5min
Let's talk about delicious burgers and using sunday QR codes with Seb from Black Bear Burger.
How do you go from a food stand to having two permanent brick & mortar sites and building a brand that diners recognise and love? The founders of Black Bear Burger had somewhat of an unconventional start to their food adventures, finding their way on Channel 4’s Million Pound Menu before opening in a 300sqft shipping container at Boxpark Shoreditch.
After chowing through a double BBBurger with a side of brisket spring rolls in Brixton, we sat down with Seb to chat more about food and a bit about sunday.
As volumes went up, Liz and Steve continued to perfect their recipe, and worked alongside their suppliers to get the perfect burger. Today, our buns are made specially for us, with the bakery on speed dial.
The same goes for our butcher. We’ve got a secret blend designed exactly for our patties. The reason our burgers are so good is that they are so simple, but everything is there for a reason.
As the company has grown, we’ve expanded out into drink and other food offerings. We’ve got a few cocktails and now a meat smoker out back.
We’re not going to do everything but what we do, will be best in class.
Tell us a bit about Black Bear Burger
Black Bear Burger actually started off as a street food stall. Liz and Stew were inspired by their time in Whistler. When they came back to London they were balancing their “real jobs”, Stew as an oil trading analyst and Liz as a nurse, with running their weekend stall at Broadway market.
Demand kept growing, and their side hustle kept getting bigger and bigger. In 2017, a space in Boxpark opened up. This first brick & mortar site was even busier than their stand, with really good customer feedback coming in.
You’ve been using sunday for 2 months now. Why did you choose to use it in the first place?
We tried to speed up the last point of service, being the bill and payment. This is really where technology and the guest experience are heading. And you guys are the leaders in that field.
sunday has also completely removed the risk of damaging a customer experience
Did you have any reservations about getting sunday, and have these at all been put at ease?
I would say that my concern when signing up was that it was going to delay the end of the meal because you’re not giving people a prompt to pay, and it is absolutely not the case.
sunday has also completely removed the risk of damaging a customer experience at the last moment, like when you go from a five to four on a rating because you might not bring them the bill quick enough.
sunday is just an all-rounder and a really, really good service. Any worries I had around people not paying or people not knowing how to use it, none of them have been an issue. Fully recommend to any kind of restaurant.
How has your staff responded to the change?
Honestly. It’s just the best thing ever. They love it! Firstly, taking payments from big tables is notoriously a pain and the team no longer have to worry about it. If customers want to split the bill or pay for what they’ve ordered, it’s up to them. You don’t have to do the maths and then come back and realize the table is £2.10 short. We’re also killing it when it comes to tips!
Honestly. It’s just the best thing ever
How has sunday changed your customer experience?
We’re a card only restaurant and most of our clientele is young. At the beginning we would explain how the QR code worked but it’s so simple to use, that people just scan it without an explanation.
Instead of bringing the bill, we serve ice-cream. I’m not saying every restaurant should give out ice-cream, but it’s a nicer way to end a meal than with something transactional.
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Your customers can view the menu and pay the bill in 10 seconds
