Eater is for people who care about where they eat. Through our extensive reporting on restaurants and bars, we believe food is culture, identity, and community — and where you eat matters. Our coverage is approachable and fun, but also discerning and skeptical. We lead with humor, taste, and integrity. Our expertise is our biggest strength, but we remain curious and connected to the culture we cover. Eater doesn’t just tell you what to care about — we tell you why.
We are actively seeking pitches from journalists, writers, academics, and other contributors of all backgrounds, especially those whose voices are often underrepresented in media. The hospitality and food industries are among the most dynamic and powerful lenses for storytelling, and we particularly enjoy hearing from writers whose interests, experiences, and areas of expertise originate outside of the food world.
All accepted stories go through a collaborative editorial process, and all are paid at competitive rates.
Across the board, we’re looking for pitches that give a clear, concise summary of the subject, angle, or thesis of the proposed piece, and your anticipated story structure.
We’re looking for pitches that contain answers, not questions. (Or, if you don’t have answers yet, an explanation of why you don’t — and the reason shouldn’t be “I haven’t started the reporting.”) Your pitch should also serve as an example of your writing style and tone. Please familiarize yourself with our archives to get a sense of the kind of stories we publish.
We are NOT looking for: cooking/food show recaps, stunt pieces, defenses of specific diet and wellness practices, linear travelogues, dining reviews, personal essays, or home cooking content.
All submissions should include a short explanation of who you are and why you’re qualified to cover this story, along with links to previously published pieces and/or your online portfolio. We appreciate all pitches and aim to respond to each one as soon as possible. Note that we do often receive pitches that are similar to each other or to our existing assignments. If we’re interested in your pitch, we’ll discuss rates, deadlines, scope, kill fees (if applicable), and other expectations with you up front. We’ll also discuss potential expenses, travel, or risks, and provide press credentials when necessary. All accepted stories are paid at competitive rates based on the scope and type of work. We do not accept pitches or work created with generative AI; more information about our AI policy can be found in the Eater ethics statement.
Trends and Reports: Eater assigns original, reported stories, which are usually assigned with a lead time of a few days to several weeks. Editors are particularly interested in trends as they pertain to restaurants and bars. These could be trends in menu, design, service format, and beyond, but ideally that pitch should identify at least three solid examples and offer a case for why or what it says about the way we dine right now. Beyond that, reports could include everything from food world curiosities to where food intersects with culture at large. We’re particularly interested in stories that center workers and underrepresented communities. Pitches should not only identify an interesting topic, but offer some case-making around its place in history or culture and a thesis or forward-thinking statement. Send pitches to editor@eater.com.
Travel: Eater Travel focuses on interesting ways in which food and culture intersect to provide insight and perspective on places, both domestically in the U.S. and around the world. The ideal story feels relevant and captivating to a broad audience of readers who have no personal plans to visit that destination. We’re most interested in pieces and perspectives from locals and natives, or people with a deep connection to the culture being covered; we’re generally not interested in parachute journalism, and especially not stories reported during one’s vacation. In general, travel pitches should conform to the above story guidelines for trends and reports. Send pitches to travel@eater.com.
Video: Eater accepts pitches for video content from freelance filmmakers and video producers with experience in storytelling and working in a collaborative environment. Ideal pitches contain strong storylines and deep insight backed by an authoritative food voice. We’re more likely to green light one-off/feature content that aligns with our existing series programming, as opposed to pitches for hosted/new series-based content. All videos should work across multiple platforms including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. To submit: Please send your video pitch along with links to previous work to production@eater.com.
Visuals: Eater works with freelance photographers, illustrators, and designers for much of our written work, including travel packages, reported packages, explainers, and features. We’re always trying to expand our roster of photographers and visual artists and are open to receiving portfolios for consideration for future projects. To submit: Please send links to your work to visuals@eater.com.
Regional Dining Team: Interested in writing an article or map for a specific Eater city? Here is where to send pitches for each of Eater’s city sites — we recommend clicking into each city pitch guide for specifics on what that local site is looking for.
If we decide to work with you, you’ll receive an agreement with key terms clearly defined, typically sent through our freelance management platform called Worksuite. Through the editing process, we believe clear, thoughtful communication is both our responsibility and yours. Freelancers are expected to follow both Eater’s statement of ethics and our Vox Media Values, which includes collaborating well and giving and receiving feedback respectfully. We also follow those standards: If you experience a problem working with us, we encourage you to discuss it with your editor or our legal team. We also offer a hotline for reporting concerns about conduct anonymously.
We provide edited drafts before publication, and commit to appropriately credit all contributors. After publication, we pay in a timely manner in accordance with your agreement (typically within 30 days via the Worksuite platform), including reimbursement for any agreed-upon expenses.
By submitting a pitch to Vox Media, you acknowledge that your pitch may be similar or identical to content submitted by others, or to materials developed by or on behalf of Vox Media and that it shall have the right to use such other content or materials without any obligation to you. Neither the submission of your pitch nor Vox Media’s review of it constitutes or creates an implied contract or other financial or confidential relationship between you and Vox Media. You shall have no right to compensation or reimbursement of any kind by Vox Media in connection with the submission of your pitch. If and when Vox Media elects to proceed and assign work to you based on your pitch, the terms of any such assignment shall be subject to a separate agreement between you and Vox Media. Vox Media has no obligation to review, keep, or return any materials you submit.
