The 12 Best Food Review Apps to Try in 2025

In a world brimming with culinary options, from hidden street-food gems to Michelin-starred establishments, finding the right dining experience can be a challenge. The greater challenge, however, is often remembering the nuances of each meal: the standout dish, the perfect wine pairing, or the specific ambiance that made it memorable. This is where dedicated food review apps become indispensable tools for the modern food enthusiast, traveler, and professional critic alike.

This comprehensive guide is designed to navigate the crowded marketplace of culinary applications. We will dissect the most popular and effective platforms, moving beyond surface-level descriptions to provide a detailed analysis of their core functionalities, practical use cases, and notable limitations. Each review includes screenshots for a visual preview and direct links for immediate access. Our goal is to equip you with the insights needed to select the perfect app that aligns with your specific dining and logging habits.

We'll explore everything from reservation-focused platforms to specialized review communities. Whether you're looking to discover new restaurants, meticulously document your gastronomic journey, or share your findings with a like-minded audience, this resource will help you find the ideal digital companion. For those seeking a dedicated space to privately log and recall every detail of their meals, we'll also highlight how specialized apps like Savor offer a unique, memory-focused approach.

1. Savor

Savor establishes itself as a premier tool for the discerning food lover, offering a sophisticated and private alternative in the crowded market of food review apps. Instead of focusing on crowd-sourced restaurant ratings, Savor empowers users to build a personal, searchable database of every dish they've ever tasted. This “dish-first” philosophy is its core differentiator, designed for those who believe the meal, not just the venue, is the memory worth preserving. The platform turns your scattered camera roll of food photos into an organized, queryable culinary journal.

Its design is optimized for speed and precision. A user can capture, rate, and tag a dish in about 30 seconds, thanks to AI-assisted categorization and a streamlined interface. Savor is fundamentally a private journal, allowing you to build your own trusted palate reference before selectively sharing curated lists with friends or followers.

Key Features & Use Cases

AI-Assisted Logging: Snap a photo and Savor’s AI recognizes the dish, auto-suggesting tags for cuisine and key ingredients. This minimizes manual entry, making it practical for logging meals in real time.
Dish-First Scoring: The 10-point scoring system applies to individual dishes, not restaurants. This granular approach allows for objective comparisons, like tracking the quality of a specific ramen dish across different cities over several years.
The Time Machine: A standout feature for food critics and travelers, this function lets you directly compare two instances of the same dish side-by-side, helping you settle debates and track culinary evolution.
Offline Capability: Log your meals even without an internet connection. The app syncs your data once you're back online, a crucial feature for international travel or dining in remote locations.

Practical Considerations

Savor operates on a freemium model and is initially available for iOS. While Android support is planned, it’s a key limitation at launch. Its focus on private journaling means it isn't designed for broad restaurant discovery; users seeking Zomato-style social feeds should look elsewhere. However, for culinary explorers and content creators who want to own their data and build a verifiable taste history, Savor is an exceptionally focused and powerful new tool.

Ready to start cataloging your culinary journey? Download Savor for free on the App Store.

Feature Analysis	Savor
Primary Focus	Personal Dish Journaling
Best For	Food Critics, Travelers, Bloggers
Platform	iOS (Android planned)
Pricing	Freemium
Unique Feature	"Time Machine" Dish Comparison
Website	savortheapp.com

2. Yelp

As one of the pioneers in the user-generated review space, Yelp remains a powerhouse among food review apps, especially in North America. Its primary strength lies in its sheer volume of content, with an active community contributing over 199 million reviews for restaurants and other local businesses. Users can search for specific cuisines, filter results by price or location, and browse countless user-submitted photos and videos to get a real sense of the dining atmosphere.

Yelp excels at closing the loop from discovery to action. Integrated features allow for in-app reservations, takeout orders, or delivery, making it a convenient one-stop-shop. However, the vast amount of information can sometimes be overwhelming, and the quality of reviews can vary significantly. For those seeking a more curated and personal record of their dining journey, learn more about how Yelp reviews can complement a private food journal. While Yelp helps you find new places, an app like Savor helps you remember them personally. Never forget a great meal again—download Savor from the App Store to start building your private dining history.

Best For: Finding widely-reviewed local restaurants, especially in the US.
Standout Feature: Integrated booking, delivery, and takeout options.
Pricing: Free (ad-supported).
Pros: Extensive US coverage, active community, direct action features.
Cons: Results can be crowded with ads, review quality can be inconsistent.

Website: https://www.yelp.com

3. Google Maps

Already on virtually every smartphone, Google Maps has evolved from a simple navigation tool into one of the most comprehensive and accessible food review apps available today. Its strength lies in its ubiquity and sheer volume of data, with over 250 million places cataloged, complete with user-generated ratings, photos, popular times, and often, full menus. The platform excels at providing immediate, location-aware recommendations, making it indispensable for on-the-go discovery anywhere in the world.

Google Maps streamlines the entire dining process from discovery to fulfillment. Powerful filters let you narrow down options by cuisine, price, or operating hours, while direct integrations enable reservations, takeout, and delivery with just a few taps. While its massive user base ensures a constant flow of recent reviews, the quality and depth can vary, with occasional moderation issues. For creating a more curated and personal dining history, a dedicated journal like Savor is the perfect companion, helping you privately document the culinary gems you discover through Google Maps. Ready to start saving your food memories? Download Savor today.

Best For: Unmatched global coverage and seamless on-the-go discovery.
Standout Feature: Rich place cards with popular times, user photos, and menus.
Pricing: Free.
Pros: Enormous database of locations, excellent for spontaneous searches, seamless cross-platform use.
Cons: Review quality can be inconsistent, occasional issues with fake reviews.

Website: https://maps.google.com

4. OpenTable

Primarily known as a reservation platform, OpenTable has carved out a unique and valuable niche in the world of food review apps. Its core strength is the reliability of its feedback, as only diners who have booked and honored a reservation through the platform can leave a review. This system effectively eliminates fake or unverified feedback, offering a more trustworthy source of opinions for its global network of over 60,000 restaurants.

The platform excels at connecting discovery directly with the dining experience through seamless reservation management and a loyalty points program. Users can search for restaurants by availability, set alerts for popular spots, and manage their bookings all in one place. While OpenTable is fantastic for securing a table and reading verified reviews, it focuses on the pre-dining experience. For capturing the personal memories and details of the meal itself, pairing it with a dedicated food journal like Savor provides a complete record from booking to the last bite. Don't let a great meal fade from memory—download Savor on the App Store to save every detail.

Best For: Securing reservations and reading verified diner reviews.
Standout Feature: Only diners who have completed a reservation can post a review.
Pricing: Free for diners.
Pros: Highly reliable verified reviews, excellent reservation management, loyalty points program.
Cons: Limited to restaurants on the OpenTable network, potentially missing some independent spots.

Website: https://www.opentable.com

5. Resy

Positioned as a more curated platform for restaurant discovery and reservations, Resy focuses on in-demand establishments, particularly within major US cities. While not a traditional long-form review app, its strength lies in providing a premium booking experience, which includes space for short, personal notes post-dining. This makes it one of the go-to food review apps for securing tables at highly sought-after venues and getting a snapshot of the dining scene from those who frequent them.

Resy excels with its real-time availability and its "Notify" feature, which alerts users when a coveted table opens up. This actionable system is paired with a clean user interface that prioritizes booking efficiency. While Resy helps you get into the restaurant, it's not designed for detailed memory-keeping. After securing that hard-to-get reservation, use the Savor app to create a private, detailed journal of the experience, ensuring you remember every detail of your special meal.

Best For: Securing reservations at popular and hard-to-book restaurants in major cities.
Standout Feature: The "Notify" alert system for when tables become available.
Pricing: Free for diners.
Pros: Excellent for booking high-demand tables, clean UX, actionable notifications.
Cons: Coverage is limited to partner restaurants; not a universal directory.

Website: https://resy.com

6. The Infatuation

For diners who trust expert opinion over the wisdom of the crowd, The Infatuation offers a refreshing alternative among food review apps. It provides professionally written, editorial-style reviews and curated city guides, focusing on delivering high-quality, opinionated recommendations. Users can explore restaurants by neighborhood, cuisine, or situational filters like “Perfect For a First Date” or “Dinner With The Parents,” making it easy to find the right spot for any occasion.

The Infatuation excels at cutting through the noise of user-generated platforms by offering a distinct, reliable voice. Its dedicated app allows you to save favorite spots to custom lists and browse detailed maps of top-rated establishments. While its expert curation is a major strength, this editorial perspective may not align with every diner's personal taste. After discovering a new favorite via The Infatuation, you can save your own personal notes and food memories in an app like Savor to create a private dining history. Ready to start your own food journal? Download Savor today!

Best For: Diners seeking curated, high-quality recommendations from professional reviewers.
Standout Feature: Situational filters and editor-curated city guides.
Pricing: Free (ad-supported).
Pros: High-quality, opinionated recommendations, less noise than crowd-sourced platforms.
Cons: Limited city coverage compared to larger apps, editorial perspective may not match everyone's taste.

Website: https://www.theinfatuation.com

7. MICHELIN Guide

For those seeking the pinnacle of culinary excellence, the MICHELIN Guide transcends typical food review apps by offering a globally respected, expert-driven perspective. Instead of user-generated content, it features meticulous reviews and prestigious distinctions from anonymous professional inspectors. Users can explore restaurants that have earned coveted MICHELIN Stars, a Bib Gourmand for great value, or a Green Star for sustainability, providing a highly curated list of top-tier dining experiences worldwide.

The platform is designed for discovering and booking exceptional meals, with filters for distinctions and integrated reservation links through partners like OpenTable and Resy. Its highly selective nature means it isn't a tool for finding every local cafe, but for identifying truly remarkable culinary destinations. After an unforgettable MICHELIN-starred meal, capturing the intricate details of your experience in a personal food journal is essential. An app like Savor is the perfect companion for documenting those once-in-a-lifetime dishes and the memories attached to them. To start building your own private log of world-class meals, download Savor now.

Best For: Discovering world-class, professionally vetted fine dining establishments.
Standout Feature: Prestigious, globally recognized awards (Stars, Bib Gourmand).
Pricing: Free.
Pros: Unmatched credibility and quality curation, global coverage, integrated booking links.
Cons: Highly selective coverage misses many excellent restaurants, not comprehensive for everyday dining.

Website: https://guide.michelin.com

8. Eater (Restaurant Discovery App)

Eater, a publication from Vox Media, shifts the focus from user-generated content to professional, editorial curation. Instead of crowdsourcing opinions, it provides expertly crafted guides, maps, and recommendations from local food critics and writers. This makes it an invaluable resource for travelers or locals who want to cut through the noise and find reliable, high-quality dining experiences in major cities. The platform's strength lies in its thoughtful, narrative-driven approach to food discovery.

With over 10,000 curated maps across more than 100 cities, Eater excels at providing targeted lists like "The 38 Essential Restaurants" for a specific city or "Best Brunch Spots" in a neighborhood. Its geo-aware "You on the map" feature helps you find editor-approved spots nearby, and integrations with reservation platforms streamline the booking process. While this curated approach is fantastic for reliable discovery, it's not designed for personal tracking. To save and remember the amazing places Eater helps you find, use a digital food journal like Savor to log your own notes and photos. Start your private culinary archive today by downloading Savor.

Best For: Travelers and locals seeking professionally curated restaurant recommendations.
Standout Feature: Expert-written city guides and themed restaurant maps.
Pricing: Free.
Pros: Strong editorial curation reduces decision fatigue, excellent for travel planning in covered cities.
Cons: App is newer and may have occasional bugs, coverage is not universal and varies by city.

Website: https://www.eater.com

9. Tripadvisor (Restaurants)

While primarily known as a travel planning giant, Tripadvisor boasts an incredibly robust restaurant section, making it one of the most comprehensive global food review apps available. Its key advantage is its immense international scale, offering millions of diner reviews, photos, and rankings that are invaluable for travelers exploring new cities. Users can filter results by popularity, cuisine, price, and even specific dietary needs, making it easy to find suitable dining options anywhere in the world.

Tripadvisor's strength is its breadth, offering side-by-side comparisons that help tourists make informed decisions quickly. However, the sheer volume can also lead to a cluttered interface and reviews of varying quality. For those looking to elevate their contributions, understanding strategies for creating highly engaging content online can make your reviews more impactful. While Tripadvisor is for public discovery, learn more about how its reviews can inform your own private food journal to create a more personal dining log. For a focused experience on your personal culinary memories, try the Savor app.

Best For: Travelers researching restaurant options in unfamiliar cities worldwide.
Standout Feature: Enormous global database of restaurants with extensive user photos and rankings.
Pricing: Free (ad-supported).
Pros: Unmatched international coverage, useful for destination research, strong filtering options.
Cons: Interface can feel busy, review quality and signal-to-noise ratio can be inconsistent.

Website: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants

10. HappyCow

For plant-based diners, HappyCow is an indispensable tool and a standout among specialized food review apps. It exclusively focuses on vegan and vegetarian-friendly restaurants, making it the go-to resource for anyone following a plant-based diet. With a passionate community contributing to over 240,000 listings across more than 185 countries, the platform provides high-quality, relevant reviews that address the specific concerns of its user base, such as the quality of vegan options or cross-contamination risks.

HappyCow’s strength lies in its powerful filtering capabilities, allowing users to quickly find vegan, vegetarian, or veg-option establishments, as well as those offering gluten-free choices. While HappyCow excels at discovering diet-compliant restaurants, an app like Savor is perfect for privately documenting the specific plant-based dishes you loved, creating a personal diary of your culinary journey. To start building your own collection of memorable vegan meals, download Savor today and never forget a favorite bite.

Best For: Vegans, vegetarians, and travelers seeking reliable plant-based dining options.
Standout Feature: Powerful dietary filters and a highly engaged, niche community.
Pricing: Free on web and Android; one-time purchase on iOS.
Pros: Best-in-class for plant-based discovery, high-signal reviews for dietary needs, extensive global coverage.
Cons: The iOS app requires a one-time payment, coverage can be limited in smaller, less-populated towns.

Website: https://www.happycow.net

11. Beli

Beli introduces a gamified and social layer to the world of food review apps, appealing directly to a younger audience that values friend-driven recommendations. Instead of lengthy prose, Beli focuses on a simple, numerical rating system for both restaurants and individual dishes. This creates a personalized leaderboard, allowing users to track their culinary journey, see where their friends are eating, and compete for top spots in their city.

The platform's strength is its lightweight, engaging interface that makes logging meals and sharing lists feel like a game. It's less about deep-diving into critical analysis and more about creating a fun, shareable log of your dining experiences. While Beli is great for social discovery, users seeking a more private and detailed way to catalog their meals might find the public-facing nature limiting. For those exploring alternatives, learn more about how other apps compare to Beli's social-first approach. For a truly personal dining archive, try the Savor app.

Best For: Social foodies and friend groups who enjoy sharing and ranking restaurants.
Standout Feature: Gamified leaderboards and personalized ranking system for restaurants and dishes.
Pricing: Free.
Pros: Fun, lightweight ratings experience, helps you remember what you’ve tried and liked, great for sharing lists with friends.
Cons: Coverage can be sparse in less-populated cities, review depth is minimal compared to other platforms.

Website: https://beliapp.com

12. Vivino

While not a traditional food review app, Vivino is an indispensable tool for any diner who enjoys pairing their meal with the perfect wine. It functions as a massive, crowd-sourced wine database, allowing users to simply scan a wine label with their phone camera to instantly pull up community ratings, tasting notes, and average pricing. This empowers restaurant-goers to make informed decisions when navigating a lengthy wine list, ensuring they get the best value and flavor profile for their meal.

Vivino excels at demystifying the often-intimidating world of wine, providing a quick quality and price check right at the table. Beyond reviews, the platform offers personalized recommendations and a marketplace for purchasing bottles directly. For wine enthusiasts using Vivino to rate and discover new wines, exploring regional specialties can be a great way to expand your palate. You might find detailed guides on topics like the best Pinot Noir Tasmania has to offer to find your next favorite. While Vivino tracks your wine ratings, an app like Savor can help you remember the entire dining experience, from the appetizer to the final sip.

Best For: Wine lovers wanting to choose the best bottle at a restaurant or store.
Standout Feature: Instant wine label scanner with crowd-sourced ratings and notes.
Pricing: Free to use; wine purchasing available in the app.
Pros: Fast and easy way to gauge wine quality, extensive database, educational content.
Cons: Focus is solely on wine, not food; purchasing and shipping are limited by US state laws.

Website: https://www.vivino.com

Top 12 Food Review Apps Comparison

Product	Core focus	Key features	Target audience	USP / Value prop	Price & availability
Savor	Dish-first personal food journal	One-tap photo capture; 10‑pt Smart Scoring; AI dish recognition; Time Machine comparisons; Instant Lists; offline sync	Serious foodies, critics, travelers, bloggers	Private, dish-centric memory + fast, objective side-by-side comparisons	Freemium; iOS-first launch; exportable; offline-capable
Yelp	Crowd-sourced local reviews & listings	Millions of reviews; photos/videos; filters; bookings & ordering	General diners, local discovery seekers	Largest active review community in US for quick local decisions	Free; ad-supported; web & apps
Google Maps	Global place discovery & navigation	Extensive place cards; menus, popular times; filters; integrations	All users and travelers needing on-the-go discovery	Unmatched global coverage and real-time data across platforms	Free; cross-platform
OpenTable	Reservations + verified diner feedback	Instant bookings; verified reviews; availability search; loyalty	Diners who need reliable booking & verified feedback	Trusted reservation flow with verified reviewer base	Free to users; restaurants pay fees
Resy	Curated discovery & hard-to-book reservations	Real-time availability; waitlists & Notify alerts; curated venues	Users booking in-demand restaurants in major cities	Excellent for scoring tough reservations and curated lists	Free to users; app-focused
The Infatuation	Editorial restaurant recommendations	Editor-curated reviews & guides; saved lists; neighborhood filters	Diners who prefer opinionated, high-quality picks	High-signal editorial recommendations with less noise	Free; editorial app & site
MICHELIN Guide	Inspector-led fine dining curation	Stars, Bib & Green distinctions; inspector write-ups; reservation links	Gourmets and fine-dining seekers	Globally recognized quality standard and credibility	Free to browse; selective listings
Eater	Editor-curated city maps & guides	10k+ curated maps; geo-aware discovery; booking links	Travelers and locals planning city food itineraries	Strong city-level editorial maps for travel planning	Free; web & app (newer app)
Tripadvisor (Restaurants)	Travel-focused restaurant reviews & comparisons	Millions of reviews/photos; lists by popularity & cuisine; bookings	Tourists and destination researchers	Broad global coverage for cross-market comparisons	Free; ad-supported
HappyCow	Plant-based & dietary-specific discovery	Dietary filters (vegan/veg/gluten-free); maps; community reviews	Vegans, vegetarians, dietary-restricted diners	Best-in-class for plant-based discovery and high-signal reviews	Web free; iOS one-time paid app
Beli	Social, gamified dish ratings	Personal taste profiles; city leaderboards; dish-level ratings & sharing	Gen Z and social dining groups	Fun, social memory + gamified leaderboards for friends	Free; social-first mobile app
Vivino	Wine scanning, ratings & marketplace	Label scanner; community ratings & tasting notes; marketplace	Wine shoppers and diners checking bottles	Instant wine quality checks with buying options	Free with in-app purchases/marketplace; region-limited buying

Final Thoughts

Navigating the expansive world of culinary exploration has been revolutionized by the array of powerful food review apps available today. Throughout this guide, we've dissected the landscape, moving from broad, crowd-sourced platforms like Yelp and Google Maps to specialized, curated guides such as The Infatuation and the MICHELIN Guide. We've seen how each tool carves out its niche, catering to different user needs and dining philosophies.

The key takeaway is that no single app serves every purpose perfectly. Your ideal digital dining companion depends entirely on your specific goals. A globetrotting adventurer might lean on Tripadvisor for its sheer volume of international reviews, while a vegan traveler will find HappyCow indispensable. Similarly, a connoisseur chasing elite dining experiences will find their home within the MICHELIN Guide's curated selections, and a social diner focused on securing reservations will juggle OpenTable and Resy.

Choosing Your Culinary Toolkit

To select the right app, start by defining your primary objective. Are you looking for the most reliable recommendations, the easiest way to book a table, or a personal space to document your own gastronomic journey?

Consider these critical factors before committing to a platform:

Review Philosophy: Do you trust the "wisdom of the crowd" found on Yelp, or do you prefer the authoritative voice of professional critics on platforms like Eater? Your preference here will significantly narrow your options.
Geographic Focus: While Google Maps has global reach, hyper-local or specialized apps may offer deeper insights in specific cities or for certain cuisine types. Always check an app's coverage in your most frequented areas.
Primary Functionality: If your main goal is booking, OpenTable or Resy are clear winners. If it's about pure discovery and expert opinion, The Infatuation is a top contender. For tracking personal taste, a dedicated journal app is superior.
User Interface and Experience: The best food review apps are intuitive and enjoyable to use. An app with a cluttered interface or slow performance will only add friction to your dining experience, no matter how great its data is.

Ultimately, the most effective strategy is often to build a small, curated collection of apps. You might use one for spontaneous, nearby searches, another for planning special occasion dinners, and a third, like Savor, to create a private, detailed log of your culinary memories. By understanding the unique strengths and weaknesses we've outlined, you can assemble a digital toolkit that enhances every meal, transforming dining from a simple necessity into a continuous adventure of taste and discovery.

Ready to move beyond public reviews and start building your own private culinary encyclopedia? Savor is designed for the discerning diner who wants to remember every detail, from the perfect wine pairing to the ambiance of a hidden gem. Download the app to begin creating a personal, searchable, and beautifully organized journal of your dining experiences. Visit Savor to learn more.