Culinary Backstreets vs TableCheck
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Culinary Backstreets
Discover authentic local eateries in major food cities worldwide. This app provides curated reviews and integrated maps to help you find hidden culinary gems beyond typical tourist spots. Explore unique regional cuisines and enjoy offline access to content.
- Curated local food reviews
- Integrated maps for easy navigation
- Offline content access
- Vivid food and people photography
- Content from global food correspondents
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Download the application for free and purchase each city volume of reviews for only $3.99 each, with a lifetime of free updates! The definitive guide to eating locally and authentically in several of the world’s greatest food cities, including Istanbul, Athens, Barcelona, Shanghai, Rio de Janeiro and Mexico City – with more to come! Each city volume within the application is purchased separately for $3.99 with free updates to the database forever. Beyond the kebab, souvlaki, tapas, soup dumpling, feijoada or taco – and what you will find listed in most guidebooks for these cities – lies a wide range of unique regional cuisines and restaurants with hints of cooking from all around. Most of these spots, though, are found far off the eaten track. With Culinary Backstreets as your trusty guide, you will know what to eat and where to eat it. Application features: -Content provided by Culinarybackstreets.com, the online global guide to local eats. -The absolute best of Culinary Backstreets’ local correspondents’ eating experiences: hundreds of opinionated reviews of local and authentic restaurants, street food carts, bakeries, dessert shops and more. -Search functions and integrated maps that make finding the perfect meal easy. -Vivid photos of food and the people who make it. -Content always available in off-line mode. About Culinary Backstreets: Partnering up with some of the most knowledgeable and passionate food writers and bloggers across the globe, Culinarybackstreets.com is a hotline for the hungry traveler, bedside reading for the foodie voyeur, and a heavily bookmarked index for those who live among the culinary backstreets featured in our pages. Dispatching from Istanbul, Athens, Shanghai, Barcelona, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and Tbilisi (with more cities on the way), Culinarybackstreets.com is a community of readers and writers who follow their stomachs to the next destination. Praise for Culinary Backstreets’ Istanbul app: “Finally, a guide that truly shows you how to eat like a local in Istanbul!” -Anya Von Bremzen, contributing editor at Travel+Leisure, author of “The New Spanish Table” “…. The insiders guide to the back streets, hidden gems and tasty bites in the glorious old city on the Bosphorus. I love it.” Richard Engel, Chief Foreign Correspondent, NBC NEWS “Affectionate, funny and delicious. A must-have road map to the tastiest secrets in this beautiful city. I never leave home without it.” -Ivan Watson, International Foreign Correspondent, CNN “The brains (and stomachs) ….you want guiding you through the vast culinary treasures of one of the world's most interesting eating cities.” -Seth Kugel, Frugal Traveler, New York Times “Brilliant insider guide to the best eats in Istanbul.” -The Guardian
TableCheck
Discover and book tables at restaurants in Japan and Singapore. Find renowned hotspots, izakayas, or hidden gems with easy filtering by cuisine, budget, and location. Save favorites and access exclusive offers like Fast Pass.
- Discover curated restaurants
- Filter by cuisine, budget, location
- Real-time reservation availability
- Save favorite restaurants
- Exclusive offers and Fast Pass
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Dive into the world of dining in Japan and Singapore with Tablecheck. Whether you’re seeking famous restaurants, cozy izakayas, or hidden culinary gems, Create amazing Dining Experiences: ◆ Discover curated restaurants: From renowned hotspots to lesser-known treasures ◆ Effortless exploration: Filter by cuisine, budget, location. In your own language. ◆ Hassle-free reservations: Check real-time availability now, next, or at a specific period. ◆ Personalised lists: Save your favourites and keep track of your top picks Exclusive offers: Skip the queue at some venues with Fast Pass, book dining experiences only available on Tablecheck
Screenshots
Verdict
Culinary Backstreets and TableCheck both sit at 2.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 68% of Culinary Backstreets's written reviews are positive against 16% of TableCheck's. Culinary Backstreets also leads on iOS requirement (8.0 vs 11.0). TableCheck's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 7). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Culinary Backstreets sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. TableCheck asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 2.6 for Culinary Backstreets against 2.5 for TableCheck. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 8 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 68% of Culinary Backstreets's written reviews are positive against 16% of TableCheck's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Culinary Backstreets | TableCheck |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.6 (12 ratings) — better | 2.5 (8 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 67.7% of reviews — better | 16.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 12 — better | 8 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 11.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Culinary Backstreets | TableCheck Inc. |
Customer experience
Culinary Backstreets
TableCheck
In-app purchases
Culinary Backstreets
- IstanbulFree
- RioFree
- Istanbul$3.99
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- Athens$3.99
- Barcelona$3.99
- Shanghai$3.99
- Mexico$3.99
TableCheck
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Culinary Backstreets free?
Is TableCheck free?
Which has better reviews, Culinary Backstreets or TableCheck?
Do Culinary Backstreets or TableCheck have ads?
Which is updated more often, Culinary Backstreets or TableCheck?
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