New York City has been fighting hard to support small businesses from the start of the COVID-19 outbreak. Supporting local businesses is crucial now more than ever. But it can also be quite the tasty experience Here to show you the ropes is Alexa Matthews—a born and raised New Yorker, a professional eater, and the founder of Eating NYC.
Her food-focused brand covers restaurants, travel, fitness, and luxury lifestyle both locally and around the world. “I was a writer for a lifestyle website and I fell into food writing and immediately loved it,” relayed Matthews, explaining how she ended up being a “professional eater”.
“Eating NYC was a great outlet to compliment the restaurants I was writing about at work,” she writes. “At the time, food Instagram wasn’t such a huge thing – a lot has changed since then! I fell in love with the industry and got a bit more experience in restaurant and chef marketing and PR roles before making the exciting decision a year ago to go full-time with Eating NYC. And it’s been great!”
According to her online bio, Matthews has a background in hospitality with an expertise in social media and communications. It’s her unique position as both a hospitality professional and as an influencer that sets her apart, and her keen understanding of the industry has been essential to her success when working with brands across different sectors.
“My account is all about showing you the latest and greatest in New York – it’s my duty to be your loyal, trustworthy guide,” says Matthews. “A lot of my followers are young women in New York, and I’m posting my pictures through a young, female lens. Integrity is really important– I go to restaurants of interest because I want to keep my finger on the pulse, which often means paying for the food, and if I like it, I tell my followers about it.”
Listed as one of the top 30 people in food by AdWeek in 2016 and featured by CNNMoney, Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan and Zagat, amongst others, Matthews is your ideal food guide in NYC.
