Beware of artificial hype

Something I’ve noticed is that restaurants generally fall into one of two categories*. Restaurants that overdeliver on aesthetics…giving the impression that my meal is going to better than it really is, and restaurants that do the opposite.

Consider the place I was at just the other night. Photos, expensive furniture, handmade trappings abound. The epitome of a homey ethnic joint…foreign yet familial and inviting, clearly designed by someone who was passionate about the space.

The food, of course, was dismal and overpriced. Never mind the lack of service.

Now compare this to someplace like (arguably) Five Guys or Sweetgreen with their bare-bones approach. Everything from the (recycled) chairs and tables to the wall-tiles is simple, inexpensive and unassuming. Corners cut in small ways that enable them to pay for better ingredients, better recipes, and/or better training (or incentives) for their staff.

They purposely under-deliver on the aesthetics so that they can afford to overdeliver on the product. And it pays off, because people pay far more attention to quality food and quality service than to extravagent appearances (you can see it in their reviews).

Brand aesthetics, matter. But focusing on appearances (and other kinds of articial hype) at the exclusion of your core product, service, or mission is a mistake.

*No doubt, there are exceptions: nearly any restaurant worth making a reservation at (notably Michelin star eateries, or anything touched by Danny Meyer) somehow excel at executing both of these tasks. It's just that in the vast majority of cases, the pendulum tends to swing towards one end and not the other.