Recently in Out and about Category

For a long time (ever since I've been in Auckland) my preferred video store has been Videon. No matter where in Auckland I have lived, I have always used them. They've a great range (more than just block busters) and really well informed staff.

Recently, the moved from 654 Dominion Road in Balmoral, to 244 Dominion Rd, Mt Eden

it's a move of only about 1.5 Km, but I worry about the impact it will have on the business.

Here are some of the reasons why I think the move might be less than successful for Videon:

• When we visited the store on Saturday only one other person came into to browse while we where there. In the old location, at a similar time, I would have expected around a dozen or more customers.
• The new store is almost invisible from the street. The store is now very narrow and provides little street appeal. The signage--what there is--looks unappealing and doesn't echo the previous location's style. We nearly walked straight past the store even though we were looking for it.
• Insider, the store is very long an narrow. There is little room to browse (which is worrying given that it was just my wife and I for most the time). There is no ambiance; it feels very sterile. The fit-out of the store is looks cheap. In fact, our impression that from the outside that it was a cheap DVD outlet store was reinforced by the inside.
• Although we decided to walk to the store, parking seems to be a problem when compared to the old store. At the old store, Videon had its own parking and it was relatively easy to find street parking. This isn't the case in the new location.

Now it may be that the extra foot traffic will compensate for the invertible drop off in customers (who can't be bothered to go the extra distance). But I'm not sure. Perhaps the managers at Videon have examined their records and know how many people were very local to the store and how many are actually traveling some distance to the store (and thus may not be bothered by a little extra distance). I don't know.

What I do know, is that the store didn't feel 'alive' and that might be fatal. This move could be the end of Videon. It may be Vide-gone.

I found this place by accident, but others have known about it for some time. Great coffee (albeit organic). Nice atmosphere. I'll be back (especially as I've given up on Spicer's).

This evening Lisa and I went to a diner party hosted by Giles Burch and Catherine. It was a most enjoyable evening.

Giles' parents were at the dinner too. As always, they were very convivial company. Afterward, I thought I would Google his father as he has a number of achievements to his name -- but I came up somewhat empty. I wonder if his generation is the last generation whose past won't be written indelibly on the web.

We went and saw Cirque du Soleil. Actually, there were quite a few of us from the University who went. It's nice to get out as a bit of a group.

What did I enjoy the most -- the people on the swings at the end. I do enjoy flying through the air myself, and I'd really like to try those swings.

Lisa asked if anyone has written a case on Cirque du Soliel. I'm aware of one in:

De Wit, B., & Meyer, R. (1998). Strategy process, content, context: An international perspective (2nd ed.). Minneapolis, MN: Thompson Learning.

and I think Yvon Dufour (who is about to join the Business School) has also worked with them.

Lisa and I went to see Oscar Wilde's An ideal husband at the Maidement Studio. A very enjoyable romp through the mores of Victorian England. A solid performance.

It was nice to see Miriam Sharpe playing Lady Chiltern--I think we've previously seen her in Summer Shakespeare

The set was pretty good -- I liked the leaves -- and I enjoyed the way the stage was "set" as the audience came in.

The only thing I don't understand is why the direct/stage manager/set design had his name capitalized (or not) as patrick graham, instead of Patrick Graham. Answers on a postcard to ...

The movie Tampopo, spawned a restaurant in London called Wagamama (and that in turn spawned a cookbook). If you've seen the movie, then you won't be surprised to find out it's a noodle house. And now there is one in Auckland.
Lisa and I went there for lunch, and despite the queue it was well worth it. The menu was full of tempting dishes - it was hard to choose what to have. However, I ended up having a chili chicken ramen (which was super -- I the soup base was particularly good), and Lisa went for the hottest dish on the menu--according to the waitress--the spicy chicken itame.

Despite being busy (we had to queue for five minutes) we were still in-and-out in under 30 minutes.

The seating is what the Americans call "family style", you sit at long tables with whoever else is there.

A great lunch. I recommend it.

It's the glorious twelfth, and that means it's Lisa's and mine wedding anniversary. So, we decided to have dinner at Vinnies

To whet our appetites, we had a glass of Bollinger (non vintage), and the savoury cones. I particular liked the ostrich carpaccio with Japanese pickles, and the truffled hummus was a close second.

For entee, I went for that old favourite of homemade paua sausage with kumara miso mash whilst Lisa opted for the crayfish ravioli with poached pacific rock oysters. Both were faultless.

The main course was a hard decision, but eventually Lisa settled on the roasted duck breast with fig tortellini (prompted by our cab driver on the way in), and I went for pan fried snapper. The fish was done to perfection, and Lisa commented on the high quality of the duck.

Because of our choice of food, I though that choosing the wine would be difficult. I was leaning towards the 1983 Marc Bredif Vouvray, but in the end we went with Stewart's, our waiter's, suggestion of the 2001 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay. I'm still wondering if the Vouvray (at pretty much the same price), would have been better.

To finish, Lisa went for a selection of Italian biscuits and coffee, and I relented and indulged myself with the chocolate truffles.

All in all, a superb dinner. Hats off to Vinnies (again).

On my recent trip to EGOS, Lisa and I spent a couple of days in the UK catching up the Lisa's family. Here I am with Malcolm, her brother-in-law, cooking at a BBQ in the 'English' manner -- that is to say in the pouring rain. It actually had been a lovel day up until we started to cook.

We also took the time to go on the London Eye. By chance, rather than by good planing, we got there early and didn't have to queue too long. This is a lovel picture of Lisa, with London in the background, taken in mid 'flight' as they call the ride.