Welcome to the Louisville Restaurants Forum, a civil place for the intelligent discussion of the local restaurant scene and just about any other topic related to food and drink in and around Louisville.
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Robin Garr

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Robin Garr » Wed Aug 10, 2011 6:38 pm

JustinHammond wrote: Anyone hiring for "looking at restaurant websites"?

Anyone see an issue with working for a corporation so paternalistic that they control your spare-time behavior rather than rating you on the basis of output and quality?
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by JustinHammond » Wed Aug 10, 2011 6:43 pm

Robin Garr wrote:
JustinHammond wrote: Anyone hiring for "looking at restaurant websites"?

Anyone see an issue with working for a corporation so paternalistic that they control your spare-time behavior rather than rating you on the basis of output and quality?


Welcome to the workforce.
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Robin Garr

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Robin Garr » Wed Aug 10, 2011 6:57 pm

JustinHammond wrote:Welcome to the workforce.

Why this ex-hippie baby boomer walked out of Corporate America in 1990. :lol:
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by JustinHammond » Wed Aug 10, 2011 7:10 pm

Robin Garr wrote:
JustinHammond wrote:Welcome to the workforce.

Why this ex-hippie baby boomer walked out of Corporate America in 1990. :lol:


Cheers to that. I'm to addicted to the insurance, vacation, and retirement plan to do it myself.
"The idea is to eat well and not die from it-for the simple reason that that would be the end of your eating." - Jim Harrison

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Robin Garr » Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:40 pm

JustinHammond wrote:Cheers to that. I'm to addicted to the insurance, vacation, and retirement plan to do it myself.

Yeah, I hear you, and believe me, I'm in no way sitting in judgement. Frankly, when Gannett came to the CJ, they cut all those things. :P Paying for health insurance as a small business owner can be interesting in these times, but overall, the Flee The Corporation plan worked out okay for Mary and me.

It still just amazes me, though, to see professional workers getting that kind of treatment, hence my snark.
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by JustinHammond » Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:48 pm

Robin Garr wrote:
JustinHammond wrote:Cheers to that. I'm to addicted to the insurance, vacation, and retirement plan to do it myself.

Yeah, I hear you, and believe me, I'm in no way sitting in judgement. Frankly, when Gannett came to the CJ, they cut all those things. :P Paying for health insurance as a small business owner can be interesting in these times, but overall, the Flee The Corporation plan worked out okay for Mary and me.

It still just amazes me, though, to see professional workers getting that kind of treatment, hence my snark.


I'm very happy with my company, Corken Steel. It is owned and operated by two brothers, who I can speak to anytime I wish. The no Facebook rule is an IT policy, due to security issues, not productivity, which I couldn't argue with. If I owned a business, I wouldn't want my employees surfing the net on my dime.

Is Hotbytes hiring? 8) :twisted:
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Mark R. » Wed Aug 10, 2011 9:04 pm

Matthew D wrote:I didn't read the article, but I will say too many Louisville restaurants (and, presumably, restaurants in general) "post" their menus as PDF attachments. If I'm considering a new place and can only access the menu as an attachment, I move on to the next place I'm considering.

There actually are many advantages to having a menu as a PDF attachment. In most cases they are much easier to read and print since they are in a standard format. Additionally there much easier for the restaurant itself to update so they are more likely to be current, especially for a restaurant that regularly changes its menu. I actually prefer them in most cases.
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Lonnie Turner

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Lonnie Turner » Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:05 pm

Deb Hall wrote:And you need to have your website it up when you open the place- not several months after as happens alot.


Amen to that! We skew WAY to new places with a website. It may take us six months or a year to go to a place without a website. Rarely go to a place without surfing first. Unless you specialize in 80+year-olds, well, duh! It's hard to believe restauranteurs are comfortable with 90%+ of potential clientele getting their first impressions from Yelp or Metromix, or for that matter a pro review or comments here. You'll get talked about in your first few days in business by folks on line so why not represent yourself right away?

Also, 1) Facebook is a good suppliment to a website & some FB pages are used pretty effectively & 2) PDF is a good option to have, as in not the only way to view. Some restaurant sites use more than one format. It's not like the electrons cost much more, whether imported from the solar wind or local, free-range electrons.

And if your menu or especially hours change tomorrow update your site TODAY! I don't know how many times we've arrived to eat during hours posted on a place's website to find it closed. Here's a good rule: Make the website update, as needed, part of your daily closing routine.

The article was spot on - lose the sound / animation / Flash. Easy to read with menu, contact info, hours, location / directions, reservation info, maybe a separate background / mission statement type "About Us" & a few pix makes a perfect website.
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Robin Garr

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Robin Garr » Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:24 pm

JustinHammond wrote:Is Hotbytes hiring? 8) :twisted:

We have occasional free-lance opportunities. No benefits, though. :oops:
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Matthew D

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Matthew D » Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:37 pm

Mark R. wrote:
Matthew D wrote:I didn't read the article, but I will say too many Louisville restaurants (and, presumably, restaurants in general) "post" their menus as PDF attachments. If I'm considering a new place and can only access the menu as an attachment, I move on to the next place I'm considering.

There actually are many advantages to having a menu as a PDF attachment. In most cases they are much easier to read and print since they are in a standard format. Additionally there much easier for the restaurant itself to update so they are more likely to be current, especially for a restaurant that regularly changes its menu. I actually prefer them in most cases.


I agree with your points. I still don't think I should have to access an additional file to get the menu. The menu should be formatted to work on the web. If they want to offer a PDF file option, that's fine, but it shouldn't be the only option.
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Jesse Hendrix-Inman

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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Jesse Hendrix-Inman » Thu Aug 11, 2011 11:10 am

Though I don't design websites, in my business I do often find myself giving advice on concepts and copy, and I found this to be an interesting article:

http://www.slate.com/id/2301228/
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Robin Garr » Thu Aug 11, 2011 11:22 am

Jesse Hendrix-Inman wrote:Though I don't design websites, in my business I do often find myself giving advice on concepts and copy, and I found this to be an interesting article:

http://www.slate.com/id/2301228/

I don't mean to pick on you, Jesse, but I think this topic just came full circle. That was the link that Charles posted at the top of this thread. 8)
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Jesse Hendrix-Inman » Thu Aug 11, 2011 12:38 pm

D'oh! Delete, please! :oops:

Robin Garr wrote:
Jesse Hendrix-Inman wrote:Though I don't design websites, in my business I do often find myself giving advice on concepts and copy, and I found this to be an interesting article:

http://www.slate.com/id/2301228/

I don't mean to pick on you, Jesse, but I think this topic just came full circle. That was the link that Charles posted at the top of this thread. 8)
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Charles W. » Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:37 pm

Jesse Hendrix-Inman wrote:Though I don't design websites, in my business I do often find myself giving advice on concepts and copy, and I found this to be an interesting article:

http://www.slate.com/id/2301228/


Apparently people who live in Schnitzelburg think alike.
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Re: Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad?

by Jesse Hendrix-Inman » Thu Aug 11, 2011 5:28 pm

That's it! It's the Schnitzelburg connection!

I had remembered being interested in this thread because I have seen the financial and logistical challenges that restaurateurs have with their websites, then I ran across the article and thought it would be good for the thread...how old do I have to be to claim "senior moment?" :lol:
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