"I don't like [the websites] at all. I think they exaggerate. There are some good reviews that [reflect] what happened, but other people are out there for the love of complaining. They get a thrill out of it."
Some customers outright lied in their posts, she said.
Online reviews of various Rotorua eateries include: "Long wait, horrible food," and, "Only dine here if you are eating alone, have heaps of spare time and if you're not fussy with your food."
One disgruntled customer described seeing "the most muntyiest staff member feeding its face to the point where there was so much food in its mouth that it was dropping down the corner of its mouth - trust me it wasn't a pretty site. The question arises: who is in charge of this motley crew??? (sic)"
Another posted: "Water was bought to the table along with the menus by a waitress whom was wearing a very short skirt (One you wouldn't bend over in) which i found highly disturbing as she only looked 14 and the apron was longer then the skirt! (sic)"
Restaurant Association NZ national president Mike Egan said online review sites had grown "hugely" in recent years.
But concerns around the legitimacy of some reviews was pushing people back to word of mouth as a more reliable source.
"There are so many fake reviews. I read a review the other day where someone claimed the [side dishes] were deep fried in butter. You actually can't deep fry in butter because you can't get it up to that temperature."
It was more helpful for both parties if a complaint was lodged at the time, so the restaurant experience could be put "right", Mr Egan said.
"You go to America and you go to a restaurant not to your liking ... you say, 'My steak's too well done', and you get it fixed.
"In New Zealand, we have a bad experience, don't say a single thing and then get home and anonymously post an online review."
There was a tendency by some to abuse the sites, so reviews should be taken with a grain of salt, he said. "If we were to become held hostage to all of the reviews and react every time ... you wouldn't know what to do."
The owner of Palmerston North cafe The Tomato, James Pettengill, caused a stir defending his establishment online recently. "Before you take your opportunity to soil our good name with your petty little contrived review, you may like to first look at our menu before you cook up your fake review ... Go jump in the lake!" he wrote to one customer's post.
Another response, in which he reviewed a "menopausal" customer, was similarly blistering.
"This customer's sense of entitlement may stem from a spoilt childhood where she was immediately provided with everything she demanded, now after years on her own in the real world she has morphed into a female Golem."
Mr Pettengill has been accused of lashing out unfairly at his customers, but argued he had a right to reply. Last year's American Express Dining Survey found more than a third of New Zealanders who used social media to rate their dining experience posted online within hours of the meal. The survey also found those who dined out the most were influenced the most by online restaurant reviews.