We base it off of the menu, prices (if we are paying OOP), and atmosphere. I don't weigh too much on reviews as everyone's taste buds are different.... when reading reviews I just make sure there aren't cleanliness issues or people getting sick issues.
We try to pick 3 old places to eat at, 2 new places to eat at when we go
Honestly we don't have enough time to visit everywhere we want to go, my husband will ask me if we are going back to a certain place and often it's just not possible. Honestly I'm going to need a 3 week vacation some here just to keep eating.