Zagat was an iconic brand that is used as a restaurant recommendation service and was bought by Google in the year 2011 for a whopping $151 million with the intention of bringing the restaurant review empire into the digital era.
If the rumors are to be believed Google is selling off Zagat to “The Infatuation”. It’s a restaurant review company and has tried its hands on developing smartphone apps, an Instagram hashtag, and a texting recommendation service as parts of its path to growth.
Over a telephonic interview Chris Stag, a Co-Founder of The Infatuation and its Chief Executive said, “How often does an iconic brand like Zagat become available?”. “When you think about its history and what Zagat means to so many people, it’s a huge opportunity.”
Zagat was the brainchild of Tim and Nina Zagat who used to conduct surveys on their friends’ opinions on various eateries in New York City. People in those days actually used to rely on Zagat in order to find the perfect place to have a meal. Google added a new look to Zagat’s website in 2016 after they bought Zagat. They even introduced an app to provide suggestions as per the user’s location and the time of the day.
“Zagat has helped us provide useful and relevant dining results for users across our various products,” Jen Fitzpatrick, a Vice President of product and engineering at Google, said in a statement. “The Infatuation is an innovative company that will be a terrific home for the Zagat brand.”
Though there are tons of restaurant reviewing sites like Zagat in the present scenario, Infatuation officials are really hopeful about the outcome of the deal. Nina Zagat, the former owner of Zagat, said, “Tim and I are very excited for Zagat’s next chapter with The Infatuation,” she said. “Their innovative approach, and their passion for helping people discover great restaurants and for building community line up with what we built with Zagat from the very beginning.”
