Jason Sabbag: An Anonymous Reviewer

Published: September 10, 2002

Was it Jason Sabbag who noticed the "total mayhem" at the Elephant bistro, the "gentle prices" at Miracle Grill, the fact that "women feel comfortable" at the Post House steak restaurant?

Mr. Sabbag, 26, and his friends made it their goal to get their anonymous comments published in the Zagat survey of restaurants. Once, on a night when they were going to celebrate Mr. Sabbag's having cleared part of the exam to become a chartered financial analyst, they spent so long riffling through the Zagat guide that it was too late to make a reservation.

"Anyone could go to Le Cirque," said Mark Hagan, Mr. Sabbag's brother-in-law. "He was always trying to find a restaurant that had a rating over 24 and a cost under $40. That was his mission."

Mr. Sabbag, an assistant portfolio manager at Fiduciary Trust, loved to dine with Mr. Hagan, his sister, his longtime girlfriend and his younger brother, Cliff. On weekends at his parents' home in Greenwich, Conn., Mr. Sabbag made the mojitos and made sure everyone had fun.

He knew how to tease without going too far. A high school tennis champion, he would easily beat his father. Until one morning, when his father won the first two games, to the cheers of onlookers. Mr. Sabbag picked up the ball and went to the net. "Dad, it's your serve, and I just wanted to let you know — happy Father's Day."