GreenLeaf?

[Bread Man]

What's happened to GreenLeaf? Been past there two nights running, closed and all in darkness. Guess the surcharges got to much for everyone, even though the food was okay.......

[laphanphon]

the little lady noticed the same about 5:30 pm last night, no activity, dark. i liked the place.

[hey you]

went past maybe 2 weeks ago at 1900/ 1930hr and no one in there ,just the staff gazing out the window.

[thalenoi]

well they stopped serving food at lunch time some months ago, now customers don't stop by any more.
som nam na

[laphanphon]

the other day i noticed furnishings being loaded up on a truck, didn't look good, unless landlord problems.

[WBU ALUM]

Passed by one night last week.

No one in there except a staff member or two.

[Zidane]

We went in there on Saturday 13th June,at night, and it was quite busy.One of the waitresses said from Monday 15th June they were going to start opening up again at 11am but it looks as though this statement has proved to be a little bit wide of the mark !

[aeaub]

What happen to Greenleaf ? here's the answer from me, Mink the owner.

First,it was my fault for misunderstanding many things about Udon . I saw many big houses, roads full of fancy cars. I know many wealthy people and I saw a city full of farangs. So I decided to open up another branch here
on an empty lot in the heart of town where the rent is sky high,It was quiet and peaceful with a view of green grass field and white train station building back then. I'm an interior designer and my husband is an architect
so we designed and built up this beautiful and comfy place the way we like no matter how much the cost was.
The food we offered here is the same menu, same quality and same price as Khon Kaen which we never heard anyone there complain about price or food so we think it should be the same in Udon

Things went quite well for us with huge number of tourists who's happy with what we offered as main customer and some locals as minor until Suvarnabhumi Airport was closed by the yellow mob, then the rise of red mob right here in Udon. Tourists were gone and never come back till now.

Things get worse when the market opposite us opened up and destroyed all our peace and quiet atmosphere.
we tried so hard to maintain it by talking to the market manager everyday but seems like they didn't care or show any responsibility about the lousy loud music that had make our glass wall shaking every evening, silly concert every weekend and cracy traffic jam in front of us were still there so our customer have to dine in bad mood cause by brain numbing music.
This situation continue for several months yet we decided to hang on, but with lower number of customer we had to cut cost by reduced staff member, cut off lunch buffet which made big expense but made no benefit.These conditions might cause the problem some of you had experienced with, we're deeply apologize for that.

The last straw fallen on our back is the economic recession. The sign that told us ' it's time to go and do something else that worth the effort ' was the sight of a well-dress local family order the cheapest dish and one glass of water only for each children, the mother said "Who want more water must wait until we go home"
or a couple who arrived in Mercedes-Benze ordered just one som-tum,two boiled eggs and two rice.

We are moving back to Khon Kaen where we are doing a renovation with furnitures you saw loaded in a truck 3-4 days ago.
Greenleaf KK. is too packed so we have to expand the sitting area. We also plan to open another branch in Central
department store next year by their invitation. If anyone who like us here want to pay a visit please go to KK Airport road you'll find big white modern house with a pool in the green grass field on the left side of the road. We welcome you all and hope to see you dearest customer soon.
Thank you-Mink

[Prenders88]

"Things get worse when the market opposite us opened up and destroyed all our peace and quiet atmosphere.
we tried so hard to maintain it by talking to the market manager everyday but seems like they didn't care or show any responsibility about the lousy loud music that had make our glass wall shaking every evening, silly concert every weekend and cracy traffic jam in front of us were still there so our customer have to dine in bad mood cause by brain numbing music.
This situation continue for several months yet we decided to hang on, but with lower number of customer we had to cut cost by reduced staff member, cut off lunch buffet which made big expense but made no benefit.These conditions might cause the problem some of you had experienced with, we're deeply apologize for that.

The last straw fallen on our back is the economic recession. The sign that told us ' it's time to go and do something else that worth the effort ' was the sight of a well-dress local family order the cheapest dish and one glass of water only for each children, the mother said "Who want more water must wait until we go home"
or a couple who arrived in Mercedes-Benze ordered just one som-tum,two boiled eggs and two rice."

Mink sums the situation very well echoed all over Udon. People are worried about their jobs.
Money is tight, and the farang community who live have been hit very hard especially the British who have seen the pound tank against the baht to the tune of 25%. Visits to the town have been cut down, and instead of eating out are eating at home.
Bars that cater to farangs that used to be packed at weekends are either empty or have a handful of customers.
Mink I hope you have more luck in KK.

[wazza]

When i lived in KK a few years ago, the Greenleaf was an exceptional place to have a meal and relax, great location.

Can understand the location in Udon is no longer working for them, the UD Centre moved in and created a traffic hazzard, noise and light polution,.

Good luck Mink, your KK venture is something to be proud of.

2nd reply, is this tightening of belts also a reason why Chern Chim is succeeding , as the home cooking option is probably 1/3 cheaper than a meal out etc.... ( Thai foods excempt )

[laphanphon]

Mink, sad to see you go. enjoyed all my meals there, buffet was always a nice change from normal fare about town. agree the traffic is so bad now, i even bought a motorbike for daytime driving to lunch and school runs. but no longer even do that, traffic and the constant construction just adds to the pollution, so may take me a bit longer, and parking more of a hassle, but my lungs are better for it.

also have stopped completely, almost, from visiting the downtown area, for the same reason you talk of. visit only 3 restaurants on a weekly/monthly schedule. have almost a 1.5 yr lease, than anything is up for suggestions.

continued luck and good fortune in KK, will have to stop in one of these days, when needing a munch in the area. thanks for coming to udon, if only for a short time, nice change for the taste buds from the regular udon fare.

[WBU ALUM]

Always enjoyed the food and atmosphere, Mink, and the service was always very good.

Sorry to see you go.

[BobHelm]

Agree totally LA.
Pity economics got the better of GreenLeaf it was a good place to go for a special night out - now really only leaves Good Everythings in Udon.
I ate there & enjoyed the quality & thought that had gone into both the food & the surroundings. Sadly, being English, the baht/GBP rate meant it had to be a VERY special occasion to enable me to justify it..
I am glad that you will still offer the service not that far from Udon & nice excuse to spend a real 'day out' for that special occasion..

[Zidane]

Sorry to hear the news Mink.Me and my wife always enjoyed coming to your restaurant.The food was always excellent and the staff courteous and attentive.
Glad to hear your branch in Khon Kaen is still doing well.When we spend a weekend there we will come and look you up.

[Bread Man]

Very sad to read this, one of the only restaurants where the food tasted very English! We wish you the best of luck for the future and look forward to seeing you in KK.

[BKKSTAN]

Mink,I would like to say that I very much appreciate and respect your post !I never had the opportunity to be your customer in the past as I just don't spend enough time in Udon to get around to all the recommended venues,but because of your respectful post,I will make your KK resturant a must when passing through.

Sorry for the negative experience in Udon,but there is no doubt in my mind that the lessons learned will be taken to heart and add to the possibilities of your future success! =D> =D>

[trubrit]

The lesson to be learnt here. These people were not newbies to the job. Apparently running a very successful branch elsewhere.Yet every day we see new green horns putting their life savings into a venture they have absolutely no experience of, and expect to get rich. In a strange country too.Its mind boggling.
Good luck to you Mink. A successful business person is one who knows when to cut their losses.

[Aardvark]

I must admit I only ate there once and found the food to be very good. I must admit though that when leaving with a full stomach I felt a bit guilty so I gave the cashier Bt100 with a smile and walked out without the change trubrit, you are soooo right, how anyone can think they can walk into another country and set up a successful business is astonishing, but there are mugs everywhere

[saint]

i think i predicted this a while back , when they took of the buffet and reduced the hours . the begining of the end , were my words . yes its sad to see a business fail , but to me it was a good concept , in the wrong place , with too high prices . now if it had been in or near the complex they may have survived . to bleet on about the U D centre opposite affecting thier business , well sorry , but did they not know what was happening to that site ? did they not realise parking was non existant in that area ? where have they been , mars . when i looked for business sites in england , i did my homework , hours and hours of it . visited all times of day and night , how else do you get a feel for the area ? who knows , maybe if there was more tourists , and no recession , they would of survived . you do your projections on a worse case senario , anything over and above that is iceing on the cake , or to put it into business terms , profit !!!!!!!!

[aeaub]

to bleet on about the U D centre opposite affecting thier business , well sorry , but did they not know what was happening to that site ? did they not realise parking was non existant in that area ? where have they been , mars .

Well,saint..It almost sounds like you were so happy we finally closed. or you just did not read every sentence of my post. I'd already told that when we rent this plot it was nothing there just big piece of green grass land all around, not even the Korean style buffet Udon Nua Yang that sit next to us, It was 3 years ago so we were there long before UD sign contract with railway authority and these things would not happened to us if they stick to the original business plan they proposed. The area opposite us suppose to be HOTEL repeat HOTEL! with garden and parking lot not ticky tacky tent market like this. Yes we do have inside information because my dad were the highest rank in his government office in Udon, but no one can predict what will happen to the plot in the next 2-3 year even the greatest fortune teller in Thailand. (I should've hire someone who can from England, though)

I'm not from mars, but where I came from is much closer to Udon than where you came from.
and where I came from people don't enjoy the other's failure.
Anyway, why on earth the successful businessman from England who's living here can't afford a good decent meal for the same price of a bag of fish'n chip back home ?