Pok Pok New York Adds Camera – Customers Can View Line

Pok Pok NY has a reputation for a long wait, but that isn’t always the case. The enterprising Andy Ricker has added a video camera with a live feed to their website, so that customers can check online. Not only that, but when there is a line, the current average wait time will be displayed. I wish he had that in Portland!

Here’s the press release:

Dear friends and customers,

Word on the street here in NYC is that there is always a line and always a long wait for a table Pok Pok Ny; this is simply not true and I fear folks may be staying away because of that commonly held belief. It is the most common thing people say to me when I meet them outside of the restaurant: “I’ve been wanting to eat at Pok Pok Ny, but I can’t get in!”, which is a terrible thing for me to hear.

To help kill that notion, we have installed a live feed video camera at our front door showing if there is a line or not, which is viewable directly from our website from the hours of 4:30pm to 1am daily. Visible in the frame will be a white board that shows the average wait time (not precise, please don’t take that number as an exact!)…if there is a wait; typically there is NOT a wait during weekdays, especially early in the evening.

Some people believe that having a long line is a good business model; same with having a long wait. I do not share in this belief. We’d much rather get folks sat and fed quickly than have them wait. At the times when there is a wait, which is common for any busy restaurant during the prime dining hours between 7pm and 9pm, we now have the option of sending customers next door to the Whiskey Soda Lounge Ny, our new lounge that recently received a one star review from the NYT, where our staff will pour drinks, sling some snacks and get you back to Pok Pok Ny when your table is ready!

As always, we look forward to having you down here on the Columbia Street Waterfront District and I hope these measures will make it a bit less of perceived crapshoot to come and visit!

Thanks very much for your continued custom!

ok, best, andy