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Sam Hong

@gnoh_mas

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Family Man. Always learning.
@softiesburger

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Building a Restaurant. Episode Seven, “Lease” - made by @goodobject.co

Not much more to add other than “thank you,” for letting us prove this concept to you and ourselves for the last two years. We’re excited and ready to get to work.

See you soon at our new home…

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Song by Carole King, “It’s Too Late”

#burger #infatuation #smashburger #eater #popup #restaurant taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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2 years ago

Building a Restaurant. Episode Three, “Sam”

It’s really important to us that the story we tell isn’t just about business and numbers, but also about the village behind and beside us. Today you get to meet Sam Hong and his family; hear from him below:

Joyce, Evan, and Myles inspire me to build Softies, and Softies motivates me to be successful for them.
I don’t need my kids to think I was the best father, but I want them to remember me as present, committed, hardworking, and happy. I’d hate for their memories of this time—building Softies—to be tied to the idea that I wasn’t there for them.

I’m always thinking about what I can teach them. It makes me reflect on my own father these days, and I have a deeper appreciation for his quiet work ethic—sacrificing his body, mind, and soul to prioritize our family.

There are days when I pick the kids up from school and start prepping for smorg before making dinner. After we eat, we play for a few hours before bedtime. Once they’re asleep, I’m back to prepping and loading the truck, while Joyce stamps burger sleeves. These moments aren’t glamorous, and the days can be long, but I fully embrace my roles as both a father and a business owner.

Softies is a business at the end of the day, but to me, it’s so much more. I want my family to know that I worked hard at it so they can feel secure and loved—and that I was happy doing it.

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Made by @goodobject.co
Song by Bread - “If” taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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2 years ago

Safe to say the theme of June was definitely fishing 🎣 by @gnoh_mas

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3 months ago

May was the opposite of April by @gnoh_mas

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4 months ago

April was wilddddd by @gnoh_mas

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5 months ago

You know, if we’re honest, we weren’t supposed to have a restaurant, let alone be a week out from @coachella (we’re calling it Softchella from here on out…)

But here we are, still getting through service somehow everyday, making our lives harder than need be, taking the long route every damn time, trying to lift obstacles rather than maneuver around them. It’s probably not the right way, but it’s our way, and it has always been.

We’re struck by how similar Softchella prep feels to our first pop-up ever in 2022 - so much to organize and not enough memory in our brains. The scale is much larger, sure, but it’s the same grit and grind we had back then that is gonna get us through these next two weeks. There is some solace there in the midst of the stress; time and again we realize that being humble and hungry is all we know and need to grow.

This merch tee by @workive means a lot to us because it’s a bridge from where we started to where we’re headed… what we were, to what we are becoming. We’re so much better now, more refined… but still… just… softies taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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6 months ago

March flew by. Feeling Blessed by @gnoh_mas

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6 months ago

A it’s been a lonnnng month. Lots of highs and lows but that’s just life by @gnoh_mas

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7 months ago

Running a Restaurant. Episode 6.2, “Grow Wisely, Not Quickly” with @chefroychoi - produced by @goodobject.co

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Roy reminds Softies that growth does not always mean more restaurants, more money, more staff… that growth for us might mean to stay put, become excellent where we are, and make sure our team is built up before expanding.

@kogibbq *only* has four trucks… but their team is happy, they keep their prices down, and they serve their community fiercely. In a world where external success is king, can we be content internally, even if that doesn’t look like growth to others? taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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8 months ago

Running a Restaurant. Episode 6.1, “People Over Profits” with @chefroychoi - produced by @goodobject.co

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A timely message from Roy about what a P&L (profit & loss statement) should include outside of money - culture, emotional / mental health, and of course your guests. What we’ve come to understand is that @kogibbq was countercultural in more ways than just changing the pop up game.

This is a clip we’ve listened back to far too much, yet not nearly enough. Hope you feel encouraged to do the same in any aspect of your life taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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8 months ago

Running a Restaurant. Episode Five, “Family Matters” - produced by @goodobject.co

This holiday season we pay tribute to our team, new faces that are permanently imprinted in our hearts and this business. We see them more than we see our friends and family, and that’s okay; in fact, it’s necessary.

Our philosophy isn’t novel but it’s time tested - team first, guests second. This creates a community that can then genuinely serve its community.

Thank you to our Softies crew

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Song by The Carpenters, “Won’t Last a Day Without You” taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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10 months ago

Running a Restaurant. Episode Four, “Dream On!” - produced by @goodobject.co

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Just some things we ask ourselves every now and then, when we’re on the line, in bed, at the dish pit.

What does it mean to live the dream?

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Song by Mac Demarco, “No Other Heart” taken in Los Angeles, California by @gnoh_mas

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10 months ago