Tabelog is particularly good for pictures and understanding the place before you go. It has a weakness in that many places tend to be reviewed by lopsided demographics. That said, as a tool it is quite useful. Chowhound is good for the FT about Food sort of crowd. To be honest, I am finding Facebook quite useful now too as people tend to link to places they like and then I can see their dining reports on their pages.
thanks. I was active on egullet before it cratered and did not know people still used CH. Yes, tablelog worked well on my last trip to find something in a pinch.