Hidden Treasure

When opening a restaurant the well known saying; location, location, location is very important.  The worst place you can put a restaurant, which often depends on drive by traffic, is behind another restaurant.  Hidden from the street traffic on an alley way that most people do not realize is there.  The restaurant business is challenging and the number one business to fold in the U.S.  There are literally hundreds of places to choose from and really after all how many different ways can you cook a chicken breast?

With that being said, I’ve always believed that the number one objective for a restaurant is food and service.  Once someone finds you whether it’s from an ad, a drive by, or a friend referral only the quality of food and service will get them back and get you that all important word of mouth referral.

Delicious-N-Fit, home of Laura’s Bistro has proven that quality and service CAN overcome a bad location.  Laura Strain started a retail store/bakery called Delicious-N-Fit in 2003.  In 2006 it was decided that what customers really wanted was a place to sit down and enjoy a sandwich or hamburger.  Why not just run down to the local burger joint?  Delicious-N-Fit customers have food allergies and intolerances such as Celiac’s Disease.  A condition that makes eating a basic hamburger made with a typical bun much akin to eating arsenic.  Even small amounts of gluten (a protein found in wheat, barley or rye) that might be picked up by cross contamination in the kitchen can cause havoc with their systems.

So Laura’s Bistro was added and besides picking up cupcakes, birthday cakes, and cookies customers could now order a complete meal.  You can see the menu at www.delicious-n-fit.com.  But people suffering from food allergies while on the rise are still a small market.  It is estimated that people with celiac’s disease are 1 in every 133.  Can a restaurant survive a poor location AND a small market?

Laura says, “Yes, we can”.   We survived these 2 years due to wonderful word of mouth referrals, going back to service and quality.  Regardless of location or how the food is made, if it doesn’t taste great and the service is not great people will not come back and they will not tell their friends.  Our customers are stopping fellow celiac’s in the grocery stores to tell them about us, they bring their family and friends.  What about the non-allergy crowd?   They love it too.  It takes more work to get the non-allergy person to take a look at us but when they do they come back over and over again.  Why?  In one word, Quality.  Nearly, everything in the restaurant is made from scratch and with the freshest ingredients.  The restaurant bakes it’s own bread everyday, homemade croutons, homemade salad dressings.  The most moist chocolate cake and carrot cake in town bar none.  And yes, cakes are made fresh daily too!  The Carmel Cake served only on Saturday helped the restaurant take first place in fine dining at the 2007 Taste of Plano.

So if you are looking for a quality restaurant experience in a family setting check out Laura’s Bistro inside of Delicous-N-Fit at 930 W. Parker #420, Plano, Texas 75075

972-599-1018.   They are located behind Chubby’s on the SE corner of Parker and Alma.