Deli Chain Adds Free Wi-Fi For Lunch
from the sign-me-up dept
With all the talk from companies like Boingo in trying to convince restaurants to set up for-pay WiFi (like Starbucks is doing), I never really understood why the pitch wasn't for free WiFi. The restaurants don't want to worry about customers complaining about broken internet access or anything like that. They just want to bring in more people who will buy food. Offering free WiFi means less complaints, and many more happy customers at your tables. It seems that Schlotzky's Deli finally realized this. They're going to be offering free WiFi in some of their restaurants and (get this) are even going to put up warchalking signs so people know they're there. Right now they're only offering it at a few stores in Texas, but they plan to expand. Even though we get the commercials here, it doesn't seem like they exist in the Bay Area, but hopefully other restaurants will realize that this is a good idea. Update: Here's an article with more details on the warchalking part of the story. They seem to be really into it - even advertising a huge warchalk symbol at a UT Austin football game. However, they chalked up their stores without telling some of the managers, who apparently hosed down the chalk to get rid of it...
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Finally, a company that gets it...
I'm waiting for the Schlotzky's Deli chains here in San Diego to do this...however in the mean time I'll definately be spending some money at the Deli.
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Schlotsky's, good
The Schlotsky's on south Lamar in Austin is a great place to sit back, drink a latte and people watch. Not all the restaurants offer coffee or fresh bread, so it's kinda hit-or-miss for that. The one in downtown Austin is convenient for me and the transients for which Austin is famous don't hang out there (they hang out in front of the Starbucks across the street).
As for the food, I'd suggest everyone try it out. Their food is better than any of the other sandwich shops (with the possible exception of a philly at Texadelphia) and the interiors of the newer stores are really nice. A lot of them have outdoor porches with tables and umbrellas. Perfect for a sunny day when you need to get away from the office to work on a presentation.
Enjoy.
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