For many consumers, “private equity” has become a four-letter word. Private equity firms have acquired the unpopular reputation of purchasing food establishments that then notoriously decline in quality, as new owners cut costs in search of new avenues to profit. They’ve also been criticized for displacing mom-and-pop shops in the process.

But beyond stereotypical signs of private equity-backing—sudden spikes in new franchise locations and sleek, minimalist branding, to name a few—consumers are often left guessing at businesses’ ownership. That’s especially true in metropolises like New York City, where grabbing a bite means choosing from a whopping 31,000 food establishments. 

That’s where a trending new website steps in. On isitownedbyprivateequity.com, users can find the answers to the site’s titular question. Via an interactive map of New York City, potential customers can zoom in on any bar, restaurant, or cafe and learn if it’s owned or backed by private equity or venture capital; if it’s public; or if it’s privately owned.

The site was created by Davie Liebowitz, known on social media as DeFi Dave, who got the idea from a common complaint he’d seen on the internet.

“What initially inspired me to create it was walking around Manhattan on the weekends and seeing all the lines for different restaurants,” Liebowitz tells Fast Company via social media. “Then I would go online and see the discourse around private equity blaming them for the lines and decrease in quality.”

He went on to create the site with Grok Bot and Cursor in a single day (an experience he described as “psychedelic” in a follow-up post ), then shared it on social media.

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