How to write a rating that helps the next diner choose

A helpful rating is about one meal. It names the dish, shows the plate and says what stood out, so the next person can decide in seconds. On Mosey every rating is about a single meal, with a photo taken at the table. This guide shows how to write one that helps, and what you can do after you post.

Rate the meal, not the place

Mosey asks you to rate what you ate, not the place in general. That small change makes ratings more useful, because a place can have a wonderful starter and a poor main, and a single score for the whole place hides that. Rate the dish in front of you.

How to post one

After your meal, open the Mosey app and tap Create. Pick the place, give the meal its stars, name the dish and add a photo of the plate while it is in front of you. Then post it. The ratings feature page shows the steps.

What makes it useful

• Name the dish. It lets others search for it, and it ties the photo to the food. See how to find a place by the dish.
• Show the plate. A clear photo taken at the table beats a long description.
• Say what stood out. A short line on the flavour, the portion or the wait is enough.
• Be specific and fair. A note on what you would order again, or what you would change, helps more than a general verdict.
• Rate it when it is fresh. The same day is best.

Why your rating matters

Your rating counts towards the place's score and, if it earns it, Mosey Gold. Gold is earned from ratings alone and cannot be bought, so honest ratings are the thing that keeps it meaningful. Read what Mosey Gold means for the detail. Ratings also feed the ranked lists, so a good rating helps people find good food.

Editing, deleting and replies

You can edit a rating you wrote, and it is marked as edited. You can delete it, which removes the rating, its photos and its likes. A place can reply, and the reply appears under your rating for everyone to read. If you see a rating that looks wrong, you can report it from the rating in the app, and the Mosey team looks at it. A rating that breaks the rules is hidden.

An owner rating their own place does not count towards Gold, and ratings hidden for breaking the rules do not count either.

Reading before you rate

It helps to know what a good rating looks like. Our guide to how rating a place works on Mosey covers the steps in the app, and the guide to reading restaurant ratings and photos shows the other side, how to judge someone else's rating.

A short example of a helpful rating

Imagine you had the fish and chips at a seafront chipper. A helpful rating names the dish, gives the stars, shows a photo of the plate and says in a line or two what stood out: the batter was crisp, the portion was generous, the wait was ten minutes at a busy hour. It does not need to be long. It needs to be true, specific and about that meal. If something went wrong, say what happened and how the staff dealt with it, because that tells the next person how the place copes.