Indeed. As much as few I know trust Yelp, there really isn't anything close to an effective alternative, except for maybe the Uber Eats ratings.

This is why this is not a problem for Amazon. Removing Amazon from my life would require substantially restructuring it and losing a lot more time procuring goods. Have I been burned a few times by shoddy goods? Yes, the alternative is spending time in stores or spending days waiting for packages. I can order something in the morning and have it delivered by the evening.

FWIW, I've dropped Amazon and it was mostly just a change of habit. After becoming familiar with other options, it has been just as easy to order (and better in other ways).

I think Google reviews are better to be honest.

What do you use?

It depends on what I'm looking for. People I know, local news, objective data, just trying different places until I find one I like. There are no great answers.

Yelp does serve as a sort of index of shops.

Google Maps reviews.