Introduction

Welcome to The Food Crickets Blog! We are trying to spotlight and rank independent and family restaurants wherever we can in order to direct people towards eating locally and away from the mega-chains. We will be documenting and scoring each restaurant and eatery we eat at in order to better help you get a feel for what they can offer for you.

That being said, we are not normal food critics. Our primary goal is to objectively (or as objectively as food can be) determine the best restaurant in a given category or area. We will be using a system of criteria in order to judge restaurants against others and determine which one is better, even when two restaurants have nothing in common. Unlike a lot of best restaurant lists, we will not be focusing on fine dining or expensive restaurants. Our list is for everyone and some restaurants can be cost prohibitive for your average foodie. Not that some restaurants we feature won't be a little on the costly side, but we tend to shy away from pretentious food.

Our first master list (and hopefully potential book) is to find the best restaurant in our home state of Oklahoma. Oklahoma tends to have a reputation for being bland and boring. We will be doing what we can to fight this misconception, at least in the field of foods. Our quest will take us to big cities and small towns all over the state, in many different types of restaurants and types of food. This does not mean this is the only master list we are working on, our restaurants could be used for any number of list and our food may be wherever we happen to be.

Anyway, our breakdown of judging criteria falls into:
Taste-How the food tastes is always important when judging a restaurant. If the taste is lacking, nothing else can make up for it.
Atmosphere-How the restaurant feels can have a major impact on your enjoyment of the meal. Lighting, décor, music all have a hand in the overall experience. This will be factored into our scores as well.
Service-Obviously how well we are treated will also impact how much we enjoy the food. Everyone who is employed in the restaurant represents said restaurant. Host, server, bartender, busboy, etc. all can change the entire landscape of a meal. However, extenuating circumstances should be taken into account sometimes. If it happens to be a huge rush, the staff can be forgiven for any perceived slowness or lack of service. We know we are not the only people in the restaurant. Also, the food takes as long as it takes. We prefer food to be made fresh and have no problem waiting on it.
Value-The value of the meal can also effect our enjoyment. This does not mean that cheaper food automatically wins in value. Value means you get what you pay for, your money's worth. Portion size, quality of ingredients, extras all count into the value, judged up against the price of the meal.
Uniqueness-We are rebelling against the cookie cutter chains, so of course we would judge our restaurants on their uniqueness. The menu should have items you cannot find anywhere else. Unique spins on established dishes are also appreciated.
Variety-Variety in a restaurant can be refreshing. Not everyone is in the mood for the same food at the same time. We are looking for restaurants that serve dishes from several different categories, with a particular eye towards those with dietary restrictions (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, whatever). We do not have any of these dietary restrictions, but it's nice to be able to include those that do.
Cleanliness-Obviously this can ruin your meal and your appreciation for a particular restaurant. Now, we are not health inspectors and do not plan on snooping in the kitchens or backrooms of the restaurants we visit, but we will be judging the public areas that any customer could see.
Sides/Drinks/Desserts/Appetizers-The accompaniment to the meal can mean a lot. So, we will be judging every restaurant on it's accompaniment, whether that be side dishes, special drinks, desserts, appetizers, whatever they have and whatever looks good. We can not try everything, but points for diversity of options.
Story-Every restaurant has a story. How it started, who founded it, where it is, when it is, whatever. The uniqueness and color of the story will effect its reputation and add value to your visit.
Presentation-The way a meal comes out can make a big impact. You don't want to be disappointed by your meal. How closely it matches or improves upon the vision in your head will help your appreciation and enjoyment of your meal.

These will all be scored by both myself and my wife and partner Jessica in order to determine the 100 best restaurants in Oklahoma. We look forward to this and to inspiring you to try new things and new places.