Dallas doesn’t seem to be done with TikTok star Keith Lee, and Lee says he’s not done with Dallas either.
The Las Vegas-based social media food critic, who’s garnered more than 15 million followers with reviews of restaurants around the country, has visited six North Texas food businesses since he arrived on Sunday as part of his national food tour, and he says there are more to come.
“Dallas, Texas has been crazy so far, and we’re not even done yet,” he said in a video posted Wednesday night. “We got more videos in the vault, and we got more places to go to.”
Lee’s presence has sent the local restaurant community into a frenzy, with businesses clamoring for his attention and others sitting on the sidelines, watching the ripple effects of his stardom.
The two sides of what’s known as the “Keith Lee Effect” are already clearly playing out in Dallas.
Two of the businesses he reviewed, Absolutely Edible Cakes and Catering and Halal Fusionz, are reaping the benefits of a glowing Lee review, although ghost kitchen concept Halal Fusionz has struggled to keep up with the sudden demand, leaving some customers walking away empty-handed.
But two other businesses are experiencing the flip side of Lee-induced internet fame. Thunderbird Pies in East Dallas, which Lee gave low marks in his review, received a wave of negative comments on Lee’s video that criticized its food and called it a poor representation of Dallas’ food scene.
Meanwhile, the chef and owner of Sweetly Seasoned, a Dallas food truck that Lee reviewed positively, is under fire for allegedly not distributing some of the $4,000 tip Lee supposedly left for Sweetly Seasoned as well as other nearby workers he met during his visit.
Hours after Lee posted his review of the food truck on Wednesday, the Instagram page for Sweetly Seasoned was already inundated with scathing comments like, “You’re finished here in Texas,” and “Don’t ever support her business.” Thursday morning the owner posted a video of herself responding to the criticism.
Lee hasn’t indicated how many more restaurants he will visit in North Texas, or how much longer he’ll be in town. He recently visited Houston, where he reviewed eight restaurants.
Here are the North Texas restaurants Lee has visited so far:
- Thunderbird Pies in East Dallas
- Terry Black’s in Deep Ellum
- Halal Fusionz in Farmers Branch
- Hutchins BBQ (locations in McKinney and Frisco)
- Absolutely Edible Cakes and Catering in Rowlett
- Sweetly Seasoned food truck