America's Test Kitchen UX Research
Modular skill for conducting UX research on any ATK feature or experience area.
When to Use This Skill
Use this skill when:
- •Researching user feedback for any ATK feature (equipment, recipes, subscription, app, etc.)
- •Gathering app store reviews (iOS/Android)
- •Scraping Reddit discussions about ATK
- •Collecting BBB complaints and Trustpilot reviews
- •Creating UX research reports with findings and recommendations
- •Comparing ATK to competitors (NYT Cooking, Serious Eats, etc.)
Quick Start
bash
# Run research on a specific feature area python3 ~/.claude/skills/atk-ux-research/scripts/atk_research.py --feature "recipes" python3 ~/.claude/skills/atk-ux-research/scripts/atk_research.py --feature "subscription" python3 ~/.claude/skills/atk-ux-research/scripts/atk_research.py --feature "app experience"
Feature Areas
| Feature | Description | Key Sources |
|---|---|---|
equipment | Kitchen gear and product reviews | App stores, Reddit, BBB |
recipes | Recipe content and usability | Reddit, App stores |
subscription | Billing, pricing, cancellation | BBB, Trustpilot, Reddit |
app | App stability, UX, navigation | App stores, Reddit |
video | TV shows, streaming, video content | Reddit, social media |
cookbooks | Physical book purchases and quality | Reddit, Trustpilot |
Research Workflow
Phase 1: Data Collection
1.1 App Store Reviews
bash
# iOS App Store firecrawl https://apps.apple.com/us/app/americas-test-kitchen/id1365223384 # Google Play Store firecrawl https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.americastestkitchen.groceryapp
1.2 Review Sites
bash
# Trustpilot firecrawl https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.americastestkitchen.com # BBB Complaints firecrawl https://www.bbb.org/us/ma/boston/profile/publishers-periodical/americas-test-kitchen-lp-0021-66446/complaints
1.3 Reddit (JSON API)
Reddit blocks standard scrapers. Use the .json suffix:
bash
# Get subreddit posts
curl -s "https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericasTestKitchen/top.json?t=year&limit=25" \
-H "User-Agent: ux-research/1.0" | python3 -c "
import sys, json
data = json.load(sys.stdin)
for post in data['data']['children']:
p = post['data']
print(f\"**{p['title']}** (score: {p['score']}, comments: {p['num_comments']})\")
print(f\" https://reddit.com{p['permalink']}\n\")"
# Get thread comments
curl -s "https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericasTestKitchen/comments/THREAD_ID.json?limit=50" \
-H "User-Agent: ux-research/1.0" | python3 -c "
import sys, json
data = json.load(sys.stdin)
comments = data[1]['data']['children']
for c in comments[:20]:
if c['kind'] == 't1':
d = c['data']
print(f\"**{d['author']}** (score: {d['score']}):\n{d['body'][:500]}\n---\")"
# Search for feature-specific discussions
curl -s "https://www.reddit.com/r/Cooking/search.json?q=america%27s+test+kitchen+FEATURE&restrict_sr=0&limit=20" \
-H "User-Agent: ux-research/1.0"
Key Subreddits:
- •r/AmericasTestKitchen - Dedicated ATK community
- •r/Cooking - General cooking discussions
- •r/Costco - Cookbook/product finds
- •r/BuyItForLife - Equipment durability
- •r/AskCulinary - Recipe questions
1.4 Exa Search
bash
# Neural search for user feedback python3 ~/.claude/skills/exa-search/scripts/exa_search.py \ "America's Test Kitchen FEATURE user feedback reviews" \ --category news -n 15 # Research with citations python3 ~/.claude/skills/exa-search/scripts/exa_research.py \ "What do users say about America's Test Kitchen FEATURE?" \ --sources --markdown
1.5 Perplexity MCP
code
mcp__perplexity__search: "America's Test Kitchen FEATURE user complaints feedback" mcp__perplexity__get_documentation: "ATK app store reviews analysis"
Phase 2: Analysis
2.1 Quantitative Metrics
| Metric | Source | How to Get |
|---|---|---|
| iOS Rating | App Store | Firecrawl scrape |
| Android Rating | Google Play | Firecrawl scrape |
| BBB Complaints | BBB | Count from scrape |
| Trustpilot Score | Trustpilot | Firecrawl scrape |
| Reddit Engagement | Reddit JSON | Sum scores/comments |
2.2 Qualitative Themes
Code feedback into themes:
- •Discoverability - Can users find the feature?
- •Usability - Is it easy to use?
- •Reliability - Does it work consistently?
- •Value - Is it worth the price?
- •Support - How are issues resolved?
2.3 Severity Classification
| Severity | Criteria |
|---|---|
| Critical | Prevents core functionality, multiple sources confirm |
| High | Significant friction, frequent complaints |
| Medium | Annoyance, moderate complaint frequency |
| Low | Nice-to-have improvements |
Phase 3: Report Generation
Use template at: ~/.claude/skills/atk-ux-research/templates/report-template.md
Report Sections
- •Executive Summary - Key findings, severity table
- •Methodology - Sources, sample sizes, limitations
- •Quantitative Overview - Ratings, complaint distribution
- •Feature Analysis - Deep dive on researched feature
- •User Pain Points - Themed complaints with evidence
- •Positive Feedback - What users appreciate
- •Recommendations - Prioritized improvements
- •Appendix - Source URLs, raw data references
Output Locations
code
~/Desktop/ATK-UX-Research/ ├── reports/ # Generated reports │ └── FEATURE-YYYY-MM-DD.md ├── scraped-data/ # Raw scraped content │ ├── app-store/ │ ├── reddit/ │ └── review-sites/ └── research-plan.md # Active research plan
Competitor Comparison
When benchmarking, compare against:
| Competitor | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| NYT Cooking | Recipes, no equipment | cooking.nytimes.com |
| Serious Eats | Recipes + equipment | seriouseats.com |
| Wirecutter | Equipment only | nytimes.com/wirecutter |
| Consumer Reports | Equipment reviews | consumerreports.org |
| King Arthur | Baking focus | kingarthurbaking.com |
Known Limitations
- •Facebook Groups: Not accessible via API, requires manual research
- •App Store Historical Data: Need AppFollow/Sensor Tower for trends
- •Reddit Rate Limits: Use 2-second delays between requests
- •Trustpilot: Limited ATK reviews (only 4 as of Jan 2026)
Environment Variables
bash
# Required for full functionality export EXA_API_KEY="your-key" export FIRECRAWL_API_KEY="your-key"
Example Usage
Research Equipment Feature
bash
# 1. Gather data firecrawl https://apps.apple.com/us/app/americas-test-kitchen/id1365223384 firecrawl https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.americastestkitchen.com # 2. Search Reddit curl -s "https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericasTestKitchen/search.json?q=equipment&limit=20" \ -H "User-Agent: ux-research/1.0" # 3. Exa research python3 ~/.claude/skills/exa-search/scripts/exa_research.py \ "America's Test Kitchen equipment reviews user experience" --sources # 4. Generate report # Use report template and synthesize findings
Research Subscription/Billing
bash
# Focus on BBB and cancellation complaints firecrawl https://www.bbb.org/us/ma/boston/profile/publishers-periodical/americas-test-kitchen-lp-0021-66446/complaints curl -s "https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericasTestKitchen/search.json?q=cancel+subscription&limit=20" \ -H "User-Agent: ux-research/1.0" python3 ~/.claude/skills/exa-search/scripts/exa_research.py \ "America's Test Kitchen subscription billing complaints auto-renewal" --sources
Integration with Project
This skill outputs to the ATK-UX-Research git repository:
- •
/Users/tomdimino/Desktop/ATK-UX-Research/
Commit findings after each research session.