High-Level Overview
The Infatuation is a New York-based restaurant discovery platform that provides reviews, guides, and recommendations via website, apps, newsletters, SMS (Text Rex), and events like EEEEEATSCON.[2][4] It serves urban food enthusiasts in over 30 cities including New York, Los Angeles, London, and Chicago, solving the problem of finding reliable restaurant options without bias by delivering honest, situation-specific advice.[1][2][4] With 51-200 employees, $10-50M revenue, and $30M+ in funding, it has scaled through acquisitions like Zagat (2018) and pivoted to marketplaces like Outpost during the pandemic, now owned by JPMorgan Chase since 2021.[1][2][5]
Origin Story
Founded in 2009 as Immaculate Infatuation by former music industry executives Chris Stang and Andrew Steinthal, The Infatuation started as a blog offering unbiased restaurant reviews—they visited anonymously without invitations.[2][5] The duo quit their jobs after five years of side-project success, shortening the name and going full-time from a Chinatown apartment, hitting over a million monthly pageviews by 2016 when they hired key talent like CTO Buck Heroux.[5] Pivotal moments include launching the #EEEEEATS hashtag, Android/iPhone apps, Text Rex SMS service, and EEEEEATSCON festival in 2017; acquiring Zagat from Google in 2018; raising $30M from WndrCo (Jeffrey Katzenberg-backed) that year; and JPMorgan Chase acquisition in 2021.[2][5]
Core Differentiators
- Unbiased, User-Centric Recommendations: Delivers honest reviews without restaurant notifications, tailored to scenarios via Text Rex SMS, apps, and guides—evergreen content powers personalized utility.[2][4][5]
- Multi-Channel Ecosystem: Combines website, apps, newsletters, social, and SMS with tech stack like Mixpanel, Taboola for data-driven engagement; Text Rex repurposed for drinks advice.[1][4][6]
- Events and Marketplace Innovation: Hosts EEEEEATSCON festivals with partners like MLB and Chase; launched Outpost marketplace in pandemic for exclusives like brunches ($50) to truffle feasts ($5K+), taking ~8% cut.[1][6]
- Acquired Assets and Scale: Zagat integration bolsters credibility; operates in 30+ cities with branded content and partnerships targeting upscale audiences.[2][4]
Role in the Broader Tech Landscape
The Infatuation rides the restaurant tech wave, blending media, AI-adjacent discovery (via data platforms), and experiential commerce amid rising demand for curated dining in urban markets.[1][3] Timing aligns with post-pandemic shifts: delivery booms, virtual experiences, and marketplaces filling gaps when indoor dining halted, positioning it against competitors like Boam or Choco in restaurant data/tools.[3][6] Market forces like urban food culture, sponsorships (e.g., MLB, Chase), and $30M funding fuel expansion into events/content monetization, influencing the ecosystem by elevating unbiased discovery and hybrid models for food publishers.[1][2]
Quick Take & Future Outlook
With JPMorgan Chase ownership, The Infatuation is primed to deepen tech integrations like AI recommendations atop its Zagat-enriched data, expanding Outpost marketplaces and EEEEEATSCON globally.[2][6] Trends like personalized food tech, event-hybrid revenue, and urban audience targeting will shape growth, potentially evolving influence through B2B tools for restaurants/brands amid ad challenges.[1][3][6] As the go-to "restaurant decider," it ties back to solving dining indecision at scale, blending content utility with commerce in a fragmented food ecosystem.[4]
