Comparison

Culinary Backstreets vs Eater

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Curated local food reviews
  • Integrated maps for easy navigation
  • Offline content access
  • Vivid food and people photography
  • Content from global food correspondents
Features
Read full description

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

About

Eater

Discover top restaurant and bar recommendations curated by expert editors. Find new places in any city, get personalized suggestions, and easily make reservations. Never have a bad meal again with trusted insider picks.

Highlights
  • Editor-curated restaurant picks
  • Personalized recommendations
  • Insider community connection
  • Smart search functionality
  • Create and share custom lists
  • Direct table reservations
Read full description

The Eater app is the most trusted way to find great restaurants. Our editors have spent years eating at the best restaurants and bars so you always know where to go next. Get instant access to all of Eater’s restaurant picks in every major city, whether you're exploring a new neighborhood, planning a trip, or need a quick rec on the go. With the Eater app, you’ll never have a bad meal. What you’ll love about the Eater app: - Curated by editors: Trusted recommendations and reviews from people who know restaurants - Insider to insider: Follow and connect with editors, chefs, and friends, and be part of the Eater community - Ask anything: Smarter search that finds the places you actually want - Recommended for you: Eater’s take on restaurants near you and wherever you travel - Create and share: Browse Eater lists, make your own, and share your favorite spots with friends - Browse to book: Reserve tables directly in the Eater app so you’re one step closer to a great meal With the Eater app, the next great place to eat or drink is in the palm of your hand, no matter where the day (or night) takes you. Download the Eater app to find your next great meal.

Screenshots

Culinary Backstreets4 screens
Eater4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Eater at 4.1 against Culinary Backstreets's 2.6. Eater also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 7) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). Culinary Backstreets's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (68% vs 42%). On price, monetization model and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Culinary Backstreets sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. Eater asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Eater holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 2.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Eater has 60 ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 68% of Culinary Backstreets's written reviews are positive against 42% of Eater's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Culinary Backstreets ships an update every 2 months, Eater weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Culinary Backstreets versus Eater: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCulinary BackstreetsEater
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.6 (12 ratings)4.1 (60 ratings) — better
Positive reviews67.7% of reviews — better41.6% of reviews
Number of ratings1260 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS8.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB154 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperCulinary BackstreetsVox Media, Inc.

Customer experience

Culinary Backstreets

All ratings12 ratings
Positive41.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative58.3%
Written reviews31 reviews
Positive67.7%
Neutral3.2%
Negative29.0%

Eater

All ratings60 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral3.3%
Negative21.7%
Written reviews89 reviews
Positive41.6%
Neutral7.9%
Negative50.6%

Bugs and requests

Culinary Backstreets

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Eater

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Search and account icons smushed on main map page
  • Location settings get stuck after disabling tracking

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add filters and sorting for map/list view
  • Allow sharing of restaurant lists
  • Improve font size and layout on map view

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Culinary Backstreets

One-time7
  • IstanbulFree
  • RioFree
  • Istanbul$3.99
Show 4 more
  • Athens$3.99
  • Barcelona$3.99
  • Shanghai$3.99
  • Mexico$3.99
None

Eater

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Culinary Backstreets free?
Culinary Backstreets is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Eater free?
Eater is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Culinary Backstreets or Eater?
Eater is rated higher. Culinary Backstreets averages 2.6 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while Eater averages 4.1 from 60 ratings.
Do Culinary Backstreets or Eater have ads?
Eater shows ads; Culinary Backstreets does not.
Which is updated more often, Culinary Backstreets or Eater?
Culinary Backstreets ships an update every 2 months, and Eater weekly. Most recently, Culinary Backstreets was updated on October 6, 2026 and Eater on October 9, 2026.

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