Alfred Asatryan’s tiny burger concept has a classic LA story. It started as a popup in an unused parking lot, operating for a year out of a tent before he could scrape together enough money to open as a brick-and-mortar in 2022. Known for super-thin smashed beef patties that extend beyond the bun like meat lace, the brand was slowly developing a following.
Then Kevin Noparvar, a social media restaurant critic known as @How.Kev.Eats posted a review on TikTok.
@how.kev.eats Reply to @eddiemendez29 FINALLY trying Easy St. burgers #mukbang#foodreview♬ original sound - how.kev.eats
The following day, the restaurant was slammed, with diners waiting in line for up to two hours while Asatryan, who operates the restaurant with his brother and father, attempted to manage expectations.
Many were there because of the review, but others stopped because they saw the line and wanted to see what the fuss was all about. Some were regulars who were perplexed by the crowd.
“I would just go out there and introduce myself and tell them what’s going on,” he said. “I think this whole TikTok thing is new to a lot of people, and, a lot are hip to it, they understand the virality,” he said. “But a lot of people don’t.”
And, for Easy Street, it was just the beginning.
After @How.Kev.Eats’ visit came a string of other reviews from celebrity influencers, including the now hugely famous Keith Lee, whose ability to catapult small businesses into the limelight results in a phenomenon called the “Keith Lee Effect.”
“That one was massive,” said Asatryan. “The night he posted on TikTok, we were getting messages from people saying, ‘You guys better be ready because you just got this massive score from Keith Lee, so get some rest. You’re going to need The Avengers at the restaurant tomorrow.’ I was at home saying, What is going on?”
Early the next morning, Asatryan said he arrived to find roughly 70 people waiting outside the restaurant, and that line grew throughout the day. At its peak, guests were waiting three hours, he said.
Easy Street Burgers and loaded fries. | Photo courtesy of Easy Street Burgers.
In L.A., Easy Street has become somewhat of a darling in the small but growing crowd of car seat social media reviewers, sometimes called influencers.
Many stitch to Lee, who is based in Las Vegas, and has become a celebrity among internet celebrities. He has partnered with Chipotle. Known for his signature line, “I got it. Let’s try it and rate it one through 10,” Lee has 16 million followers on TikTok; 1.9 million followers on Instagram; and more than 58,000 subscribers on YouTube.
Last year, he sparked controversy after a visit to Atlanta, which resulted in a New York Times story describing The Keith Lee Effect, including the good and bad impact that can result from a post by Lee, whose followers are more than obsessed. Lee touched a nerve by complaining about certain rules he encountered on the visit, like surcharges for hot sauce or syrup, and some followers were less than kind to the restaurants mentioned.
The controversy, however, appears to have made Lee even more famous. Now other social media reviewers are vying for national attention, and the “Keith Lee Effect” term is being used more broadly to describe the seismic impact their posts can have on restaurant traffic.
At Easy Street, for example, Lee’s post inspired a host of other rising celebrity influencers (and regular folks) to stitch and post their own reviews on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, from @lukefoods and @waynedang, to @1hourlunchbreak. Sometimes they even collaborate, with more than one reviewer crammed into the car, reviewing the spot together.
“It turns into this domino effect,” said Asatryan. “It’s like wildfire on the internet.”
Proof in the pudding
It’s easy to assume the impact of viral reviews will be short lived, but the snowballing of posts can drive traffic for months.
For operators like Janel Prator, it can be transformative.
Prator opened a dessert concept called The Puddery in Pearland, Texas, a Houston suburb, in 2022, offering different flavors of pudding and pastries like a croffle—a croissant waffle—topped with cream, or frozen cheesecake on a stick.
Operating out a shared space in a shopping center, the early days were a struggle, she said, though she was growing the business by shipping desserts around the country.
“I was kind of getting to the point where I was wondering whether I had made the right decision,” said Prator, who had left a job at AT&T to build the business. “I had days with only two customers.”
Then, last November, Lee came to Houston. Prator said she had been tagging him for weeks inviting him in, but she had no idea whether he would actually show.
He not only loved her desserts—and he’s not a sweets guy—he came in to meet her (after filming in his car) and left a $2,000 tip.
@keith_lee125 The Puddery taste test 💕 would you try it ? 💕 #foodcritic♬ original sound - Keith Lee
The day Lee came in, The Puddery had five customers, Prator said. The next day, the tiny spot had 130 and sold out.
In fact, since the post, daily traffic has not dipped below 130, said Prator, who guests call “Ms. Puddin’.” On weekends, The Puddery typically sees between 200 to 250 guests, with her banana pudding and the now-named “Keith Lee Croffle” as top sellers.
There’s only so much she can do out of the small storefront, she said. “I’m trying to stay positive and ride the wave while it’s here and make the most of it.”
The personalities
Even as Congress debates the future of TikTok in the U.S. and influencers face more existential fears that the “infinite scroll” is becoming more finite, there’s no getting around the fact that younger consumers turn to social media when making restaurant choices.
Millennials are highly influenced by online reviews posted by consumers, where Gen Zers rely more on content creators and influencers, according to a report last year from Pymnts Intelligence.
And while those social media personalities can often be very locally focused, a growing number of them—like Lee—travel the country (or world) to eat and post with their own style. It’s one small part of a “creator economy” that some have projected could reach $250 billion. TikTok alone last year reportedly contributed an estimated $24.2 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product last year, including $14.7 billion in revenue for small businesses. The largest impact was on the food-and-beverage sector, supporting a $6.4 billion contribution to GDP, according to a report from Oxford Economics.
Food critics employed by newspapers or magazines arguably offer a more thoughtful and reasoned description of a restaurant they visit. But social media opens the door for anyone with an opinion and personality to share their view, and generally such posts focus on things people eat every day, like fast food.
It’s also more visual. Followers get to see the food but also, usually, hear it. There’s almost always an ASMR aspect, for example, with that all-important crunch.
Personalities like @sanaaeats has 1.3 million followers on TikTok who simply like to watch her eat. Not a word is spoken (though she talks more on YouTube and Instagram and is prone to collabs, like this one where she teaches British influencer @harrisonwebb97 how to do a proper cheese pull shot.)
Jack’s Dining Room is a New York-based reviewer with 94 million subscribers on YouTube and a healthy following on both TikTok (715,000) and Instagram (690,000). Wearing a trademark baseball hat that says “Yes Chef,” Jack produces more polished videos, filmed (usually) in the actual restaurant, rather than posting from his car.
There’s Bill Oakley, a former showrunner and writer on “The Simpsons” who is now a prolific reviewer of fast food and more on various platforms. He’s particularly fond of tasting much hyped LTOs, like KFC’s recent Chizza, though he’s happy to share news of products like Eggo Brunch in a Jar (spoiler: it’s “sippin’ cream.”) And check out his growing food meme art gallery.
Out of North Carolina, @MrChimeTime (Rashad Mooreman, with 1.6 million followers on TikTok) is king of the sandwich comparison, though he tougher to please and his honesty can be a bit brutal. He reportedly called Eminem’s Mom’s Spaghetti “trash.”
Who these people are is almost secondary to their online personalities. Followers are rarely informed about whether these reviewers have paid for meals or have specific ethical standards.
Lee is an exception, however, and could inspire more transparency. He announces when he’s coming to a certain city and the parameters that guide his choices.
Lee has a particular soft spot for struggling concepts that need a marketing boost, but he also looks for restaurants recommended by locals, with diverse ownership and, at least in Arizona, concepts recommended by DoorDash (because he is a frequent delivery user).
YouTuber BeardMeetsFood attempts a seven-pound lobster roll at Shuckin' Shack Oyster Bar. |Photo courtesy of Shuckin' Shack.
And then there are the extreme eaters, like the U.K.-based YouTuber BeardMeetsFood, who recently visited a location of the 18-unit chain Shuckin’ Shack Oyster Bar to take the Meggah Greggah Challenge, eating a seven-pound, $150 lobster roll.
The video is expected to be posted in April, but even the appearance of BeardMeetsFood in the unit in Wilmington, N.C. brought people in.
A beer supplier spotted him in the restaurant and posted on social media, and fans started trickling in that day looking for him, said Darren Keeler, Shuckin’ Shack’s vice president of marketing. Several other locations have already gotten requests from local influencers to do the challenge, first taken on three years ago by YouTuber Randy Santel.
This kind of content can be hugely valuable from a customer-acquisition standpoint, said Keeler. Customers are pretty savvy in their ability to recognize what is authentic.
But there are “good, bad and ugly” sides to the world of social media reviewers and influencers, which Keeler sees as two different things.
Reviewers create content based on “a legit experience” that can be used by restaurants, if positive. Influencers, however, need to be vetted, he said. Many ask for free food in exchange for a post, and Shuckin’ Shack will sometimes do that (but no free booze).
“Every time that’s happened, it’s all been positive. No one has trashed talked us,” he said. “If we acquire five customers [from a free meal], it’s well worth it.”
Still, Keeler takes a close look at their profiles to assess whether followers are fake. If an influencer claims 50,000 followers then only has two or three comments on a post, for example, Keeler is skeptical.
“I would rather have [social media reviewers] with high engagement and a medium-sized following than high followers and low engagement,” he said.
After the reviewers leave
But social media hype doesn’t always translate to foot traffic. Operators like Asatryan and Prator say they are pondering next steps.
Asatryan at Easy Street is planning for expansion, though he’s not ready to reveal what’s next for the smashed-burger brand just yet. It remains a must-try destination.
In Texas, Prator is proud of the repeat business she has earned since Lee’s visit. And she is grateful for the emotional support that continues to come her way.
“It’s really a whole new business,” she said. “I used to go out and greet the line every morning, but now I have a team, so I’m not the only one. But when I do, I’m almost close to tears. People are still lining up every day and rooting me on.”