Mark from 248am.com posted about his experience at a restaurant. Now he’s getting sued for sharing his opinion. The fuck?
Where’s the “so called” freedom of speech? The guy owns his website and he decides what and what not to publish, why does he get sued if the company doesn’t like his review??
If that’s the case globally, all magazines and tv shows that have reviews would have been sued and shut down?
A tip to all company owners: take any criticism with an open mind! Suing a customer wont do you any good!!
Kuwait Avenue 
I am all for freedom of speech, and I am against Benihana suing him for those reasons -BUT- who in their right mind judges a place “that’s just been open for a few days” and then writes about it? No business is perfect– and a restaurant/dining facility needs at least a good month or so to get its act together. He KNOWS his blog has some sort of influence on people in the area (for some strange reason). So in a sense, he has some sort of responsibility to the community (especially for all the support they have given his blog). He could have stated his feedback of the place in a more diplomatic fashion to their management first and THEN see the outcome. Only then would his review have been a FAIR & JUST one. I don’t think YOU or ANYONE would have appreciated such a negative review a few days after opening– or am I mistaken?
In my opinion if a restaurant opens it’s doors to the public it should be fully ready. People are not lab rats and they shouldn’t test their skills on people for a month. If they’re not ready and didn’t have their act together .. they shouldn’t have opened to the public. Simple.
Thanks for the comment! 🙂
I agree that people are not lab rats, but there IS such a thing as “trial & error.” You can try your best & hope for the best, or you learn from your mistakes. I would understand if it were PF Chang’s opening another branch (where the staff already has experience running the brand), but Benihana is a totally different & new concept which opened here in Kuwait. That’s what soft openings are for. To get constructive feedback & learn from it, not to be attacked in public and lose business in your first few days.
I personally went there with my spouse approximately 2 weeks ago, and had a good experience with the staff and the food…
I’ll be fully honest here, I did not read his review, but I certainly wont hold back a visit because of one review. That’s being idiotic.
Glad you enjoyed the experience. 🙂
the art of critiquing involves discussing both the high and low lights of an experience or issue. meaning that you have to look at an issue in a holistic matter and not biased. that is sadly not the case with some so called opinion writers. i have stopped reading his website and posts out of principle so maybe you can confirm whether this was true or not. but prior to my decision i have seen some form of biased opinion in his blog.
i say let justice takes its place: let us see whether what has been said was opinion or slander
well he cant be biased because neither of the restuarants he mentioned etc. advertise on his website, and he certainly doesnt work for one of them.
even if IT WAS slander, why would he get sued for it?
I think this just narrows down the blogging options in Kuwait, most posts are reviews of restaurants, movies and gadgets. I certainly dont want a lawsuit from a director that THOUGHT my review was harsh and bias.
Thanks for passing by! 🙂
You don’t have to worry q80boy as you review things without reviewing them, maybe you can teach mark your style 😛
LOL! >.<
“even if IT WAS slander, why would he get sued for it? ”
because defamation is a crime under the rule of law 🙂
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defamation
i say to you and to people: dont get discouraged in blogging. but still, its not all fun and games you know.
the keyword here is responsibility and fairness
only true bloggers manage this in a world of trolls, mean people and in our part of the world: censored web :>
LOL I should get a law degree just in case then 😛
I really think everyone should be able to give his opinion on anything without worrying about law suits and what not. What will they gain from suing him? Just some negative publicity, and to be honest Mark wasnt the only person that didnt like the restuarant. Many people stated that on twitter after the soft launch.
And agreed on the last couple of points 😉
I didn’t read the review fully, it was a bit too long, ended scanning it in the end. However, if your open for business you should be ready to take the good and bad reviews. Wouldn’t it have made sense to send a email to mark saying sorry you didn’t enjoy your visit, will you come again on us and see if we’ve improved? Also, isn’t it down to freedom to be able to say and think what you feel about something?
Ps Blogger in Cairo jailed for four years for insulting president. Good job you’re q80boy not egyptiboy!