Have you had a meal recently that you loved or hated? Is there a movie you’ve seen that you think is criminally under- or overrated? What about a fashion trend making its way around your school that you can’t stand — or that you think more people should try?
Do you ever share opinions like these publicly? If you were to post your critiques online, do you think people, adults especially, would take them seriously? Should they?
In “A Shirley Temple Hates to See Him Coming,” Luke Fortney writes about Leo Kelly, an 11-year-old beverage critic who has the power to change restaurant menus with his reviews of Shirley Temples:
In 2022, the chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten was working in the kitchen of Happy Monkey, his restaurant in Greenwich, Conn., when an employee pulled him aside. A critic was coming in.
“I’m always nervous when someone tries my food,” Mr. Vongerichten said. But this time was different. The critic was 8 years old, and he planned to order an item that wasn’t on the menu: a Shirley Temple.
After perfecting arroz con pollo and sour cherry mole, Mr. Vongerichten admitted that America’s favorite mocktail had slipped through the cracks. “The Shirley Temple is not something I grew up with in France,” he said. “We were not prepared.”
Mr. Vongerichten and his team invented a Shirley Temple recipe at the eleventh hour using small-batch grenadine, homemade ginger syrup and Tajín seasoning. The critic awarded it a 9.3 rating.
This is the effect of Leo Kelly, now 11, who has been reviewing the drink for roughly half of his life as the “Shirley Temple King.” In short videos on Instagram, and occasionally on TV, he ranks Shirley Temples on a 10-point scale, considering factors like color, carbonation and the quality of the grenadine.
Mr. Fortney also includes examples of changes that restaurants have made after receiving a poor review from Leo. The article ends:
Tyler Hall, a marketing manager in Boston, learned about Leo the hard way earlier this year, when one of his company’s restaurants, Sonsie, was featured in a review. At first, he thought the video was sweet. As he watched, he realized it was a takedown.
Leo critiqued the color and complained about carbonation. He thought the grenadine tasted off and counted one and a half cherries — a first in his career. “3.1.”
The review rippled through the Lyons Group, which operates Sonsie and 15 other restaurants in the area. Shirley Temples at Sonsie are now made with canned ginger ale or Sprite instead of fountain soda to ensure proper carbonation. Its bartenders are working on a homemade grenadine.
“We want that feedback, and we want to respond to it,” Mr. Hall said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a kid or an adult.”
To Leo, that’s the fundamental purpose of the critical enterprise. “The reason for being a critic is to better whatever you are reviewing,” he said. “To better cinema, to better Shirley Temples, to better anything.”
Students, read the entire article and then tell us:
What do you think of Leo’s Shirley Temple reviews? Does it surprise you that these restaurants take his critiques so seriously?
Have you ever posted a review online, whether for a restaurant meal, a movie, a product or something else? Was your feedback positive or negative? What made you want to give it? Do you know how it was received?
Do you think the opinions of children and teenagers are usually taken as seriously by adults as Leo’s are? Should they be? Why or why not?
Would you like to be a critic? Is there something specific — like hamburgers, horror movies, sneakers or skin care — that you have strong opinions about? Would you ever consider posting them somewhere like Leo does with his Shirley Temple reviews? Why should people listen to you on that subject? What unique perspective do you have to offer?
According to Leo, “The reason for being a critic is to better whatever you are reviewing.” Do you agree? Have you benefited from reviews and criticism? Are there times when you didn’t think a reviewer’s goal was to improve something? How can you tell the difference between feedback that’s meant to be helpful and feedback that isn’t?
Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.
Find more Student Opinion questions here. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate these prompts into your classroom.
