$110 in Kohl’s cash had to be spent yesterday and my kid wanted to make certain he took full advantage of it. In case you’re unaware, kids are still kids at 36 years-old. They just fill your cart with stuff for THEIR kid.
Lunch at Pho Shiki’s (a Vietnamese – Japanese restaurant favorite) was a planned stop before we ever left home. Upon being seated, we were told only 1/2 of the menu was available — the Japanese side. Ben had his heart set on a bowl of pho (Vietnamese soup sort of like ramen — the exception is that ramen is wheat flour noodles while pho is rice noodles). While it sounds like pho is an easy dish to make, it’s actually a long process.
Our waitress explained that she was running the place for a full month while her father — the owner — was “home” visiting his mother. She brought in her son to help run the family business and the two were obviously overwhelmed. Although many left when being told only 1/2 the menu was available for order, most stayed. The place was STILL packed. The service was slow but friendly, and the food was amazing.
So many businesses (and brands) try to be something to everyone. Focusing on what you’re good at that targets a smaller group of buyers ensures they receive your best stuff — as opposed to mediocre satisfaction across the board.
While only offering half of the menu’s options might seem like a bad idea, in actuality it was brilliant. Rather than serve bad pho that might disappoint and discourage future customer visits, they opted to provide only what they could manage while still serving their best stuff.
