One blogger's quixotic struggle to bring Taco Bell to the heart of Manhattan and banish his own cravings, as told to JONATHAN DREW.
Tacos five days a week.
Manhattan blogger Scott Eckert fantasizes about the days when he lived in the flyover states and ate Taco Bell almost every day on his lunch break. It's his mission to return to those days -- not by moving back to Minnesota where he's from, but by using his blog to persuade the chain to put another restaurant near his office.
"They might not take it seriously now, but you wait and in six months when we've got 10 million hits, I think that they'll listen," he said recently while walking to a Taco Bell 20 minutes from where he works as an office assistant at a computer research firm.
Before moving to New York, the 24-year-old's eating habits made him what's known to the restaurant industry as a high-frequency customer. Those fanatics are one of the most important sources of revenue for the business, and chains are constantly trying to figure out ways to please them.
Taco Bell brought back its chili cheese burrito several years ago after an outcry by partisans of the dish. Similarly, Hardees introduced the 1,400-calorie Monster Thickburger in 2004 and Burger King served up its Enormous Omelet Sandwich last year to cater to the hearty eaters who are their core customers.
But one thing chains are less likely to do -- much to Eckert's chagrin -- is choose a restaurant location based simply on fan demand. Restaurant consultant Arlene Spiegel says the companies have a 10- to 20-item checklist of needs that must be met before they'll build a store.
Taco Bell wouldn't discuss specifics. But apparently Manhattan locations don't meet Taco Bell's criteria as easily as they do some other chains. There are currently 132 Subway restaurants in Manhattan and just 9 Taco Bells. The restaurants had similar revenues and ranked 4th and 5th, respectively, in a 2005 ranking of chain restaurants by Technomic.
In the meantime, Eckert passes several Subway and McDonald's restaurants to reach Taco Bell. He acknowledges that the company might not be swayed by his blog, which he began in March after his co-workers suggested he find an outlet for his frequent complaints.
Judging from a recent posting, the venting hasn't helped: "This blog is exacerbating, not assuaging, my daily yearnings for Taco Bell."
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Jonathan Drew is an asap reporter.
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