GOOGLE has swallowed restaurant review service Zagat to ramp up its efforts to connect people with local businesses.

The founders, husband and wife team Nina and Tim Zagat, said they will remain co-chairs of the 32-year-old company and will use Google’s resources and expertise to expand. Zagat currently offers reviews and ratings on restaurants in more than 100 cities around the world, based largely on surveys of diners.

Google plans to integrate New York-based Zagat with its search and mapping products, where users are already invited to write reviews of businesses and services.