You don’t need an excuse to explore blindly. I agree that you no longer have one, but I think that is simply a fact of the modern world that requires adaptation. We have to be more honest with ourselves about why we explore.
Also, believe it or not, maps or apps lie. Just two days ago, I passed by a CVS that was listed as still open on google maps whereas it had already been closed.
On the exploration aspect, I'm really amazed that people really trust online reviews when restaurants clearly try to mess with the process or angry customers try to tank places they've had one-off bad experiences with. I take reviews as just another piece of information, just like word-of-mouth or paper reviews were before.
I really don't get that attitude, and this might sound a little harsh, but if GP is really the stereotypical "epicurean" type who wants to experience the world, they should already know online reviews aren't gospel and can be incorrect. I don't know how one couldn't know that unless there is some other reason for not exploring places and such even when google tells you this place is 4 stars while this place is 3.
Restaurant ratings are also a poor signal precisely because they're all relative to the restaurant type.
You can't honestly say a 4.9 star McDonald's is better than a Michelin star restaurant with a rating of 4.8, but it could (and probably does) happen.
In my city, ratings for Chinese restaurants almost inversely correlate with quality. The real quality Chinese restaurants have amazing food but absolutely shite service, and it's that terrible (yet oddly authentic) service that brings down their score.
Meanwhile the Manchu Wok (sort of like a PF Chang's maybe?) next door gets a higher rating.
Agreed 100%. Something I enjoyed doing a lot during the height of the pandemic was getting in my car and simply driving around, looking specifically for places I haven't been before. I'd drive up and down mountain roads, through small towns I'd passed through before but never paid attention to, and then when I was eventually unavoidably hopelessly lost, I'd pull out my phone and Waze my way back home.
For me, having that power to find my way home no matter how lost I'd get gave me the freedom to get out and explore.
