After being shown to his table he ordered a tomato salad and then gave bad marks if the tomatoes had not been peeled and seeded and if he had not been asked what sort of oil he wanted in the dressing. On another occasion, when dining at the famed Chantecler in Nice he made a scene when his crepes Suzettes had been made with orange peel and not, as they should have been, with tangerine peel. While the public may find such antics edifying, many chefs and restaurateurs are not appreciative of the efforts of the critics who come to their restaurants and then share their opinions with all and sundry who happen to read their newspapers. In fact, to listen to many chefs and restaurant owners might be to conclude that restaurant critics are the most unpopular people on the planet. What many of those who own or prepare the food in restaurants do not understand is that critics are not their enemies.
Critics are no-one's enemies.
Being critical is one of the factors that makes us human. Restaurants, like the theater, the cinema or any other artistic endeavor, are part of the public domain and thus, are open to being criticized. The truth is that as the art or music critic loves paintings or the symphony, most restaurant critics adore food and have happily devoted large portions of their lives to consuming good meals. It is true that restaurant critics should play out their game within a certain set of rules. While there is no requirement for them to be master-chefs, they must have knowledge of how food is prepared.