A vlogger, Stanley Chen, recently took the internet by storm with a 'fake restaurant' that went viral in its own right. In videos uploaded on Instagram and YouTube, he explains how he set up the establishment, invited influencers and managed to convince many people that they were being served special delicacies. In reality, the vlogger and his team had simply given them instant ramen in fancy-looking bowls. In the video, the vlogger explains that he created a fake "five-star" ramen restaurant in seven days and called it "Nise Ramen". The Japanese name translates to "Fake Ramen".
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The vlogger and his team clicked some food photos, used them to create a fake website about the 'restaurant' and also made a video about it (which later went viral on social media). There was so much buzz about it that the vlogger decided to only issue invitations to influencers with over 100000 followers. In the reel, we see him speaking on the phone and asking one influencer how many followers she has. She replies that she has 240000. The vlogger clarifies that all other interested 'customers' would have to wait outside. As he says this, he shows a long queue of people waiting to be let into the fake restaurant. He claims that over 100 people lined up for around three hours to get in. The vlogger and his team also took other steps to make people believe it was a real restaurant. He says, "To make it even fancier, we set up a projector to play scenes of nature. We served all of our instant ramen in plant pots and even hired a DJ to play nature noises and called the experience 'Ramen Forest'."
Finally, the video shows the servers asking the influencers and customers for feedback, which is mostly positive. Their reactions also suggest they believe it's a real dining spot. On asking a guest how much he would pay for a bowl of ramen, he replies 45-50$ (Approx Rs 4000). Watch the full reel below:
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His Instagram reel has clocked over 21 million views so far. In a longer video uploaded on YouTube, he explains the reason for this 'experiment' and provides more details about how he managed to trick people (check it out here). The comment section on Instagram exploded with varying reactions. Read what some users had to say about the viral video:
"Proof that marketing is never about the product, but how it makes you feel, that makes the money."
"This is peak entertainment."
"Bro could've made millions but decided to expose himself."
"Proof that we're doomed as a species."
"Proof that 'fake it till you make it' works."
"This is why I avoid fancy restaurants."
"5 star with that interior? Yet they believed it."
"'Tastes like very nice and home cooked.' I mean it WOULD taste like what you'll eat at home."
"Reminds me of 2017, when a Vice journalist created a fake restaurant that became #1 in London. A very great video to watch."
People have set up fake restaurants in the past too. Some time back, a 21-year-old AI startup founder and his group of friends had planned an "elaborate joke." They renamed the address of their four-bedroom accommodation on Google Maps to a fake restaurant called 'Mehran's Steak House.' A year later, their prank resulted in them actually offering people a dining experience. Click here to read the full story.
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