The Kwan boys unite for a night on the town in Minneapolis for the first time ever (for adult beverages). Alex pictured center, Justin right.

Thank goodness the Thanksgiving holiday is over.  What  a whirlwind of activity — my brother Justin was in from Beijing for two weeks, my cousin Donnie was in from California and I cooked for 15 people on Thanksgiving Day.  As fun as it was, nothing beats life at a normal pace.

I’m going to get back to blogging right away — and I vow not to let Christmas get in the way of a steady flow of thoughts.

Numerous good and bad things have been happening in Red Moon’s world.  Today our HVAC hood broke down at the height of preparing our lunch buffet.  The kitchen turned into food service hell.  Dank, thick, greasy-smoky air filled the kitchen and it oozed out into the dining room.  It’s so embarrassing when stuff like that goes wrong — but I am always heartened by how understanding most people are.

Red Moon's Holiday Feast -- a view from inside: whether the in-house marketing is working this time around.

Here’s a preview of some of the tales to come:  1) How we experimented with a coconut shrimp recipe to meet a catering request 2) A story of theft and near-firing  3) My dad’s only memory of his own father 4) Whether holiday catering promotions are working

Thank you for your patience, kind readers.  I am still here and as excited about this creative venture as ever.

Last night at this time I posted a new (read: re-tooled, unexpired) set of coupons on Red Moon’s Web site.  This time I included something new — an experiment, really.  It’s a coupon regular customers can give to Red Moon newbies — a one-up on good old word-of-mouth advertising.

Click the image to download the "Refer a Friend" coupon yourself.

Here’s how it works: the regular writes his or her email address on the coupon.  He or she gives it to a friend who can then use it for a free appetizer on his or her first trip to Red Moon.  With that email address, I contact the referrer to thank the person and tell them I’ve got a free $5 gift certificate for them waiting at our front counter for use anytime he or she wishes.

I figured it was possibly too involved or confusing to work.  But I could be wrong.  Despite the fact that it was posted just late last night — a pair of guys this morning had the coupon.  I contacted their referrers and there are gift certificates waiting for them.   Hopefully the two guys who came in today liked the food enough to want to return — and I also hope I’ve created some warm feelings among the regulars who passed on the good word about Red Moon.

Any thoughts out there on whether this is a good idea?  Generous enough?  Any twists on this I could use in the future when this gets tired and stale?

It’s probably over-zealous to call this an “overnight success” — but in my world, these little triumphs are huge.  Here’s to hoping more friends refer their friends.

Let’s face it — corporate America’s entry into the Asian food sector years ago has brought us many fun dining experiences.  I don’t have to name too many names — P.F. Chang’s, Big Bowl, you get the idea.

We ushered our dad into a P.F. Chang’s in Edina, Minn. about six or seven years ago — to show him how “cool” it looked inside.  And to see how good those chicken lettuce wraps are.  He was not impressed.  The stir fry dishes were too salty.  The food didn’t appear to be cooked correctly in the woks.  In short, it wasn’t his cooking.

Dad gives commentary on the samplings we tried at The Big Bowl in Edina, Minn.

Nearly a decade later — my dad is finally starting to see the light on what these places can tell him.  They are destinations for those seeking a great time.  The food is good and it’s usually presented magnificently.  Their offerings cater to popular tastes — and their menus and specials reflect what people really, really want.  Their interiors are beautiful.

While Red Moon may never have the financial backing to create such an opulent setting, we can learn from the experience these places offer.  What are we doing at the moment to try and compete a little better?

• We are improving our marketing media: menus, Web site, flyers, coupons — all with cheekier copy
• We are considering beer and wine and possible interior improvements to go with
• We are developing menu items that appeal to more mainstream tastes but compliment and accentuate the Cantonese cuisine and style we’ve already mastered.  Of course, we’ll have some chicken lettuce wraps — haha, better late than never.
• We are emphasizing local ties — just joined the local chamber

Monday night, my dad brought his kitchen staff, my brother Alex and me to the Big Bowl in Edina, Minn.  He wanted to see their take on the Mongolian BBQ, (something we’re not planning to replicate, fyi).  We ended up getting a number of things on their menu labeled “Wow!” meaning extremely popular.  I really wanted him to try a corporatized-Americanized-Asianized salad.  Why?  Because they’re good.  They’re popular.  And because I knew my dad could come up with something as good — likely better.

A dressing recipe comes together: a secret I won't be sharing, not even during an episode of "Cooking with the Kwans."

Years ago, he concocted an amazing sesame dressing but stopped making it.  Just last night we  brought it back from the grave with a few touches I suggested.  We think we’ve found the key to a couple new menu items — including a chopped Chinese chicken salad.

There’s never any shame in learning from the competition.  Especially if they seem to be doing things exceedingly well.  The envy sometimes gets you thinking.  Not about becoming a copycat — but about how you will unleash your own ingenuity.  The stuff that will make you become a little bit envied, studied, admired.

Thursday night, we experimented with our own chicken lettuce wraps. We finally have something we want to sell -- and it's all in the sauce.

Wow.  My head is spinning with ideas, concerns, changes, worries and more.  One week at the Red Moon and I still feel like I haven’t done much to help.  But then I’m reminded of my goal: K.I.S.S., as we’re told in storytelling: Keep It Simple, Stupid.  I am here to improve upon our strengths (like great, amazing, carefully- and lovingly-prepared food, as well as friendly, family-like service). Stick to the basics.  That alone should drive more business.

And thankfully, it’s pretty easy to keep my chin up about the process — because I get constant reminders–big and small–of how much people genuinely respect and love my dad’s food.  It’s gratification that makes me feel amazing inside — like our family has really done something successful.

Minnesota Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe tweeted this pic, saying we "have good chinese food!" A day later, more than 800 people had viewed the photo.

Yesterday, Minnesota Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe came in and tweeted a picture of his specially-ordered Beef, Chicken, Shrimp and Broccoli to his 8,700 followers.  Now, I wouldn’t normally go blabbing about our regular celebrity customers (he is one of them) — and I didn’t have to break the news here (Haha, “news.”)  He wanted to share that he was really liking our Chinese so he used Twitter to make that public himself.  How awesome is that?  Twitter rocks.

But there is a long list of gratifying moments from the past few days that are equally satisfying.  And they have nothing to do with NFL players.  On Monday a new customer came in for takeout — his daughter was in Eden Prairie for an extra-curricular activity.  They actually live more than 30 miles away.  Ironically, at the same time, a customer had driven 25 miles from about the same area just to pick up some takeout.  They got to chatting about a Chinese place closer to home.  Our dedicated customer said he didn’t like it.  The new customer said he loved it.  All of a sudden, I had a lot to prove to this new guy.  The test would be if he came back tonight to try something else while his daughter was back in town for her activity.  He did.  We passed the test.  He loved Monday’s order.  I cannot tell you how good that feels.

I’m grateful we have loyal, hard-working employees who’ve stuck with us through busy and slow.  But I can tell you right now, nothing beats a Kwan at the front of the house to tell our thankful customers how thankful we are, to make heart-felt menu suggestions and to make sure people are truly taken care of.  A million thanks to all of our customers.  You’re fun to talk to.  You’re enthusiastic about good food.  We wouldn’t survive without you!  I can’t wait to spend the next year chatting with all of you, new customers and old customers.

I’ve had a lot of fun over the last year or so trying to help my dad with the marketing of the restaurant.  I’ve developed a Web site, new takeout menu, Web coupons (Check these out for a Halloween freebie!), and tonight I put in an order for the latest batch.

I firmly believe that quality promotional materials can really set us apart from some of our competition without sacrificing any of the quaint charm mom and pop Chinese restaurants are known for.  And I save a lot of money by doing this all myself.  Lucky for my dad, it’s kind of a hobby.  Here’s what we’ve got:

The copy reads: "So you get fierce Red Moon cravings often? You are clearly not alone." (image altered for security)

This will be the newest takeout coupon that we typically throw in all of our takeout orders to encourage more frequent visits.  I’ve altered the artwork just a bit to stave off any copyright infringement — I did pay for that dragon art, after all.  But you get the gist.

The backside (not pictured) has a fortune cookie with an expiration date on the paper — the copy reads “Act Fast! Or the Luck Runs Out.”

Gift certificates -- we have them in $10 denominations -- the new ones will provide more options. (image altered for security)

These are some new gift certificates that will give the customers more options (We already offer these in $10 denominations.)  The new design is narrower, to fit better in wallets.  All of this stuff is also coming with a matte instead of a glossy finish — the Sharpies will work better that way.

I’m also going to go door-to-door to advertise some of our lunch catering and to hit some of the new office complexes in the area.  My dad and I agreed that while generous, these $5 gift certificates would be a great comp to hand out to potential catering customers.  Especially office gatekeepers.  With our price structure, we should be able to recoup food cost at a minimum when they are redeemed.

Lastly — it’s official.  Check this out:

Made myself a Red Moon business card -- you know, to be all professional and stuff.

By the way, I have been using an excellent printer out of California to whip these things up — at a great price.  If there are other small business people out there who want to know more, drop me an email.  I’d be happy to share my sources

Of course, when it comes to selling people on the Red Moon, nothing beats the food.  And I was reminded of that many times today, including by a customer who drove 25 miles from Woodbury solely to get some takeout.  Wow.  Isn’t that awesome?  I’ve always wondered why the mainstream food writers never really picked up on my dad’s cooking.  Well, there’s always time.

The beginnings of a nice lunch rush at Red Moon on Friday, October 23, 2009.

For all of my friends outside of the Twin Cities (the majority of my readers right now, I imagine), here’s what the restaurant basically looks like from the corner of the dining room near the steam table.

We have about 75 seats.  My mom picked the artwork and paint color 13 years ago  when we opened up.  I happen to like it, it’s charming and rather timeless.  A few changes I envision are perhaps a more modern-looking table setting, you know the soy sauce and stuff like that.  Got any ideas for me?

Business was great today — the best single day in a long time, actually.  I guess my presence is already paying off.  Ha.  If only.

Well, day one at the Red Moon is done — and yeah, I was a bit late.

I honestly cannot write much about day one because my mind is racing with ideas… and worries.  I knew this wouldn’t be an easy endeavor, but going through the motions today, I realized how much patience and persistence are going to be required to make improvements at the restaurant.

Keep it simple.  Stick to what we do well.  Repeat.

While I am most excited about using this blog to relay some of Tin Tat’s life stories — this is also going to be a place for raw restaurant ideas to spew forth.  Some will take root and sprout into something presentable.  Others will amount to waste.  Oh, Red Moon.

Because the business side of things has really got me all a-twitter… let me give you a preview of a forthcoming post.  It’s more up my alley.  It’s a story I knew I’d want to tell when my dad first told me about a neat customer of his a few months ago.

Lunch at the Red Moon -- a hoot and a holler -- as good people talk about how much they love another good person.. you'll meet him soon.

You see how happy they are?  That’s my dad on the left, A-yi (auntie Wan) in between, and Lok to the right.  They are gesturing, laughing and truly joyed to be telling me about this fascinating customer who has them all intrigued.  He’s a south Asian immigrant who is hearing-impaired — completely deaf.  Yet, somehow these three people with varying degrees of really broken English know so much about this guy.  How, you ask?  Some very inspiring communication, or so I’m led to understand.  As our family friend Frank (off camera to the left) said at lunch, “it’s an example of the possibilities that can arise if two parties are willing.”

Who knew friendship (the family-like kind, according to my dad) was truly available so freely?  We’ll see just how it can be yours and mine — as soon as I meet this guy myself.