So, how did the CJ get Anselmo's up to two stars?

Their muffuletta is delicious!

Just like Grandma Anselmo used to make!

[Robin Garr]

Their muffuletta is delicious!

Just like Grandma Anselmo used to make!

Extra creds to Ray for spelling "muffuletta" correctly. It's very rare to catch that second "u".

Their muffuletta is delicious!

Just like Grandma Anselmo used to make!

Extra creds to Ray for spelling "muffuletta" correctly. It's very rare to catch that second "u".

Thanks Robin, but I'll pass those creds to Google.

I think that most of the recent CJ reviews have been on target. Snarky? Miller's tone is different from some previous CJ reviewers but is this a bad thing? I have read lots of reviews in the last 4-5 years in local venues that give relatively low ratings but say absolutely nothing negative about the food, service, or ambience. How fair is that? How fair to readers, those people shelling out money to dine locally--where we have lots of good choices. How fair is it to exceptional restaurants that there has often been little or incredibly vague criticism of mediocre or poor restaurants? I think that reviewers owe their readers honest, detailed evaluations.

Finally: Is the CJ (other venues?) too cheap to encourage reviewers to eat in the places they review more than once? Is it the fault of reviewers that they do not give the restaurant several chances to prove what they can do?

[Robin Garr]

Finally: Is the CJ (other venues?) too cheap to encourage reviewers to eat in the places they review more than once? Is it the fault of reviewers that they do not give the restaurant several chances to prove what they can do?

I'll speak to that: A review takes a snapshot in time, and it's no different than when a consumer visits. Most consumers don't give a restaurant a second chance if things go badly wrong. Further, an experienced critic can analyze the flaws and get a pretty good fix on what's a one-time oopsie and what's a systemic problem that's not likely to change.