How we verify, label and date every listing
Trust is the product. This page is the contract: what each label means operationally, what counts as evidence, and how data stays fresh.
The four labels
No animal products in the kitchen. Verified against the full current menu and, where claimed, confirmed directly by the owner.
Dairy/egg dishes are explicitly flagged. We verify the labeling, not just the claim.
Not accidental customizations. Requires recent menu evidence and no unresolved accuracy disputes. Cross-contamination caveats are noted where relevant.
Listed for transparency, excluded from default search results. Visible only when you opt in.
The evidence hierarchy
Each verification cites its source. Stronger sources override weaker ones:
- Official website / current menu — the baseline for every listing.
- Owner claim & confirmation — verified via business-domain email or phone.
- Recent menu or photo evidence — dated, stored in the listing's evidence log.
- Trusted user confirmation — structured reports from logged-in users.
- Third-party mentions — never sufficient alone.
Confidence scores
Every listing carries a 0–100 confidence score computed from evidence coverage: how recent the last check was, how strong the source is, menu-label clarity, and whether ambiguities (chicken stock in rice, lard in beans, butter on grills, shared fryers) were resolved with the kitchen. Scores drop automatically as evidence ages.
Freshness policy
High-traffic listings are rechecked every 30 days; the rest within 90. A failed recheck flags the listing stale: it loses top placement and shows its age until reconfirmed. Closed venues are archived, never silently deleted.
Why structured feedback instead of reviews
Open review systems need moderation infrastructure we won't pretend to have at launch. Structured reports — still open, menu changed, labels missing, permanently closed, best for X — are more useful for keeping data accurate and nearly impossible to abuse. Free-text reviews come later, behind real moderation.
Money and labels are separate
Restaurants can pay for enhanced profiles and featured placement — always labeled "Featured" — but payment never changes a diet label, a confidence score, or a verification date. A paying venue that fails a recheck gets flagged like anyone else.
Corrections & disputes
Spotted an error? Use the structured feedback buttons on any listing, or claim the listing as the owner to correct it directly. Disputes are reviewed by a human, with the evidence log as the record.