China Won, an example of great customer service.
I have been to many Chinese takeout places, and they are all generally the same. They have practically the same menus, and you can expect to be treated as just another person handing them money for their cheap and easy food. The quality of food varies just enough between them that we can debate which place is better.
The family and I were headed over to the Peach Cobbler Factory, up 401 in that part of Fuquay that has a Raleigh address. It was after noon and we hadn't yet eaten anything all morning, so we decided to look for a restaurant before just eating a dessert. And of all the choices in the area, we chose the Chinese restaurant China Won.
One thing I noticed right away was that their lunch specials are under $8 and you have your choice of pork fried rice with a meal. Good price.
But one thing that really stood out to me was the man at the register. He smiled at me and was incredibly nice. I placed our order with him, and he told me that he would bring it to us. (Unlike the restaurant closest to me where they would hand it to me through an airlock door as they hide behind their plastic barrier.)
The food came out relatively fast. Now here's something else I noticed about this man: he did not simply give us our meal; he presented it. He brought my wife's first, opening the styrofoam container to reveal the food inside and setting it down as if it were some sacred treasure. It looked like a lot of food, and I liked how the rectangular container had her General Tso's chicken meal on one side and her pork fried rice on the other. He did the same for my meal, opening the lid slowly as he gently put it down in front of me. With a big smile he asked us if we needed anything else.
I have to say that this is a very unusual experience for me, especially at a takeout Chinese place. This one man gave me such a great impression of their restaurant, and the food was actually really good.
I suppose I say all of this because I am used to going to different fast food restaurants and being treated as if I am imposing on the lives of the workers, or as if my only importance to them is that I give them money. This guy was genuinely really nice and made my wife and I feel special, and because of that, I don't mind driving the 16 to 18 minutes to go there now.
China Won is, in my mind, appropriately named, because they have just placed themselves in first place among the Chinese restaurants around here. read more