Scrolling through TikTok, it’s easy to find food reviews covering places from Boston to Worcester, but senior Chris Sadek (Kito) decided to take it upon himself to spotlight restaurants in the Central Mass. area, creating a name for himself in the world of food reviews.
Kito, the creator behind the food review account @kitoreviews1, posted his first video on Oct. 16, reviewing The Purple Pig in Marlborough. What started as a casual idea quickly turned into a growing platform with some videos reaching over 13,000 views, highlighting local restaurants and bringing friends together through food.
“I have always been a foodie,” Kito said. “I have always loved food.”
While inspiration came from creators he admired, Kito said he noticed a gap in content closer to home.
“There are so many food creators from Worcester and Boston, but there are no Central Mass. area creators, so I thought, why don’t I just do it?” Kito said.
Encouragement from others helped push him to start, including senior Daniel Soliman who told him to stop waiting and just begin filming. Kito said his first steps were simple. He created the account, asked a few friends to follow it and then let it grow naturally.
“After the first day, I didn’t tell anyone to follow me. I just let it happen,” Kito said.
Some of his favorite videos came from reviewing places he had heard about for years but never tried, including Nan’s Kitchen in Southborough and La Miette La Mai in Northborough. When it comes to food itself, certain meals have stood out long after filming ended.
“I usually determine how good the food was based on how often I would think about the food after I eat it,” Kito said. “I think about the sandwich from the Donut Stand, and I think about the chicken sandwich from Nan’s a lot.”
From the beginning, Kito said he always planned on featuring guests in his videos, believing it made the content more engaging.
“It would be boring if it was me the entire time,” Kito said. “It’s a fun way to include my friends, and since I started with a guest, I wanted to keep it going like that.”
It’s easy for guests to hop along for a review due to Kito’s easy going personality.
“I think that Kito is a funny person, so I thought that a lot of people would enjoy watching him,” senior Niki Chacharone said. “It is such a cool thing to be a part of.”
Guests also help expand the account’s reach. Chacharone said reposting a video brought in viewers who otherwise wouldn’t have found the account.
“When I reposted the video I was in, all of my Shrewsbury friends liked it, even though they didn’t know Kito,” Chacharone said. “Each individual person brings in a wider audience and brings in people from outside of our school.”
As more people commit to college, Kito hopes to expand his food reviews to college cafeterias.
“Someone gave me the idea to go to the colleges that people have committed to and try their cafeteria [food] with them, [so that’s something that I want to try],” Kito said.
When choosing where to eat next, Kito relies on recommendations from followers and a running list in his notes app.
“I have a lot of places people have told me to try, places I’ve seen online and places I’ve known for a long time, but never tried,” Kito said.
Due to the positive experience that Kito has had, Chacharone encourages others to follow their dreams of becoming a creator.
“I think that if people are thinking about starting an account they should try and start it because I think Kito has had a really positive experience with it,” Chacharone said. “I also think that it is helping him build relationships, and has gotten close with people that he wouldn’t have talked to otherwise.”
Reflecting on the experience so far, Kito said he is grateful for the support his account has received and the community it has built.
“Sometimes I look back at the videos and realize we made a little community, a little family,” Kito said. “And don’t forget to like and follow @kitoreviews1.”
