Editorial Standards
Quality Standards
What each tier means, how a place gets in, and what we owe you.
Eligibility
Every place here earned its spot
Not every restaurant makes the cut. A place gets in when several independent sources point the same way. Self-promotion doesn’t count, and neither does popularity on its own.
Fame isn’t the test either. A neighbourhood spot with no awards but a strong track record can sit on the same list as a starred dining room. Finding those places is half the point.
So there’s no “avoid” tier. If we wouldn’t send you there, it’s not on the site.
Tiers
What each tier means for your next meal
Every listed restaurant gets a tier and a Consensus Score from 0 to 10. The tier comes from professional recognition, so it can’t be gamed with a pile of five-star reviews. Inside each tier, the full mix of critics, local guides and diners decides who comes first. That order is the rank you see on each page.
Exceptional
9.5–9.9Plan a trip around it.
The very top of the top guides. Only a handful of places in a city get here.
Outstanding
8.5–9.4Save it for the big night.
Top honours from the major inspector guides.
Excellent
7.5–8.4Cross town for it.
Serious recognition from the major inspector guides.
Very Good
6.5–7.4A safe bet for a really good meal.
The inspectors rate the cooking highly, one step below the big honours.
Hidden Gem
5.5–6.4Easy to walk past. Worth stopping for.
An inspector guide has listed it, without a top award.
Worth Visiting
4.5–5.4Go when you're in the area.
Critics or local guides have backed the cooking, not just listed it.
Good
2.0–4.4A solid pick, especially for a specific need.
It's cleared our quality bar, but hasn't won a major award or a top critic score yet. Most places we list are here.
Want the full method behind the score? It’s on our Methodology page.
Our Taste
We eat here too
Data gets you most of the way. Taste does the rest. Our team has eaten at some of the places in this guide, and we’re working through more.
As we go, we’ll add our own first-person notes to the pages. That’s taste built over years of eating out, and it sits next to the score. It doesn’t replace it.
FAQ
Questions about our tiers and scores
What's the difference between a Guidavera tier and a rank?
The tier tells you what kind of recognition a place has. The rank tells you where it sits in the whole city. Tier comes first, so every place in a higher tier ranks above every place in a lower one.
Can great Google reviews move a restaurant up a tier?
No. Tiers come from professional recognition, so diner reviews alone can't move a place up one. Reviews still count: they help decide where a place sits inside its tier, next to critics and local guides.
How can a casual spot outrank a tasting menu on Guidavera?
If the inspectors rate it higher, it ranks higher. We don't score on price or how formal a room is. A casual spot with a guide award ranks above a fancy dining room without one.
Is a restaurant in the Good tier worth going to?
Yes. Good is the starting line, not a warning. Every place in it has cleared our quality bar, and most of the places we list sit here. It just hasn't won a major award or a top critic score yet.
Why do Good-tier scores start as low as 2.0?
Because the scale is built around the top guides. A score between 2.0 and 4.4 means no major award yet, not a bad meal. Places we wouldn't send you to don't get a score, because they're not on the site.
Has the Guidavera team eaten at every restaurant it lists?
Not yet. We've eaten at some of the places in this guide and we're working through more. Our own notes will sit next to the score. The tier and score still come from cross-checked sources.
Can a restaurant pay for a better Guidavera tier?
No. Nobody pays to be listed, ranked higher or put in a better tier. We don't sell sponsored listings, advertorials or paid placement of any kind.
What happens when a restaurant on Guidavera closes?
It comes off the site. We re-check listings on a cycle, and every restaurant page shows the date it was last checked. Spot a closed place we missed? Tell us and we'll check it.
Accuracy
Every page checked by hand
Ratings, hours, menus, prices, chef names, contact details and awards are all checked against live sources. Nothing’s copied from one platform and left to go stale.
Restaurants change. Hours shift, menus rotate, chefs move on. We re-check listings on a cycle, and each restaurant page shows the date it was last checked. If something’s wrong, tell us. We’ll check it and fix it fast.
Independence
Nobody pays to be here
No restaurant pays to be listed, ranked higher, or put in a better tier. We don’t take sponsored listings, advertorials or paid placement of any kind. If that ever changes, we’ll say so clearly.