Does it matter who made the recommendation?

If you're like me, you regularly find your mailbox filled with fliers from restaurants. If you've never heard of the restaurant then a good review, or award from a magazine or newspaper, goes some way to reassuring you that the restaurant will be a safe bet.

But for those reviews to be useful there must be some context. Where was the review published? When was it written?

You may be more likely to trust a review from a well known national or international publication than one from a small local newspaper that is entirely dependant on keeping its advertisers happy. And a recent review is more useful than one from 15 years ago. They owner, chef, and even the location may have changed since the review was published.

So, this flier says "Recommended by Newspaper". Without providing the "where" and when" context, the statement "Recommended by Newspaper" is completely useless. It is intended to provide some level of comfort for prospective customers, but I can't see it accomplishing that goal.

I don't think that I'll be ordering from Timkee Kitchen any time soon.