How to Become TripAdvisor’s #1 Fake Restaurant
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- Опубліковано 10 тра 2024
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The Shed at Dulwich was the number one rated restaurant in London, with foodies, celebrities and bloggers trying to get a table. The main obstacle for them, however, was that it didn't exist. Over the course of 8 months VICE's Oobah Butler used an assault of fake reviews to get his 'restaurant' to the hallowed top spot on TripAdvisor.
With his phone perpetually ringing, PR agencies begging to represent it and TV crews pitching shows, Oobah decided he had no choice but to open its doors for one night only. Here is Oobah's journey into a false reality that captured the world's attention.
00:00 Introduction
01:10 Creating the Fake Restaurant
04:20 Getting Verified on Tripadvisor
09:20 The #1 Restaurant in London
15:19 Prepping the Food
Read Oobah's full story on VICE.com - vice.video/2DrLgCC
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No
I don't think I will
The waitress says "namaste," fucking had me rolling. She knows the crowd.
She fucking said 'hello' 😂😂😂😂
Lololo
Isn't that hello in india? wow 😂😂
XD it was just the right touch
So true lol.
He's a marketing genius. You don't sell the steak , you sell the sizzle.
The Arman Hocker Project Lol the doctor/writer from the Halloween movie
The Arman Hocker Project sizzle equals subs
The sizzle BWAHAHA😂😂
Nathaniel Park we could all use more subs.
This guy Gary Vaynerchucks
Note that he didn't charge in order to ensure that the prank didn't slip into fraud territory. Those diners will never forget the experience.
Smart
The restaurant itself selling them food wouldn't have been fraud, so the danger isn't a lawsuit from the customers, but he couldn't issue a receipt, can't accept card payments, doesn't have a business/license, and other regulatory stuff in place. The lawsuits, charges and fines would come from the government and city.
@@aeroAdvocate i think the concern would be is that the fake reviews and pretending to be fully booked would constitute false advertising. so if they overcharged customers for shitty frozen food they might sue for false advertising
@@aeroAdvocateWe just had a group do this in the US with real licenses...
I think it's kinda beautiful that he gave those people a completely unique experience that they all seemed to enjoy, even though it was just microwave meals dressed up with edible flowers and garnish.
Yeah, I actually kinda relate to the guy who said it was like something from his childhood. Comfort food doesnt has to be anything more than a microwaveable dish
Half of the appeal of restaurant is the ambiance. If it makes you feel some kind of way, you normally wouldn't in other restaurants, it makes the experience stand out and therefore woth your money and time. That's why in fancy restaurants you pay more money for less food since you pay for the experience
Imagine being one of his neighbors and seeing this dude leading people into a dark area with blindfolds on.
Fbi open up
@@bas8792 London is no place for the FBI.
Workshop Scotland Yard
Workshop MI6 OPEN UP!
@@irayankhan2658 That's not the FBi
“They were in Paris last night...tonight they’re in the shed”😂
he says after murdering some travelers*
That was brilliant xD
Lmao I lost it at the DJ slowly bobbing his head to kitchen sounds
Straight up vibin🔥
Lol
“It feels like something I had as a kid.” He wasn’t wrong 😂
that's actually so sweet, he got ready-made food to eat and instead of it being disappointing, it reminded him of childhood
id get so much anxiety from having to tell so many people i was booked
I'd get anxiety from actually trying to pull it like he did in the end. Imagine if one of the people actually knew food like a chef and got angry like Ramsey or something. I would have felt so ashamed.
Gray Kin same i could’ve never but it was cool to see how he pulled it off in the end :)
i never realized how dramatically this comment blew up sksk woAh
I tried to click on your pic
this guys for sure on adderall or some shit look at his eyes
*restaurant is in a literal ditch*
person: yeah this is great
It ok
also the person: can we book again for the 5th?
ツCloudyRxinz How stupid can you be.
Why is this kind of comment running rampant all over you tube. It's annoying, not to pick on you in particular just the first one I saw. WHYYYYYY?
i actually think it looked nice
I love how the customers thought the food was amazing. The human brain is truly extraordinary.
it probably was! don’t sleep on the microwave food!
I think microwaved food IS amazing, even when not dressed up with edible flowers and garnish.
To be fair - thay got Mac&Cheese! It's like one of the best food ever, gonna have it for rn.
There's some major lessons in marketing to learn here
Just one:Lie and lie big
It kinda only worked because they cant be sued tho
@@kugelblitzingularity304 False Advertising for the win!!
The only marketing needed was a bunch of friends to do fake reviews. Fake websites and photos. You don’t need much to promote a restaurant for a one time wonder. The reviews drive up the rating on TripAdvisor and people just see it
Is this the dude that ran around with a salmon “ suspiciously’
Shroom Rooms yes
Thx for the likes guyss
he should get arrested for that....
luke hp that’s the point
😂
the people on the roof are my last two brain cells
I'll pay $100 for a meal to eat on the roof.
There's no such roof in my country.
@@springrollwang4441 what kinda country you live in lol
Burh you never watch gravity falls?
That doesn't even make sense
bob kåre andersen they’re talking about flat roofs
“Lying wont get you anywhere in life”
Sike!!! Is the appropriate counter for that! HAHAHAH
This guy : reverse uno card
@Justin Bieber your music sucks
Lies lies lies yeah. 😂
pfftt you got lied
"People don't trust their own senses over what they read online"
This has become even more true since he said it. Tragic.
lost it from the very start but lost it again when the waitress said namaste
ahahahahah same that part really got me
Hahahahahaha
Whats funny?
"What the hell am i going to sau now"
Ikr! Why the hell did she say that???? I am Indian
"watch out, there's quite a disgusting mattress on the floor there." 😂 exactly what i wanna hear walking into a restaurant!
ikr
they probably thought he was kidding which was the genius of it
but it adds excitement and tension.
@@chloe-dr4rk Some restaurants are near 'eh' places or are near alleys.
In my city there's a well reputed restaurant that's been open for decades, the outside garbage's fetor made me want to skip out on my reservation (the food was actually great).
Can we just take a moment to appreciate the balls of sheer steel this guy has for pulling this off?
For sure
Even though you feel duped. Think about it, you got to be in a restaurant that wasn't real that got to number #1 on TripAdvisor. You are the only ones there on the one night it was open. So it's amazing
I lost it at 15.46 when the waitress just randomly said ‘namaste’ as she left. Legendary
Lol yeh so pertentus
pretentious*
I would like your comment, but it's at 69 likes and I'm an immature Redditor.
Same!! So random!!!
Someone needs give this man the troll of the year award ! That was absolutely brilliant and executed perfectly.
he is certainly gifted. i just read his articles and he is really entertainingly good.
dont you see this never happened? the video is a joke about itself
He also faked a fashion designer lol
Damn I just realised dj sambience
LMFAO
I remember my parents talking about this ‘restaurant’ 😂😂
The whole concept of this restaurant is amazing. From the garden atmosphere, to the DJ playing restaurant sounds to the idea of ordering the mood you are in!!! Like this actually should be. Real restaurant.
Bravo to you sir. The funny thing is, you created the exact kind of place/environment that would actually be enjoyed by these kind of folk.
You mean you and your friends parents?
Big fan bro, this guy's work really reminds of you. Your really really should collab with him.
Swear you are the same person...
I think what you mean is; whatever it is, there are people out there who dig it.
Especially if there an element of exclusivity. The experience he ended up creating, regardless of if it was fictitious to start with ended up being something that would be pretty enjoyable or at the very least notable, which is enough sometimes. With regards to the food, we all know that shit doesn't matter, it's all in your head. I found out last week that all Skittles taste the same yet I still hate the yellow ones.
Lived in Dulwich my whole life, so naturally did try to book but just always got voicemail... Makes sense now
Hahahaha no way. That's really funny. I would have thought people would take to twitter to ask "is anybody getting into this restaurant" and then people as a group would deduce that it was fake.
Teren Essex this was fake, double fake; a fake about a fake.
When he did reply to some of the people that booked, one of them was surprised and had thought it was a fake. So lots of people probably suspected that it was fake
You're right guys. Probably some people suspected it's fake; but the restaurant still reached the top in the end. Quite weird :)
Life lesson: Before you open a restaurant, have it advertised online and just tell everyone it’s fully booked for months. Once you’re ready they’ll be gagging for it.
I'm not surprised, Britain isn't known for their food.
Wdyn?
gordan ramsay has entered the chat
@@tejas6925 Gordon doesn’t make English food. He’s an international chef (cause he knows he wouldn’t get a career with fish&chips and meat pies lol)
Your right.
French: *Has the world's best Cuisine.*
British: "want some fish and chips?"
@@emiliak2597 Yea + i think he is good chef probably, but he isnt anything else than a Chef that made his TV show. Its the TV that makes him look like god chef
The people who disliked this video are the people who couldn’t get a table at this fake restaurant. They were still salty about it.
Salty kkkkkk
Yes, and if this were real, wouldn't people upset they couldn't get a table post a bad review?
@@altarp7331 Lmao you're missing the point. He was talking about the dislike under this video, back when there was still a number under the dislike button.
I was 8 minutes in before I realized he told everyone he was fully booked and no one actually ever came😂
I_Potato omg same!
They did tho
Huh? People actually came though. He called people back
the whole thing is a metacommentary
the first time you watch it you kind of gloss over "8 of the 10 tables are going to be staffed with actors hamming it up" then you just film the fake phonecall scenes and you film the fake walking a couple actors blindfolded scenes and you're done
Snootches Bootches I think maybe they thought that some of the reviews were real
Is it "naughty " or is it a perfect representation of how we blindly believe creditless people/sites/ opinions all day everyday? I think it's brilliant and an eye opener to anyone calling this "naughty" as they are probably guilty of saud blind belief.
A restaurant that serves food out of irregular home dishes and creates this homely atmosphere would actually be great
THE MUSIC IS LITERALLY BACKGROUND NOISE FROM A RESTAURANT ---- BRILLIANT XDDDD
Winona Daphne i missed that 😂😂😂
Best bit of the whole video: "People don't trust their own senses over what they read online"
That's tough
I noticed this in the UK mostly. Why do brits love to listen to reviews so much?
I just texted a link to this video to my sister with that quote. It's terrifyingly true
Just saying , in India reviews work but we still like to see the place first, Out of curiosity we do often check the places we wanna go instead of reviews
@@BrialMusic s to iOS sss A’s
Comedians make us laugh; often without realising we are laughing at ourselves. That's clever and at it's best irreverent. This guy is a comedian.
When I first saw this video few years ago I thought who can get a prep meal in an actual restaurant and not notice and say that it's delicious. But then I visited London for few weeks and now I understand completely.
www.godsavethepoints.com/13-most-michelin-starred-cities-in-the-world/
Better up your budget next time.
isnt it amazing that there were no bad reviews from people that were annoyed the place is always fully booked...
Well you can't really be mad that you can't get a table. That's not a negative aspect of a restaurant. If anything, it just enforces a positive.
@@Moonwizard420 because the rating always are rational and wellthought
@@kowikowi465 I reckon you can just ask TripAdvisor to remove those negative reviews without a point.
@@emilychb6621 as long as u pay the greedy bastards
@@PoulJulle-wb9iu it's been known for a while that fake negative reviews appear on real places just so tripadvisor can notify you that they can remove it -for a fee-
Omg him on the roof at the table just killed me. This lad.
Can I interest you in half a popsicle?
UK:
US: on fo nem dat boy on the roof onna table had me dead. This nogga
Kevin Vivaldo you must not be from the USA.
@@chelcito787 si'...
R/madlad
Dislikes are from the people who didn't get a table.
I was literally on the edge of my seat. I kept expecting someone to call them out on it in front of everyone.
"FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT "
M. ian if you can't make it, fake it
FAKE IT TILL YOU BECOME IT
that's the lying cheating world we live in, it's a miracle when you find a completely honest person nowadays, just shows how easy it is to create fake reviews, Snopes will tell you the news article is fake, but what if Snopes is fake? You're gonna have to think for yourself when you shop on Amazon or look for a new place to eat, sadly.
Frank Beauchamp put nicely faking is a form of learning haha
LMFAO Yes, I saw totally seeking a method to justify why people scam others, haha I totally wanted all these people to get scammed when they called his burner fone a hundred times lol
i thought he was georgio peviani...
MIND BLOWN...O.O
Aditya Nugraha he can be everyone. Even you.
Blxck Syke
Maybe he can fake how he become the england president
If he do that I will blow my head off
He's a man when many names. You can considered him as a legend in all traits.
@@shentser01 nice save
Just goes to show how much people want to feel like they are "exclusive" and "In".
This is the guy who tricked the emperor to put on his new invisible clothes that he convinced everyone could not see if they were stupid.
best comment
Too comment
I was on the sidelines when it happened
@@oemahkucing7876 in your opinion
what
The irony is - at that point, couldn't you have ACTUALLY just made "The Shed" into a real restaurant and made a load of money. You were #1!
Caleb Fuller LMAO I would have like why not?
he's like to brag about being the prankster.
I would have made it a restaurant and give the owner of the house a percentage of the profits.
Yeah it goes to show he's really just focused on the content. While in his profession that's admirable.. For me, I'd 100% monetize the shit out of this opportunity and wouldn't look back. Even if you were to only get a year's worth of business, with a buzz factor demand this huge he could have sold tasting menus for $200 a head, with 20 tables, 4 seats a table... That's $5.8m gross.. lol, and his lease for the "restaurant" was £800/month.
Its a fraud to do that
Every minute this video was running, my mind was thinking "This is going way too far!" 😂
lmao when she served the food and then say “namaste”😭😭
“Hello”
Namaste is used to say hello and goodbye
@@ivorenesmith9003 not really for goodbye.
"There was DJ Sambience, who literally played sounds of a restaurant" I had to pause the video because I was laughing so hard
the fact he pulled this off is beyond impressive
This is insane! So much work and effort, i love it!
Still better than fyre festival
And cleaner than AnimalFurrest
and way cleaner than Rainfurrest
BEST COMMENT EVER.
And it’s better than Woodstock 99
internet historian???
Why does he keep hats outside in a storage bin? 🤣
Asking the real questions
You don't?
its a British thing
Ah good reminder. I'm going to arrange my hats in my Outside Hat Bin (OHB), by season today.
Don't know, but I have so many hats that this is what I need to do.
i know im three years late to this but 4/6 groups tried to rebook after you served them hot and ready meals? fucking brilliant
Seriously?
@@shirogami4224 lmao yeah? it’s hilarious. It’s seriously so funny to see how influential and silly humans are.
This could be a legitimate business ngl. There's one similar like this in Malaysia where a plethora of scrumptious food is aesthetically placed on a long wooden table in the middle of the sightful paddy field. The business is doing phenomenal considering there's no competition. Even famous celebrities and the Apple team has been there.
Interesting, may I know more on this please? Is there an article on it? Or some keywords to Google more on this?
What is it called?
@@artwithsoli5450 Plank in a Field.
omg playing music of people casually talking to bring up the atmosphere i’m fucking crying that’s such a good idea
That DJ mixed some good stuff :'D
And to cover up the beeping noise of the microwave
Real restaurants do that all the time. It's been shown that having a nice atmosphere that sounds social and full of people actually makes humans hungrier, willing to eat more and willing to stay for longer. And if there's loud music that's fast and upbeat, it makes humans eat way more than intended. This guy certainly did his research.
Having beers on the roof sounds sounds like a great idea.
xWood4000 xD
Especially with the only way down being a loose ladder
You should watch workaholics
I mean, i'd bring a hookah up there and were set for the night mate
We have that in The Netherlands in Rotterdam. It's called the rooftop. Just a bar/restaurant on top of a skyscraper.
Emile Grinwis You mean a rooftop terrasse? It's not anything rare, pretty sure every city has tons of them
They basically did this on an episode of an old American show called Mission Hill. They made a club but never let anyone on and it became the most popular club in town but it wasn’t even real.
"Soup out of a mug. Sort of a wartime classic."
This is the #1 video on youtube, it took me 4 months to book a viewing of it.
S Y too hilarious! I’m lying in bed with my earphones in and just woke my husband up snorting with laughter....
And then you had to watch it with cloth over your eyes.
Would you like to watch it again?
I can't stop laughing! He easily could have been someone who kidnapped everyone. "Meet me at the intersection and we will be there."."Put these blindfolds on and walk with me.". If a restaurant said that to me I would laugh and leave. This is amazing!
He couldve been on one of your stories
urmaker then he'd just edit your part out lol
camera's tho
People trusted him cause the TripAdvisor convinced them so much
Humans have a real curiosity for what's unknown. Plus hipsters can't stay away from shit like this. lol
I love that the second these kind of people hear about or see something they can't have they'll do anything to get it. Brilliant piece of prank satire
What he’s doing is actually ART! Lol
This guy has just opened all kinds of employment opportunities. Major marketing talent.
No need of MBA in marketing when you are PhD in faking.
lol
Isn't marketing truly the art of faking?
"This is the longest I've ever held someone's hand" XD This guy has no limit! I would chill with a cup a soup in his backyard anytime, so funny and down to earth.
That made me so happy to see those chickens. I always brought my pet chicken to restaurant with me, and it was a huge hit! Travis loves his birds and I liked seeing that in your video. Also when I reviewed on Trip Advisor, the manager would ask me " are you bringing a chicken with you tonight?" And I became the top reviewer for a little while here.
Imagine the face of the owner of the second best restaurant in London when he found out. Ladies and gentleman, the king of all trolls. Bravo
Imagine if Oobah put actual effort into something that actually existed. He would be richer than Jeff Bezos.
If he used the same methods he'd just get arrested for fraud...
Hi👋
@@nomadequipment2177
Namaste 🙏
but he did put a ton of effort into this
@@Urza9814 If he put his effort into something real it wouldn't be fraud. Keyword: REAL.
Priceless. This is gold.
This man has finessed the art of bullshitting to perfection. I absolutely respect that with all my soul
I respect the people who didn’t blur their face. Cause you know that they had to get their permission and they said yes. That they’re okay with saying “I was duped, I’m not afraid to say that I was one of those that was duped.”
I thought they were actors..
bal laurina yeah cause he did say they've got a couple of people pretending to say how good their food is and all 😂
Or maybe some people are shy I can feel for them lol
Jesus Castaneda true too.
Maybe they're actors too, and the blurring is only to make it seem like they were regular people.
I expected nothing when I clicked, but this is the best thing I've watched this month.
legit how i felt at the end
you took the words out of my mouth. I was so ready to click out of it in the first 30 seconds, yet here I am 18 minutes later
So it's the best thing you watched all year?
Thank you for creating this content, gratitude!
I think the real amazing thing here is the fact that this man kept a straight face through the whole night!
The worst thing about it all is that I’d still eat there.
100% same.
下佐粉ケイ That's the point. Its a good joke that people actually want to be real.
You’re Chinese ofcourse you would.
Craving a cup of soup now....
Hollyweed their name is japanese.
I was laughing out loud throughout! Probably the best documentary Vice has done in a long time!
Oobah Butler is a genius, I recommend reading his other article's on www.vice.com/en_uk/contributor/oobah-butler. Especially the one about Paris fashion week..
Ahhh good shout mate, thank you. Gonna take a look now
It's up there!
Yeah its nice too just watch a classic unbiased documentary with no political agenda from vice
OP! Film And Photography OMG me too! 🤣🤣🤣
My anxiety cant handle this. but it's flipping amazing!!!
I love these series of you Ellen!
It’s different then being in the studio.
This does just prove how easily you can manipulate people into thinking "this is really good".
I guarentee there are plenty of restaurants with fake reviews just to get people interested in trying it out, even if the food is horrible.
Or really bad...
Yeah but this entire video could be fake as well
@@lillvesp So true
Epic.
This was meant to teach people Humility
and Anti-Scam-Skills, yeah?
Nice!
Humility is Key!
Honestly, I don't even see this as a hoax. He had a genius marketing idea that would've made a GREAT restaurant. I'd love to go to a restaurant with a concept like that. I feel like that was a major part of the success, and that the reviews just helped it get noticed. I think if he did the same thing with a basic run-of-the-mill restaurant, it wouldn't have been nearly as successful. Still a very fascinating social experiment. He should hire real chefs and open a real restaurant with that concept.
monkiram Ikr
wouldnt really make a big deal since when you open a restaurant there is bound to be a negative review regardless of good food.
monkiram I agree, if he had kept it alive and charged people for the food, he could've had an extremely successful business on his hands, one ACTUALLY worthy of being trip advisors #1 restaurant
Mate, he was giving them microwave meals LOL
this dude has single handedly made vice documentaries good again
07:40. his reaction after skyping with the pr agency is exactly my reaction whenever I have to deal with those guys
This guy is an almost godlike level of troll
The DJ is the bet part for me.... "I dont want to look stupid"
This is the most hilarious Vice video I’ve ever seen!!! And what a spoof on restaurant reviews!! Way to go!!
This is the best social commentary I've seen in awhile lol
I live in town that has a huge forest next to it. There is a family with a house in the forest and on weekends they open it up as a café. You sit in their garden and they make all their food and drink themselves, but it is really good and they get great reviews. It seems so homely and raw and I think that that is the effect it had in the people who went to this restaurant.
ConstantlyLaggingBehind-//://- wait, do they have permits? Cause if they're charging people, wouldn't they need it to serve food?
I had to pause and start laughing for a minute or so when he showed his foot as the ham hock.
Single most brilliant and impressive videos I’ve seen in my life. Period.
"Quite particular to you guys tonight, emm.. Namastay"
I burst out laughing 🤣🤣
"Soup out of mug, it's like a wartime classic" I cracked hard here🤣
This man is oddly realistic and his content is completely raw. I think Oobah is possibly the best person at vice so far. Everything that he does feels not processed by a major corporation but more like hes having a joke.
Best since Gavin McInnes
between Oobah and Hamilton, they are keeping the lights on.
He's just a professional scam artist luv. If he were making a wee bit more cash he'd be arrested. Apply this to material objects and you've got jail time involved. Think things thru
@@SuperLarrythompson pressed and for what
Ok relax. No one surpasses Hamilton
I had a lot of favorite moments throughout this, but I really love the DJ slowly bobbing his head at 14:43 to the soundtrack.
This is just extremely inspiring to me. I watch it a few times a year just to amp up and pursue my business dreams
I lost it at the restaurant dj 😂😂😭
Nini N. 😂😂😂
excuse me, he has a name and it is *dj sambiance*
"It felt like, something I had when I was a kid?" Lmao, well he isn't wrong
I really want to like this comment, but I just can't ruin it
My sides,the guys dinning at the roof being handled some beers,"namaste" to other guests,all of them saying its a great restaurant,thats hilarious
That guy is sth else
Really sad to hear about VICE's recent bankruptcy. Your videos are top notch, you go so much further than anyone else. Wishing you luck
"we could send them potted plants"
ggreyshade v
hahahahaha. he totally had the "how did i not think of that" smile. was so perfect.
ggreyshade that was a brilliant line.