I enjoy tripadvisor reviews, but you can't just go by the ratings. Went to a great restaurant, considered above average, last week. It had all 5 stars and a couple 1-star ratings. Naturally, I read the 1-stars and the people could not find the restaurant. It was located upstairs and did not have an obvious entrance, although I found it without problem. THE REVIEWERS DID NOT EVEN EAT AT THE RESTAURANT, but gave it a bad rating because they couldn't find it. Many other times I've read 1-star reviews because they couldn't get a parking spot or couldn't get a reservation when they wanted to. When you consider this, I'm surprised Franklin's is even on the list, with the line being so long: "Saw the line and didn't want to wait 3 hours, so I ate at McDonald's instead -- 1 star for Franklin for not opening at 8:00am and cooking more brisket."
A couple takeaways:
1. You can find great BBQ absolutely anywhere. Some of the best I've had ever is not on any list, and not in any famous "BBQ" region. California? Vermont? Sure, why not? There are great chefs everywhere.
2. The least offensive food often has the highest ratings. Sometimes I check tripadvisor and find the highest-rated restaurants are McDonalds and Burger King, seriously! I somehow find local food that surpasses either of these, but just didn't cut it with the other reviewers, who apparently are more sensitive to strong flavors -- I'm also surprised when reviewers rate different McDonald's differently, "I've been to them all and this is by far the best McDonalds in the city". It's no surprise to me that Carolina BBQ is not represented. For every great review, there is going to be one complaining about that "strange vinegar sauce -- I'm from NYC and BBQ sauce is supposed to be sweet -- 1 star."
Yes, I do submit reviews on Tripadvisor, but only for places that I really enjoy. I also know restaurants can have a bad day. I figure there are plenty of people around to write bad reviews. If you find a gem that goes out of business because of lack of customers, maybe you should have written them a good review to help them out.