OpenRice: A definitive online dining guide, restaurant portal

MANILA, Philippines -  Today’s conversation economy has paved the way for social networks to create new ways to connect customers. With data as king, social platforms emerge as a new source of business intelligence. 

OpenRice.com, a Hong Kong-based free and definitive online dining guide and comprehensive restaurant portal is now in the Philippines to liberate food connoisseurs and food enthusiasts from the burden of looking for the best place to satisfy their taste buds for any special type of food.

Founded in 1999, OpenRice.com is now Hong Kong’s most popular site for sharing dining ideas and experiences. Since then, it has served as a vital search engine tool for restaurants and food establishments in China, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand.

Now in the Philippines, OpenRice.com boasts of access to information of about 20,000 food establishments in Metro Manila, Cebu and other provinces nationwide.

Want to know more about a particular restaurant/food establishment? OpenRice.com has all the information you need to know for a perfect dining experience.

“Our advanced search engine allows you to find your next dining destination, whatever cuisine cravings you may have,” says Leah Cabalde-Fajardo, OpenRice.com Philippines business manager. 

Due to its unique platform, OpenRice does not only open a library of restaurants, but it also allows you to read and write restaurant reviews and dining experience as well. To date, there are thousands of reviews from OpenRice.com Philippines members (referred to as OpenRicers). 

Reviews include OpenRicers’ personal dining experiences, restaurant’s signature dishes, business hours, payment methods, parking space provision, service charge, holiday availability and reservations, among others.

Diners also include constructive criticisms and suggestions for restaurant owners in order for them to improve their operations and maximize their customers’ dining satisfaction.

Because OpenRicers rate their dining experiences from 1 to 5 according to taste, environments, service charge, cleanliness, and price, you are assured that your restaurant-of-choice is the best place for your dining experience. 

“Visiting our website is a cinch. Upon entering, you will be asked ‘Where do you want to eat?’ and you are to choose from three different areas in the Philippines - Manila, Cebu, and other provinces. Once you have chosen your area, you will be redirected to the main page and it provides you with all the information you would want to know about the different restaurants in that place,” says Fajardo. 

“Gone are the days when you fret for the location of a preferred restaurant. Being the first restaurant search engine, OpenRice.com directs you to a map, which is powered by Google, that will show you the way,” adds Fajardo.

You can also learn about cooking from other food enthusiasts by logging on to OpenRice.com and browsing through different restaurants’ gourmet reviews and photos, and step-by-step recipes shared by members of the OpenRice community.

Should you wish to concoct your own dish, you may also search for recipés according to cuisine, main ingredient, cooking method, difficulty, time of cooking and type of dish.

OpenRice.com belongs to the growing network of JDB Holdings Ltd., which includes 88DB.com - a one-stop-shop online advertising solutions and classifieds portal, which to date has more than 5,000 food establishments listed in its food and beverage category.

Racquel Cagurangan, general manager of both 88DB.com Philippines and OpenRice.com Philippines, quips, “Though 88DB.com may be similar to OpenRice.com in terms of the restaurant listings, OpenRice.com offers a richer experience through the many restaurant reviews and photos from its customers that make it a certified dining guide.”

Food enthusiasts are now more empowered to choose what’s best for their taste based on these reviews. “So we encourage all food lovers to join the community of OpenRicers by posting their reviews and dining experiences for a chance to win cool prizes in our Eat, Write and Win promo,” adds Cagurangan.

For more information, visit www.OpenRice.com.ph or call OpenRice.com Philippines’ Manila office at (02) 637-7632 or Cebu office at (032) 412-9804.