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Purpose Online reviews have become a key source of data concerning customer experience for restaurants and are relevant for a business’s competitiveness and positioning. The present study analyzes users’ perceptions of the restaurants featured on the Catalan television show Joc de Cartes, broadcast by TV3, by examining both user-generated content (Google reviews) and brand-generated content (Instagram posts and comments). Design/methodology/approach The dataset includes over 24,000 reviews and 5,900 social media comments from 909 official posts. We use a mixed-methods approach that combines qualitative and quantitative analyses of sentiment and emotion, powered by large language models, to evaluate how viewers respond to different aspects of the dining experience, food, service, atmosphere and price, both before and after each episode. Findings Results show a general predominance of positive sentiment, but also a notable spike in negative emotions after episodes air, particularly in user comments. Posts with negative sentiment, although rare, tend to generate the highest engagement. These findings suggest that television exposure influences restaurant reputation but must be complemented by active digital communication strategies. Practical implications The findings highlight the need for restaurants to adopt proactive digital communication and active social media monitoring. For broadcasters, maintaining consistent online content and using emotionally engaging formats is key to sustaining audience interaction and protecting brand reputation. Originality/value The study offers practical insights for restaurants and broadcasters on managing online reputation and audience engagement.
Noguer-Juncà et al. (Mon,) studied this question.