The Mid-South has no shortage of dining options. And most locals can recommend a favorite spot. But restaurants are also feeding another craving: the need for social media content.
From Instagram to TikTok, social media has become a major promotional tool of the local restaurant industry. It also promotes the promoters. Influencers raise their profiles by hitting town staples, underrated spots and, of course, new openings.
For the most part, restaurants can benefit from new business that comes from influencers’ posts.
Rachel Prince, former General Manager of The Liquor Store (a restaurant, by the way) on Broad Street, said that sometimes the only sign an influencer has visited is a sudden bump in patronage.
The Liquor Store does its own marketing and publicity, but it always welcomes influencers to post and recommend the restaurant.
But what about bad reviews? Chef Cole Jeanes of Kinfolk at Harbor Town Square said even a negative post can have a positive impact.
“You know, people still look at it and there's like a — you can, at least, get the visual aspect of the food out there and then it intrigues people," Jeanes said.
Though neither Prince nor Jeanes say they’ve been severely burned by an influencer, Jeanes did say negative reviews are challenging to see. He attributes some opinions to a lack of understanding of how the business works. It’s not just a matter of taste.
“I'm trying to put something in the community that is beneficial to the community. At one point we were like 55% of our food costs was directly going back to surroundings, especially in the summertime when we have a lot of produce,” Jeanes said.
Jeanes occasionally interacts with influencers through direct messaging on social media. Sometimes it’s to talk about their experience. Other times, influencers let him know they’re coming. But one thing is certain, food posts talk directly to the stomach.
“People really truly eat with their eyes first and then make a decision after that. It's kind of like a mission statement via pictures, you know? Or videos,” Jeanes said.
On a recent Friday morning on South Main, the Arcade Restaurant is bustling, as usual. The diner has been feeding tourists and locals in the same spot since 1919.
These days, it’s not uncommon to see people filming everything from the food to the booth where Elvis Presley famously used to sit.
Kelcie Zapatos, now a fourth-generation owner, says influencers -- like Arcade milkshakes -- come in multiple flavors.
“So some of them are doing it to get free stuff out of it. And then there's other people who are actually like, working for a career. People who make money off Instagram and TikTok and all that,” Zapatos said.
Zapatos says her favorite influencers are those with local or regional connections. “That's why I really like the people that are from like Tennessee, you know, that are visiting or like local states, because that audience is gonna come in.”
For restaurateurs like Zapatos, indulging the influencer is now an essential part of doing business — a main course on the whole social media platter. And let’s not forget the final ingredient that any foodie can use to promote some excellent hash… the aptly named hashtag.
