (the date is at the bottom of each review), but we believe our grading system provides a more accurate reflection of a restaurant’s strengths and weaknesses. Unlike some other guides, we judge the experience as a whole, including the food and drink, service, ambience and value for money. All of the restaurants we review, whether venerable institutions or the up-and-coming stars of tomorrow are marked out of 20 with only the very best being awarded anything over 17. You can find out more about our grading system in more detail here.
Palate Cleanser
This is the section of the magazine containing shorter reviews covering wine and cocktail bars, coffee shops, bakeries and everything in between.
Travel guides
Palate’s Travel section includes travel guides on out-of-town excursions, mini-breaks and trips that any bon vivant would be mad to miss out on. Examples of our travel guides include (but are not limited to) Madrid, Strasbourg, Istanbul, Berlin, New Orleans, Havana, various wine tour guides (such as Rioja), guides to more localised areas (such as Chiswick or Pigalle in Paris) or tips on where to dine when you’re between connecting trains.
Insight from industry
We love experiencing restaurants and bars but reviewing them from the point of view of the customer is just one side of the story. We’re also interested in the wider context of how they work. We feature interviews with interesting insights from those who work behind the scenes. Our interviewees have included Jeremy Lee MBE, Alexandre Mazzia, Adejoké Bakare and Otto Tepasse.
Our writers
Both of Palate’s co-founding editors have been writers for many years and worked for other publications or are still actively involved in other forms of journalism. Our contributors and guest writers are passionate about food and drink and many have worked in the industry. A few have also won awards for their writing and are members of the Guild of Food Writers. You can read the bios of our contributors (past and present) here.
Social media
We’re also on Instagram, Threads and Facebook providing more regular ‘mini reviews’ between our monthly editions on the main site.
