yelp-search

Yelp Search Integration

Search for local businesses on Yelp to find services, get contact information, check ratings, and retrieve hours of operation.

Setup

1. Yelp API Key (Required)

1. Go to https://www.yelp.com/developers
2. Create an account or sign in
3. Click "Create App" and fill out the form
4. Copy your API Key

Add to your .env file:

YELP_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

2. Browser-Use for Reviews (Optional)

Only needed if you want to extract review text (slow, ~30-60s per request).

Install dependencies:

uv add browser-use playwright langchain-openai
uv run playwright install chromium

Add to .env:

OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_key_here

Note: Review extraction uses browser-use to search DuckDuckGo (since Yelp blocks direct scraping). For most use cases, the rating + review_count from the API is sufficient.

Scripts

All scripts are in tools/yelp-search/scripts/ and should be run with uv run python.

search.py - Find Businesses (Primary Tool)

uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/search.py "search term" --location "City, State"

Options:

Flag	Description	Example
--location, -l	City, address, or zip	"San Francisco" or "94123"
--latitude/--longitude	GPS coordinates	--latitude 37.78 --longitude -122.41
--limit, -n	Number of results (default: 5)	-n 10
--sort-by	Sort order	rating, distance, review_count, best_match
--price	Price filter (1-4)	--price 1,2 for $ and $$ only
--json	Output raw JSON

Examples:

# Find top-rated dog groomers
uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/search.py "dog groomer" -l "San Francisco" --sort-by rating

# Find cheap restaurants nearby
uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/search.py "restaurants" -l "94123" --price 1,2 --sort-by distance

# Search near a specific address
uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/search.py "laundry pickup" -l "123 Main St, San Francisco"

details.py - Get Business Hours & Info

uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/details.py "business-alias"

The business alias is in the Yelp URL (e.g., the-laundry-corner-san-francisco).

phone_search.py - Reverse Lookup

uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/phone_search.py "+14155551234"

get_reviews.py - Extract Review Text (Slow)

uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/get_reviews.py "Business Name" -l "City" -n 3

Note: Uses browser-use which is slow (~30-60s). Yelp blocks direct scraping, so it searches DuckDuckGo for cached reviews as a workaround.

scrape_reviews.py - Direct Yelp Scraping (Alternative)

uv run python tools/yelp-search/scripts/scrape_reviews.py "https://www.yelp.com/biz/business-alias" -n 5

Requires Browserbase credentials:

BROWSERBASE_API_KEY=your_key_here
BROWSERBASE_PROJECT_ID=your_project_id

Note: Uses Browserbase with proxies to bypass Yelp's CAPTCHA. More reliable than get_reviews.py but requires a Browserbase account.

Best Practices

Evaluating Quality Without Review Text

The API provides rating + review_count which is usually sufficient:

Rating	Review Count	Interpretation
4.5+	50+	Excellent, reliable data
4.5+	<20	Promising but limited data
4.0-4.4	100+	Good, well-established
<4.0	any	Proceed with caution

Finding Services with Specific Needs

When looking for services with specific requirements (weekend hours, pickup/delivery, etc.):

1. Search with --sort-by rating to get best options
2. Get details on top candidates to check hours
3. Filter for businesses open when you need them
4. Contact directly to confirm specific services (pickup, delivery, etc.) since Yelp doesn't always have this info

Search Tips

• Use specific terms: "laundry pickup" not just "laundry"
• Search near an address for accurate distance: -l "123 Main St, City"
• Sort by rating first, then check distance on results
• Check review_count - high ratings with few reviews may be unreliable

Response Data

Each business result includes:

• name - Business name
• phone - Phone number (use for texting/calling)
• rating - Yelp rating (1-5 stars)
• review_count - Number of reviews
• price - Price level ($ to $$$$)
• location - Full address
• hours - Operating hours by day (in details)
• distance - Distance from search location
• categories - Business categories
• is_open_now - Current open/closed status

Limitations

Feature	Status	Notes
Business search	✅ Works	Fast, reliable
Business details	✅ Works	Includes hours
Phone lookup	✅ Works	Reverse search
Review text (API)	❌ Paid only	Requires enterprise tier
Review text (scraping)	⚠️ Slow	browser-use workaround via DuckDuckGo

• Free API tier: 500 calls/day
• Results limited to 50 per request
• Some business info (pickup/delivery) not in API - contact directly