Fuku+ opens with a new menu and an ingenious plan for success

Chick-fil-A you are dead to me. My new favorite chicken sandwich belongs to Fuku and Fuku+. Sichuan pork flatbread, MiniMe Fuku sandwich and Fuku bites. There’s salads, fries and salt and pepper shrimp too but those are for another visit. #fuku #fuku+ #fukuplus

A photo posted by Chantal Salomon-Lee (@remainagirl) on Sep 10, 2015 at 10:28am PDT

First, David Chang made a better fried chicken sandwich, and everybody came. With the Fuku concept successfully tested, Chang just opened a second location — and there’s one big change that could be a template for other restaurants.

Fuku+, which opened yesterday in the Chambers Hotel, still has your back if you’re just looking for a quick lunch or dinner. The menu has all of the items available at Fuku — the sandwich, salad, fries and Confetti Cookie — plus two new salads, chicken nuggets, sliders, salt & pepper shrimp and Sichuan pork flatbread(!)

But Fuku+ is also taking reservations for groups of up to eight, and this is where things get interesting. These aren’t just reservations to secure a table, though not spending half an hour waiting in the sun would be enough. Chang is ingeniously rewarding people not just for coming in, but bringing big parties with them.

To get in without the wait for lunch or dinner, you’ll have to commit to one of two packages: the XL (2-4 people, $200) or XXL (4-8 people $400). The first package adds biscuits to what’s already available on the Fuku menu, but you’ll want to find/make some friends for the bigger package. The XXL is not just more food — it includes items that aren’t available to anyone else: slow-roasted pork butt, fried short ribs and Sichuan pork bread balls. (Notably, neither option includes drinks.)

The trends in food have been shifting toward fast-casual and meal delivery services for a while now, and Chang has certainly been on top of both. But the XXL option is a smart play for bringing people back into the restaurant and around a table, and we won’t be surprised to see more restaurants trying it.