Be the place people look forward to going on a Friday night (and 3 ways to get there)

I was eating at my favorite burger joint, In-n-Out Burger in Mountain View tonight. Luckily it was a Thursday night, so it wasn't too hard to get a free table. On Friday and Saturday evenings around 7, this kind place is absolutely packed!

How often is it that fast food restaurants are particularly packed on a Friday/Saturday night? I can't imagine a McDonalds or a Jack in the Box experiencing that kind of weekend bump. What that means is that In-n-Out has become a destination. It's a place that people choose to be at because they want to have an great time when they're free to go really anywhere.

How did In-n-Out get there?
  1. Great product, impossible to get anywhere else
  2. Great, reasonable prices
  3. Clean, enjoyable atmosphere

This checklist is applicable for almost any sort of retail, online, or dining experience. If you can build your startup/idea/restaurant/dream into the clean, wholesome, good place people want to spend their weekend at, then you've got a good thing going.

Little Sheep Hotpot with Rich, Sherms, Pooks & Co.

So much good food at Little Sheep Hotpot tonight in San Mateo. With so many people in town from elsewhere (Shanghai, Seoul, Chicago, Boston) -- it was a mini-reunion of our Stanford friends.

Also of note: San Mateo's downtown has shaped up nicely. It's 2 long streets of restaurants, dessert places, shops and random stuff to do (theater, billiards, etc). I wouldn't mind living around there. It's kind of like what University Ave in Palo Alto wishes it could be.

Pizza at Pinnochios

Best sicilian pizza you'll ever have. Light soft crust with just the right amount of crunch, flavorful cheese, and just amazing mouth feel.

Pinnochio's Pizza, Harvard Square

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