October 29th 2024.
People these days seem to believe they are quite clever. In the age of social media, it seems like nothing can stay hidden for long. With Instagram, viral food trends, and travel influencers, it's becoming increasingly difficult to keep a city's 'best-kept secret' under wraps. What was once a hidden gem is now plastered all over the internet for everyone to see.
This trend can be quite infuriating for locals. In Barcelona, residents have even resorted to using water guns to chase away tourists, while in Greece, protests have erupted against the influx of visitors. However, Londoners have taken a different approach - they are catfishing tourists.
Yes, you read that right. Locals are intentionally giving glowing, exaggerated reviews for places they would never actually recommend in order to divert tourists away from their favorite spots. This all started when a Redditor complained on the London forum that their favorite sandwich shop had been 'ruined by influencers'. The post described the Black Pig sandwich shop in Borough Market as "easily the best sandwich in London" and the poster was "livid" to find a line of over 200 people after the shop had gone viral on Instagram and TikTok. Another user responded by saying, "This is why it's a bad idea to post your favorite spots in London. FYI, Angus Steakhouse does an awesome steak sandwich. Influencers should try it and be amazed."
This comment received thousands of upvotes, sparking a wave of ironic and exaggerated reviews for Angus Steakhouse in an effort to divert tourists there. There are five Angus Steakhouse restaurants scattered around London's West End, and while there is nothing inherently "bad" about the restaurant, it's more of a tourist favorite than a spot that locals feel strongly about. One person wrote on Reddit's London thread, "They have THE BEST steak sandwiches." Another user added, "It was bound to happen, apparently it's Taylor Swift's favorite place in London to eat, so the influencers were going to discover it eventually."
The hyperbole didn't stop there. One review read, "I was on a hunger strike once. Survived for 56 days, it was the steak sandwich that broke my resistance. I am now a nutritionist and I always recommend the Carnivore diet, centered around this hallowed steakhouse." On Tripadvisor, there are thousands of reviews that paint a similar picture. The steakhouse has a four out of five-star rating, and while many of the reviews may be genuine, there's a chance that Londoners have snuck in a few exaggerated or fake ones.
This trick seems to be working, as one Reddit user shared a photo of a "mental queue" outside the steakhouse's Leicester Square location. However, upon closer inspection, the photo appears to simply show a busy Leicester Square with the camera pointed away from the steakhouse. Nevertheless, the post received hundreds of comments, with users keeping up the joke. One user said, "Angus Steakhouse used to be my favorite underground spot, now it's rammed with tourists."
But will this trick actually work? We asked the experts, and there's no guarantee. According to Alex Harper, an SEO expert at Eighty Eight Digital, by making claims that the Angus Steakhouse is "the best steakhouse ever" or "the best steakhouse in London," it can send positive signals to search engines like Google. However, search engines are constantly evolving and can recognize when their algorithms are being manipulated. In fact, a quick Google search for the best steakhouses in London shows other restaurants like Goodman, Flat Iron, and Hawksmoor Seven Dials as the top results.
Nice try, Londoners! It seems like your catfishing efforts may not be as effective as you hoped. Do you have a story to share? Let us know by emailing us.
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