Bentuhua Teahouse closing

[Robin Garr]

Posted on Facebook:

Friends, we're sorry to announce that Bentuhua will be shutting down indefinitely after this week. This was a hard decision we had to make, but one that was necessary. It was quite a fun experience bringing Taiwanese street foods to Louisville!

We will be opening a new themed cafe/deli/delicatessen called Cafe Prose Merlin in its place. Look forward to us opening very soon!

In the meantime, come and enjoy one last bowl of savory beef noodle soup to satisfy that last craving.

Thanks for all your support. We look forward to seeing you at Cafe Prose Merlin.

Head on over to their Facebook page and wish them well:
https://www.facebook.com/BentuhuaTeaHou ... 26?fref=nf

I didn't even know this place existed. Would have liked to try it. I wish someone would just mail me something once a month with all the small, unique local restaurants in it.

[Robin Garr]

I didn't even know this place existed. Would have liked to try it. I wish someone would just mail me something once a month with all the small, unique local restaurants in it.

Ummm ... there is always LouisvilleHotBytes.com ...

http://www.louisvillehotbytes.com/eat-2 ... a-teahouse

(Shrugging) never heard of it either. Gee, I wonder where it was?how did I miss all their advertising? Oh yeah, they had a FaceBook page and thought that covered their advertising. Face Book only works if people ALREADY know about you. It does nothing to bring in those that have never heard of you. And absolutely nothing if that segment does not do Face Book. (Yes there is a segment if the population that does not center their lives around Face Book.)

http://www.smalleatscatering.com/

I'm on Fb a lot and I've never heard of this place either.

[Robin Garr]

I didn't even know this place existed.

(Shrugging) never heard of it either.

I'm on Fb a lot and I've never heard of this place either.

Geez, guys! It’s not like I didn’t try to tell you. This is a little bit dispiriting ...

Forum post, February 11, 2015:
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22924&p=171021

HotBytes review:
http://www.louisvillehotbytes.com/eat-2 ... a-teahouse

HotBytes review in LEO Weekly:
http://www.leoweekly.com/2015/02/eat-20 ... -teahouse/

Twitter link:
https://twitter.com/RobinGarr/status/565603184815915009

[Robin Garr]

Oh, yeah, and on HotBytes' Facebook page, too ...
https://www.facebook.com/LouisvilleHotB ... 2636332285

Nothing against you Robin. In fact it looks like you've given it nice coverage. I'm just saying for the rest of the world that has other stuff than just restaurants in their mind these things slip by. Not everyone has the time to be saturated in restaurant news constantly. And this is true of any kind if business, not just restaurants. I just feel badly for ANY business that thinks that because it has a FaceBook page that it's advertising needs have been met.

waitaminute. Robin writes restaurant reviews? I thought he was just an internet forum moderator guru guy. Are these reviews published somewhere or at least posted on line?


Seriously, though, I completely missed this place too, not because it wasn't featured all over hotbytes, but because I never actually saw it driving down the street. Now that I think about where it's located, I can place it, but it must have been too laid back and relaxed to really stand out. As I recall that row of houses sits back off the road, so they can be easy to miss. Honestly, I think the term "Teahouse" also threw me a bit, not necessarily associating that with food.

On the upshot, they aren't going away, just revamping so we'll all have another chance to see what we missed (sort of).

[Robin Garr]

waitaminute. Robin writes restaurant reviews? I thought he was just an internet forum moderator guru guy.

Seriously, though, the owner is a very young, very sweet Taiwanese-American woman who grew up in the US, and she simply felt that she had no resources to advertise other than by word of mouth. Which she begged her very happy customers to provide. But Carla makes a good point. You've just got to spend money to make money.

Marketing is the key piece that a lot of restauranteurs fail to account for. You have to let people know you exist and you have stay out in front of them at all times.

We've been J. Gumbo's since 2008 here in Louisville and when I tell people where I work and what I do, they still say "where's your restaurant?" and "I've never heard of it." And this is all because we have done virtually no mass marketing of any kind. But I bet people know who Wild Eggs is. They have a billboard.

This is why I'm pushing the Clifton Donut Shop so hard. Wonderful people and a great store in a great spot, but they probably don't have deep pockets to advertise. Sounds like the same situation with you, Robin, and this young lady. You make a personal connection with these small business owners and want really badly for them to succeed, but it's hard when the coffers dry up just getting the store open.

Please, anyone who is trying to open a restaurant, 25% of your start-up cost needs to be allocated for marketing. And once you get open spend 5% of your gross monthly sales on advertising of some kind. Word of mouth is great, and it can drive a lot of business your way, but it can only be so effective and then it wears off.

There were a number of things that worked against this place. It isn't particularly noticeable, being in a house set some distance away from the roadway in the middle of a largely residential block of Frankfort Avenue. There was a sign near the sidewalk, but I don't think you would see it if you were driving by. I only knew it was there because I walk past the place frequently. However, it was never open when I passed so I never got to try it. I likely would have if they were open later than mid-afternoon.

Marketing is the key piece that a lot of restauranteurs fail to account for. You have to let people know you exist and you have stay out in front of them at all times.

We've been J. Gumbo's since 2008 here in Louisville and when I tell people where I work and what I do, they still say "where's your restaurant?" and "I've never heard of it." And this is all because we have done virtually no mass marketing of any kind. But I bet people know who Wild Eggs is. They have a billboard.

This is why I'm pushing the Clifton Donut Shop so hard. Wonderful people and a great store in a great spot, but they probably don't have deep pockets to advertise. Sounds like the same situation with you, Robin, and this young lady. You make a personal connection with these small business owners and want really badly for them to succeed, but it's hard when the coffers dry up just getting the store open.

Please, anyone who is trying to open a restaurant, 25% of your start-up cost needs to be allocated for marketing. And once you get open spend 5% of your gross monthly sales on advertising of some kind. Word of mouth is great, and it can drive a lot of business your way, but it can only be so effective and then it wears off.

Good advice for any restauranteur.

My joke about not knowing Robin reviews restaurants already got used, I see.

I got nothin.