editorial Policy

Independence & Transparency

Black Guide is an independent restaurant guide and food magazine featuring restaurant reviews, independent restaurant criticism, chef interviews, food news, and travel stories from Warsaw, Poland, and beyond, with curated recommendations from around the world. Below you'll find more information about Black Guide's editorial policy and the different sections published by the magazine.

Editorial Policy

Black Guide follows a clear editorial policy and a consistent editorial style. We do not alter texts at the request of restaurant owners, approve articles before publication, or submit them for review or sign-off.If a review, article, or news story contains a factual error, we will correct it. Everything else remains exactly as originally published.

Reviews

All articles published under the Review category are based on anonymous visits. Meals are always paid for and never exchanged for coverage. Reviews are never published solely on the basis of invitations or press events. The editorial team and contributors of Black Guide are entirely independent in expressing their opinions. Restaurants are selected exclusively on the editorial team's own initiative. Priority is given to new openings, as well as places that are likely to be genuinely interesting both to the editorial team and to our readers.

Rankings & Guides

Reviews, round-ups, rankings, and curated lists reflect the editorial team's own opinion and experience.It is impossible to pay for inclusion in any review, ranking, or list published by Black Guide.

News & Announcements

Restaurant news is always presented in a neutral tone. Its primary purpose is to report on developments within the restaurant industry. We do not publish press releases or submit news stories for approval to restaurant representatives. However, we reserve the right to use media materials provided by restaurants or to request information directly from their representatives when preparing news coverage. Black Guide publishes announcements only for gastronomic events that we believe are genuinely interesting to both the editorial team and our readers. Press releases, photographs, and event announcements can be sent to blackguide.warsaw@gmail.com.

Contributors

Black Guide regularly collaborates with writers and professionals from across the hospitality industry. Opinion columns written by guest contributors may not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial team and should be understood as the personal opinions of their authors — opinions that we nevertheless respect.

Advertising

Advertising on Black Guide is possible, but it remains entirely separate from the editorial policy and is limited to clearly defined formats.

Partner Publication

A clearly labelled sponsored article written by a Black Guide author according to the publication's editorial standards, but initiated by a restaurant. Following a partner publication, Black Guide will not publish restaurant criticism of that establishment due to a conflict of interest.

Sponsored Column

A regular editorial feature published with the support of a commercial partner. The sponsor cannot be a restaurant or a business directly connected to restaurants, but may be a brand interested in increasing its visibility within the hospitality market. For example, the Where Chefs Eat series may be supported by a payment card provider, a Champagne house, or a caviar producer, but never by a specific restaurant.

Special Project

A one-off custom publication or a series of publications created specifically for a restaurant or brand.All terms are agreed individually. Following a special project, Black Guide will not publish restaurant criticism of that establishment due to a conflict of interest.

Choosing Our Partners

Black Guide is highly selective when choosing advertising partners and reserves the right to decline collaborations with restaurants or brands whose values do not align with those of the editorial team.