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TheBuzz Erika Engle |
Compadres, amigos and
free comida converge
in $1M promotionCOMPADRES Bar & Grill is giving away $1 million with a buy-one-get-one-free lunch deal in conjunction with its 20-year anniversary.
The bread-breaking bargain entitles the bearer and an amigo to a free entree for every full-priced entree purchased. The freebie must be of equal or lesser price.
Founding partner Rick Enos figures that getting 85,000 coupons into the marketplace will help the restaurant accomplish its give-away goal.
The first slew of coupons is being mailed out to people on Compadres' "worm" list. Worm -- not as in computer virus, but as in "gusano," which means worm in Spanish ... as in the critter one finds at the bottom of a bottle of mezcal.
"It's a happy, friendly worm," said General Manager John Langan.
People on the worm list and the mailing lists of some other businesses with which Compadres has relationships should be receiving the discount dispatches.
"If there's an organization out there that would like to reward its members, give John a call. (Compadres will) be happy to provide that organization with certificates," said Enos. They will also be available at the restaurant.
Return rates for direct mail pieces are typically low. "If you believe the statistics, two percent is a good return," Enos said. Because of the opt-in nature of the restaurant's mailing list, it may see a 12- to 15-percent return. "But maybe with this one, because of the million dollars, maybe we'll get a little more attention."
More attention in the form of increased lunchtime traffic, Enos hopes.
One of the limited-time menu items is an Irish quesadilla made with a flour tortilla, Monterey Jack cheese, garlic, diced potatoes, corned beef and cabbage sautéed in beer. The dish was prepared in honor of the upcoming St. Patrick's Day block party downtown in conjunction with pub-owner and restaurateur Don Murphy.
Proceeds from party and restaurant sales of the item will benefit Hawaii Special Olympics, but that giveaway doesn't count toward the $1 million total.
As for the $1 million promotion, "We wanted to do something really special and something over-the-top," said Langan.
Enos didn't see the simplicity of handing the cash over to your columnist as a much more expeditious way to give away the money.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at: eengle@starbulletin.com
