ctownflyer

Same thing every restaurant reviewer does. Sample and review.

Adam1222

Actually, most restaurant reviewers don't do that. Since they want to preserve anonymity, they don't order more than what one person would reasonably eat. They will make a few visits and do not taste everything on the menu.

cruisr

He needs to make sure that all his mentions of his "free" travel includes the 7k he paid for the Residence and all the flights ex CAI and CMB and others that he paid cold hard cash for. That should not be glossed over in the swirl of "Just eat out a lot and you too can do this".

I would love to see a breakdown of his 1m miles he redeems and a what levels. Easy enough if you pay for anytime awards for two people but that's not the impression that is given. There's a sucker born every minute and I think Lucky will benefit in clicks and links for those that don't have a clue on how the M & P game is played now.

jspira

Ruth Reichl was able to maintain her anonymity thanks to her wigs and disguises. Many restaurant critics' actual pictures are posted in the kitchens of better restaurants and, even if not recognized the first or second visit, they are outed by the third in many cases.

Most restaurant reviewers that i know (and this includes several for the Times and other major publications) take one or two dining companions with them, making several visits. They share (not uncommon today versus 15-20 years ago) and pass plates around. They also photograph what they are eating (again, not uncommon but something I felt would out me when I would have my restaurant critic hat on even five or six years ago).

Neither is a restaurant critic although I'm not sure if you intended to imply that based on what you previously referred to or not.

char777

So much of this is silly. Ben and Ford are people. I actually ran into them a few weeks ago — shockingly not at a hotel or airport, and perhaps to the surprise of some on here, they were both working. I would have said hi but I didn't really want to startle them in a busy place and I was in a hurry anyway. They are a cute couple.

For regular readers of his site (which is seemingly everyone in this thread, whether you want to admit it or not), you'd be able to see that I don't think Ben really pretends anymore that he supports his entire life on miles. He no longer really mentions in detail how he redeems miles for certain flights, or if he specifically even redeems miles at all for the flights he reviews. In the last few months, it has transitioned from a miles and points blog to more of one that reviews luxury travel products while also writing up every little development in the airline industry. I suppose that also makes sense seeing as most of the MS games have dried up, and most of the FFPs have gone revenue based.

But if a Bravo producer wants to give him a mini web show on the preconceived notion that he still supports himself through miles, well, I can't really blame him for wanting to make a quick buck that way. I also think it's no surprise that airline geeks are, well, introverted geeks. Speaking as a former local TV news producer, most of the ones they use for sound on the news from time to time aren't very telegenic, except for perhaps Richard Quest.

There are some OMAAT pressure points that are worthy of criticism, and I've certainly been critical of OMAAT before too. But if you take it at face value knowing that it's a site about the lifestyle of a somewhat bizarre individual and not a how-to on gaming the miles system, I think you'll be able to sleep better at night. If you get worked up about Lucky so much so that you post on here several times a day or start inserting uncalled for statements onto a newly-created Wiki page for him, well, maybe it's time to get angry about some of the far more pressing issues in the world right now.

AAExecPlatFlier

In 2nd trailer -- the one with Ford, he kind of has the attitude/tone that he (Ford) is about over Ben :-)

LeaveYourDailyHell

One thing that strikes me, watching these videos, is the disconnect between Ben's behavior and his appearance. While his "insights" and manner of speaking suggest someone much younger than he is, he dresses and grooms himself like someone close to 40. It's puzzling.

JetAway

I sensed that too.But he may only be tired from the travel they just completed.

gpeso8

I thought the videos would be longer unless I'm missing something. I wish he would take those headphones out of his ears.

hunterjumperguy

Random thoughts from watching the promos...

-he looks better in these two videos than I would have expected, given some of the less-than-flattering photos he has shared

-Ford did not sound at all like I expected... I thought flowers were going to fall out of his mouth. (I'm gay, so put the torches and pitchforks away)

-I think it's pretty disingenuous to say he travels "almost exclusively" on points/miles...his own blog posts over the past year or so say otherwise, but he's been either disingenuous (or maybe just lazy) on his blog plenty of times before

-while listening to Ford, it made me think of Madonna's "Truth or Dare" documentary, when Warren Beatty talks about her not doing nything if she can't do it on camera

hunterjumperguy

No actor enjoys the role of merely providing exposition!

jspira

I thought the phrase was "pocketbooks ". Never heard "flowers".

somewhere a publicist is saying that Ford had been compared to Madonna.

GUWonder

Displaying/covering more food & beverage options -- even those not of interest for digestion by one person doing the requesting/ordering of the items -- provides more food porn images for potential consumers of the blog products and/or the airlines' products.

Wasting food and drink in a world with way too many improperly-nourished people -- including way too many minors in the US -- isn't going to be resolved by trying to name and shame a miles and points blogger for doing what the blogger thinks is good for the blogger's business.

JetAway

The Residence flight was a mutually beneficial PR stunt for both Ben & the airline. The food, drinks and everything else were mere props to show off the Residence in the most glamorous and extravagent light. In that sense, nothing was "wasted."

JonNYC

Nicely put ^ ^