22 Publications that Pay for Writing About Restaurants

Today, for our latest roundup of publishers, we have a list of 22 publications that publish writing about restaurants.

We’ve researched payment rates and found contact information for all of these publishers, to make it easy for you to connect with the right opportunity.

If you want to browse even more opportunities, be sure to check out our database of over 1,600 publishers that pay writers. It’s easily searchable, and includes thousands of listings just like the ones below.

If you’re new to freelancing, I also very much encourage you to take our course on pitching. You can get the details here.

So, without further ado, here’s today’s list…

1. Bon Appétit is a magazine that features recipes, cooking tips, reviews, and more. They are seeking “mid-to-long form reported articles that reflect the food world right now; profiles of fascinating, awesome people in food; hot takes on minuscule details like folding pizza; and personal essays with a strong angle.” They write about restaurants in a myriad of ways. According to their pitch guide, their standard rates begin at $250 for stories in the 400-word range. To pitch them, refer to this page.

1. Top of Las Vegas is “a locals-first guide to where Las Vegas actually eats.” They are looking for pitches about restaurants they haven’t added, restaurants they’ve ranked wrong, a dish nobody’s talking about, a neighborhood they’ve slept on, and story threads you want them to chase (or one you want to write yourself). They welcome tips from regulars, servers, chefs, journalists, and anyone who eats in the valley with their eyes open. According to their pitch guide, they offer flat rates of $250 to $600 for pitched guides and pay per word for reported features. To learn more, refer to this page.

1. Eat North celebrates the best of Canadian cuisine. They aim to “tell stories of the Canadian food scene and the people behind it.” They cover news, recipes, restaurants, drinks, kitchen hacks, and more. Pay rates are not mentioned. To contribute, refer to this page

1. edibleSeattle is a quarterly print and online regional food magazine covering the food scene in the Puget Sound region. They are largely freelance written and accept new stories between 300 and 1,500 words, and those include essays, poetry, and recipes about food, land, and life in Western Washington. According to their guidelines, pay is 30 cents per word, with max rates applicable per article, and $25 additional per recipe provided. They do not publish restaurant reviews. Instead, their focus is on getting behind the scenes. To learn more, refer to their submission guidelines.

1. Kitchen Work is a printed, quarterly journal about “what and how we eat and drink.” They accept submissions of up to 3,000 words on foods and wines themselves, cooking, markets, cookbooks, restaurants, personal gastronomic histories, lunch breaks, picnics, culinary educations, politics of food, food and physiology, personal profiles, hospitality, family traditions, and the best meals ever. According to their submissions page, writers get paid $0.20 per word.

1. The Kitchn is a daily web magazine that inspires cooks and nourishes homes through recipes, tips, shopping guides, and kitchen designs. They are looking for submissions for their “grocery diaries” column. The purpose of the column is to show the readers how people across the United States spend money on food, drinks, groceries, snacks, etc. throughout the week. Every diary entry highlights seven days of food — groceries, restaurants, drinks, and freebies — from someone who lives within a weekly food budget. According to their submissions page, they pay $150 per diary.

1. Pittsburgh City Paper is an alternative newspaper that covers news, restaurants, food, culture, arts, and entertainment in Pittsburgh. They publish reported pieces, profiles, essays, op-eds, etc. According to their pitch guide, rates range from $250 to $750.

1. Eater is a national publication that covers the world of food and drink, with particular emphasis on restaurants. They are looking for reported stories rather than personal narratives. They want “stories where food and restaurants intersect with, illuminate, or are illuminated by other subjects: business, technology, history, science, politics, society, activism, identity, the arts, pop culture, etc. Selected stories are paid competitive rates determined by the extent and nature of the work. According to an old payment report, they paid $0.43 per word. To learn more, refer to their pitching guidelines.