I've only played the demo (have yet to buy the full game, although I will probably do it in the coming weeks), but there is definitely some truth to the review that I believe you're referring to.

Some of the micro gameplay needed a bit of refinement. That being said I appreciate that even with your first stand, a solid level of understanding of local consumer preferences is required. And even if you get the basics right, RNG (weather) can make things a little bit more unpredictable.

For a tycoon strategy game, I do think you need the core early gameplay to be challenging.