Kitchen war's spicy response

Kirsty Cardy, Zomato's national manager.

Global restaurant review site Zomato has launched a searing response to criticism by top Kiwi food scribe Lauraine Jacobs in a new advertising campaign quoting Jacobs' spicy remarks.

Last weekend the Herald on Sunday revealed award-winning writer Jacobs was concerned that "amateur diners" were destroying the reputations of top restaurants. Jacobs made the comment after rejecting an invitation to speak at an event organised by Zomato.

Kirsty Cardy, Zomato's national manager, said the company wanted to use the criticism as a positive, responding in a flyer circulated online this week.

"We welcome the public's reviews and we don't expect them to be food critics," Cardy said.

"The ad is targeting amateur diners but we also have a product for restaurant owners to engage with their customers. We recommend restaurants respond to reviews."

Jacobs wrote to promoters of last Monday's Zomato Restaurant Summit that she could not attend as she did not agree with commercial sites that relied on unqualified and unpaid restaurant reviewers.

"Unqualified amateur diners who are rewarded with stars for the sheer number of reviews they post, but usually are lacking in expertise and have no knowledge of the industry, can destroy the reputation of good restaurants."