Cheba Madness

Chéba Madness

By: John Thompson and Logan Storm

            The small and surprisingly successful restaurant chain Chéba Hut is known for its warm, welcoming atmosphere and for making quality toasted sub sandwiches. Personally, I love Chéba Hut. I have never had a better toasted sub in my life, but I'm trying my best to not let that get the best of me. Chéba Hut also has an effective website that reflects the laid-back image of the restaurant itself. It is colorful, helpful, and easy to use. A trained monkey would have no problem navigating the site. There is even a section for those interested in owning a Chéba Hut, not many restaurants have that feature on their websites. Chéba Hut does have a slight downfall though. Anyone with any street smarts will know that chéba is Latino slang for marijuana. The names of their menu items don't help the restaurant's image very much either, but that doesn't stop the website from being concise and informative. Chéba Hut is a restaurant with a bold image, founded on quality subs and unrivaled customer service; with a superior website to back it.

Chéba Hut's website is one of the easiest to operate among those that I have ever had the pleasure of visiting. I firmly believe that a kindergartener and elderly person could navigate the site just as well as anyone with years of computer experience. It's as easy to navigate as it is to flip through the pages of a magazine. Everything that you could possibly want to know about Chéba Hut can be found in categories that line the very top of the web page. You won't be lost in a bunch of links either, everything is straight to the point. There isn’t much more that can be said about the layout other than it is a very simple and effective source of information about the company.         

The appearance of the Chéba Hut website is one that contains an effective color scheme. It mainly uses a subtle, yet very eye catching shade of green. This makes the site attractive to the eye while not being too loud and annoying. Green is an interesting choice of color as well, since it is very welcoming and resembles mostly good things. This gives the website an easy-going vibe. The background art of the website also adds uniqueness to its image. With text delivered in an acceptably sized and easily read font, it is done so in an underwhelming manner; because Chéba Hut made sure that all the lazy readers out there won't have to worry about skimming through “fluff”. The best feature of appearance though is the distinct, but peaceful beach hut and palm tree logo. It gives a more direct theme to the restaurant. All these factors make the display of the website of good quality and gives it a unique browsing experience.

Part of the website is also dedicated to those looking to invest or buy into the franchise. The site offers an array of information on this subject, from startup costs to corporate information. There is also a franchise application that can be filled out and submitted online as well as a detailed FAQ page on how to get started. Most investors won’t have to worry about doing much research since the website provides about as much information as one would require.

The “feel” of the Chéba Hut web-site is one that is laid back and easy going. It is not just a simple theme, but a quality one as well. One question that may be aroused by this, does the site reflect the sandwich shop? It absolutely does. From the moment a person stops browsing the web site to actually setting foot into the shop; they are overcome with the relaxed environment of a neighborhood joint. Don’t let the friendly, mellowed out employees fool you either. They take the same care and love that they show to their loyal customer base and put the same treatment into each and every one of the sandwiches they make. This is not a quality only enjoyed by customers, but one that people who browse the website can appreciate as well.

Great service is a definite must for most customers of any atmosphere. It is something that Chéba Hut offers not only in person, but online as well. This is a trait that can be found in the hasty responses from the feedback you submit to them under the feedback section of the site. Whether good or bad, a response will normally be given the same day that feedback was received. One prime example of this comes from their live facebook feed. I read a comment from a customer named Crystal, whom had an unpleasant experience with her sister at one of the restaurants. Chéba Hut not only responded with care, but with genuine concern. Hoping to fix the problem at this location while also giving Crystal enough piece of mind to allow the restaurant one more shot at giving her the great dining experience that she deserves.

As if great customer service wasn’t enough, the site even offers a look at how the company was started including bio’s on each member of the management team. For most people, reading the background would be a selling point, because the original goal was to provide higher quality food to a community where it was lacking. The founder, Scott Jennings, also makes it one of his company’s top priorities to provide a unique customer-employee relationship; as told by Scott himself, “For us, it’s all about the interaction, not the transaction.” The site contains many direct quotes like this from its founder Scott. More information on Scott and his management team is found under the sites bio section, where you can learn each members back story as well as their favorite Chéba Hut sandwich and munchie.

For the people who care about “sellouts” or “going mainstream”, I can assure you, as popular as it is; Chéba Hut is neither of these. Judging by the website, it is quite obvious they don’t sell out, as you won’t find one advertisement anywhere on there.  The closest thing they do that could be considered as one of these acts, is by featuring their reasonably priced clothing under the Chéba Gear tab; which can be purchased to show support for the small restaurant chain.

Like I said earlier, chéba is Latino street slang for marijuana. Now this is probably one of Chéba Hut's only downfalls; Marijuana is illegal at the federal level and only legal in two of the states. This hurts Chéba Hut's mass marketing capability severely. The only audiences that they can successfully target are mainly potheads and college students. To add to the sheer obviousness of marijuana influence, the names of many of their menu items are very common stoner terms. Slang like kush, chronic, Schwag, and dank are used as names for some of their toasted subs. It doesn't stop there. The sub sizes also come in, from smallest to largest, Nug, Pinner, and Blunt. Surely when they first opened Chéba Hut they knew exactly what they were getting their selves into and exactly who was going to be eating at their restaurant. I'm positive that they realize how many people would go to eat at Chéba Huts if they weren't so influenced by marijuana, but this is how the founder intended it. They're doing a successful enough job at marketing towards college students that they remain a popular influence among the younger demographic.         

One key feature that the website lacks, that could also have a dramatic impact on sales, is that they fail to inform internet users of their delivery service. Many companies have proven successful by making note of their delivery service; companies like Pizza Hut, Dominoes and Jimmy Johns. Some even going as far as to allowing you to place and track your order right from the computer. This lack of notification could be turned around into a useful tool for a franchise that thrives on great customer service such as Chéba Hut does.

Chéba Hut is proving to traditional American society that it can be a quality and profitable restaurant chain despite having a lucrative theme. There are now fifteen Chéba Hut locations, mainly in the southwest, and more are on the way. As the chain's territory increases, more and more people will visit the website to find out about Chéba Hut. Restaurant goers won't think twice about how easy the website is to use, if they even think about it at all. People who have never been to or even heard of Chéba Hut will be drawn to the appetizing menu and the good vibes that radiate from the restaurants website. The web design reflects the bold statement that the founder Scott Jennings is trying to make as well as the quality of food and satisfactory customer service the restaurant provides to its consumers.