Besides my younger brother telling me that Yelp was like an “Urbanspoon of everything” and he had used it to order cupcakes for his colleague on the other side of the world, I knew little else about Yelp. That is until I met the lovely Laura Dew, a major foodie and Yelp Perth’s Community Manager.
Since then I’ve been immersed in to the social world of Yelp, checking in wherever I go in hope for a badge of some sort and leaving my fellow yelpers tips & reviews as I eat my way through Perth.
These are some of my Yelp moments:
- My first Yelp Elite Event was at Hula Bula Bar
- My first Yelper Party was at Perth City Farm
- My first Yelp review and Unofficial Yelp Event (UFE) was at Casa Mexicana El Compa, now one of my favourite Perth Mexican restaurants
- My first Yelp badge was for being a Rookie, I’ve now been badged as a Barfly and for Big Night, Global Domination and Soused
There’s Yelper reviews on just about anything and what I love about Yelp is that it connects like-minded Yelpers together with parties and gatherings over food & drinks of course.
Read on for more on Yelp and my interview with Yelp Perth’s Community Manager, Laura Dew…
For those new to Yelp, what is it and when did it launch in Perth?
Yelp is a website and mobile app that connects people to great local businesses. Whether you’re looking for the newest restaurant opening or a cutting edge clothes store there’s millions of reviews on all kinds of businesses on Yelp.
Yelp launched in Australia in November 2011, with Perth coming on board in April 2012, but it’s a worldwide company, that started in San Francisco in 2005.
Talk me through a day in your role as Yelp Perth’s Community Manager?
I seriously think I have the best job in the world, looking after all things Yelp related in Perth. I organise a heap of events for the Yelp Perth community. From Unofficial Yelp Events (UYEs), to Elite Events for our Elite Squad, to our spectacular Yelper Parties. They all involve incredible local businesses showcasing themselves to Yelpers for an evening.
I meet up with business owners and show them how to unlock their free Yelp business owner’s account.
I’m always looking to partner with like-minded organisations to help promote them through Yelp’s channels and for them to help spread the Yelp word around Perth too. This sometimes even involves me judging pizza contests!
I also write the Weekly Yelp e-newsletter, and let’s be honest I do a lot of eating on the job too!
Now I know you’re a huge foodie, tell us your favourite…
I need to add a disclaimer that this is like picking a favourite child as there’s so many great businesses in Perth, but here goes…
- Perth cafe to go for coffee - I have been heading to Smuggled Seeds Espresso a lot lately, the coffee is next level, and the guys who run it are seriously the nicest people to serve you in a café ever. Ask for the Superman coffee!
- New Perth small bar - I really love Varnish on King. I love the fit-out and they do a dessert burger which is pretty fantastic.
- Perth restaurant - Wow this is a hard one. Probably Cantina 663 for their consistently great food – I’m talking to you gnocchi and duck liver parfait dishes.
- Cookbook - I am currently working my way through Red Hot Spatula’s Cooking Classes recipes from a Moroccan Cooking class I took with them a while back. They’re reasonably easy to prepare dishes with complex delicious flavours.
If you’ve been following my blog, you’ve noticed I’ve been doing a Top Perth 5 Eats & News each month. For something different and before my October round up is out
Andaluz
$$$$ Bars, Spanish
21 Howard St, Perth CBD
Phone : (08) 9481 0092
Claire H “Andaluz is a honeycomb of small, richly decorated rooms. Chesterfield couches and a lot of dark wood…it’s Spanish tapas in its finest form.”
Cantina 663
$$ Cafes
663 Beaufort St, Mt Lawley
Phone: (08) 9370 4883
Genevieve H “If Cantina is in your ‘hood you need to try these items in your lifetime: the scrambled eggs, the gnocchi, the coffee. Any everything else here too if you have the stomach space!”
Rockpool Bar & Grill
$$$$ Steakhouses
Great Eastern Hwy, Burswood
Phone: (08) 6252 1900
Jacqui E “Entrees were great though, and next time I would just order other stuff from the menu, not the steak! Service is good, but it feels a bit impersonal. Wine list is VERY extensive, but you can find decently priced wines by the glass.”
Bivouac
$$ Bars, Modern Australian, Mediterranean
198 William St, Northbridge
Phone: (08) 9227 0883
Rhys O “The charcuterie board was awesome, especially the wagyu bresaola and the ham hock terrine. Really good selection of Australian boutique beers and ciders which I can’t wait to try more of!”
Five Bar
$$ Lounges, Tapas/Small Plates
560 Beaufort St
Mt Lawley
Phone: 0467 534 267
Laura M “I have had countless delicious meals, loved every single beef wellington, attended a handful of beer tasting nights and have drunk a stack of perfectly priced ($2.50) coffees whilst abusing the free wifi during meetings.”
