Noodle Box co-founder Dave Milne spoke with Franchising magazine about the Asian fast food franchise’s recent tie up with Adam Liaw, Masterchef 2010.
F: Has Noodle Box been involved with a celebrity figure before?
DM: This is the first time weÕve linked up with anyone outside our company. We work really hard with our food but it often can get lost, and we get stuck on the brand. We talked about what we could do to get back to being about food. ThatÕs why Josh and I started the business, because of our passion for Asian food. We use really good produce and this is something to emphasise that.
F: How much input did Adam Liaw have on the new gourmet range?
DM: He had full control, we worked on finding the produce he requested. Adam is going in the same direction we want to take. We wanted more gourmet meat and some seafood on the menu. A couple of dishes came from a cooking session at AdamÕs home in Sydney, we were there all day, going to and from the supermarket. We came out with some fantastic meals. Obviously we then had to work out how to roll them out nationally, and some of the dishes we wanted we just couldnÕt do in all our stores because of getting the produce.
F: Will this gourmet menu be ongoing?
DM: This will be ongoing, in some shape or form. We have to be a bit careful with our customer base. We want to offer customers their favourite foods but give something more too. We want to start being progressive with our menu.
WhatÕs on the Adam Liaw gourmet menu at Noodle Box?
- Aromatic black duck noodles
- Malaysian beef rending
- Prawn and calamari salad
- Side of dragon wings (AdamÕs dragon wings)