Chicago chef Graham Elliot's highly-anticipated and oft-delayed gourmet sandwich/soft serve shop Grahamwich has yet to open, but that doesn't mean that it can't get a negative review on Yelp!
Recently Yelper/foodiot/foochebag "Michael J." figured he'd stop by Grahamwich, but it wasn't open! And because it ruined a "pleasant walk," he did what any self-respecting Yelp user would do: He wrote a negative review, granting the restaurant one out of five stars:
My wife and I were downtown and had recently read a review of Graham Elliot Bowles new endever [sic], a sandwich shop. The Chicago magazine made it seem like an enteresting [sic] spot and Chef Bowles is a happening food personality, the only problem is the joint isn't open yet. It was a pleasant walk ruined...
Graham Elliot — who told us he's already "been kicked off Yelp three times for responding to reviews that were just plain factually wrong" — tweeted last night: "Amazing! There is already a negative review of Grahamwich posted on Yelp even though we've yet to open. Further proves my point..."
Reached for clarification, Mr. Elliot had this to say:
While beating a dead horse was by no means the reasoning behind my comment, I felt it would be a crying shame to pass on such an awesome opportunity to highlight the ridiculousness that is Yelp. The fact that someone has the ability to openly critique a business that has yet to open, leads me to question the legitimacy of the reviews involving businesses that are in actual operation.
Elliot has already tussled with troublesome online "reviewers": Back in June a disgruntled diner carpet-bombed multiple websites with negative reviews of his restaurant Graham Elliot and then demanded a 50% refund, going so far as creating a "Chicagoans Against Graham Elliot" Facebook group. Elliot stood his ground.
We've reached out to Yelp for comment about their policies and procedures regarding allowing reviews on unopened businesses, and will update this post when we hear back.
· Grahamwich [Official site]
· Grahamwich page [Yelp]
· Angry Diner Creates "Chicagoans Against Graham Elliot" Facebook Group [-E-]
· Eaterrogation: Graham Elliot Bowles on Haters, Pills, and Being on Fox [-E-]
· All Graham Elliot Coverage on Eater [-E-]