Twisting the usual Star Trek species formula a bit and having an entire culture center around food critic reviews is really funny. Especially with how this has been built up since Season 1 with Migleemo relating everything to food—I thought it was a individual person thing but it turned out to be something cultural.
The Klowakhans are definitely an amusing twist on Star Trek monocultures, especially when stacked up against Klingon farmers who still can't escape the call of the warrior.
There's also a slight chance that critics who have become so used to shitting on things that they've lost their ability to enjoy anything might be a nod to internet culture in general.
Sam Witwer, too - he stepped in to play Tenavik in place of Kenneth Mitchell in Star Trek Online a few years ago, but otherwise hasn't appeared in Star Trek since "Enterprise."