copyright Kent Bonham
Back Alley Charm
“Exclusivity builds value,” my father always said. That’s why he opened his restaurant on an alley with no name and no address. “Word of mouth is the best advertising. We don’t even need a sign if people like what they eat and tell their friends.”
So, no sign. For the first month, no one but friends of my father visited the restaurant. Until one night when the president’s personal secretary took a wrong turn and knocked to ask directions.
He liked what he ate and the rest is history.
“You also need a lot of luck,” my father finally admitted.
The Green-Walled Tower 
November 14th, 2013 at 12:19 am
I like that idea
November 17th, 2013 at 3:06 pm
Thanks. 🙂
November 14th, 2013 at 12:35 am
I think the luck plays a big part with this technique. Certainly it’s an age-old idea. A fun read!
November 17th, 2013 at 3:06 pm
I’m sure it doesn’t pay off a lot of times. I know that in Korea, at least, the vast majority of small businesses fail, partially due to high competition and partially because of a lack of advertising (at least those are my guesses).
November 14th, 2013 at 12:45 am
This story made me chuckle and I like to do that. I enjoyed the rambling almost shaggy dog style of your story. Well done.
November 17th, 2013 at 3:05 pm
That’s a good way to describe it. Thank you. 🙂
November 14th, 2013 at 1:51 am
Nice one. A restaurant with no name on a street with no name. Good take.
November 17th, 2013 at 3:04 pm
Thank you, Sandra.
November 14th, 2013 at 1:56 am
There was a restaurant like this near my old neighbourhood. I passed it nearly every day for 3 months before I realized it was a restaurant!
November 17th, 2013 at 3:03 pm
Did you go there after that? Was it any good? I think sometimes hidden restaurants like that are like hidden gems, and sometimes they just aren’t any good.
November 14th, 2013 at 2:50 am
Sounds very real, David. I like it.
janet
November 17th, 2013 at 3:03 pm
Thank you. I’m sure a lot of successful ventures start out similarly.
November 14th, 2013 at 4:39 am
Interesting take on the picture.
November 17th, 2013 at 3:02 pm
Thank you. It’s a bit different from my normal stories (whatever they are) but I like to try different things.
November 14th, 2013 at 6:00 am
Hahaha! You most certainly DO need a lot of luck. Pres. Clinton ate at a KC restaurant called Stroud’s that has the motto, “We choke our own chickens.” No kidding. We talk about it still.
November 17th, 2013 at 3:02 pm
That’s pretty funny. I guess it helps to say that a president visited your restaurant. I’m sure famous people leave a trail of “so-and-so ate here!” signs behind them.
November 14th, 2013 at 9:12 am
Haha…yes luck. Good luck, that is.
November 14th, 2013 at 4:43 pm
is he lucky or what????
November 17th, 2013 at 3:00 pm
Pretty lucky, although I guess he has to have good food as well or people wouldn’t come back. Seems like a good motto for a lot of things in life.
November 14th, 2013 at 5:31 pm
Haahaa! Very nice story! So..which alley is it and how do I get there? 😉
November 17th, 2013 at 3:00 pm
I guess you’ll just have to go looking. 🙂
November 14th, 2013 at 6:04 pm
Great stuff. Loved it.
November 17th, 2013 at 3:00 pm
Thanks!
November 14th, 2013 at 7:47 pm
Dear David,
Did he get to his restaurant on a horse with no name? Sorry, couldn’t resist.
There’s another KC restaurant called Hayward’s BBQ started out as a hole in the wall, word of mouth kind of place. By the time my folks discovered it it was something like a two hour wait with patrons lined up around the building. They’ve since moved.
Love your story, sir. Another good one.
shalom,
Rochelle
November 17th, 2013 at 2:59 pm
That sounds like a great success story since no restaurant wants to be obscure. There is a restaurant I go to down in the traditional market that has a line way out the door at lunchtime, it’s so good. I go there when I can, but try to miss the mealtime rushes.
November 15th, 2013 at 2:03 am
Lovely understated humour.am sure a lot of people will recognise the dad.
November 17th, 2013 at 2:58 pm
🙂 Thanks.
November 15th, 2013 at 2:22 am
I like the angle of this photo.
November 15th, 2013 at 3:55 am
I like the father’s spirit! Luck certainly helps a lot if you’re stuck in an alley with no sign. But if the place gets mobbed, does it become uncool?
November 17th, 2013 at 2:57 pm
There definitely is a group that only wants to go to places that no one else knows about, but I don’t know if they’re enough to support the whole business.
November 15th, 2013 at 4:24 pm
see you are hibernating again!
November 15th, 2013 at 4:26 pm
Don’t be mean. 🙂 I have been quite busy with stuff and haven’t been able to reply to comments and read as many blogs as I wanted. I’m going to try to catch up tonight. I’ll be posting my Open Prompts story here shortly.
November 15th, 2013 at 6:17 pm
great shot & great story!
November 15th, 2013 at 6:27 pm
Thanks. 🙂
November 15th, 2013 at 8:43 pm
Lots of wisdom here. I bet the president is unsure of whether to fire his personal secretary or give him a medal.
November 17th, 2013 at 2:56 pm
Hopefully, the president thinks it’s a good thing. Maybe this will turn into one of those back-room restaurants where a lot of big policies get made.
November 15th, 2013 at 9:44 pm
Ha!ha!So true and lucky for that wrong turn which made the restaurant a right one-forever:-)Loved this!
November 17th, 2013 at 2:55 pm
Thank you. It’s amazing the great things that come from seemingly small decisions, eh?
November 18th, 2013 at 9:09 pm
True that!:-)
November 15th, 2013 at 9:50 pm
i like this story. and the business idea. just yesterday , i had lunch at a restaurant that’s just like this. huge prawns and mud crabs, squid and fresh fish… i loved the homey atmosphere. awesome experience. 🙂
November 17th, 2013 at 2:54 pm
Sounds great. These kinds of restaurants are the best when you can find them. A great reason to go exploring off the beaten path.
November 16th, 2013 at 8:18 am
[…] time for Friday Fictioneers. I’m piggybacking onto David’s story, because it was so […]
November 16th, 2013 at 12:44 pm
I love this one, David. Mine is kind of a sequel to yours. I piggybacked onto your piece I loved it so much.
November 17th, 2013 at 2:53 pm
I saw that and I liked your take on it too. I feel honored you took inspiration from mine. Our stories can mesh together, like two sides of the same coin. 🙂
November 16th, 2013 at 2:24 pm
Very cute, folksy, and fun. Nice job!
November 17th, 2013 at 2:52 pm
🙂 Thanks.
November 18th, 2013 at 12:58 am
Just a tiny bit of luck he he… at tleast the food was good.
November 19th, 2013 at 11:32 pm
Loved the way you set this up, good story.