Ask Dan Hoppen about his favorite restaurant, and he may tell you about his most-recent visit to the newest gyro, Mexican, Italian or pizza joint. But, ask him for a must go-to eatery and he’ll rattle off a handful of impressive restaurants.

Hoppen is Omaha’s “average guy” restaurant critic. Though he’ll shy away from calling himself a critic – he prefers “reviewer” — Hoppen’s love for food takes him across every zip code in the Metro area, often to new places eager for his stamp of approval. His blog, “Restaurant Hoppen”,  has at least 6,500 followers. His “Restaurant Hoppen” podcast reaches thousands. What started as a sports radio show discussion about where to eat in Big Ten country has grown into a full-time hobby.

Hoppen cut his teeth in sports writing, working for Husker Online for more than seven years. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduate — and the son of Husker basketball great Dave Hoppen — would talk about his favorite barbecue or steak place to check out while covering the Cornhuskers on the road.

“My coworkers would go, ‘Ok, Dan, we’re going to be in East Lansing (Michigan) this weekend. We’ve got lunch on Friday and dinner on Saturday, we need you to find where we’re going,’” Hoppen said. “It was like my passion. I loved doing that so much, finding not just the popular places, but like the places that the locals were proud of.”

After a couple of years of planning road trip menus, people recommended he start a blog. So, he launched “A Guy with an Appetite.” Using a WordPress blog format, it was a basic layout, he said.

“I’m not a food critic,” he said. “I’m just a dude who loves food.”

A fan on a Husker Online message board suggested he change the name of the blog to “Restaurant Hoppen.” So, he did.

With a growing popularity, Hoppen continued to write for Husker Online, as well as the food blog. Then one day, a phone call changed his direction.

“Matt Vrzal (a former Husker offensive lineman who owns Piezon’s Pizzeria) was a game changer for me,” Hoppen said. “I was doing a lot of reviews but didn’t really know what to do with the blog. Vzral said, “Dude, you have this following. You have something that’s super unique. No one else is doing this. Have you ever thought about doing a podcast?’”

Three years later, “Restaurant Hoppen” has featured more than 100 chefs, cooks and restaurateurs, such as Block 16, Dante’s, and Muchacho’s. When he reaches out, restaurant people quickly respond.

Hoppen developed his love for food from his mom.

“She was just a great home cook,” he said. “She’s one of those people who would just basically open our fridge was like game of ‘Chopped’ to her. She’d open it up and be like, ‘Ok, we got this, this, this and this, what am I making? Bam! And it was always great.”

As a food blogger, he enjoys sharing stories of restaurants and chefs. Whether it’s a food truck or an upscale restaurant, Hoppen seeks out the positive side of menus. He’s visited 200-250 eateries over the past few years, writing about 150-175 of them.

He dines out 2-3 times weekly, Hoppen said. Preferring local restaurants over national chains, Hoppen rarely receives a free meal.

“People think that I go out way more often than I do,” he said. “But, I don’t think I really go out more than the average person does. When I do go out, you know about it, because it’s on Facebook. I’m putting it on (X/Twitter), Instagram. So, it seems like I’m out and about all the time.”

While Hoppen enjoys sampling food from as many local restaurants as possible, he does have his favorites.

“It depends on the occasion,” he said. “My top five would be Block 16, Dante, Au Courant, The Boiler Room and Yoshitomo. There are some that are very close. Virtuoso (Pizzeria) is up there. Sauce by Alfaro.”

Dining out 100-150 times a year, he must have had a few bad experiences, right?

“Not many,” Hoppen said. “I wouldn’t even say bad. Usually, they’re just OK. Or, maybe a little below my expectations, but I can count those on one hand. Usually, when I go somewhere, it’s because it’s based on a recommendation that I trust from a friend, or a chef that I’ve had on the podcast.”

For an easy-going person, Hoppen takes his food seriously.

“You have no idea how many restaurants I went through before deciding on lunch,” he said. Where are we going? Immediately, 30 different restaurants come to mind.”

But, when meeting Hoppen for a meal, bet on it being the right choice.

To check out Dan Hoppen’s reviews and podcast you can visit restauranthoppen.com.