Sometimes an idea is more than an idea. Sometimes it captures the feeling of a nation. One restaurant in New Hampshire has captured that idea in this installment of The Week in Ideas.
Idea #1: Ban politicians. We’ve seen kid bans, we’ve seen bans on people who can’t keep reservations, now we see a ban that I think we can all get behind. With the state’s primary just days away, a Portsmouth, New Hampshire, restaurant has put a sign in its window: “No politicians, no exception.” As the primary season heated up over the summer, several candidates came through the restaurant, Colby's Breakfast and Lunch, and each time customers complained about the disruption. "They make a big deal when they come in here," manager Jessica Labrie told Seacoast Online. "You can watch all this stuff on the news, but when you're here eating breakfast, you don't want to hear it."
Idea #2: Consolation prize. Show up at South Florida’s Whisky Tango American Bar & Grill 30 minutes before a televised game featuring the Miami Heat. Put your name down on a sign up sheet. Drink. If the Miami Heat loses, you get $25 off your bar tab. “We wanted people to walk away happy, co-owner John Todora told The Miami Herald. “That way they would come back.” The promotion ran last year as well, costing the bar $97,000. Todora said it was easily covered by the amount of drinks purchased and new customers who heard about the deal.
Idea #3: Stop taking delivery orders from cell phones. Several Chicago restaurants have adopted this unfortunate idea after a string of armed robberies that were initiated by cell phone delivery orders. Chicago cops are telling all businesses to avoid taking cell phone orders from the Chinatown and Hyde Park areas. Michael Bjordal, owner of Leona's restaurant in Hyde Park, told the local CBS affiliate, "I don't want to retire from this business and have a dead delivery driver on my conscience. We've already had one shot since I've been here."
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.