Why don't they ever work in the USA, gulls? Even in a place like Detroit where you can pay rent with Monopoly dollars they can't bang out enough to keep the doors open.
What would you do differently?
>>8808206
>they
who?
>>8808206
Location, being weeb bait and unattractive and non similar girls.
>>8808213
>Location
As in bad foot traffic or costly rent?
>weeb bait
Fair enough, but you would think that gimmick would get people in the door.
>unattractive and non similar girls
probably the biggest offender. its surprising to think that there arent plenty of cute girls who would love to work part-time at one.
>>8808211
Maid cafés, anon.
Tiny target demographic, I suppose. Places like Hooters where the emphasis is on T&A rather than frilly cuteness do fine in the US, so it's not like "food served by attractive people" isn't a successful business model, it's just the wrong kind of eye candy for most Americans. Doesn't help that most maid cafés serve shitty food. They only work in places where you have a large number of people who are into the moe aesthetic/ enough of a weeaboo to put up with crappy food for the sake of kawaii meidos. So, pretty much only at cons.
Has anyone tried one of these in like a Texas Korea town? I feel like weebs are concentrated down there.
![1392580232492[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/YTfG0D6.jpg "1392580232492[1].jpg")
I love maid cafes, in my area, we've seen a lot come and go.
I think the only way a maid cafe can do well in the US is
>for the love of god, don't hire uggos just because they're your friend
maybe some hardcore weebs might go because "zomg" maid cafe, but the rest of us aren't paying extra and traveling a bit of the ways out here to be served by some hambeast who thinks she's hot shit.
>also, don't hire 15 girls that look the same, you need some variety, not all customers have the same tastes.
get some different ethnicities in there too, get tall girls, short girls, chubby girls, cute girls, beautiful girls, exotic looking girls, and market them in a way that flatters them. like a beautiful girl might want to be marketed as "Cute" but no, it isn't gonna work. hell, throw in some pretty boys to work there as butlers too
>you are going to scare away normalfags with the whole maid thing. that is why these cafes keep failing.
get a set number of days to have as normal days, and have maid days, on weekends or whenever. gotta keep the normies around, they are the main part of the population!
>GOOD FOOD
don't serve cheapass ramen, get a good cook. I don't care how lovely these girls are, you need good food to do well
>activities! fun activities!
on your "maid days" have fun activities to do with customers! some might pay extra to do so even!
get some videogames setup, have those shy nerds open up with a game of apples to apples, you're choice!
>location
don't have your cafe in the middle of buttfuck nowhere, have it in a place where weebs can easily get to, the asian area of your city, wherever.
>uniforms.
yeah, you could go the bodyline route. but some maids boobs might be too big, or some maids might be too tall. don't go the boring black x white maid route, get some colors in there! make sure you have a good seamstress to help you out on this one
I've thought this out a lot.
Because American girls are ugly as shit and not kawaii at all.
I want to open one so badly. I'm a decent cook and great at baking, plus not too hard on the eyes if I do say so myself. I'd only hire beautiful girls and a few attractive men. Entertainment would be practiced thuroughly. Food would be fresh.
In all honesty though, I'd probably just open a regular cafe and host "Maid Cafe" nights once a week until I see how it takes off.
People who want to go, will go ONCE for the novelty.
If you want your maid cafe to stick around you better offer something that
>keeps people coming back
>might convince people who aren't into this stuff to go
What that'd be I have no idea.
Japan has a very deeply embedded cute culture. While there are many people in the west, including America that follow it, for the most part, cute isn't what sells here. By and large, we're not into cute girls, cute dresses, and cute concepts like maid cafes.
Sexy is ultimately what sells here. When most Americans think of maids, they think of either old women who clean your house, or a sexy short lacy dress with a tiny apron, ala Halloween.
It's also a generational thing too. I think I'd find more people in the millennial group being down for something like this. Anyone in college right now was growing up during the anime boom and was exposed to this particular aesthetic. I haven't met many people around this age who aren't down for some Pokemon or admit to watching Yugioh after school. Whereas I had Fresh Prince, and my first anime exposure was Sailor Moon, and grew into this realm of nerd culture as it was being born at the start of the Millennial spectrum.
But I imagine Gen-Xers or Boomers who didn't follow anime or the early roots of anime in the 70's and 80's confusing and jarring. Most people in this group that I meet are so normal and ordinary that it hurts.
Also when it comes to Detroit, the Midwest is full of trash (of all races). When kids step outside those established "what is normal for us" boundaries, it's seen as really strange and they'll get a lot of stigma. They also have a lot of those influences around. Having grown up in a white trash family, I got a lot of shit from siblings and other family members of thinking differently and not really being into what they were doing. I imagine similar situations is what keeps a lot of people from exploring other cultures and expanding their horizons, even if it's just to the point of going to a silly maid cafe, because they just wouldn't know what the hell it is. But Hooters, everyone knows what hooters is.
Applied for a national maid cafe and got turned down gulls, but someone else in my crappy little town got hired instead - she's a 14 year old weeb and I actually have money, a job, and experience in retail but I'm pretty sure the reason was I'm not white or look like a loli, even though I could pass for a teenager easily. I'm so mad I want to start my own maid cafe.
I'm South asian, not Japanese/Korean/Chinese, but I know I'm not uggo and I'd look hella cute as a maid. Most of the maids at this cafe are uggo as hell desu. Weird mashed white girl faces and some are really fat.
I should start my own cafe where I hire maids for how cute and useful they are, not just a bunch of white girls because -racism-, seriously who wants a pasty white blob as a maid with an unfortunate face when you could have a small girl who looks hella adorable, regardless of the fact whether she's black or any other ethnicity?
Maybe this should have gone in the rant thread.
Cute and modest usually loses out to sexy and bold in the US.
I wanted to open a maid cafe in Baltimore, but I highly doubt it would stay afloat once con season ends.
>>8808398
Maybe you could do a pop-up cafe like a pop-up shop. Just having that limited time factor might draw some more people in.
>>8808396
>abloobloobloo: the post
>>8808206
>Detroit
Uhh, that is not the place I think of when I think of nerd culture.
Places out in the NW make sense tho.
I live in Portland, OR and we have a huuuuuge nerd community. I've seen lolitas walk down the street here. Almost everyone plays MTG here. I've yet to have a job here that didn't have a bunch of weebs working there. Shit, the clerk at Sally's tried to suggest an anime to me. I don't even watch anime...
Anyway. The problem with Portland is that we're already a huge restaurant town. We're also a college town unfortunately (hence the amount of hardcore libs) which is a bad mix for trying to get business in a food place. College kids don't have money for that, they live off ramen and 5$ coffee and are barely making their rent.
I've worked in the food industry for a few years now so I'm very familiar with how hard it is to run a food business. Even something like a grocery store is difficult. And where I live there is literally competition in every corner, or there is something near by that will deter customers like a strip club or a cluster of bums asking for change.
Still, I think a maid cafe would work here, but you'd have to cater to every kind of nerd culture cause if you only cater to a niche group, that'll be it for your customers and you'll see them once before you get shit down.
I'd like to try and run one someday, but I'm in no place to run a business at the moment.
Like others said, cuteness isn't really a thing in the USA. Maid cafés thrive on kawai culture while USA prefers sexyness. Normies might go in once out of curiosity, but they won't be recurring customers.
Doesn't help that most anime fans in the USA are teenagers and young adults. In Japan, anime seems to be an interest of all ages. Most maid café visitors are anime fans, so that'd mean that Japanese clients are more likely to include adults who have a disposable income, while USA maid cafés have to make do with weeaboo teenagers or students who can't make it to the café often and probably won't spend much money during their visit.
Don't cater to weeaboos and nerd culture. As counterintuitive as it sounds. I would market it towards pretentious hipsters and social justice warriors under the guise of broadening their cultural horizons by taking part of an authentic Japanese cultural experience by being served by strong independent women who are rejecting the overt sexual overtones of the western patriarchy by embracing the cute and modest aesthetics of Japanese maid culture. Should I start kickstarter so I can make one billion dollars? Who wants to fund me?
>>8808395
>But I imagine Gen-Xers or Boomers who didn't follow anime or the early roots of anime in the 70's and 80's confusing and jarring. Most people in this group that I meet are so normal and ordinary that it hurts.
Honestly what is with this? I thought this too back in my XD Look At The Normies high school age, but I'm 28 now in a 'real' and it STILL seems like the case. most of the 30 and up crowd is so weirdly dull, they'll get into like Breaking Bad or football but not even be all that. passionate about it. Our call floor is mostly Millennials and they've got tons of posters etc up (from mainstream series to weeb shit) and management thinks they're all odd for doing so.
TF do you people do for fun
>>8808471
Easy access to an explosive amount of media didn't exist 20+ years ago. You had some TV, movies, and that's about it. Nowadays everyone has a streaming account, Netflix, HBO, and access to the latest million dollar TV series that a significant amount of the country watches. And that doesn't include things that are now mainstream like video games. Media is an ingraned part of most millenials' lifestyle, so obsessively watching the new Game of Thrones episode each week and then yapping about it with your coworkers is completely natural.
Usually the closest thing I see Gen X and Boomers get obsessed with is sports. (which has been around for decades)
>>8808468
Very well put. America is just too obsessed with sex to have something simply cute. Clientele is probably the most important issue and, like anon said, teenagers using their allowances can't fund a business.
I think it could work maybe as a cafe extension of a manga/anime shop in a really busy area (Manhattan, London, L.A.) but it'd have to be very well put together. If the food is really delicious that on its own can keep the place afloat.
Living in NYC I'm surprised there isn't a good maid cafe yet. There's so many diverse neighborhoods in Manhattan (K-Town, Little Italy, Chinatown) that I know people wouldn't be weirded out by it since they're surrounded by different cultures literally everyday. But having cute maids is so important and people always pull some shit like "Oh I have a really cute friend, she can work here!" and she's atrocious. I'm not even going to lie: I would fucking love to work at a maid cafe but I know I'm not cute enough so I won't even bother. But it's mostly management's fault for hiring unfortunate looking girls.
We can barely have decent convention maid cafes. Good luck with an actual place. Maids forget that customer service is important, you are both a waitress and entertainer, not some top "aidoru" star .
One of the reasons is that they are nothing like the maid cafes in Japan. The few times I have been at the cafe in the OP pic, they barely serve you, and when they do its only bringing you food. Otherwise they simply sit and talk with their friends.
I know I'm going to sound like a super fucking weeb for saying this, but the experience doesn't work in English because there are no registers of politeness. When a maid or butler speaks to you at a cafe in Japan, they're using respectful/archaic grammar that you don't run across in everyday conversation, so it adds to the feeling of specialness.
>>8808505
THIS. This is what was wrong with the NYC maid cafe.
>>8808445
>pop-up cafe
I feel like this is the only way something like this would work here, since like other people have said it already - most people interested in this sort of thing would go only once for the novelty. People that would go regularly are a very small crowd and far more spread out across the country.
Having a stable clientele is probably the hardest bit - I mean, with any business it is but especially something like this. You would only be able to do in a city, you'd probably be better of doing it only a certain area of the city, and even then WHICH city? In Japan there's the anime neighborhoods and shit you can go to but here you would need to find a city with a suitable location with a population interested enough to keep your business affloat. The only place I can think of is somewhere with a very high concentration of tourists regularly visiting the area. Perhaps a place like NYC but the rent is gonna be through the roof if you wanna be in a neighborhood that's relevant.
If that's the case then I further agree that the other best way would be just to have certain maid nights or days and expand those as needed.
>>8808245
Wow, maid cafes are exactly like hooters with just a different aesthetic. I totally never thought of that until you mentioned it just now.
what about targeting a families with a children? It might work well
>>8808508
What else is a waitress supposed to do?
Also I'm a faggy American, and I work in the service industry but I don't want some waitress sitting down and trying to get to know me. I don't care what the atmosphere is, unless it's a stripper (in which case I won't be ordering their food) get away from me.
>>8808538
How about instead of pop up cafes, a food cart with maids? Food carts are all the fucking rage where I live. Especially if you can keep them mobile.
>>8808863
In Japan the maids play games, take pics with you, act generally kawaii, etc. They don't act like regular waitresses
>>8808471
A lot of the 30 and up crowd have kids and other obligations that keep them from dumping a lot of time and money into fandom. But you also have confirmation basis: most 20-year-olds aren't fannish, and there are plenty of people over 30 who are extremely into something and have sunk a ton of time and money into their Batman cosplay/video game collection/Star Wars action figures/whatever.
The market just isn't there to support it. Even though anime is more popular than it used to be, the group that's dedicated enough to weeb culture to go to a maid cafe is a fraction of a fraction of the population. On top of that, the kind of people who are so into anime that they want to run a maid cafe generally are younger and don't have any experience with running a business in the first place or the restaurant industry. Even professional, great chefs often have to shut down their restaurants,
>>8808699
It might work, but then it would lose a lot of its appeal as a maid café. And a lot of changes would have to be made to attract families. I can think of a few:
> get rid of the anime and Japanese aspects since children don't care about that
> heavily tone down the cutesyness so families with boys will want to eat at your café
> have a big menu with a lot of regular, western food because children are picky eaters
> Make sure your waitresses are good with children and want to be around screaming children all day
> make sure it's 100% childfriendly and a safe environment for kids to run around
It wouldn't really be a maid café anymore, but a regular family diner with girls in frilly dresses. I don't think many people would be interested in working at such a cafe.
>>8808395
there's a sexy maid cafe out here I know that's been successful
>>8808465
I think Portland would be an excellent spot for a maid cafe. You'd probably need to make it a board game cafe on top of that and maybe give the girls accessories like dice and chess pieces.
Sad that Akiba closed in SF before I was able to go but I would have probably gone way sooner if they weren't stuck up in the northwest corner of the city which is pretty out of the way for a lot of people.
>>8809135
Add some butlers because having only servile females won't jive.
Help gulls
I have a friend who really wants to open a maid cafe. Im going to help out and be a maid. We will be having a meeting at the end of the month to establish plans. She's going to do a one day thing first. Gauge the interest and maybe get some backers. The uniforms for the event are pic related in pink.
>>8808699
That's what I'm hoping. I think we should really cater to the child demographic. We are a border city with a prosperous Mexican one in which people are already used to novelty stuff and character restaurants. For that reason I really think this can work out if we play it right.
>>8808363
>good food
Cafes are generally half kitchens and don't work like dining restaurants. But I'm hoping general cafe foods will be enough
>location
Near the local college. Potentially. What do yall think?
What do you guys think of a Japanese cafe that happens to have a uniform learning halfway between Americano diner and maid?
It wouldn't be the selling point of the place, but would just be "there" as part of the general decor of the place. The diner itself would work on having great Japanese style cafe food and a good ambiance. Perhaps some anime streaming on TV but a more PC family friendly angle.
>>8809302
Well for one you are going to have increase the length of those skirts to the knees if you want it kid-friendly. People like us are immune to it but high skirts and showing leg is as slutty in the west as cleavage is in Japan. My grandpa once told me that I was gonna get raped for going out in a regular cutesy skirt that was mid-thigh. Of course its ridiculous, but you have to cater to western standards of modesty unless you are trying to be fetish.
>border city with a prosperous Mexican one
found your demographic, Mexicans love cutesy weeb shit ME ENCANTE. prepare for Mexican creeps on a daily basis.
>I'm hoping general cafe foods will be enough
Unless you have low prices on coffee and tea and there is a vacuum of no cafes nearby its not going to be enough. If your food isn't bringing people back its going to fail. It doesn't have to be fancy and expensive food, but it does need to be high-quality. Get a good chef.
>Near the local college
If your prices average over $5 per plate college students wont have the money to eat there regularly.
>>8809302
what about the rest of the advice though? and where is your cafe going to be located (exact city)
I cant stress that catering to normalfags and only having a couple maid days a week max enough.
that is super important.
Maybe a more Victorian or romantic Era cafe would work better. Something akin to downton abbey since that was popular enough. It takes away some sexual factors and could be appropriate for bookclubs, older women, date nights and maybe have a mother child high tea event once a month. A liquor license would also make a big difference
>>8809371
>lengthen skirt
Oh yes ma'am. She is super protective of us and is going to have security and an absolute zero tolerance policy.
>food
She is looking at super high quality pastries, drinks, and etc for the menu. I will see what she thinks about doing full on dinner foods. It's just food regulations are easier when a cafe stays a cafe.
>Mexicans
Excellent. Even this side of the border we are over 80% Hispanic. Basically anything that does well over there has a good history of sticking on this side of the border too.
>College students
Good point. But the college happens to be near the west side of town where the richer people live. Probably the only prime location on the eastside would be one of the malls.
>>8809391
I kinda didn't want to say my location exactly but I really would like the help.
El Paso, TX. 20th largest city in America and 8th in Texas. One half of the worlds largest international metroplex with our sister city Cuidad Juarez, Chihuahua.
However they are definitely the more prosperous side. We have a comparatively lower standard of living but also a low cost of living. Still, we are going through a sort of renaissance right now in terms of getting new attractions and locals actually spending money on them. I'm glad she's changed her mind from having it in Las Cruces NM. It may be the second largest city in new Mexico but still has about 1/6th of our population and most of them are college students and retirees.
>>8809391
>>8809438
Me again.
>couple maid days a week
Does that mean switching out uniforms too? That might be hard, she has so many ideas. She's hoping for eventually having specialized days like butler days or schoolgirl days for back to school and would even give student discounts etc. That might be something that gets put on the backburner as this becomes more real
>>8809438
Correction, 6th largest TX city
>>8809445
you MUST cater to normalfags.
I'd suggest having fridays/satudays maid days since most likely students would be the most interested in that and those are popular student days.
and yes, that means switching out uniforms. so for every day that isnt friday/saturday just have a normal dress code.
I've been looking to invest in a maidcafe if its local and am willing to put money down only if it follows the requirements I put, so that's why I asked the location.
I did tons of research ages ago since I knew someone who wanted to start one up. but the location they wanted it in meant that if they wanted to wear maid costumes they'd have to pay them "actor's wages" so the idea was quickly scrapped and they just opened up a regular cafe.
most normies see weird costumes and they nope the fuck out so thats why you have to limit your maid days.
and I don't mean to rude but
>for the love of god, don't hire uggos just because they're your friend
please follow this. this is one of the many reasons detroit's cafe was a laughing stock
>>8809469
Yea I'm not really sure where she picked us out from. Some of us are in the local Lolita comm, others are from a cosplay group. I was both. The rest I'm not sure but in truth, everyone's real pretty and fairly diverse. I call her friend but irl I've met her but once.
I think I remember her mentioning once that we would actually only open the maid cafe weekends. Let me check the announcements.
>>8809469
Not TX girl but I am also working on scaling up to a full service Japanese cafe. I am starting out as a food stand+outfit for now so that I can move around my city and find a sweet spot + check normie responses but I am hoping that if that is profitiable I can look to open by next year.
I pretty much meet all your criteria except instead of having only a few "maid days", I don't try to create a maid experience other than than regular service by attractive men and women in a toned down standard uniform that pays homage to maid and butler without being over the top. The selling point is just having really delicious Japanese-western quick service food that you can't get in the states.
I am not sure if I am looking for an investor but I would be happy to talk to you about it. I am currently in Japan so there might be a time lag.
[email protected]
>>8809445
>That might be hard, she has so many ideas
This can be a major down fall, first lesson in any business plan is that you literally want to stick to a few ideas at a time, literally about 3 so for example:
>Weekends maid cafe
>Weekdays normal days
>whatever else here
If you try to do so much at once and barely starting, you will 99% fail since you thinned out yourself so much, it will cause more money and more stress.
Also for tge people who live in the Los Angeles area of the States, do you believe that the area of Little Tokyo is good for a maid cafe? There's always weebs especially on weekend and have cosplay meets so I would think it can be a good idea to open one there since most stores more into the whole otaku culture aspect.
I want to open a maid cafe in Portland but I rather work with someone instead of taking it on myself. The idea I have is leaning towards classy rather than cute or sexy. I want it to be like stepping into a different era, the decor will be very Victorian esque. Classy, more on the traditional side for maid outfits and there will be butlers too. Higher end desserts and small savory plates ideally.
>>8809482
I can't find the notice. I can give more info on this by the 31st. I will look up statistics as to how much a deterrent costumes are to the populace in the meantime.
>>8809510
Agreed. But to be sure this isn't a pipe dream. She's been working crazy hard to get the funding and work out logistics. For the stand alone event the maids are going to be volunteering and just keeping tips if any. A lot of people really want this to happen and I really think it can.
>>8809510
its good but the maid cafes there have failed.
only successful one is a sexy maid cafe.
>>8809496
were you the one that posted this?
>>8809358
I think a uniform like that would work out really well, since there are many chains in the US that do this
I'm sure that you could go around the "only set days for maid days" thing if you actually ran the cafe well, as most cafes run purely on novelty and forget that they actually have to run a good business.
I'm interested in discussing things with you and I'll shoot you an email when I have time.
>>8809104
Yes, but that's not the point being made.
>>8809531
Yep that was me. yeah my priority was offering the kind of cafe food I am used to here in Japan in America, the uniform thing was sort of just a bonus gimmick. Ill keep an eye on my inbox for ya.
>>8809537
the point being made is sexy is what sells over cute in the US, right?
the only successful maid cafe is a bar that opens its doors at 9pm with sexy maids. sad, isn't it?
>>8809510
Little Tokyo is pretty much dead. the only time it really has any good foot traffic or traffic in general is during festivals and when Anime Jungle has an event.
Other than that it's not worth it.
I tend to go at least once a month and always during festivals. and it's dead monday-friday
>>8808469
Nah they'd rip it to shit because "cultural appropriation"
>>8809438
>El Paso
Well I was wondering if I could find something to do out there if I visited family. :O
>>8809684
Depends on what your interests are really. And what time of year. I can give suggestions but sage for OT
>>8809423
I like this!
>>8808384
Loyalty cards? If you have weekly event nights people would usually come back once or twice a month, and having cute-yet-normie non-event nights would help attract customers.
>>8808395
>Most people in this group that I meet are so normal and ordinary that it hurts.
Yes, this. I don't know how they entertain themselves. When I ask friends of the family and coworkers if they watch TV or go online or play sports or go out shopping, the answer to every question is a noncommittal 'lol yeah a bit sometimes'. Please, get some passion for something in your life. It's sad and slightly creepy.
>>8808396
>Weird mashed white girl faces and some are really fat.
AKA every failed maid cafe ever. Also, work on your salt levels.
>for the love of god, don't hire uggos just because they're your friend
>mfw I have no friends
Finally things are coming up Milhouse.
>>8808363
The picture you linked is a maid cafe known as Moe Moe Kyun. It's quite popular & some of the girls actually became quite well known afterwards. There's an application and interview session when they want new members. They are very picky and the customers often visit to see cute girls. But even so, it's only limited to conventions only. Shows that it is hard to keep it in business for normal days despite its popularity, and girls are more willing to work if it's for a short period of time since they might have other commitments
>>8808958
I don`t know, when I was a kid we have a something like this with a cute and kind waitresses and great choice of icecream. It was always a treat
>>8809135
There are already so many game stores here in Portland that also offer food and usually alcohol. I used to go to Guardian all the time to play MTG and drink booze.
I would totally have a gaming area though - and like someone else said, maids can play games with customers and what not.
>>8809513
Are you dead serious about this anon? I can give you a throw away email as I'm interested and also in Portland. Unless you're actually in Maine, then I can't help.
I have a ton of food service experience and know how most cafes/restaurants run. There also might be people we could go into business with as the people I work for now are opening a 3rd location and might be interested in owning a gimmick cafe. The maid theme kind of fits the gimmick of where I work and we already have the pastry menu and we'd have access to a chef for a savory menu as well and also alcohol if we wanted.
>shitty overpriced food with sub-optimal service with a league of spoiled maids placed on a pedestal by white knights
Seriously every maid cafe's selling point is the weaboo fanservice and weaboos can only ingest a fair amount of shit until they have to regurgitate every crap they ever received.
There was sort of a maid/anime style cafe in San Francisco but it had to shut down. The food was very mediocre to the point of overpriced. But I doubt that was the reason they had to close down. In my opinion the location was very remote with no residential traffic. Basically a street with only residential housing and that one cafe on the street. No one walks by that street except if you live there. Location matters. If no one walks by your cafe then you can be sure you get no business.
i've been trying to figure out how to do a pop-up maid cafe in my city around the convention time, but for the life of me i can't figure out how to do it.
>>8809983
Does your cafe do vegan/gluten free? Have uniforms with eyelet lace?
>>8810041
We do gluten free but none of our food is vegan. It wouldn't be hard to incorporate this but I'm not sure why as most places do this already, we wouldn't find new customers this way. It's more like a diner than a cafe and no we don't already have maid uniforms or anything fancy. The fanciest part of this place is the food.
>>8808384
Good food and drinks and decent prices i think. Also perhaps not being too over the top and in your face, like i would go for the novelty but if the maids are always coming over to your table or its loud and distracting, then people arent going to come to have a coffee and catch up with friends. So maybe have certain days that are more character-ish.
Same for if its much more expensive or worse quality products than other local places - people will be willing to pay more once for the novelty, but not for regular coffee and cake etc.
>>8810052
Ok, thought you might work at Petunias or something.
>>8809513
Kind of sounds more like a themed cafe rather than a specifically 'maid' cafe. I don't know anything about Portland so this may or may not be applicable, but if you have historical stuff around (not necessarily Victorian) that draws in tourists, you'll probably get trade from them.
There are a few places near me that are successful 'historical' cafes - one is in a house from the 1500s and has been a cafe since the 1600s or 1800s i think. Its Victorian themed, waitresses in the long black and white maid dresses etc. But its an area that has a lot of tourists for historical landmarks and architecture (Roman, Victorian and Georgian). I imagine thats why they are still successful rather than only lasting until the novelty wears off.
>>8808871
Hm, maybe it could work for the novelty, but part of the draw of a maid or butler cafe is the experience. getting served food quickly from a truck on the side of the road by a girl in a maid uniform isn't quite the same idea as sitting down in a cute cafe and having a girl dote on you.
maybe it could work, maybe not, IMO the way I see it is that it would be pointless because like I said people go to maid cafes for the experience of being "served" and attended to, not just looking at a cute girl for 2 minutes and then leaving
>>8809302
>Near the local college
Keep in mind that college kids are on a budget, especially if it's gonna be nerds and weebs. Don't be afraid to have solid, reasonable prices especially if you're going to be having nice food. I think it would be a wise idea to offer nice discounts to people with student ID's in order to pull that demographic in.
Food is going to be really important so you don't want to just make it any old cafe - you may want to take a look at bistro's and style it similarly to those. It would also be a good idea to have a variety of interesting and creative drinks.
Also can't stress the importance of fresh food enough. No one is gonna want to pay for frozen or repackaged shit. It's okay to have some, but try not to have too much. You really want like 80-90% fresh stuff. If you're a cafe that really honestly shouldn't be too hard. Even though it's ~just a cafe~ it'd be wise to try and pay attention to tips on running restaurants. Changing your menu seasonally could be worth looking into as well.
>>8810028
I feel like one could work really well if it was set up in/nearby Japantown in SF. I mean if a BTSSB store can stay in business then a food service sure as hell should be able to.
There are weebs who go there practically every weekend and I have seen people in cosplay for no appearant reason during weekends. If money is an issue then only doing the maid thing on weekends should help somewhat. I don't want to set one up myself but darn if I don't wish someone else would.
>>8810168
That seems like a good location to me, too. It's full of weebs who keep coming back as well as tourists who come once for the novelty. It tends to be dead during the week, but it gets crowded on weekends and festival days. They could even do special events for festivals.
I bet rent is really high (never looked into it but it is SF), but the area certainly has the demographic to support it. They would have to market themselves to someone with a little more money than your average teenage or college student weeb, but I can see it possibly being sustainable. Certainly, it would be one of the better locations in the city.
If Crown and Crumpet ever has to go, that small cafe area on the first floor of New People seems like the perfect place for something like this.
>>8810087
Nah
>>8810117
In Portland we have food cart parks where people sit on benches and such. You could totally have maids doting on people and playing games with them.
It's easy to start with a food cart and then move to a brick and mortar.
>>8810154
>Also can't stress the importance of fresh food enough. No one is gonna want to pay for frozen or repackaged shit.
You know most places don't serve actual fresh food, right? Not unless it's a high end place, but then you'd need to hire seasoned line cooks and chefs and then we're no longer talking about a cafe.
Because we're not sexually detached from each other enough to find sitting in the mere presence of a cute girl feigning interest as worthy entertainment.
Also, the food is mediocre, over-priced, and then what, now I have to tip for coffee and a sandwhich? I just don't think Asian Maids are mainstream attractive enough, or sought after by any crowd, compared to the way sports fans go to Tilted Kilt on gameday.
>>8810177
NewPeople is not a bad spot, but I think the overall style of the maid cafe needs an overhaul to work in SanFran. DESU, I stayed in Japantown for a week and it was just completely dead except for Saturday.
I think an attractive, modern coffee shop that roasts Inoda or other Japanese brand coffee with light brunch food served by well-dressed, well-groomed staff not stuck to adhering to a uniform would pull in more normal crowds, lunch dates, and pop in for coffee. As suggested, maybe a maid or host event occasionally would be a neat promo, but it's just so hard to imagine mon-fri crowd throwing money at girls in maid costumes.
>>8810101
Where are you located, anon? I'm assuming you're in Europe?
>>8810293
I think they mean you have to make an effort. Like instead of serving cookies straight from a packet you bake premade frozen cookies on the day and give people something that tastes fresh. Also, if it's a cafe, making fresh food is really not as hard as making fresh food in a restaurant. Even if you have batches of food frozen and ready to reheat it's better than stocking up on supermarket TV dinners and soup packets. Most maid cafes seem to think squeezing into a uniform and going 'Master desu nyan~' is enough to keep them in business and ignore the food entirely, so it's really not hard to build up from the utterly shit foundations. Maid cafes will need much more work than normal cafes, but it can be done.
>>8810293
You dont need a lot of cooks to make desserts. You need like 2 people max for this kind of thing, and getting fresh bakery isnt expensive or high end.
Most cafes have people who bake the food.
>>8810461
Yeah so you're talking about doing prep. Most places do this but it's still good that comes to you in a box or in a bag that you then cook and give it to a customer "fresh".
My place of work used to have someone that would cut off chicken filets from a roasted chicken but that takes a lot of time so they just order chicken breast now and we flatten them and then fry them.
Real fresh food takes a lot of prep work and that is costly and time consuming and you're not gonna want that in a cafe.
You're right, it's gonna be a lot of work but all food industry stuff is fairly difficult until you gain the muscle memory for it. Even then it can be really overwhelming.
If you only had baked goods all your prep would be done in the morning and you'd make enough to sell all day until you're sold out, and most shops here close when they're all sold out of baked goods unless they serve something else as well.
You could also keep baking products but that depends on how much you can get and what your turnover is.
This is why I wanted to piggy back off the place I work for already. The themes go together and one of the owners already has a set pastry menu that sells really well and we've got guaranteed customer base. Both locations do about 2-3 grand just for their lunch rushes and we're opening a third location.
Even if the other anon wasn't serious I might just go and present the idea on my own but it'd be better if I had someone go in with me as a partner.
>>8810473
You don't even need cooks, you'd need bakers.
>>8808215
>its surprising to think that there arent plenty of cute girls who would love to work part-time at one.
Not surprising at all when you consider that they wouldn't be making any money at all working part time at a maid cafe in the US.
>>8808309
What is a Texas Korea town?
>>8808363
Good food is an integral part that's been missing in US maid cafes, for sure.
>>8808206
>Why don't they ever work in the USA, gulls?
because the USA dont have a kawaii complex like japan does. the USA dont care about cute shit
>>8810446
England, in the south west. Lots of old shit round these parts.
>>8808206
>Detroit
Because nobody wants to work at the maid-rape cafe.
Well okay maybe some people would, but probably not enough to sustain a business
I'd hire cute girls, absolutely no fat girls, have good food, have the girls actually waitress with just some cuteness thrown in.
It's still essentially a restaurant and those are pretty hard to keep open without a good location, good food, and a lot of word of mouth (which you get from having good food). The maid thing wouldn't be enough to get a regular stream of customers in since you need to general public to go as well. So the food and good service is really key.
>>8808469
The SJWs hate anything having to do with females being attractive, sexy or cute. They tend to dislike anime and Japan in general do to its general not-caring attitude in regards to political correctness and bowing down to censorship. Even though anime tends to have lots more competent and interesting females they hate them anyways because "hurrrr they're attractive muh objectification!"
>>8813648
>hire cute girls, absolutely no fat girls
So this^ anon makes me wonder. Is cute subjective? How does one go about hiring without getting sued on discrimination?
According to this article about Hooters:
http://www.businessinsider.com/how-can-hooters-hire-only-women-2015-9
>Title VII of the Civil Rights Act lets companies discriminate on the basis of "religion, sex, or national origin in those instances where religion, sex, or national origin is a bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to the normal operation of the particular business or enterprise."
Does "cute" fall under this?
>>8813842
you have to get a special license that explains why you're running your establishment that way pretty much. hooters has one and a coffee place in NE has one too. it basically just explains that the establishment is not 100% inclusive of the public work pool. strip clubs have them too. they're not hard to get.
>>8813842
Didn't some salty cunt file suit against Hooters for not getting hired/getting fired for not being hot enough?
>>8813844
Huh, good to know. Sounds embarrassing to try to explain though.
>Hi yea, we are trying to sell a sort of fantasy escapist world with cute girls working as maids, b-but it's not a fetish thing!
>>8813845
Wouldn't doubt it.
>>8808471
Because after 30 people are usually occupied by other shit, anon.
>>8813862
They do it at Disneyland for both men and women. There are height requirements and even size requirements that are specific to each role.
They're not going to hire a fat tumblrina for a princess because they're trying for a certain aesthetic.
They're not going to hire a manlet to play gaston either.
>>8808206
Where the weebs congregate the rent is probably too high for a niche thing like that. The first places that come to mind that have the necessary weeb density are SF, LA, Seattle and NYC and those are basically four of the most expensive land markets in the country.
Then consider that weebs have a notorious reputation for being cheap, short on cash, and poor tippers. To say nothing of the dudes being kinda creepy.
And finally the profit margin on a restaurant is pretty thin. I really doubt the maids are gonna get paid what they think they deserve (who does?) but in this scenario there's also a limited pool of employees. This will invariably spark tension.
This is just stuff off the top of my head but I've worked in small family restaurants to cooking at some fucking fancy venues.
>>8810914
>Texas Korea town
Not that anon buy I'm assuming it's a very Korean-centric location in Texas somewhere. We have a ton here in the DFW area, I can see a maid cafe doing well there.
>>8813862
Doesn't matter to business bureau. They just want you to make money.
>>8813842
Can't you hire them as models? That's how Abercrombie and Fitch did it for years.
>>8814954
There's a Chinatown in Houston (more Chinese/Vietnamese/Japanese influences than Korean in this part of Texas) too where rent is relatively cheap (in comparison to other large cities) and there's a high level of nerd culture in the area too. It might do well here if someone manages to work past the difficulties, especially if the food is good. A customer base can easily be built too with regulars and possibly tourists, and there's a good amount of people with money here too. Just wanted to add on, though there's also a high level of competition food wise. If there's a novelty of themed foods tho, it could easily stand out besides from using maids.
>>8814912
Most restaurants only make money back on alcohol sales while the food's there to get people through the door. Maybe a maid cafe could make a go of it if it opened as a bar at night. Could offer karaoke.
>>8814977
There's a huge pocket of Korean businesses off the I-10, west side. Not so much in Chinatown itself, though.
>>8814987
Which then runs into the stonewall that in America that 'cute' is associated with 'kiddy', and that pretty much torpedoes it for alcohol.
Still hoping the other portland anon is here because I'm thinking about getting out of the food industry finally but I still want to do the maid cafe thing and the place I work for would be the only way to get into that and actually opening a place up. Because now is when I have the connections, and as soon as I quit, they go away.
so still wondering if >>8809135
is serious
>>8815041
Hey, just want to let you know I'm a filthy kommiefornian but I do love Portland (Eugene a bit more if I'm honest) for the coffee, Blue Star donuts, and hiking... I could sperg about food for hours.
I'd be more than happy to hit up a maid cafe on my (usually) 2 trips a year. Not that my patronage would make or break such a venture, but I would totally do it.
>>8814912
There was a maid cafe in New York that absolutely flopped and they couldn't afford rent.
I live in an itty bitty touristic town and they have pic related. My fantasy has always been to show up one day dressed in classic and outshine the actual workers. The bussers dress cute though, in like, long bloomer-like pants, peasant shirts and aprons and they look like caring aunties.
>>8815084
Is that a... steampunk theme restaurant?
>>8815087
Not steampunk but that is what it looks like. The guys dress in dandy and the girls wear either really classy little black dresses or stuff like what the girl in the picture is wearing.
>>8815050
Good to hear!! If I just piggy backed off someone else's business tho, I'm not really worried about the place flunking. They've already got customers. Getting their female employees to wear cute maid dresses wouldn't be hard, either.
Our coffee is pretty meh tier, unfortunately. I like it but it's sour as fuck.
Also I like Eugene as well! Too bad a maid cafe wouldn't go over well there.. it might scare the hippies.
>>8815126
>not liking high-acid coffee
Its like you don't even know what good coffee is.
>>8813983
>>8813842
I wonder if Disney can get away with it easily because they have characters that they are specifically trying to recreate. If so maybe you could do that, just come up with and sketch out some 'characters' that are the backbone of your idea or something then use that to justify why you picked cute people. No clue if thats how it works though
>>8815322
Everyone where I work hates it. And my boss is from Seattle and watched starbucks explode. He's extremely picky about coffee and says it's sour but he digs it.
I'll drink anything.
real talk: why are cafe butlers unilaterally hideous
>>8816865
from what i've seen irl, sadly your pic shows less hideous butlers.
ones at my local cons are ugly neckbearded men who want female attention, or fat tumblrinas who want to roleplay as their yaoi self insert
>>8816865
Yikes, I don't know any girl who would want to go to a cafe with those kinds of butlers..
>>8816865
to be fair, girls have a lot more crap they can use to enhance their looks/body and most of us know how to properly apply makeup and use shape wear if needed. guys; not so much.
>>8816884
... yeah most of those people in the picture are women. That's why I have yet to go to that cafe, esp after they posted that picture, I'm not super interested.
>>8816865
purely speculative based on the situation with my exes, but guys tend to have a lower baseline of caretaking regimen. add the weeb modifier and you've a trainwreck.
there used to be days when i was in college where i'd roll out of bed, brush, splash water on my face, wet down my hair, quick application of deodorant and wouldn't have a problem all day. even on a bad/rushed day, my ex's routine was thrice the length.
so when you take into account the already basic standards for men, and add the 'weeaboo factor' where they are basically incapable of self-awareness/evaluation, you generally get a fucking disaster in the making. skin care, hair care, hygiene, AND dressing and presenting well is beyond the ken of the average weeb dude.
god help it if they're expected to conform to a skinnier bodyshape as well.
>>8808206
I don't think something like this would ever fly in the States, honestly.
What I COULD see being successful here is a themed bakery/cafe, where the staff is required to wear a cute uniform that isn't too costume-y.
If you're familiar, in the Chicago area there is a Japanese market called Mitsuwa - inside is a super cute bakery called Pastry House Hippo. Everyone wears a cute little bandana, and the inside is very 'warmly' decorated with wood details, etc. Very Miyazaki-like. And, the baked goods are very good. This is the kind of thing I can see being very successful here - a cute, quirky place to get bread, pastries, a light lunch, etc. Not some creepy ass maid cafe.
>>8813842
Cute IS a bona fide occupational qualification for a maid cafe. That's why TV stations can require their female anchors to look a certain way. They back it up with contracts and so it's very easy to ensure you have girls that meet standards
>>8817143
Using Miyazaki as reference more than weeby maid cafes would go across sooo much better in the states, imo. You could still be cute and japanese inspired but it would be more wholesome and kid-friendly. Not that there's anything wrong with not being wholesome and kid-friendly, but I personally would never go to a maid cafe because the whole concept - from a western perspective - makes me feel like a creep.
>>8817175
I agree. I'm someone who's been pretty deep into anime, video games, jfash, etc for the better part of my adult life and I still would not set foot in a maid cafe. I would bet that 90% or more of Americans would not be caught dead inside of one.
>>8817175
This. Japan prefers women who are cute and childlike. Having childlike looking women wearing maid uniforms won't work in America. Americans prefer a sexy mature look like hooters, childlike looking women in maid dresses would creep them out.
>>8816865
Is this cafe V? Cause if it is then dear jesus cause a few of my lolita friends rave about their "hot and sexy butlers" a lot. I swear none of them are males, hell I am sure that dog isn't even a boy!
Why can't we have good looking males in bulter cafes that are actually males or really good passing females atleast.
>>8816865
Because actual cute guys don't want to do this stuff.
Downplay the maid cafe aspect, begin with a solid cafe concept that happens to use cute uniforms.
Rather than appeal to the otaku population, appeal to the male population that wants to be served by pretty girls.
To make a restaurant work the financials need to be solid. There are two choices with location: you can look for a main street space with good frontage and solid foot traffic or an off the track destination cafe.
A main street shop gives you volume and marketing. The problem is that you will be paying significantly higher rent particularly since you are competing with retail establishments and you will need significantly more back of house space for storage and the kitchen.
A destination stop will have lower rent but you need to establish a client base yourself. That means that the money you save on rent you may need to spend on marketing and promotion. For a niche market like a maid cafe a destination stop may be better.
Your back of house need to be managed carefully. You need to design a menu that fits your clientele, fits the capabilities of what your workers can make or what you can source, and you can price competitively. Food cost at a restaurant should be about 28%-32% of menu price, if you can't get the cost low enough you may need to reconsider your suppliers, adjust your menu or rethink your market segment.
Food is important but service is more important. A restaurant with incredible food but indifferent service will lose to a restaurant with good food and incredible service. What this means is your staff needs to be well trained and experienced. The problem is that food service is not an easy field, younger workers aren't going to be as experienced and you'll have a lot of turnover. Essentially I would treat it like a theater production because what you really need are cast members, not just food workers. What you need to ask yourself is if your location has this sort of labor pool to draw on.
>>8813842
You can hire all the only white, skinny, rich, whatever niche girls if you want and nobody can say discrimination unless you specifically tell them "we're not hiring you because of your race/gender/age," which is fucking stupid to say anyway. Otherwise you just say they weren't hired because the other girls had better qualifications and experience even if it's not true.
Alright gulls
>Start butler cafe with mostly cute and sexy butlers
>Actually hire guys and not unattractive girls like >>8816865, maybe hire 1 crossdressing girl for diversity as long as she's actually cute
>Still hire a few maids but mostly men
>Market to weaboos with the maids and niponophile atmosphere while simultaneously marketing to sjw's/feminist fantasies who want attractive men catering to them
Profit?
>>8808396
>cries about rasicm
> ''white people are so ugly and pasty desu''
This is my #1 problem with tumblrtards
>>8809423
The closest I can think of is this place -
http://www.akibamaid.net/2010/04/03/cure-maid-cafe/
>>8819503
Clearly you took offense
The concept isn't universally appealing enough to be sustainable, and the target demographic probably doesn't have the income to go regularly. It's a novelty, like many others have said upthread. While normies might go once, the ones who would likely be your repeat customers probably don't have the disposable income to return at a good enough rate. Even if they did, the population is so sparse there's no way you'd attract enough to stay afloat. That's why the pop-up/convention maid cafe model works best.
Aside from that, there's making sure to hire the right people, have proper business people running it (not just weebs who think it's cool), and having food that's decent.
Basically the target demographic for this kind of a business just can't support it on a regular basis. Sticking to pop-up shops that tour conventions would be a better idea.
>>8815014
If Canada can make a gamer bar with sugary cocktails popular with geeks I dont why it couldnt fail. Needs those recipes from Sunnrise's cafe to work though
>>8808396
Going to start your own maid cafe, are you anon? With blackjack? And hookers?
I'd love to try one.
Feel sorry for you guys, we have decent maid cafes in Europe.
>>8816865
>maid cafes
>usually girls from cute to no
>butler cafe
>all fakeboi
But why.
>>8820389
For real, butlers are for the ladies, who the fuck wants a bunch of tumblr tier fake boys?
>>8819526
How much does touring conventions with a booth cost? And is it cheaper than just running a brick and mortar?
>>8808206
They had one in Balboa park iirc....its just cringe
Does anyone here work at a maid cafe or have their own maid cafe? Like at conventions and stuff?
If so, what's the most difficult thing you've had to deal with?
>>8819495
Make them dance and maybe strip a little and I'd pay real money.
>>8820408
I'd say I'm cute-ish but even I wouldn't do it, I just don't think I'd be attractive enough to really be good at it. Maybe if I worked out for awhile and shaved on a normal basis but it's fucking weird for me to think of doing something like that without understanding you should be there.
It's fucking disrespectful to yourself.
There's a maid cafe opening up in Seattle and I'm curious to see how well they do.
>>8820889
they have a facebook, and, well.
>>8820900
>>8820889
dropped pic fug
>>8820889
Thats a hideous fucking animation style to use for a maid cafe. I can only hope the maids are cuter in 3D which is pretty sad.
>>8820905
SWEET. FRILLY. GODS.
>tsundere
more like...um, I had something for this...
fattyfatmonster-dere
>>8820910
granted, its a hideously unflattering photo. But quickly browsing through their facebook, they had maybe one cute maid, two at a push. I don't understand how people miss the crucial part of a maid cafe being the appeal of the girls. cute uniforms do nothing if they're stretched over the top of an overweight goblin.
They've got some tie ins with ~ gamers & feminism ~ which probably explains the terrible mascot they've designed.
>>8820905
Jesus CHRIST
>>8820928
Because in Murica you can't tell someone that they're too ugly/fat for a job even if they are. God forbid you hurt someone's feefees.
>>8820905
>moving to Seattle in fall for college
>excited to see maid cafe, they hold special place in my heart
>sister was part of early maid cosplay cafe, never ended up leaving Japan like mom and I, sent me tons of cute Polaroids of her and the other girls
>she died of cancer several years ago
>anyway, excited for maid cafe in Seattle
>see these beasts
Just why...Really, it's do disgraceful, are they not conscious? They should think of customer...
>>8820947
Sorry to hear about your sister, sounds like she had a fun life!
This beast must be related or friends with the owner. As nasty as she is, she could at least attempt to have better posture and make-up/hair.
>>8820950
She was very bright and sweet.
Yes, I don't understand the way she slouches and looks like she's just lumbering there. Is this supposed to be cute? Are any of the other maids better?
>>8820905
that's a man, baby
>>8820956
I would have preferred a so-so trap to whatever this thing is, male or female.
>>8820950
THE BEAST IS THE FUCKING OWNER AND CHEF LORD HAVE MERCY
>>8820908
That's definitely a "my friend is an artist" job they did
>>8820961
Aside from the shitty plates, the food looks ok
>>8820970
Yeah the food actually looks good, in concept anyway not sure about the actual execution.
I do have a few concerns about the types of Japanese influence in some areas, and lacking in others.
Matcha and azuki is pretty divisive, and the high-end western dishes seem almost out of place and don't really feel Japanese-influenced enough. Thats a small gripe though, the chef and owner needs to just not dress as a maid and stick to the kitchen.
>>8820905
>>8820970
Nope.
>>8820973
Oh ew. Sorry but no, I didn't realize people wanted the Japanese food elements too.
I just like the maids part. Japanese food should be done by Japanese people.
>>8820983
Why does that not look tasty?
Are you some /ck/ chipotle slob?
>>8820983
Ick. I take that back.
>>8820988
>Japanese food should be done by Japanese people.
Well I agree in general, but what I mean is Japanese-style cafe food which is already...western. Japan has improved the hell out of pretty much anything you can eat in an American cafe, its a drastic improvement.
Hamburg steak or soft-cooked omurice is a good example. What I don't think is a good idea is harsh matcha and "beany" azuki desserts which is just gonna turn off western pallets. I am a complete weeb and have lived in Japan for over 6 months and I only sort-of tolerate those flavors in desserts.
They should stick to cute and tall parfaits, which ironically is easy to do with nothing but western ingredients.
>>8820983
That looks delicious when you grow up and eat food that's not ramen and lunchables you'll understand
>>8820961
I don't really trust skinny chefs, so that's actually a recommendation.
>>8820988
Guess what. Most of your sushi bars in the states are run by Thai/Vietnamese/something other than Japanese.
>>8820541
I worked in one
>>8820932
its costuming/acting so they can.
>>8820991
Pretty sure it's because the omelette is drowning in ketchup. At least that's why it looks unappetizing to me
>>8820541
>>8821470
This may seem stupid but how picky in generally are cafes in hiring people? It is paid and not just volunteers right? It seems like it would be really fun but I don't have any experience working in a restaurant. I only have a bunch of unrelated volunteer hours and experience from a job I have now that is basically a mix of getting shit done and customer service. I am good talking to people and am average in looks (probably above average in terms of con goers tbqh).
>>8821558
If they're legit or trying to be, very. If they're shit and just doing it with their 2 friends to be cute, then maybe not.
There's actually a maid cafe project that seems like it might work out. It's Cottontails LV. But that's only because it has a sexy concept., the name explains it, they're bunny girls with some butlers in Las Vegas. I think it might work, but they're con only for now.
>>8821470
What was it like?
>>8821107
I'm a line cook. It looks fine.
>>8821438
I'm aware of this. But if I walk into a place like mio sushi and white people are the chefs?
Guess what I'm doing.
Walking the fuck out
>>8820996
I just think that if you're gonna open one here, make it a western cafe. Do pastries and stay away from poorly executed asian foods unless you can find Asians to hire for that
>>8821937
do you seriously think chinks can make better sushi just cause MUH ASIAN, how much of a dumb racist can you be?
Can people post convention maid cafes that they really like or that they've visited? I want to see more maid cafes and want to like more pages. There's only one really good one in my state
>Why don't they ever work in the USA
I think they'd need attractive employees for it to work but people would probably call it sexist or unfair to hire waitresses/waiters solely off their looks
Which is kind of silly given all the breastaurants around
>>8809423
This seems like a good idea, I'd never go to a normal maid cafe but I love the sound of thua. Some normal tearooms have cute uniforms anyway.
>>8809445
Don't do schoolgirl days, minefield of being accused of sexualisation of children.
>>8815084
>tfw all I think when I see that is "ita!"
>>8817184
Same here, I feel like a lot of people in this thread don't realise how much the maid shit (which comes across as more fetishy and weird than just a frilly waitress) creeps people out.
>>8820961
That food looks better than the frozen omelette and ketchup I was expecting.
>>8822179
I don't think it'd be weird at all in the UK half of the high end waiters already feel more like your personal butlers.
>>8822192
I'm in the UK too, high-end restaurants and maid cafes definitely do not have the same vibe.
>>8822027
Christ. Yes. That actually is the case. They do things over there that we don't. Sushi isn't made like it is in the states.
Be honest, you just wanted to feel superior in an argument by calling someone out on their racism, because God knows you're the person in charge of what's racist and what isn't.
>>8808384
Just a decent cafe at least.
Basically make a cafe/restaurant/whatever, and then have the maid part on top of it.
>>8822174
Oh I'm aware of that, you missed the part where I dissed the servers and praised the bussers.
>>8822536
This. Go the simple route.
I'm surprised no one in the this thread talked about the pop up cafes in NYC held by coscafenyc. So far, they've sold out tickets for all the events they've held. I've actually been a part of one of the cafes and it was really fun; I think with the more cafes/events they organize, the better these events will become. It makes me pretty excited to see what will be next.
Link to coscafe: http://coscafenyc.tumblr.com/
What are you gull's thoughts on this cafe? Local to my area and doesn't look too weeb. Worth paying to go?
>>8822845
would it kill their butlers to smile? jesus christ. not very charming. Some of the maids are cute though.
>>8822845
how much does it cost to go, if you know the price? I say if its over $25, nah.
>>8822852
Second to the last on the right has a freaking winning smile though.
>>8822845
the bias towards asians are strong with this one. i'd say only 6/12 out of girls and 4/11 out of boys is attractive.
>>8822852
>>8822894
Lol that one is the cutest, I think
>>8822867
Changes every year. I'm pretty sure it's less than $25, but you only get like 15 minutes of one-on-one time and a snack and that's it.
>>8822927
heard the head of the con is picky with faces/bodies. Atleast there aren't any whales in this cafe, lol They all look decently put together, although some could use better wigs. I'd agree with your ratio.
what looks better? Wigs or no wigs?
>>8822845
The only cute people in this pic are the butler at the bottom next to the pink girl and the maid with the shiny wig and flower at the back. But this is one of the least ugly cafe's I've seen.
There's a few major factors that I think affect this.
One is that Japan has a long tradition of eating/drinking establishments where staff girls interacting with customer guys is the big draw, from hostess bars to the infamous nopan kissa of the 80s and such. You might even be able to trace it back to geisha establishments, but that's kind of a stretch.
Another big factor is customer density and access. Maid cafes are spread all over Japan now, but that took a few decades. They started in Akihabara, a place where you have as many otaku in one place at any given time as you do at a large convention in the US. It's hard to understand if you've never been there, but there's so much of a potential customer base packed into that area all the time that it makes it easy to attract them to a maid cafe. In the US, you don't really have anything like that, except at a convention.
By the way, the girls at maid cafes aren't really anything to write home about. I've been to several famous ones, and maybe only 10-20% of their maids would be attractive outside the costumes. What they are, however, is very socially skilled and good at interacting with customers, which isn't something that can be said of the kind of people that come to work at maid cafes in the US.
>>8824011
No wigs definitely. Tacky, shiny, over used wigs look too crappy.
![11326120_1460832454226605_272126283_n[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/FW6BsbD.jpg "11326120_1460832454226605_272126283_n[1].jpg")
>>8825845
I've been there a few times. Even though most of the maids didn't look so good there were a few cute ones and everyone was really nice. Not really much to say about it honestly.
>>8822027
mate have you ever eaten chinese food made by a white person? it's fucking gross. different cultures have different cooking styles and unless you're a professional, they don't tend to cross over well.
>>8824146
On location issues, I think the only place that would work is a commercial space with a lot of geek media outlets, essentially you would want a place that has an arcade, comic book store, card shop and the works within walking distance of everything. Unfortunately downtown is pretty much synonymous with soulless corporate outlets with rich people who has a strict NIMBY for any geeks. These days it's franchise restaurants/bars that isn't a fast food place, boutiques that costs you an arm and leg to buy a pair of pants and the death of arcades mean any hope of having a maid cafe that would do well. It has to be that perfect storm.
That's it, part of the charm with a maid cafe/hostess club is letting customers have a place where they can freely socialize with fewer fears of faux pas, and by that I mean having security on your ass when you do something stupid enough.
We still have Anna Millers here in Hawaii, I've been there twice over the years. It's just a regular restaurant that has "cute" uniforms.
>>8825897
But we are talking about professionals here. I doubt your local sushi place is going to hire an amature. So you're claiming that just because someone is white they can't make sushi? Even pros?
Racist dumbfuck.
>No maid cafes in downtown los angeles
this surprised me actually
>>8820905
oh my god, just imagine if youd seen pictures of japanese cafes with cute maids and then that thing lumbered up to your table. every time i look at the picture i cant stop laughing
>>8809850
top kek
>>8827005
There was one out in Culver City for a while. It went out of business.
