Critics, Reviews and all that Jazz!

Ever since we started thinking about the food at The Farm, we've been reading tons of restaraunt and food reviews and continue to do so. We wanted to understand from a food critic's point of view what good or bad food was; how were they judging food - quality, taste and presentation. Our readings are not limited to local Chennai reviews, but from all over the world. Frankly, we are disappointed, and very concerned.

We have decided not to let anyone review The Farm - the journalists at least, till we are ready. We cannot stop any of our friends or existing customers expressing their opinion about our place. I'd also like to point out that we have a very tough time holding back reporters who want to write about The Farm after having spent time there. Mind you, these were the people who rave about The Farm. It was no risk to us and can get us tons of free publicity and advertisement. But, we need to be fair and honest to ourselves, our customers and employees.

What worries us most about being reviewed is the competency of the critics and reviewers. Most of reviews we read are basically personal opinions. There is no information on the credentials of the critic/reviewer available - what really makes them an authority on food? Can a reviewer really do justice to every cuisine? Shouldn't they specialize in certain cuisines or styles? The only people whose personal opinion we care about is our customer. A reviewer should be able to objectively review a dish - the quality and authencity of the taste - not per their personal likes and dislikes. I really don't care about a critic who just loves Tandoori chicken pizza and hence thinks Pizza Hut makes the best pizza in the world.

But The Farm cannot be reviewed as a restaurant. I've mentioned this before - we are not selling food. We are selling a lifestyle; food being one part of it. Selling an experience is so cliched, as pointed out to us by our patrons (thanks Prabha and Harsha). So instead of a food critic, or a Bed & Breakfast or hotel critic maybe we need a team of reviewers with each reviewer specializing in one area. But that breaks up The Farm into small fragments which makes it very complicated and not a part of our plan.

We are still waiting for a reviewer who can objectively review a dish with the ability to say - "I don't like Biryani, but this is exactly how Biryani is made and should taste like. If you are a true Biryani afficiando, you will appreciate it". More than that we are waiting for a reviewer who will come and review the place as a whole. Till then, we'll let our customers review The Farm and decide for themselves if they want to come back. Our track record says that everybody does. We are not going to let any freeloader, chettinad pizza loving journalist mess with that. Our customers have given us enough confidence to say so. We've had instances of customers trying to convince us that our food is great, even though we we not happy with it on a particular day.

Prove to us that you have the credentials to review our place and we'll acknowledge you. Then, feel free to write your experience; good, bad or indifferent and we will welcome it.

A Good Start - Thank you!

It's been just a few days since we launched the communities and profiles on Orkut and Facebook. A big thanks to all you have signed up and willing to interact with us. I am wondering if we need to go to more social networking sites like MySpace, BigAdda etc? The Farm website is underconstruction and should be up by early next week. The website will enable us to take delivery orders, B&B reservations and most important - lunch and dinner reservations.
Orkut and Facebook are definitely helping. 30+ members on both the sites (yeah, 20 of them are common to both) is very encouraging. I don't know how much we can do on these sites (suggestions welcome), but they are good for marketing, research and polls.

The most handy tool, I must say, is this blog. A fantastic way to keep the regulars updated on happenings at The Farm and to get feedback.

Why the regular updates? Well, we are going to grow very fast. Some of you who have heard our rants over Pizza, Steak or Parathas, have some insight to our business plans. We will continue to grow exponentially for the next three or four years. We have the sort of end state in mind or the portfolio. Come to The Farm for dinner and we'll be glad to tell you more.

All ideas, suggestions, recommendations are appreciated. Keep 'em coming.

Woof!

THE FARM is open!

THE FARM is now open! Although we've been open for a while now, it is time to advertise.

Our vision to provide an affordable getaway for our Chennai customers without having to leave the city. This may be a coffee and meal, or a weekend with family and/or friends. At The Farm we are not selling food. It may be the best food you've eaten, but it is just one part of the "The Farm" experience. We sell the experience; giving you an environment to relax, chill or party hard. If I were to give the experience a name or the category, we're selling excellent hospitality; a lifestyle that you want but cannot have given your work, family and other worldly pressures.

At The Farm you are never away from the city or your office, whether you live in Chennai or visiting for business. Given the rate of progress on Old Mahabalipuram Road, in a couple of years we will be well within the city. Yet, at The Farm you will never feel it.

Our mission is:
Customer: To be the best in class hospitality business
Employees: Provide employees a preferred place of employement
Stakeholder: To maximixe the share value of our stakeholders

The restaurant is open by reservation only. Our focus is people and while we take great care of our employees, we want to give our customers undivided attention. As much as we'd like to open our doors to everyone and make millions, we are keeping the seating limited for now till we can prove sustainability of our quality.

For reservations you can contact our customer service below.

Now for some introductions: I am Ay, Come Here, the customer services representative at The Farm. I am also The Farm Dog. So you can say that I am also in-charge of security for now. I can be reached at a convenient location near you. Choose your location to talk to me now: Orkut, Facebook (Coming soon - My Space, BigAdda etc etc)

Woof! Welcome to The Farm! Come experience life on the udder side.