Honest is a rare quality, especially when it involves someone trying to make a sale. However, a small Chinese restaurant is proving that honesty truly is the best policy and that sometimes being forthright about the details is something others respect. Their forth-right and hilariously true menu has turned them into a Twitter sensation.
The Aunt Dai restaurant in Montreal, Canada is owned by Feigang Fei. Since he knows that people go online to get the true to life details about a restaurant before they try it out, he decided to cut out the work for them. Instead of having to scan the web for reviews, Feigang Fei has left brutally honest details about each of his food items right on the menu!
Instead of trying to sell the dishes with descriptions that sound too good to be truth, Fei gives his honest opinion of each of the meals, even if it isn’t that complimentary! The result? Diners love it! One of his patrons named Kim Belair took to Twitter to review the restaurant and gave Fei a high five for keeping it real with his customers.
How honest is Fei? While he doesn’t come right out and say that any of his menu items are awful, he will say if he doesn’t like them. For instance, the Orange Beef is deemed “not THAT good” on the menu description, pointing out that the General Tao Chicken is much better. He also explains that the Sweet and Spicy Pork Strips don’t get his approval because he liked the type he ate at university better.
Kim Belair showed menu pictures on her Twitter account along with an explanation that not only is Aunt Dai her favorite Chinese restaurant in the area for its food, but that the menu makes it even more unique. Kim considers the honest commentary from Fei to be the real treat rather than the food itself.
Fei’s reviews aren’t all bad. But they are all transparent and honest. When it comes to dishes like the Satay Sauce Beef, the owner explained that it’s a new menu item and he hadn’t given it a try yet, leaving him unable to review it. Humor is also a part of the menu as he explained that he obviously needs to spend more time eating in his own restaurant.
Some of his more positive reviews include the Mouth-Watering Chicken, but he goes on to explain that they’re not completely satisfied with the flavor yet and guests might do better to try the Sichuan Pepper Chicken Salad.
The potato stir fry-style dish gets one of his better commentaries with Fei saying that it will be proof of what Chinese cuisine can do to a potato.
When images from the menu hit Twitter, they became an instant hit. So far, the pictures have received over 73k likes and 12k retweets. There have also been hundreds of comments from people who just can’t get enough of the honest menu.
One commenter bluntly said that they love the menu, while others pointed out that they love the way Aunt Dai keeps it “real” with the customers unlike other restaurants that like to add “trap items on their menu”.
While we all have thoughts about the best way to market products, its starting to seem that honesty may truly be the best policy even in the business world. At least it seems to be working well for Aunt Dai’s Chinese restaurant. Check out the menu for yourself so you can get a good chuckle at the honest descriptions, and consider checking Aunt Dai’s restaurant if you are ever in the area!
