As noted recently in other threads, there IS sustainably-caught patagonian toothfish on the market, from an MSC-certified fishery in South Georgia. So it's not fair to say "don't eat patagonian toothfish". Rather, don't eat it unless you know it's from one of the good fisheries, or if you don't care.

ucjames wrote:

Kennyz wrote:The groupon says 2,836 of these deals were sold. Really? 2,836 people will be descending on Friendship Chinese for a fish dinner. Umm, I don't think so.

Groupon. Rhymes with "You're a con." Sort of.

Those numbers purchased certainly sound unlikely at best, but I had no problems using the only Groupon I've ever purchased (for Bonsoiree).

And as long as the groupons are valid, does anyone actually give a damn if they inflate their sales metrics?

I polled 10,000 people. 9,995 said they care.

I don't have any doubt the numbers are real. The site has a very high profile, even higher today after the weekend's "1 year art institute membership for $40" deal that got them tons of local press and social media traffic.

Friendship's brand of upscale ameri-chinese in a hipster/yuppie-friendly neighborhood, combined with a shockingly low price (for people not used to chinatown), plus "buy it now before it's too late!" means it's a very popular deal.

I'm sticking with there being not a chance in hell that 3,000 people bought this, unless you count Groupon staffers planning to give themselves a refund. I've been to Friendship a few times; the place averages maybe 50 covers per night. 3,000 is a ridiculous number.

Kennyz wrote:I'm sticking with there being not a chance in hell that 3,000 people bought this, unless you count Groupon staffers planning to give themselves a refund. I've been to Friendship a few times; the place averages maybe 50 covers per night. 3,000 is a ridiculous number.

3000 coupons to be used by December 31st, or an extra 20 covers a night. The point of this deal is not for people who love Friendship to get a cheap meal there, but for Friendship to put out a loss-leader (or very low profit) deal to get people in the door and convert into regulars.

And, perhaps better for Friendship, 10-20% of the people who buy this will never redeem it.

Hi there everyone,

Andrew from Groupon here (I'm the founder) - nice to meet you all. After 7 valiant attempts to enter the correct captcha registration code, I'm glad to be the newest LTH forum member!

I'd like to address a few of the concerns raised in this thread:

The Chilean sea bass used by Friendship is completely legal. For those who are curious, here's a video recorded by our own Aaron With (who arranged the deal with Friendship despite being a vegan) explaining how Friendship gets its sea bass: http://www.vimeo.com/5920466

Second, regarding the sales numbers, they are real. I guess the best way to prove it would be for you to call Friendship (or any business we've featured) and ask them - here's their number: (773) 227-0970

Being on Groupon is a bit like being on Check, Please!... it can be crazy for the first few days if you don't get a reservation. But we always work with the business to make sure we don't sell more Groupons than they can handle; if that happened, it would be bad for the restaurant and bad for us.

Hope that answers your questions. I'm looking forward to poking around LTH some more! Even though I have one of the least remarkable palates of anyone I've ever met, I still really really love food.

Andrew (at groupon dot com)

Hows come there's no more hot and sour soup on the menu at Friendship?

picnichouse wrote:Hi there everyone,

Andrew from Groupon here (I'm the founder) - nice to meet you all. After 7 valiant attempts to enter the correct captcha registration code, I'm glad to be the newest LTH forum member!

I'd like to address a few of the concerns raised in this thread:

The Chilean sea bass used by Friendship is completely legal. For those who are curious, here's a video recorded by our own Aaron With (who arranged the deal with Friendship despite being a vegan) explaining how Friendship gets its sea bass: http://www.vimeo.com/5920466

Second, regarding the sales numbers, they are real. I guess the best way to prove it would be for you to call Friendship (or any business we've featured) and ask them - here's their number: (773) 227-0970

Being on Groupon is a bit like being on Check, Please!... it can be crazy for the first few days if you don't get a reservation. But we always work with the business to make sure we don't sell more Groupons than they can handle; if that happened, it would be bad for the restaurant and bad for us.

Hope that answers your questions. I'm looking forward to poking around LTH some more! Even though I have one of the least remarkable palates of anyone I've ever met, I still really really love food.

Andrew (at groupon dot com)

Welcome! Thanks for the additional details, and I hope you enjoy browsing us in the future. I bet you wondered what the heck LTHForum was when you saw the site referral IDs coming in; please let me introduce you to the infamous "Kennyz Bump" effect by way of accounting for your last 700 sales of the night (closing at 3,522 bought). I'm sure Kenny is as happy as you (and Friendship) are. Crab wontons for everyone!

Kennyz wrote:The groupon says 2,836 of these deals were sold. Really? 2,836 people will be descending on Friendship Chinese for a fish dinner. Umm, I don't think so.

Groupon. Rhymes with "You're a con." Sort of.

kennyz: groupons are not a con. i think you should be careful what you say, since it sounds like you know nothing about them. i've used groupons successfully. 3000 plus people got art institute memberships earlier this week (including me) for $40. their deals are real and they are deep discounts, so it isn't surprising that they attract attention. justjoan

I have also used groupon for other things as well without any issues. They are legit.

BOT -

Can I be one of the first jerks to tell everyone who goes to Friendship "I told you so?"
No, seriously though. Friendship might be best in the immediate area (which ain't saying much at all) but it definitely is not destination worthy at all if you ask me. I wanted to like this place for a long time. It's just not meant to be for us. Restaurant.com will also sell you a cert for pennies on the dollar if you wait for the end of the month fire sales.

Does anyone know if they are no longer BYO? I thought I read something on the Groupon site about their "Exciting new cocktail menu?" That sucks if true. I live so close to here and BYO was one of the main reasons to frequent this place.

picnichouse wrote:Hi there everyone,

Andrew from Groupon here (I'm the founder) - nice to meet you all. After 7 valiant attempts to enter the correct captcha registration code, I'm glad to be the newest LTH forum member!

I'd like to address a few of the concerns raised in this thread:

The Chilean sea bass used by Friendship is completely legal. For those who are curious, here's a video recorded by our own Aaron With (who arranged the deal with Friendship despite being a vegan) explaining how Friendship gets its sea bass: http://www.vimeo.com/5920466
Andrew (at groupon dot com)

andrew: thanks for posting this information. i dont see anything on isaacson and stein's fish website about them being sustainable and 'federally certified' as your little video states. but i certainly believe you and am relieved to hear it. i apologize for telling people not to purchase the friendship restaurant groupon. i thought i had all the facts, but obviously didnt. justjoan

$20 for $40 deal today - http://www.youswoop.com/Default.aspx?SkipLanding=true

Did anyone else know that they have either moved to the Gold Coast or they've opened another outpost there?

200 East Lake Front Drive, which is apparently between Michigan Avenue and Lake Shore.

I've never tried this place but there is a dearth of decent chinese in this area -- so this sounds like a good thing. They have lunch specials too -- has anyone tried the new location?

earthlydesire wrote:Did anyone else know that they have either moved to the Gold Coast or they've opened another outpost there?

200 East Lake Front Drive, which is apparently between Michigan Avenue and Lake Shore.

I've never tried this place but there is a dearth of decent chinese in this area -- so this sounds like a good thing. They have lunch specials too -- has anyone tried the new location?

The second location is actually on the lake, halfway between Randolph and the river, in - and outside in front of - the Dusable Harbor building.

deebeedo

The second location is actually on the lake, halfway between Randolph and the river, in - and outside in front of - the Dusable Harbor building.

It's a seasonal location, though. They're right on the beach, with only outdoor seating. I expect they'll open again after winter.

Dang. I knew this was too good to be true.

So, I saw today's Groupon, and saw that they have added "Sushi" to there menu, and I thought twice about partaking in the deal. Took a peek see at their menu, and I saw that for 13.95, you can get this beast of a "Signature Roll:"

MELTED TEMPURA SHRIMP
shrimp tempura baked with mozzarella cheese, tempura crunch, avocado with unagi sauce.

I might actually leave the place if I saw that on someone else's table. I'm not kidding, either.

seebee wrote:MELTED TEMPURA SHRIMP
shrimp tempura baked with mozzarella cheese, tempura crunch, avocado with unagi sauce.

It's so rare to find a menu item where just reading the ingredient list can make me lose my appetite for an entire style of cuisine

Bravo Friendship

Met a friend for dinner at Friendship Last night. We were working with a $40 groupon. With drinks, we went over by around $35.

The diagionally sliced and artfully presented eggrolls were delicious with bits of shrimp and posrk in them. Crab Rangoon was, well, crab rangoon. No crab. All cream cheese. But, deep fried cream cheese can still be tasty.

We split a couple of entrees and some shrimp fried rice. The honey walnut shrimp were somewhat similar to the mayo shrimp served in Chinatown. A bit saucier. But, well prepared, hot and crispy. We passed on Peking Duck in favor of a spicy red curry chicken. I swear that I think they replaced the potato in the curry with yucca which was a nice change- more toothsome and absorbed the curry sauce better than a potato would have.

The fried rice was excellent. A heaping mound of perfectly fried rice served over a bed of stir fried jumbo shrimp.

My take? Good, creative American Chinese, well presented and very tasty. It's pretty expensive. But, i'll definitely try it again.

According to Dish, it looks like Jackie Shen will now be the chef at Friendship Chinese. That is an interesting development that may take the food in a more upscale direction. I can't wait to see what develops. Anyone want to start a pool on how long she'll last?

By the way, the beach location has expanded in size, and there's additional nights of live music. The view is as beautiful as ever.

According to Dish, it looks like Jackie Shen will now be the chef at Friendship Chinese. That is an interesting development that may take the food in a more upscale direction. I can't wait to see what develops. Anyone want to start a pool on how long she'll last?

We tried it out, and found things improved for the better. The sushi distraction is gone, and there is some ambition reflected in the conceit of some of the new / revamped dishes. We ordered Flaming Pork Loin (hot chilies and veg), Chicken Chow Fun, and Long Beans. The beans were excellent - really nicely shriveled and charred. The Chow Fun was good, though could perhaps have had more carmelization on bits of the noodle from a dryer wok at start (?). The pork disappointed just a tiny bit, because it seemed to want for a note of garlic or something umami-y to counterbalance the hot and the sweet. We enjoyed the dishes and plan to try delivery sometime soon (our options are pretty limited for Chinese in Bucktown). They were doing a good business last night.

annak wrote:

According to Dish, it looks like Jackie Shen will now be the chef at Friendship Chinese. That is an interesting development that may take the food in a more upscale direction. I can't wait to see what develops. Anyone want to start a pool on how long she'll last?

She's already gone.