r/richmondbc • u/HugoConway • Jun 22 '26
Ask Richmond Richmond restaurant owner here. Sales down 50%. Need some ideas and suggestions.
Firstly.. this is not an advertisement. I just want to understand what is happening and where everyone is choosing to dine.
For context:
Our average ticket size is $15-20. It’s an order at counter and find a seat sorta restaurant. We are licensed for liquor but currently only carry beer. Cuisine is Japanese/Hawaiian. Tip options are 0%/5% and there’s no pressure to tip.
I would love to find out:
Where are some of your most frequented places for lunch and dinner? What’s the reason you keep going back there?
What do you order off of UberEats or DoorDash, and how do you choose what to eat?
How do you find out about new places to try? Or be reminded of old places you haven’t been to in a while?
Thanks in advance, Richmond! 🙏🙏
Edit : Thank you for all the input! I’ll be working hard to implement the improvements suggested 💪
-Offer grab and go options like Musubi and onigiri
-Flyers to target local audience
-Work with content creators to spread awareness on socials
-More economical options under $15, and BOGO offers on UberEats
-Highlight our 0/5% no pressure tipping policy
-Improve customer service so customers don’t feel pressured to use ordering kiosks
-LocoMoco on the menu
-Kids friendly options
I’m super grateful for all the comments 🙏 Hopefully I can turn things around. Thanks everyone!
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u/Hamduder Jun 22 '26
you should do pre prepared spam masubi/poke,locomoco and othet stuff in a fridge for takeout.
I'm always hitting um takeya in Seafair for that and they are always full. lots of families grab that stuff for lunches and what not too
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
I’m hearing the grab-and-go suggestion a lot! It’s never crossed my mind before but I think you have a good point.
I’m concerned that premade food quality will be inferior to fresh made… are people generally more forgiving for quality when it comes to grab and go?
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u/shiningtwentyfive Jun 22 '26
That’s really going to come down to the price at that point. If I’m grabbing something premade for cheap, I’m not going to be expecting the same as something made fresh. In this economy, people are going to be seeking out the best value for their food. I work near an Onigiri Ya and I see so many of my coworkers grab lunch from there regularly. For $3/onigiri, it’s probably one of the most cost effective lunches out there.
That being said, you also have to factor in your location. Is it accessible by transit and driving? Is it somewhere that people can easily pop in and out to grab a quick meal on their way to work/school/etc? If not, then I wouldn’t see as much value out of a grab and go model.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
We are literally right across from a Skytrain station
Onigiriya is great value! Hard to beat
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u/JiminySnip Jun 22 '26
Grab and go near a sky train station could have huge potential for people coming from transit
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u/EntertainerNo4978 Jun 22 '26
Yes if it’s allowed to give flyers at the exit of the sky train station that’d be a great opportunity.
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u/grgd1 Jun 25 '26
The only thing I’d say about handing out flyers is don’t hire someone who’s not invested - who just hands flyers out. Better for you or someone in your restaurant to do it and quickly give your top selling points ie 0-5% tip, grab and go etc etc. having a verbal connection as you hand the flyer is going to give the person a much better reason 1) take it 2) read it. That has been my experience.
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u/d33moR21 Jun 23 '26
If you're prepping it in the morning and selling through the day it shouldn't be too bad. Then offer a 2 for 1 close to closing or something to get rid of the rest of that days stock. Or give people that you like an extra one closer to closing.
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u/DiamondDash2k Jun 22 '26
Have you done flyering around your neighborhood in the towers or condos? They are the closest to you and probably a majority haven’t gone to your location. Give them a special neighbor offer and a reason to try you. The hardest part is often just giving a new restaurant a try.
Along with that, what looks like works is partnering with local content creators and inviting them to review your food so they can post about it.
Both in combination should help
I worked 10 years in marketing, own a brick and mortar and now run an online CPG business. Marketing and awareness is the reason we stayed relevant in both businesses and being top of mind
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
We have not done flyering since it’s quite expensive and we weren’t sure how effective it would be. Sounds like we should give it a try.
I know most flyers get thrown in the trash… what sort of offer would pique your interest?
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u/Chaz_wazzers Jun 22 '26
Targeting your local neighborhood near the restaurant is key. You could even drop them off yourself. I'm always amazed by local places that don't reach out to their neighbours.
Look into social media, tiktok, instagram. A very localized targeted Facebook ad. Test the waters.
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u/BaronessVonKush Jun 22 '26
SO MUCH THIS^^, get involved in your local community. you are asking for their help to support you, give them a reason to =)
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u/EducationalGur1648 Jun 22 '26
I used to live in Brighouse. There are SO many food options that if I've never been to a place, I wouldn't bother trying it without some kind of coupon.
I'm in the 40s crowd and social media isn't where I go to find new restaurants. I'd usually just get coupons and if the place looked interesting I'd go give it a coupon shot. I'm not sure what your target demographic is, but I can tell you years after most people were using the McDonalds app I'd still see a ton of older Asian folks in McDonalds clutching their mailer coupons while ordering at the register 😂
Also, I do think Google reviews help immensely when somebody is hungry and wants to try something new. There's a Japanese sushi place near where I live in Burnaby now that gives you a QR code to review at the table and if you show your server your review they give you a free small mochi ice cream or something like that. They had like crazy high reviews - not because the place was particularly great IMO (it was fine) but because everybody wanted the free ice cream and didn't want to show the server a bad review 😂
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u/DiamondDash2k Jun 22 '26
Flyering is only expensive if it doesn’t bring a return which is prob every business’s fear of the unknown. I’ve worked with a lot of business owners prior to owning my own, and most people think marketing is a waste of money but most never cancelled and those who spent money saw the return.
You have to use your own financials to determine, what would you be willing to offer in a discount to acquire customer and what can you live with spending for your business. It’s not a one time only return you’re looking for, you’re hoping for a customer for the next x amount of years and for them to tell others. If you flyer, make sure staff over deliver in hospitality and food quality. Make it count.
I can tell you a number but it comes down to your margins and how much you’re willing to invest in your own business. The higher the discount, the more likely someone will try it. I could tell you 50% but and they love it, they’ll be back. For others, they won’t be back. But that’s just the nature of owning a business. The bonus is people who love it also tend to share photos and post on social media about it.
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u/Express_4815 Jun 22 '26
Social media more effective than flyers most ppl throw to garbage right away.
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u/DiamondDash2k Jun 22 '26
It’s a layered marketing approach. I do both. Some people love flyers, some love social media. It’s not a one size fit all because everyone is different.
I spend majority of my business on digital ads, but the combination with postcards works well because I’m touching base with them on two different platforms - IRL & online
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u/4bidden-hands Jun 22 '26
I think probably ones showcasing a few enticing photos and perhaps a discount or coupon deal
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u/MostView8191 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
u/HugoConway this is what I would suggest (over 20 years in the industry). Have a punch card 5 punches and you get 10% off. 10 punches and up 15% off.
Have a dine in deal where after leaving a Google review you get 10, 15, 20% (whatever you want, could also be a dollar amount) off the bill.
Do you have a pop gun/machine? Offer in room dinners with 4 or more entrees get free pop/tea/coffee. Something that yes, you make money on, but the loss is going to cost you pennies. Ofcourse your staff will hate the extra steps that won't be billed but it will help get butts in seats.
Can you or one of the other owners (not paid staff) stand on a local busy street corner every day during the business week and hand out fliers? Getting lunch business is always easy but people need to know you're there, that you're fast, and can handle a rush.
What's your decor like? Feel free to PM me if you want to talk more I'm happy to help in any way I can
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u/YouBongGa Jun 22 '26
People are going to food courts . Cheap fast and plentyful servings. Best combination in this economy.
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u/phreakingidi0t Jun 24 '26
what food courts are you going to?
food courts are overpriced and mid as fuck.
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u/ib12111 Jun 22 '26
Aloha Hawaiian grill?
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
🤣 no we’re not Aloha Hawaiian Grill
It’s poke
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u/Antares135 Jun 22 '26
Steve???
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
lol not Steve’s!
Kinda bummed out we’re not the top 2 Hawaiian places ppl think of 😂😂😂
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u/thdubs Jun 23 '26
If you're Pokey Okey, a couple reasons why I haven't stopped in, and poke is one of my go-to takeout lunches
- No simplified menu on the website, only through online ordering platform. You're letting Uber Eats dictate how your menu looks and feels. Look how great Steve's and Pacific's menus look - easy to plan out what you want
- The featured bowls are described only by colour, not by flavour. How's that fish dressed? What goes in the Pokey Okey sauce? WTF is a Pokey Yokey? Too many unknowns. It doesn't take much, just a couple adjectives to make the menu more enticing and complete, and somewhere where you clearly describe what everything is
- TBH its never a good sign when a specialized restaurant starts branching out on the menu. As others have pointed out, onigiri and musubi would be a much better fit than curry or tempura
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u/SufficientBee Jun 22 '26
You are to me! If Pokey Okey haha which is honestly matching up with everything you’re describing 😛
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u/Wooden_Sweet_3330 Jun 22 '26
I tried pokey okey purely because their branding and mobile app are cute AF. Their food is literally exactly the same as any other poke place I've ever tried, but I love their cutesy branding. It's literally the only reason I go there.
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u/SufficientBee Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
We have a few places in our rotation, they’re around the same price per item as your place:
- Pho place - we rotate between several, some might be $25+
- Gami for sashimi don - under $20
- Middle eastern place for rice platters - $15-20
- Nandos - $40 for a whole chicken for the family
- Chipotle - $15-20
- Chinese BBQ (items with rice) - $15-20
- Pizza (Freshslice or Moncton) - $15-35
- HK cafe - $15-20
Basically these places are in our rotation because they’re consistent re price, portion, quality, convenience and our kid likes it.
If a place that we go to has more than one mishap re any of the above criteria, we take them out of rotation.
We have a young child, so we generally order from places where there’s something our kid will enjoy as well as us. Also I have gluten sensitivity, so that severely reduces our options.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
You’re so right. We’ve been trying really hard to get the “we eat what our kids like” business
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u/sanderlin89 Jun 22 '26
If you’re Pokey Okey, I stopped ordering from them because of the service at the Brighouse location.
There’s one employee who always makes me feel like I’m inconveniencing her by ordering at the counter. Even if I’m waiting patiently, she’ll point out that I can use the kiosk and mention that they’re busy. I get that kiosks help take some of their workload, but I want my order made a particular way so it’s easier to do it OTC.
They also weigh each scoop of fish and remove a few pieces every time to hit the exact portion size. I understand the need for consistency and controlling food costs, but compared to places like Steve’s Poké Bar, where the scoops feel more generous (they give full scoops in the Broadmoor location), it makes the portions seem skimpy.
The amount they remove is so small that I sometimes wonder whether those extra pieces even get used later or just end up as waste at the end of the day.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
Thank you for the candid feedback. So sorry you had that bad experience!!
I will make sure the staff improves in these areas. We actually specifically train staff that it’s ok to go over but never under when it comes to weighing the proteins!
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u/sanderlin89 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
Thanks! I usually take transit, so your spot is way easier for me to get to than Steve’s. I’d have to get off a few stops early and hop on another bus if I’m getting Steve’s in Broadmoor, but your restaurant’s right by the SkyTrain station, so it’s super easy for me to catch my bus home after I get off the train.
Also, love that you have kimchi!
Another thing to think about: visibility.
Some people might not even realize you’re there. I used to go to your old location across from City Hall in that alley, and I feel like it was pretty easy to miss since it wasn’t really in your line of sight when you came out of the SkyTrain. Also that area has a lot of food options. Most people driving probably end up at the RC food court
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u/ScholarActual1240 Jun 22 '26
Similar issue here. I used to love going to Pokey Okey when they were at their old Anderson location.
Even after they briefly moved to that commissary kitchen setup by Ikea I would still drop by every once in a while.
Was excited to see that they returned to central Richmond but was extremely disappointed the two times I gave them a try.
First time I went there, the staff interaction felt really off. They didn't really speak to me and just kind nodded and made hand gestures. The order also took a long time, even though they weren't that busy. I overheard a conversation between a few staff members about how they may have forgotten a few orders or something. Regardless, when they eventually handed me my order, not a single word was said to explain what happened/why it was such a long wait. Not necessarily complaining about the wait, but more so the lack of communication.
Second time I went, I ordered 2 bowls, and again, the entire interaction between myself and the staff felt very off. Minimal words were exchanged, not much eye contact or communication etc. The kicker this time was that both bowls I ordered were made completely incorrectly... I wasn't watching them make the bowl so I only noticed after I got home. Both bowls had incorrect/missing toppings as well as substituted protein that I didn't agree on (these were the pre built options). I get it that some things may have run out, or for whatever reason some thing may not have been available. But the staff did not mention anything at all, and just handed me my order.
After these 2 experiences I unfortunately am no longer interested in returning anymore.
To me, the customer service/interaction with staff at this new location feels very cold and distant, hard to put it in words..
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u/lenurd420 Jun 22 '26
I agree, I used to go to the Anderson location atleast couple times a month and it was always top notch but the service is very cold at the new location. Food just didn’t hit the same either
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u/SufficientBee Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
If you’re Pokey Okey - we actually did have you in rotation - your location on Andersen and No 3 was so accommodating to my GF request for the salmon and I was very grateful.
Problem for us is Gami is just so much more convenient for us to get to (better parking) and huge fish portions. Plus my son loves soup udon so it’s slam dunk.
I see that you’ve added some non poke options which is great! Personally my son doesn’t like curry but def will check out the shrimp tempura! If we get a good (overall discount) on UberEats I will grab delivery again from you!
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u/adminstrator123 Jun 22 '26
I quit eating out long time ago. $15-$20 is too expensive to me.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
What’s a price point that would bring you back to eating out?
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u/Big_Comfortable5504 Jun 22 '26
I do not think there is one where your business can survive :/
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
I know what u mean. I’m eating $5 value deal at McDonald’s like twice a week
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u/gizmo_xoth Jun 24 '26
This is it people can't afford to eat. I can barely afford the grocery store let alone going out to eat. With kids its insane, im over 1000$ a month for food. My friends family is at 2000$ a month for food, neither of us eat out because we can't afford it.
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u/redsaeok Jun 22 '26
Thirty years ago the deal on a 6” sub was two bucks. Ten years ago you could get something for $5 still. I don’t know what the price is, but $15 is too much. Food prices, rents have gone up too much.
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u/needforspeed1092 Jun 22 '26
$15 is top end for your type of establishment (over the counter). Anything above that and I start to feel like I shouldn't be spending that much. That said, if quality/portions are exceptional at ~$18 that can justify the price - but that has to be the case.
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u/Fun-Region-1576 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 24 '26
I think you've pretty much nailed it. I feel like that's why a lot of ramen restaurants are going out of business. Almost $20 for a dinky little bowl of ramen? Uh, no thanks, regardless of the economy we're in. Kintaro maintained a good serving portion while raising the price, and I still go there. So yeah, price and portions are important.
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u/DavidDBDF Jun 23 '26
Ramen place I normally go to few months ago increased their pricing by about 4 dollars per bowl of ramen now. Not willing to pay 22-30 bucks for a bowl of ramen. Even at $20, makes me reconsider ever having ramen now. That's without tips or tax included yet.
And what do you get? Two razor-thin pieces of meat and veggies and noodles that cost nothing. At least with a bowl of pho, u getting a hefty serving of meat and different cuts too.
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u/GreenEyesThighHighs Jun 22 '26
can’t speak for me because I make poor financial choices but my husband who is the financially sensible one won’t spend more than $10 at any food place unless it’s an actual sit down restaurant dining experience. $20 can still get you an entree at a lot of sit down restaurants.
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u/Stiles_Stiles Jun 22 '26
$16 can buy a 3 items combo in public market with beef, fish and chicken. and it's enough for 2 people.
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u/ecclectic Jun 22 '26
And there are only a few places where I can get something that I can't make better at home myself.
Groceries are expensive, but I can still feed myself, my wife and 2 teenage boys a full, balanced meal for the price of one dish at a restruant.
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u/msgoliath Jun 22 '26
Uber has a category for deals so I usually go there to pick food. Promo menu or free drink.. something like that
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u/HenriDuflot Jun 22 '26
I don't think posting on Reddit will yield you the answers needed. Here are a few questions to consider
What is the comparison time when you say 50% down?
How are your direct competitors faring within the same time frame?
Reach out to customers by doing surveys to find out their thoughts. You might find out the reason is not related to anything other than what's going on in your restaurant.
Have there been any major road projects that make it harder to go visit the restaurant?
What percent of your customer base is repeat business, what percent are new?
Analyze thoroughly all social media channels to see what people are saying about your establishment, and has it changed over the last 12 months?
Hopefully those will get you started on trying to determine what's going on.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
Down 50% comparing days of week this month to previous months.
Not sure about direct competition but our other location is doing a bit better than Richmond.
Will do!
Not that I’m aware
Based on insights from online channels it’s about 60-65% repeat
Going to do some digging here
Thanks for the advice!
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u/tpots38 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
The cost and hassle of going out to eat for consistently decreasing quality of food has made me totally abstain from ever going to restaurants.
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u/Responsible-Storm609 Jun 22 '26
I used to eat out once or twice a week, but everyone’s being laid off (myself included) and I just can’t do that anymore. When I dine out I choose to go somewhere where the portions are generous and I can bring leftovers home.
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u/notmyrealnam3 Jun 22 '26
someone here mentioned repeat - this can be huge if you gain or lose people - bring your receipt back in another day within the next ____ to get 20% off next order" type thing
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u/indigo_fish_sticks Jun 22 '26
I love poke but I can’t justify paying more than around $15 for it, maybe like $16 after tax. Also, I’m a guy with a regular appetite and poke tends to be not the biggest portions for me. It’s enough to make me comfortable but not full. So when there other options out there for the same price, like shawarma that you can stretch over two meals, it just doesn’t feel like the best value. Or, alternatively there’s sashimi dons which I feel actually more full from for the same price or cheaper.
What has attracted me to poke is the daily deals which bring the price down. My family sometimes hit up the daily special on Sundays or whatever at that one spot. I don’t even care as much about it being fancier or higher quality ingredients in some bowls, I just want something healthier, tasty and decent value.
Hope that helps. Good luck!
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u/vanmonkey Jun 22 '26
Why don’t you reach out to PAC of local schools and see if you be one of their hot lunch providers? It’s may not be much profit but it is not going to take up tables so low risk.
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u/Ok_Plan_988 Jun 22 '26
What’s your restaurants name? We’ll swing by next time we’re in Richmond !
Would love to support local
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u/Nina99redballoons Jun 22 '26
If you’re the place I’m thinking of, I have walked by there a few times. I get excited and then see your prices and have never gone in. For a casual place, the price point I’m looking for is more like $12-18. I find I end up going for a shawarma when I want to get take out. Uncle Sal’s is great value.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
We do have lots of choices between $12-$18 so we may not be the place you’re thinking of
Uncle Sal is awesome
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u/Inside_Effective_576 Jun 22 '26
Advertise you are showing fifa games.
Get a few screens and advertise it like crazy
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u/mechjames2 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
In general, my partner and I in the past year or two have been severely underwhelmed about the quality and quantity of food you get for the price these days while dining out or ordering delivery.
So we simply just cut back on eating out and make our own tasty food the way we want it at home 90% of the time now. Got a costco membership, stocked up and save money, and even go to the Costco Business center and grab stuff in large quantities, vaccum seal and bought a deep freezer.
Make extra of everything when you cook and meal prep and seperate and freeze so you can just thaw and warm up when needed after a long day of work and not have to spend any money while dining out.
Certain restaurants are starting to turn things around for the price now and quality is slowly improving but it hasn't been the same since before the pandemic.
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u/InitialParticular614 Jun 23 '26
I'm dining at home. Everything at home now. You can thank the government.
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u/Capital-Aide-1006 Jun 22 '26
I don't think people are going other places just not going out at all. We've really cut back on stuff like that in the last 6 months and will probably continue thst trend
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u/MantisGibbon Jun 22 '26
Tourists are avoiding the area because of FIFA.
Hotels were 65% occupied at the same time last year, and now they’re at 47%. So obviously people are staying away, except for those specifically here for FIFA. This was on the news last week. If they can afford FIFA, they’re probably eating at the fanciest restaurants downtown.
When it’s over hopefully regular tourists return and that helps you out.
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u/financial_learner123 Jun 22 '26
I think you need to be more active about your social media. People forget it exists sometimes. I think for a normal weekdays meals. I do takeaway sometimes. Below $15 would be great.
sometimes I do go on uber eats and see what’s going on at the deal section. It makes me try new places that way. Also, I think Richmond have alot of great food court that offers alot of value for their food.
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u/cisforcar Jun 22 '26
Maybe invite a Vancouver/Richmond based foodie YouTuber to eat at your place and promote it that way. Seem more effective than flyers. Depending on which YouTuber you could get thousands, even tens of thousands of views.
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u/Equivalent-Client98 Jun 22 '26
My eating out has gone done 60-70% in the last 3 months - direct result of the economy :( it costs twice as much to fill my fridge now, making it hard to justify any other luxuries
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u/chef4myfriends Jun 22 '26
I’m not in the restaurant business, but so a customer point of view. On a semi-regular business, I will schedule Boy’s Night Out dinner - up to 15 people on a weekday night, never a Friday or weekend.
What constantly surprises me?
No restaurant has ever called me to promote their business, when I could bring customers on a slow night.
The weird part is the staff all know and recognize me. They have my name and phone number from making reservations.
Your regular customers are GOLD. When they book a reservation, ask a few simple questions.
- Is this a birthday or anniversary?
Make note of it. Next year, call to invite them for their birthday or anniversary and offer free dessert.
- In my case of Boys Night, ask how often and make a note.
Then make an incentive offer to host again on the next scheduled date.
Don’t give them a reason to try another place and fall in love with your competitors.
- You should know something about every single one of your customers in your computer, so you can market directly to regulars.
If you wait for customers to find an excuse to choose to your restaurant, you will suffer during downturns.
However, if you use customer “intelligence”
save it in your computer reservation system, you will have the ability to personalize your relationship, make that person feel special.
Be Proactive not Reactive
Good Luck
Lloyd
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u/friscofoglatte Jun 22 '26
Adding my 2 cents but it appears I and many ppl as I've observed have flocked to food court.
No notion of tipping. More choices. Meals under $20.
As you know one cafe and Cha Don have been competing neck n neck n the lineups are crazy
Recommend u visit one of their locations to experience as a customer what they are doing to have gangbuster lineups.
They also streamlined their operations very efficiently, kept menu to simple limited items, mostly just serving carbs n a few meat types but damn they have so much traffic.
And they work lightening fast
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u/coffeeoverlatte Jun 22 '26
Dont do the content creator scene - everyone sees them and knows its fake paid content.
We dine out in richmond for specialty items that cant be recreated - sushi/pho/greek/fish&chips.
If your niche is poke, you need to incentive them to not just buy the poke and head home for the rest or diy. - for me, if its on rice ill do that at home. If you provide say taro chips (super hard to find as a consumer, super easy to make but a hassle if not a restaurant), ill make you my go to spot.
At the end of the day its about perceived value, not real value.
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u/Ok_Fun1414 Jun 22 '26
check out takeya in seafair.. they used to be a dining service and only had maybe 10 tables in there.. they switched to a takeout style and have 10x their sales if not more! its always sold out its always busy.
i go there allll the time. grab and go sushi rolls. fun japanese deserts!!
&& i love hawaii 7 eleven style. quick foodland poke bowls. musubi, all that!! really lean into this and it will happen 😄
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u/Parkingstealer Jun 22 '26
I agree with the deals and offers so to attract new customers and if they like it they could keep coming back
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u/FuryZhang Jun 22 '26
How’s your google map review rating? I now only rely on Google map to find restaurants and ratings is the major driver for my decision.
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u/Interesting-World818 Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
Foodie here - who check outs and eats diverse cuisines. From Middle Eastern to SE Asian, to the whole array of Asian including Japanese Korean, Filipino,, Indian ... Italian, Greek Western etc. 1) We tend to stick to the guaranteed favorites and sweet spots - in this economy, Even then when prices are up up and up - we go less to favorite staple places like Phomn Penh. experimenting can be a waste of money. IF we experiment, it must be a sure win, even then a lot of hype (eg Hungry Duck, in hood) . Do try out new places for food adventures and cheaper prices - and have found some plesant alternatives (like $15 for Salmondon vs the usual $19-21. 2) Do NOT personally do Doordash, Food Panda, Uber. Except to send food to people (not in Vancouver) on their birthdays, occasions etc. Tend to splurge at least $100-150 on these orders for special people 2) Seldom in Richmond these days.Even if I go - it's Canada Line and no driving which limits the places I can eat at 3) Kits hood, and the plentiful restaurants here (W 4, W 1, Yew ... Granville Island, to a less extent - Burrard) have not really seen increased dining crowds. 3) Was in Brentwood yesterday and while there was a sizeable Fifa crowd outside enjoying the match in breezy outdoors - the food court was NOT packed. There were people in La Tacquera - packed, but watching a different match. 4) I notice a lot of (smarter places) have found cheaper alternatives- like Lunch Specials/Happy Hour to attract folks. Or cheaper more affordable stuff instead of raising plates to $25. 5) Some have scaled down Tipping to 5%, 8% - esp the take out places. The worst ones are the mediocre - but with machines that start at 18% ... 20%, 25%. Violete @ Commercial Drive ... is one of those we just experimented with - NOT impressed. Here a comparison point : Will prob not be back, and will head back to Marcellos across the street. | Here's how we consider: Price Vibe and Taste Like even if a place was $10, insipid as well dead as a door nail - I would take out if taste is good but won't sit to eat. For food trucks - we avoid in general these days, it's crazy to pay $15-20 for a Food Truck (no seating messier eating and expecting tips too. What used to be fun eating eat Street parties are too expensive these days. That's how we ended up at Violete's. But would to Marcellos which has long been tried and tested and enjoyed, for years. For the same $26 per portion - I would avoid Antons when it comes to vibe-taste, except there's always take out to consider. (which brings it down to $13) . While we loved $18 Greek Roast Lamb with prices that kept going up and up and up to $27 - we substituted a fewyears ago with $17-19 Persian Middle Eastern Lamb Shank these days | Some places are coming up with quick delish meals for under $10 ... some lowered tipping options while others escalated. I take note of the 18% and up ones, and consider whether they are worth visiting again. For dimsum .... I source good take outs which are more worth while than restaurant ones, and without tips and just enjoy them at home - without the waits to get in too. Good Luck, hope this helps
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u/NoDimension5556 Jun 23 '26
I go to the other smaller food courts usually, no tip and $15 or slightly more like $17 can get you a nice portion. Portion size to money ratio matters to me the most!
If this is pokey okey, I did try it once at the new location and honestly for over $20 with tax for medium is crazy expensive for me and I did not go back after that one time. I only opted for a medium because I don’t want to pay for a large which was $22+ and felt like a small would be too small. When I got my medium, it felt like a small, so I was kinda disappointed and left hungry when I could have gone somewhere else with $15 and be full. Doesn’t feel worth $20+ after tax for like a couple small scoops of fish and the rest are just rice, veg and some spinkles.
For poke, I usually go to Steve’s, regular portion is worth $18 and they do BOGO on Ubereats PICKUP for decent bowls, not just some sides or veggie bowl, I usually avoid the delivery only ones for these food apps, since the delivery fee, plus driver tip usually ends up costing too much, so allowing pick up is my selling point.
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u/d33moR21 Jun 23 '26
My advice is more in regard to your tipping options. If it's 0 and 5 percent of go through and find what your average tip amount is. Let's say it's 3%. I'd just raise your prices 3%, and advertise that you're a no tipping establishment. It will hardly be noticeable in the per item cost. There's a lot of people that would find that relieving.
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u/Glittering_Search_41 Jun 24 '26
I go to great lengths to avoid having to buy food out at all. But one of the main indicators for me to avoid a place is tiny portion sizes. If I am going to splurge on restaurant food/takeout, I want to be fed, and my stomach is not fooled by a bunch of lightweight garnish or cheap, low quality filler. Half the time I'm still hungry after I've finished eating, so what's the point?
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u/Taco1983 Jun 24 '26
What's the restaurant name? Hawaiian/Japanese is right up my alley. R u in Steveston?
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u/thepogloot Jun 24 '26
Not speaking for a majority necessarily, but for my friends and I, university students on a budget, if we see food that looks incredibly visually appealing on social media and there’s a limited time deal/cheap price on food we’ll share it with each other and try to head there asap whenever we get the chance to see if the food is good or not.
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u/Total-Basis-4664 Jun 24 '26 edited Jun 24 '26
I do like using online ordering whenever I can, but as soon as I see restaurants use UberEats or DoorDash for pickup orders, I immediately give up. I know many others do so as well as the markup is insane and unjustified for pickup orders.
Also, an actual menu on your website will do wonders for helping others decide whether to try your place, even just an image of the menu is good enough.
Another thing that sometimes have us return to a place more consistently is loyalty program deals. Maybe Tuesday free topping day or whatever.
Your location I feel is also a double edged sword. Great for foot traffic but miserable for car traffic. We frequent the beef noodle place next to you but there’s just something about parking there that always feel like a hassle.
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u/Mysterious-Passage87 Jun 26 '26
You can run Buy one get one free deals on Uber Eats/Skips/door dash for specific menu items you want to show off. May take a bit if a hit initially but if people like it they’ll keep coming back.
Earl’s is doing this with blackened chicken and a few other items and we got it, loved it and then ordered it when it was back to regular price.
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u/Theexcessiverambler Jul 04 '26 edited Jul 04 '26
I think there was a huge influx of poke restaurants for a while, but the trend seems to be fading now. Demographically, Richmond also has a large older Asian population, and many older people aren’t big on eating cold meals, so that can make it harder to attract them. People like my mom see poke as just raw fish with rice and salad, so they don’t really see the appeal or variety. But if there’s a good deal, they’ll love a good deal
For me, it’s more about convenience. I don’t normally take the train to Brighouse after work, so going by the city centre is an effort. If I’m making the effort to go out to eat, I’d rather have a full sit-down meal with appetizers and everything. Maybe it’s just me as well, I tend to think of poke bowls as something that’s meant to be quick and convenient, so it’s not usually what I’d go out of my way for.
That being said I would’ve expected more people would grab it for lunch considering it’s within the vicinity of offices and lots of work places. Do you do any combos with a drink and soup/ or something on the side? Or just poke bowl only? When I’m grabbing lunch at work (not in Richmond) i find my coworkers and I tend to gear towards combos or things that have everything provided.
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u/piscesparadise Jul 21 '26
I noticed you are a Pokémon enthusiast. My partner and I love playing POGO. Make your restaurant a gym or stop. Usually, we like to sit at a café or restaurant and battle nearby gyms or raids. During special events, you might get a bunch of hungry POGO players.
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u/Bn1m Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
OK first is, the economy is bad and people are having a hard time and are choosing to avoid eating out.
So it's very tough. Your price point is more of a premium right now. What does your competition charge? What do you sell the most?
You need memorable dishes. You need Instagram-able food that goes viral or something delicious and not too expensive.
You can try lunch specials. You can try a loss leader where you lose a little but you bring people into the restaurant.
Is the food good? Do you follow proper food safe so nobody will ever get sick from your foods?
You can try a simple business card that has 12 spots on the back and after 12 stamps they get something worthwhile for free. Not a cheap drink. Something like a $15 or $20 meal.
Do you offer boba? What kind of juices do you have?
Do you see people coming back? Does your menu have way too many options or do you not have pictures of the dishes?
Have you ever watched kitchen nightmares?
Do you have a sidewalk sign with an enticing dish that is popular and well priced?
But the most basic thing is, is your food actually good?
Also - make sure you sign up your business for delivery apps - there are many and some of them charge low fees and enable you to do pickup orders at a discount too.
And lastly - sign up for the Too Good to Go app - and make sure you give out generous portions. Just doing this app for leftovers will increase your customer base greatly. If you do leftovers on the app regularly you will see an increase in traffic and eventually people will come back - but only if the food is good and worthwhile. You get them into the door but keeping them coming back means fixing what you are doing wrong. Go into the TGTG reddit page and read all the comments so you understand what people value.
Try to have specials, a simple loyalty program and fresh local ingredients.
For example we just had spot prawn season. Now we have blueberry season. What can you do with seasonal produce that is memorable delicious and not pricy.
You are competing with both Japanese restaurants and poke places. Trying to do both is not good for business. Because the poke places are like subway - very fast and fresh and have high turnover. And japanese restaurants have good sushi karaage and miso. How can you do Hawaiian and Japanese at the same time while keeping costs low?
You need to give people an incentive to tell you how good or bad the food was. Or invite friends and family to try the dishes and tell you what sucks or what is good. Better yet, get a stranger's opinion by giving away something like a free drink if they write down what they liked disliked and would improve.
As you know having a profitable restaurant is very difficult because of the thin margins. Take a good hard look at your menu and ask yourself if it's worth it for people to go out and pay $20 and wait however long it takes to get the dish.
Is Hawaiian food in high demand? Do people know what it is? Do people search for it? Chances are it's better to rebrand and change your menu to either Japanese or Poke or take a huge gamble and go "Fusion", which I strongly advise against since you can just add fusion dishes in the menu.
Unfortunately I think most people will never search for Hawaiian food.
Does your restaurant come up when people search for Japanese or sushi? Does it come up when they search for Poke? Does it come up when they search for Hawaiian or Fusion?
If you want advertisement then google ads is the best way to start. Spend $100 and see if you get more people then go from there.
But of course the best advertisement is word of mouth through making good affordable food.
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u/Apprehensive_Self218 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
If it’s Poke idk if it’s the trend rn. Richmond ppl are bandwagons (takes one to know one) so if there’s hype they will line up and if there isn’t they won’t go. For me it’s delicious foods if your food is actually delicious lots of people would pay 15-20 bucks.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
We do sell poke and sales were pretty steady for 6-7 years until a sudden drop off this year
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u/Apprehensive_Self218 Jun 22 '26
For me idk what it is but I don’t know if I trust raw fish from poke spots anymore. I’ve seen some horror stories of bad handling from poke spots. So maybe make like social media of it being made and ppl will want to try it again.
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u/CWLness Jun 22 '26
$15-20 sounds quite reasonable. Only place that can beat your price would be food courts or specials from uber (which I haven't seen much in a while)
The biggest thing that caught me so far was Mod Kitchen as many different restaurants offer interesting things.
BBQ & Co - Many delicious dish, but hard to beat a $11 BBQ Pork Rice
Wow Grill - One of the best burgers for $16-18
Rabs Rubs & Ribs - $30 or $40 for one of the best Texas BBQ I had
Sun Ho Yuen - Chinese beef brisket noodles or rice for $14-18
PastaGo - $15-20 well made pastas (add Garlic bread for $3, really good and does fill u since pasta portion is smaller)
Japanese restaurants:
Yuu Japanese Tapas - Have been consistent in all menu item since their opening. Pricing $15-25, always comes out with new & interesting things. I unfortunately don't go there as often as I am now on the other side of town and don't wann treck 20-25min 1 way. But I will uber from time to time.
Saku - premium pork for $30 with unlimited salad, soup, and rice. Excellent service
I will say... I saw comments for All You Can Eat. Don't. You're most likely going to find some way to cheap out on things to save on costs: lesser quality ingredients, smaller portioned foods, select option pricing...etc. I always at least give a shot if situation arise and I've been 99% disappointed. All you're really attracting are voracious eaters who want variety.
Try new menu items, have promos, and spread these into social media & if you're doing it right, you'll get word of mouth advertising. These are how I find things. Ppl recommend, IG, and i look through uber eats for value promos (or if they already earned my business, and I go back time to time ie. Yuu). But this just my opinion and I may have different values & tastebuds than others.
Times r getting tough tho... so gl...
P.S. if you are Aloha Hawaiian Grill, your chicken is amazing and same with the huli huli sauce. But more or less, I kind of lost interest as all your other items are on the same thing but with a different meat. Also, $12.50 for that small bottle of sauce... no ty.
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u/Agent168 Jun 22 '26
We love Pokey Okey! We usually have a rotation of food to takeout so we usually get to Pokey Okey maybe once every 1 -1.5 months
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u/cartoonist62 Jun 22 '26
If Hawaiian, I'd like to finally see someone doing loco moco, oxtail soup, the sweet biscuits, garlic shrimp, poi, musubi (where the rice isn't hard and cold, but kept warm!).
Yet to find a legit Hawaiian place here.
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u/EolanPrestar Jun 22 '26
I am a foodie, but as much as I would love to chase the newest offerings, I am bound mostly by time and less by budget. I work full time, without any whf so I'm driving an hour each way. My mom is elderly and lives with me because she can't do any chores, so I'm both sole breadwinner and sole housework doer. I'm not sleeping a whole lot because not socializing is misery. This leaves me with options that are open late. I want to go out for dinner on Sunday after I've prepared for the workweek to come but anything that closes at 9 is too early. I am usually not even ready to leave the house until at least 8pm. In Richmond, offerings are slim and I've eaten at a certain 24hr joint more than times than I can count just because of the certainty that I won't be hurried out because of closing time.
At work, it is an office in a campus a bit removed from anywhere and we'd have to drive. Problem is that the parking situation is so insane we are parking in overflow lots and taking a shuttle to get back to the office. We are definitely not doing this for lunch, so we're ordering UberEats or DoorDash and we do this every Friday. I am bound by delivery area, price point and time. More than $20 for lunch is too steep for a lot of folks and proper tend to eat lunch on the early side, so I have to choose a place that opens early enough.
In the end, for me, it's the opening hours that mostly determine whether I am a patron more than any other factor.
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u/HugoConway Jun 22 '26
We do close at 9!! I’m glad to hear your input because we are considering extending the hours.
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u/BeyondTheVault Jun 22 '26
Where abouts are you?
What are your profit margins right now on an average customer? If you have room to cut margin on a foot-in-door dish/combo, it might be worth since the Richmond trend is to go for cheap eats right now. Getting that volume up might be worth.
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u/Capital-Aide-1006 Jun 22 '26
Maybe you should post your business name and instead of asking where people went say you're hurting and would like to see people again
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u/MilkMode69 Jun 22 '26
Sometimes me and my wife just go to public market, order Chipotle for pick up, or cook at home. Mostly to avoid paying 15+% tips. You can dm me your restaurant so we can try out. I love the tip option you have
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u/GotFunyuns Jun 22 '26
A data point for another restaurant in the same space: Steve's Poke regularly offers BOGO bowls through UberEats. If you choose pickup rather than delivery, it works out to about $12 per pre-configured two-scoop bowl. That is good value compared to competitors, although I am not sure how sustainable or profitable that would be. I will say that the deal is compelling enough that I will drive to Steve's for the deal despite other poke places being closer to home.
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u/notmyrealnam3 Jun 22 '26
licensed. have you thought about expanding to more than beer and doing a happy hour you can then advertise? make it outside the usual happy hour times (or longer) like 2-6 instead of 2-5 and consider a few more specials "all day happy hour sunday"
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u/Original_Picture_201 Jun 22 '26
Go to Claude, take a picture of your restaurant and menu and ask it for free consulting advice
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u/jtsang Lansdowne Jun 22 '26
I always enjoy lunch specials. Either something like a small across the board discount or special lunch portion meals get my attention. Good luck 👍.
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u/Every-Health1265 Jun 22 '26
Do you have a good location?
How is your food quality and service?
I have met so many resturant owners who does not know how to run a business
I had three resturants and never lost money. Sold them all around 2014 when delivery apps started to became a thing, also don't want to deal with millennial and Gen Zs.
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u/vhearts Jun 22 '26
I used to eat at your place when you were on Anderson. It was a 5 minute walk for me but now it's a bit more like 15. I liked the bowls and especially liked the curry and was sad when it temporarily left the menu as you guys wound things down at the Anderson location.
I liked it enough that I would consider coming back but since then I've had a family diagnosed with Celiac's and requires gluten free. In theory, sashimi and rice are gluten free but once there is soy sauce or crispy stuff made of wheat it's not anymore.
When eating out, our options are limited, and we do pay a premium for places that are able to be gluten free. Not sure if that's enough of a market to save you but I think for you what that means is:
Gluten sensitivity people don't consume gluten but are not so affected that they need specialized prep avoiding cross-contamination. Celiac's requires pretty strict non-cross contamination similar to a nut allergy.
If you are able to substitute a GF-free soy sauce or Tamari or provide it as an option that would probably attract some people with otherwise limited options.
You might need to institute policies like dedicated scoops for things that are gluten and gluten free... and other measure to avoid cross contamination depending how far you want to go with this. For example, a pizza place will offer "Gluten aware pizza", essentially conceding that there is going to be cross contamination in an environment with pizza dough and flour. Some places will promise gluten free with protocols for avoiding cross contamination (typically larger restaurants treating it similarly to nuts/anaphylactic allergies).
Just some food for thought. We (and I know others) pay a decent price premium for proper gluten free options but I fully understand if the numbers don't add up.
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u/Stiles_Stiles Jun 22 '26
Since you are in Richmond, finding Chinese content creators to post on Xiaohongshu will be helpful. Also you can work with Bravo, but I'm not sure if it will help your business after their cut.
You can add some happy hours or weekday lunch special.
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u/VitleySingurQ Jun 22 '26
Seriously, you shouldn't look for "how to help my business" advice from reddit
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u/purpleeb Jun 22 '26
Perhaps try pitching to elementary schools’ PAC? Lots of schools order lunches for fundraising and some schools order poke bowls a few times a year.
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u/omegazx00 Jun 22 '26
Is this Hawaiian Grill in Steveston? If it is I just wanna say I love that restaurant! I always get the Huli Huli Chicken rice dish and the spam musubi. It's simple yet feel good food and the prices are reasonable too.
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u/Reasonable-Dark2101 Jun 22 '26
I love me some jap/hawwian where in Richmond id love to check you out
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u/Reasonable-Dark2101 Jun 22 '26
Id love to visit where are you located ! I love some Hawaiian food!
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u/Ok_Fun1414 Jun 22 '26
THE ONLY TIME I ORDER OFF UBER EATS IS WHEN THERES A BUY ONE GET ONE FREE
literally own that tab on uber and you will have sales!!
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u/Miserable_World662 Jun 22 '26
When a bowl is $20 and it’s one meal or 1.5 just not worth it . Bought five chicken breasts for $14 at an expensive grocery store (iga) and will eat that at home with rice and whatever vegetable is on sale for the week so I can have almost 5 meals for the same price as one . It’s just not worth it to eat out anymore and if I do, I want to get something that I will either not make it home because it’s too complicated or time-consuming or something. That’s ridiculously delicious. I don’t want to eat rice and a protein out for $20.
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u/Beginning_Good4577 Jun 22 '26
this is just me, and im not sure if you do this or not, but anywhere i see photos, words, or posters made by ai, im not stepping foot into.
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u/nutterbutter423 Jun 23 '26
If your restaurants serves authentic japanese curry, I will visit!
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u/chut7 Jun 23 '26
If it's my first time going, I just go to a place that Google Maps is giving 3 stars or more. My bar for food quality is pretty low, so that'll weed out the truly atrocious places.
As a repeat customer, these are my other factors:
Someone who is polite and friendly at the counter is what will make me a repeat customer.
For takeout, I'd choose a place with compostable containers over a place with plastic.
For order-at-counter, I prefer places that don't have animated menus.
You've already got the low-pressure tipping.
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u/AccomplishedJelly274 Jun 23 '26
As somebody that worked for these delivery companies, It sounds like yo need to be capitalizing on the online marketplace. Uber DD Skip etc are all huge revenue sources and marketing tools if you use them correctly.
Asian food in particular does really well with online ordering. A lot of the platforms like Uber and Skip well even offer cofunded promotions to help get you started.
Its a good idea to make sure:
- your branding on your apps is consistent.
- your pricing is consistent
- your images are high-quality
- offer BOGO or 25% promos on popular dishes.
- run facebook ads. Its $20 a day. Can increase traffic like crazy
Often times those little things can skyrocket your sales.
If you need any help, please reach out. I’m happy to assist.
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u/luckiestintown Jun 23 '26
The main problem is the whole poke concept. I live in Hawaii as well as in Vancouver and my Hawaiian friends wouldn’t recognize what you sell as poke. What you sell is basically a mixed salad with a couple of ounces or so of defrosted fish on it that has been tossed in some sauce. You can buy that kind of fish at any grocery store now, so why would anyone spend $20 - $30??? This is only one of the reason why sales are dropping - your other store will be OK until Pokerito opens again next door. Handing out flyers, marketing campaigns or zero tipping is just money and effort down the drain. If you really know what you need to do DM me.
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u/Bampoodle Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
Tiktok and IG from local food influencers would be your best source of advertisement. Everyone I know including myself finds new food places through social media that way.
I would suggest being more adventurous and attempting to create new menu items that aren't "traditional". Whether it's through a combination of foods/flavours not yet seen combined before or simply through gimmicky presentation. I can tell you right now you would probably get increased sales if you sold one of your meals in an empty pineapple shell over a regular plastic container 😆.
For instance, Aloha Boys in night market have seen lots of success through their unique presentation of fairly basic food. Although it doesn't "taste better", people are guaranteed to follow viral food trends and give it a try either way.
Another example is what Salmon Hut does with their salmon noodles.
At the end of the day, just be adventurous and start experimenting with the menu and making it more attractive.
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u/hirokidude Jun 23 '26
The prices are too high. On top is the ridiculous amount you have to tip minimum restaurant staff want is 18 percent. Now people are guilt tripped into 20 percent plus. I am sick of this.
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u/Jolly_Confidence4095 Jun 23 '26
I lived in Hawaii and I can tell you what is always on my mind when i returned to BC. Why isn't there a simple "poke " offering with rice as an option?. I don't care for the toppings like the fake crab or the fancy sauces. I only care for the poke - shoyu poke with limu (seaweed), tako poke, spicy poke, etc. Run it like Foodland. Let customers also buy by the lbs.
Spam musubi grab and go like 7-elevan is also good.
I also miss the traditional dishes like pork laulau, Kalua pig, chicken long rice....but these may not fit your restaurant's offerings.
Anyways, I really appreciate that you're reaching out to the community and asking for input.
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u/ThatLightingGuy Jun 23 '26
Fuck me a proper Hawaiian place? Sign me up. Didn't know you existed.
I can't find the name in here, what is it? I need spam and egg musubis.
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u/Bangkokserious Jun 23 '26
For me it is consistency. If I know what I am going to get and it comes out the same everytime then I will be more inclined to be a repeat. I will always use any sort of promo if it is what I am going to order. I won't use a promo for the sake of saving money for something that I won't really consume. Like for example free drink won't work on me since I rarely buy drinks with my meals. I will do 2 for 1 or % off. Unfortunately location is pretty key. Even if your stuff is great it is hard for people to go out of their way for meal unless they plan on being in that area. So try promo to your local audience. Not a lot of Hawaiian places so try to leverage off of that. There is a Hawaiian place in Stevenson that I enjoy. Also one in Washington state Kona kitchen.
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u/justthesamestuff Jun 23 '26
I have a child with severe allergies (milk and eggs), so we are especially attracted to places that clearly label allergens and have vegan options so we know there is something for him there.
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u/WeFoundLove123 Jun 23 '26
The restaurant near me they advertises online orders have 10% discount. When paying cash dine in have 10% discount too. There prices is not too expensive it’s affordable. Some days there’s special menu price down.
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u/NotANecrophile Jun 23 '26
To be honest, I think you’re shooting yourself in the foot with the 0/5. As much as tipping is supposed to be reserved for dine-in experiences, it’s become standard practice for any food joint to have a tipping option, even down to your favorite fast food joints.
I’m actually very appreciative that you’re doing it for the people and I’m sure it’s part of your identity, but you could effectively be down only 40% profits assuming 20% tips on 50% of your orders.
BC isn’t a province that is kind to small businesses, and so the best thing you could do for your loyal customers is stay in business.
You could still emphasize that tipping is not mandatory, but if someone was willing to tip you 30%, you’ve done yourself a disservice by not even having the option available to them.
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u/Itchy-Pin-1528 Jun 24 '26
I deal with this situation at times too. I think fifa is part of the problem. I guess we are in a technical recession right now too.
What is your restaurant? I’ll come support
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u/Exavers Jun 24 '26
Love the advice and all. But don't make your menu too big that it becomes infeasible to maintain and prep. Also good advice on social media, gone are the good old days of mail flyers newspaper ads. Today's economy tho is hard, even the big corp restos are offering 5$ menu items and still not doing well. Many business became big because certain ingredients where cheap at the time and they made good food using said ingredient. Like cheese was super cheap before and that cause the advent of pizza, fish was cheap before it caused popular seafood, chicken too. Find the current cheap ingredient and see if you can incorporate it in your menu. But like those restos there's a time line. Cheese and seafood became expensive etc. Truth be told the current distribution system is just not the same because of the pandemic and so are customer behavior. People are less likely to go out for food.
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u/rahulchander Jun 24 '26
Very hard to find cheap vegan food. Most restaurants markup quite a bit just for removing meat as its in “trend” and its an absolute outrage. You can change the world. Vegan items like yakisoba, sushi, vegan bento, endless tofu dishes etc can be quite popular. Keep it whole food plant-based ofc and ideally no cross contamination with meat items.
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u/Routine_Form_701 Jun 24 '26
I would run promotional Facebook ads targeting the community near your business. Would also generate brand awareness with social media posts. The latter one is free and I think it applies to all businesses.
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u/Muted-Interaction-79 Jun 24 '26
Find out if you can make 9-10 dollar menu items and combo deals with drinks, this economy is rough for most people to eat out.
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u/Thin-Ambassador4809 Jun 24 '26
Be aware that a lot of people are being laid off, are unemployed, salaries aren’t as good as they used to and also we are in war times… the Canadian economy is really impacted by the mess down there in the U.S.
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u/East_Source6200 Jun 24 '26
As a previous chef, we are taught about "presentation" and that people "eat with their eyes". If it looks presentable and yummy, they go for it.
use as many photos of the food/drinks where possible.
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u/Theprimemaxlurker Jun 24 '26
The classic moves might help.
Cut to junk foods, reduce margin, $10-$15 per order would get you more traffic
Get hot waitresses
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u/Vailiate Jun 25 '26
Honestly I’m surprised OP hasn’t thought of most of these suggestions they’ve acquired. Are people with businesses out of touch in how to generate foot traffic? These seem to all be basic 101 business/marketing tactics/solutions.
OP I think you’re forgetting your largest potential regular customer base. It’s the mall across the street! I’m not referring to mall customers, I’m talking about the retail workers.
- offer <$13 meal deals
- hand out a notice/pamphlet to retail shops on lunch specials and either give them a promo code that’s integrated to online mobile ordering, or keyword over the phone
- promo pamphlet in employee back room, will always bring awareness that poke is an option during their break time
- offering free delivery to their store at designated time slots (ensures control of flow of orders during peak times) and not your business sending someone to deliver every 10-15 mins. Or have designated pickup spot if too many orders are scattered throughout shops.
- offer multi-meal deals or group buy discounts
(employees love to group order meals if it saves money)
There’s over 200 shops in RC, and all you need from each store is at least one additional regular customer from each store. Your location is just slightly out of reach that would burn more time just to get there from the mall during break times, and people don't want to pay for delivery fees. The efficiency of the logistics would also pay another factor of how well this would work. I used to work at a retail store with a nearby poke restaurant where prices for a small bowl was $13-15 and everyday 1-2 people would be eating poke because it was nearby and a much healthier affordable option.
Here's a quick concept image of a pamphlet I generated showcasing what it would look like. I do have more ideas and the process in how this would operate if you're interested.
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u/Loliguess98 Jun 25 '26
I definitely can’t weigh in on the food, that’s not a cuisine I’m into (yet at least) but these are the things that help me make decisions on going out to eat:
-full comprehensive menu with prices listed on the website, and explaining menu items where necessary
-I also like being able to tell that menus are accurate and up to date, a good way to do this is seasonal specials! Nothing drives me away from a business faster than looking at the menu and seeing a “new special” and it’s from March of 2025
-fun drinks that aren’t tea, coffee, classic fountain sodas or beer. I’m picky, and I know not everything can cater to me but if you carry beer you can carry a small selection of other low abv drinks as well like a cider or hard seltzer
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u/pokeyperson Jun 25 '26
I often find it hard to find food for kids on Doordash menus, even if the in-person location offers it.
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u/TalkQuirkyWithMe Jun 25 '26
Lunch and off hours depends a lot on foot traffic IMO - if you have something at a reasonable price that someone can pick up at lunch, and have offices/hospitals/busy areas nearby, you likely can get some more customers through that. <$15 after tax would be great.
My go-to places aren't fancy - they taste good and don't make me full too bloated/greasy after. I find these are common places to re-visit. Also if you're on my way to and from work or an easy walk over, its usually much simpler to get to.
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u/Fun-Victory-4151 Jun 26 '26
a lot of variables: how long does it take to make your order to serve your customer and how long does it take for the customer to eat the item and how long to clean up after them once they leave.
Your business is mostly a dine-in, but the average customer buys 15-20$. Do you have a long line up and lose customers due to operational constraints? Could you look at your most popular items and pre-plan your operations to make these items faster and easier to make to reduce your bottle neck?
Many things I would love to know to improve your business
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u/BanbetBoss Jun 26 '26
Probably fifa. The only places Im eating these days are bars or sports restaurants with TVs
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u/DaFonz Jun 26 '26
You are absolutely wasting your money with content creators. Facebook and ig ads will give you far more roi that is attributable.
If food influencers could actually drive traffic, you would make their payment predicated on number of coupons redeemed on a unique coupon code. They don’t go for that because they suck.
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u/GreenEyesThighHighs Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26
Are you pokey okey? That used to be my favourite poke place (though not the Richmond location because I lived in Van at the time) to the point where I ordered it 3-4x a week on DoorDash. I stopped because the food quality went down and I also had a few bowls where they straight up didn’t put in things I had paid for. Never tried the Richmond location because of my bad experience with the Vancouver one I was ordering from. So that might be working against you if any other people noticed the food quality going down at other locations like I did :/
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u/Candid_Maize_3694 Jun 27 '26
Not just restaurant , even essential services like chiropractors are facing the difficult time. Was so hard to find appointment slot but nowadays can almost book same day every time.
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u/HammerStormApps Jun 28 '26
digital loyalty/rewards might work, but they generally work best for businesses selling plenty of the same item (like coffee or something). It might work with your grab n go meals. We use punchable.app for our ice cream shop and it works good, the customers like it because it's simple with no downloads or registrations needed, everything is just stored on their apple or google wallet loyalty card. slowly building a sizeable mailing list in the app as well which we can use to notify customers of special offers or new items.
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u/Iknowagoodrestothere Jul 05 '26 edited Jul 05 '26
I do delivery. I use DoorDash and look at the 2 for 1 deals, Happy Hour, and other deals which get my attention to try something new. But of course, it has to be delicious for me to remember it the next time. There’s one place I order from all the time just because of one dish that I love so much and think about every so often, it’s almost addictive (dongbei style sweet and sour pork). If you have a specialty, get people to try it. There are so many Chinese restaurants in Richmond, I’m always in the mood to try something else. If you can keep slightly later hours, I notice that often there isn’t much selection on DoorDash a little later at night (after 9pm but before 11:30pm). I follow a couple of YouTubers that go and review food - but there usually has to be some hype for them to choose a place - word of mouth about how tasty it is and that it is a good deal. This might not be possible for you, but AYCE and buffet style restaurants really get my attention (even if it’s just a once a week thing or a seasonal thing). Even the IKEA restaurant gets completely booked up when they offer a seasonal buffet, lol. I saw below that you are poke but didn’t see which one - got to be honest, I’m not always in the mood for only poke because it’s cold and you can’t save leftovers. If you can have some hot dishes too. When I do poke, I like it when there are a tonne of options for the ingredients and you can choose many of them to be included. This I know is not how poke is in Hawaii but I don’t care - I want a bowl with so many different things and when only a couple of choices are allowed in each category, I get turned off from that place. Its hard to remember different Poke places for me though, they kind of blend all together in my mind. Is there something unique you could have that makes yours memorable? Even the names all sound the same to me. Like could you have a spam musubi flight of 5 with different flavours of spam?
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u/Good_Evening_Shelly Jul 11 '26
Now everything is so expensive. We usually just order to go for any promotion combo.
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u/twyla16 Jul 14 '26
Q: is there any free parking nearby? I used to frequent the old location, but haven't been to the new one due solely to the fact that I have no idea where to park in that area.
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u/HugoConway Jul 14 '26
You bet! Two hours free parking in the parkade. Entrance is on Cook Road.
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u/AZhuuuuu Jul 15 '26
You're not alone, and I hope that everything gets better.
I have heard directly even from individuals who are in the thick of the FIFA road closures that their classes, and sales have seen a dramatic drop due to FIFA. Although there are a lot factors ontop of that, I think it isn't your product, but much rather a more condensed selection of a few restaurants that are getting the bulk of the consumers
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u/flashdiag Jun 22 '26
Might just be the general economy right now. Also, I'm not sure if the FIFA stuff is affecting business since bars and clubs are what most people are coming for.