Yahoo! Food launches

Later today, Yahoo! is launching Yahoo! Food, a food "portal". I call it a "portal" because the majority of their content is coming from other sources. Yahoo calls it a vertical strategy, I call it a network. So far I don't see anything that allrecipes, foodnetwork or the other foodie sites don't have. It feels like a site built with standard Yahoo vertical technology, stir in some names, a dash of Yahoo! contextual advertising and you have a food site. There is an interesting (and maybe innovative) navigation/breadcrumb style.

From ClickZ:

Recipes and other food-related content will be supplied through publisher partnerships with companies like Allrecipes.com; Epicurious; Martha Stewart Omnimedia; Everyday with Rachel Ray; Food & Wine; Reader's Digest, Taste of Home; Eating Well and Wolfgang Puck.

Original content includes 13 blogs from influential personalities in the food world like "The Continental Chef" from Marcus Samuelsson; "Back to the Table" from Art Smith; "Donatella's Dish" from Donatella Arpaia; "Ed Levine Eats" from Ed Levine; and "Southern Table" from Frank Stitt. Culinary talent Brooke Peterson will also develop and host a video show called "Cheap and Easy."

The site features a local restaurants guide. There are some cities which have featured and recommended restaurants. The site will help you find a restaurant anywhere, but it only takes you to a Yahoo! local page.

Food might be the hottest thing going today. Look at the mega-celebrities the FoodNetwork has created: Emeril, Giada, Rachael, etc. I love food web sites and I look forward to watching how this one builds momentum. I hope they can provide original content and some of the innovation that we have come to look for from Yahoo!

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