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Here's an article today from Slate about judging a restaurant from the outside. Since it's about food I clicked (bait: accepted!) and it was...fine. The usual tips (curated menu, attention to provenance, matching the restaurant decor/location to mission/theme, long lines, people of the same presented ethnicity eating there, etc.) , which more food-centric folks would already be well familiar with, resonated, albeit weakly because <shrug> we already know all this! But there was also a judgy section that bugged me - not about restaurants, but diners: These initial quick judgments usually take a few seconds, at which point we walk over to the posted menu and study it like the Dead Sea Scrolls. Here’s what you don’t want to see: everything. This isn’t a food court, and while figuring out what you want to do in life is often a long journey for people, restaurants should have this decided far before the menu is printed. “When it’s too cross-cultural, when it’s too all over the place, that’s an issue. There’s a restaurant I’m thinking of right now that has fettucine Alfredo with your choice of shrimp, chicken, or salmon. You’re like, ‘OK, that’s not a good sign,’ ” says Stowell. “That’s the way people used to eat in the ’80s: They would offer everything for everybody, and let them combine it how they want. But we’ve gone away from that and more toward, ‘We’re going to guide you to what’s good.’ If you’re everything for everybody you’re usually nothing for nobody.” Emphasis mine, on the lines I thought were unnecessarily reductive. I know a lot of these people!! They simply don't care about food as much as me, and derive much more of their dining utility from getting things just their way on a (perhaps a rare) night out. Which is fine, and it doesn't necessarily (but can, and that is also fine!) mean that they don't want high-quality food, or ambiance, or overall experience! And besides, who, exactly, is the audience for an article about how to pick a restaurant? People who care a lot about picking a restaurant will already know these very general guidelines or have their own, much more relevant metrics, so those that could most benefit from learning about these ideas to improve their dining experience are likely the very people being (gently, I concede) mocked as being decades out of touch. Anyway, I probably just wanted to pontificate this morning, but this section of the article really rubbed me the wrong way. Since I've gotten older, and moved to a more conservative area, and become a parent, etc., I've met and dined with many more types of people (than my City-dwelling, free-wheeling, proto-hipster, semi-rabid insistent days on authenticity and excellence), with lots more (and valid) dining preferences. I'm much more viscerally aware that more/most of America (especially away from the coasts) is occupied by people who, while more aware of food culture than in the pre-Food Network and Insta days, simply don't give food as much head space as me and are happiest when they can get exactly what they want, when they want. Holding their preferences in contempt is pointless and mean, and these days more than ever, I think, every kindness counts. (I'm aware that I am more sensitive to this perhaps perceived issue because I lost a friend back in the day after a meal at a wonderful DC restaurant during which I was, mostly unwittingly, a total a** about her food choices and naiveté, and I really wish I could go back and smack 20something me for being a jerk.) -
Apr 13, 2015 - "Jean-Paul Goude: Magician of the Image" on marjoleinlammertsvanbueren.com -
We can have a separate thread for this in the Movies Forum. Usually, well-done product placement is subtle and perhaps even subconscious; however, there are times, like this scene from a Jan, 1961 episode of "Route 66," when it hits you over the head with Lucille. Here's another, from a Mar, 2015 episode of "Better Call Saul" - note the time when the scene begins, and note the time when it ends (there is a cutaway in the middle, so it's not without a break, but it still monopolizes 80-90% of the duration): This is essentially a thirty-second Chrysler advertisement - I wonder how much they paid for it. Another blatant example is the entirety of "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee." That would be "coffee" - not tea, not a mango lassi, but coffee, coffee, coffee - how much has the coffee industry paid for this show to run? The series jokes about Acura's product placement, but not once have they mentioned the coffee industry, which is remarkable considering it's fully 1/3 of the premise of the entire series.
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In an attempt to make their mediocre product seem more upscale, Beam Suntory is raising the price of Booker's Bourbon to $100. There isn't a single liquor store in town where it isn't sitting on the shelves right now for nearly $40; I guess they think The Idiot Wind will blow people into the liquor stores if it costs $100. What a joke. People seem to be intimidated by Fred Noe because he uses the word "fuck" a lot; he sure seems like nothing but a huckster to me. For him to peddle that God-awful Red Stag cherry Bourbon of Jim Beam's with a straight face is a crime against humanity. "Is Booker's Bourbon Set To Go Up, Up, Up in Price?" by Chuck Cowdery on thewhiskeywash.com "Beam Suntory To Increase Booker's SRP to $99.99" by Fred Minnick on fredminnick.com If you only follow my advice once in your lifetime, make it right now: Don't buy into the psychological manipulation that Beam Suntory is attempting to implant in your brains. Booker's is a middling product, at best, and always will be - this is a blatant attempt at duping the consumer into believing that "if it costs a lot, then it must be good," and once the media frenzy dies down, people will be walking into liquor stores, staring down bottles of Booker's "marked down" to $95. Listen to me here: Don't buy another bottle of Booker's - not even at $40 - and make this giant conglomerate pay for their greed. If nothing else, this is one of the shrewdest marketing schemes I've ever witnessed: Right in time for the holidays (isn't that convenient?), consumers are being alerted that if they rush out to the liquor stores, they can stock up on this product, soon to be $100, and get all they can purchase for only $40-50 a bottle ... what an amazing opportunity! Yeah, right. Blow me. Do yourselves a favor and buy *two* bottles of Donnhoff Spätlesen instead. Please? Or if you want one, widely available, special bottle as a gift, walk into any Total Wine and buy a bottle of Graham's 30-Year-Old Tawny Port for $100 instead of buying a bottle of Booker's. Please trust me on this one. The best idea of all? Call Joe Riley at Ace Beverage and ask him what he thinks.
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I don't know, but it definitely isn't limited to The Dabney - somehow, within the last five years or so, restaurants began co-mingling "small plates" and "shareable items," and they've done so rather successfully, I will add. I get the "pass around the small plates" thing, but when I see "To Share" on a menu, I expect a portion size that's too large for one diner to reasonably consume, and all too often, I get served a plain old shrimp cocktail (or equivalent) with six medium-sized shrimp. I've never read this before, anywhere, but I think it's time to call a spade a spade: The restaurant industry has been taken over by suits, just like the medical profession has (HMOs, third parties, etc.) - they've got their grubby hands in the till, and are squeezing customers. It's not always the case, of course, but we're starting to see it more-and-more. "Hospitality" is leaving the industry, and one day will be about as common as finding a full-service gasoline station or a pay phone.
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"The Secret Language Of Food" by Dan Jurafsky on ft.com
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Large full-service concept in DC looking for a Marketing/Sales Manager. Please forward resume to joe.brower@talentserved.com -
Here's the answer: "Studies have shown that people prefer inexpensive wines in blind taste tests, but that they actually get more pleasure from drinking wine they are told is expensive. If lobster were priced like chicken, we might enjoy it less...."
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I was reading the thread about Redwood and found it interesting enough to look up the restaurant on google and view their site. Then I went back and clicked on an a 360 degree interior view that google presents for restaurants and any business. If you search in google for Redwood Bethesda or a phrase like that, you will get results with a large presentation of information to their website on the left side of the google webpage. On the right side google has repackaged the information. It often includes photos and then... if the business was fortunate to get this done several years ago for free or has contacted a google authorized photogrpher you can get this interesting 360 degree view inside. Here is the one for Redwood: http://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m8!1m3!1d3!2d-77.097888!3d38.981311!2m2!1f130.8!2f90!4f75!2m4!1e1!2m2!1sldtk1sfqPDabMeVkNSVXMQ!2e0&fid=5 There is some navigation on the lower right hand side. If you get a view looking from one room to the next there will be an arrow to the second room. Click on that and you'll get a navigable 360 degree view of the second room. Redwood is very attractive and light filled with a huge amount of window line. If you like restaurants with natural light...Redwood is right there. Years ago Portners was one of my favorite restaurant environments. At 109 S St Asaph street in Olde Towne it occupied a beautiful renovated firehouse with a vaulted ceiling. Its now Columbia Firehouse. Its still tremendously attractive. here is the 360 view that google provides for Columbia Firehouse: You'll get it by clicking on the see inside link on the right side of the google page if you search for Columbia Firehouse Alexandria or a phrase like that: http://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m8!1m3!1d3!2d-77.046027!3d38.804403!2m2!1f325.23!2f90!4f75!2m4!1e1!2m2!1sZJ40RX0Kd02_pTTLErqYWA!2e0&fid=5 If you rotate around the view and come to the door into the front space you'll find an arrow over the floor. Click on that and it takes you to the front room These are ingenious interior shots and imho wonderful marketing tools if your restaurant or business is similarly attractive. Some businesses have them, some don't. I know there are "certified by google" photographers" in this region you can contact to arrange to get one of these views. I spoke with one of those photographers a while back. He referenced that this 360 degree view is cutting edge and there is nothing else like that. I'm not sure about that...but these views sure are attractive in my mind.
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Foodie/Blogger/Social Media Enthusiast Seeking Position: If you're looking for someone to help with PR/Social Media/Marketing, please contact me. I spend a great deal of time studying social media trends, analytics, and strategy. I love resources by Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Mashable, Social Mediology, and information by Dan Zarella, self-proclaimed social media scientist. I have advanced proficiency of twitter clients, Hootsuite. I am also familiar with bit.ly, pinterest, instagram, facebook, twitter, etc. Thank you! Lisa Shapiro ldshap00@gmail.com
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I'm "friends" with Tom S. and Todd K. on FB. I just saw Aykan Demiroglu (owner of Bistro Vivant in McLean) tag both on photos of Bistro Vivant (such photos are of the restaurant, not Tom or Todd). Essentially Demiroglu - who I don't know and don't care about - used his friend status with Tom and Todd to get pictures of his restaurant to all of Tom and Todd's "friends." This can be done without Tom and Todd's prior approval (but that doesn't mean they didn't approve in advance). Incidentally, Don was tagged as well. Hmm....any thoughts? A bit sneaky?
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[Thank you for the well-written preview, Daniel - you've done donrockwell.com, the media outlet, proud. In case anyone hasn't noticed, our forum hosts, membership directors, calendar girls, etc. often attend these events, representing the website (I choose not to attend, and instead offer them to our hard-working volunteers - it's the very least I can do for all their efforts). Almost 100% of the time, this results in a cogent, well-written and surprisingly objective preview that's a win-win-win (for the restaurant, since they get publicity; for the volunteers, since they get a free party; for the website, since it keeps us out there on the vanguard of the restaurant community). This was a wonderful example of how to do it properly - the disclosure of a complimentary meal was made early on, so there is no doubt in the readers' minds that this is a media event (you'll be reading about how wonderful Sugo is on other blogs as well, but you won't be reading much about how the blogger loaded up on free food and booze. When are people going to realize that this is how some of our area's most popular "lifestyle" websites work? That they're nothing more than paid PR outlets posing under the guise of "journalism?" When is a legitimate major media outlet going to have the balls to call these "blogs" out for what they truly are?). Daniel's post can be trusted, and you can rest assured that any positive comments can be counted on as being what he really thinks (the one thing I tell the attendees is that if anything is really "bad," it's best just to be silent, rather than trashing a place for giving away free food during a pre-opening event. It really is taboo to lambast a place during a media party, as it should be. Recently, for example, I sent a couple to a pre-opening party that was an unmitigated disaster, and you didn't hear a word about it on donrockwell.com because it was apparently a travesty and a joke (although I'm sure if you look around the blogosphere, you'll find plenty written about it because of all the free booze that was given away). That's how the process works, and Daniel did an exemplary job. And after all the hard work he puts in volunteering for DC Central Kitchen, he bloody well deserves a free party. If he says something was good, you can trust what he has to say (knowing, of course, that Sugo was putting forth their best effort last night in order to impress the media). Cheers, Rocks]
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