Food Influencer's NYC Trip Reveals Unwelcoming Side of the Big Apple

Food Influencer Keith Lee's NYC Food Tour Highlights Unwelcoming Atmosphere and Small Business Struggles Keith Lee, a popular food influencer, recently concluded a New York City food tour, documenting his experiences on social media. While the trip yielded many positive reviews of various establishments, Lee also highlighted a negative aspect of his journey – encounters with locals who were unwelcoming and even hostile toward him and the small businesses he chose to feature. "It wasn't the comments towards me or the videos towards me that bothered me," Lee explains in his video. "It was the comments in the videos towards the small restaurants that we were going to, that were getting unnecessary hate just for trying anything different." One of the restaurants Lee visited was Taste Budz Deli, a newly opened Black-owned deli in Jamaica, Queens. The deli is owned by five brothers and offers a unique menu item: a salmon chop cheese. Lee's visit and subsequent review generated mixed reactions, with some viewers criticizing his choice of food, while others expressed outrage that he even considered a chop cheese in NYC. Despite the negative experiences, Lee's videos have garnered millions of views and thousands of likes. His story offers a glimpse into the challenges faced by small businesses, particularly those owned by minorities, in navigating online reviews and social media scrutiny. The overwhelming support for Taste Budz Deli following Lee's visit suggests that the power of positive influence can often outweigh negativity.

New York Post

3 months ago

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