I was speaking to a friend of mine today when he asked, “Did you hear the news?”
Seems a small, well-respected Italian restaurant near him is moving down the road into a building that has housed at least three major chain restaurants in the last 30 years. This building is literally 4 times larger than their current location.
I love this restaurant. It’s romantic, it’s intimate. The food is great, and because they can’t fit that many people in the place at one time, it comes out hot, fresh and hand-made just for you. We lamented the fact that, if the move is real, it will doom this restaurant. They’ll be out of business by February.
Oh, not because of the food. I’m sure it’ll still be just as good – at least right after the move. But it will be next to impossible to retain the quiet, intimate atmosphere in a space designed for 300 people to chow down. But what will really kill them is their loss of exclusivity.
Several years back, a tiny storefront Mexican place opened up here in town. There was one table with 4 chairs, 2 stools in the window, and the counter where you ordered. They were open 3 nights a week for dinner, and that was it. People were lined up out the door and down the block to get food they had to take home, or eat in their car. It was crazy. But then they decided to move to a bigger place. After some searching, they found a banquet facility that had closed the year before. Huge interior space, large parking lot – plenty of space to put all those people who were whining about standing in line.
And fit them in, they did. So easily that the place looked empty. Especially when the restaurant was now open 7 nights a week. Any time you wanted, you could show up and get a table. And that’s what killed them.
La Bamba – the Mexican restaurant – went from being a place where you could only get their food after a long wait three nights a week, to a place that was literally three-quarters empty 7 days a week. The patrons looked around and said to themselves, “No one else is here! Must be this is no longer a good place to eat.” Well, the food was still good, and still inexpensive. But the place looked and sounded empty, especially since there was no longer a line out the door, and you could no longer watch your food being prepared. Soon it was 80% empty, then 90%, and then they shut the doors.
And that’s what I see happening to this tiny jewel of an Italian place. We go there for special occasions, the wife and I. Because the size and atmosphere (along with the high prices and the personal service) make us feel special. I have nothing against hanger-sized eating establishments. You can take 20 friends and have a party there, and it’s great because everyone else is with 20 of their friends having a party as well. But I don’t go there for romantic evenings out. Oh, after they move we’ll try the new location. But the restaurant won’t be the same.
If you want your business to be wanted by others, you must be nearly inaccessible. Nothing drives up “want” like lack of availability to what others can be seen having and enjoying.
Great insights, it is about the “experience” in addition to good food and price that customers are looking for when dining out. I don’t know why, but why don’t owners ask their customers what they think about the planned change (location, menu, etc). It is so easy to use email or social media or website survey or even calling a few customers. The customers will tell you what they feel. Listen to customers – duh..