LEYE to buy back Big Bowl!

This is surprising but I am really glad to read this. I feel the quality of Big Bowl had declined substantially after LEYE originally had sold the franchise...especially in the service...

http://www.leye.com/media_relations/big_bowl.htm

I'm happy to hear this too. I used to feel that Big Bowl was one of the only tolerable options for Chinese-ish food in the N. Michigan Ave area (blazing flat noodles were a reasonable version of chow fun). Not great, but more than decent. I also felt that it declined significantly since the initial selloff.

dont get me started on the blazing flat noodles!!!!! It used to be my favorite dish - they got the noodles from a old lady in China town I was told. They were light brown and amazing. When LEYE sold BB the noodles were replaced by some other translucent crap so the product could be consistent throughout the locations. It is inedible. I hope they switch back...

I'm very happy to hear this. I spoke a few months back with the founder of LEYE who had given a speech at a conference I attended at McCormick place. In my conversation with him I mentioned that since LEYE had sold Big Bowl, I felt the quality had gone significently downhill - and asked him how and/or what LEYE could do to manage quality problems with brands they had sold off (as they are still associated with those brands and actually own a major portion of the company which bought those brands).

He said that he had been offering some consulting, but that he too was concerned about the quality.

I think the step of reasorbing Big Bowl back into the LEYE fold is a very good step. I greatly enjoyed Big Bowl when LEYE owned it - slightly pricy but a good option. Since they sold it I have actively discouraged anyone from spending money there - I've found the meals virtually inedible and the service horrible. Hopefully service, quality and consistency which are generally hallmarks of LEYE owned restaurants will return to Big Bowl in 2005.

I wish them luck and when the transaction is completed will once again try Big Bowl.

Shannon

I'm glad to hear we may be seeing this change, and the sooner the better. For the first couple of years Big Bowl was in business, I was a huge fan. In addition to enjoying it for myself, for a couple of years there Big Bowl was the lunch of choice for little family get-to-gethers with me and a cousin of mine whenever he came into town (and this is a guy who has knocked around in various places with Jim Leff, by the way) but he loved Big Bowl, too. In the N. Michigan Ave. area, Big Bowl was the best and most reasonably priced meal of its type. I always thought it was kinda neat that we had this place here. So it was a HUGE disappointment when I went there about eight months ago. Menu watered down, quality comparable to Panda Express, lousy service. Just plain yuck! Glad to know I'll soon have reason to return.

If only they'd consider buying back Corner Bakery and restoring that to its former, well if not glory, then at least higher standard.