By Julia Hannafin, Berkeleyside
A new Yelp feature called Wordmap offers a window into the stereotypes of Berkeley neighborhoods. Wordmap shows heat maps that “(show) density of keywords used in Yelp reviews to reveal fascinating patterns of local discovery.” Users can choose from 14 major cities, which each have their own set of keywords. San Francisco’s Wordmap, explored in detail by Inside Scoop SF, has a range of keywords, from “hipster” to “noodles” to “bacon.”
In order to check out Berkeley’s own Wordmap, you can click on the San Francisco Wordmap, and scroll over to the East Bay. The dark red areas are the places where Yelp users really like to use that keyword in reviews of the area. A look at Berkeley’s Wordmap doesn't reveal anything revolutionary, but it’s fun.
What was the keyword that lit up the most of Berkeley? “Cheap” and “patio” were among the most popular.
Words that barely showed up at all were “tourist,” “valet,” “romantic” and “sketchy.” “Yuppie” showed a red cluster hovering over Fourth Street, but nowhere else in the city.
