Pre-Reading Questions:
- What is your favorite food? Why?
- Which do you prefer, eating at a restaurant or eating at home? Why?
Vocabulary:
- gather /GATHER-er/
- merchant /MUR-chuhnt/
- strategy /STRAT-i-jee/
- organize /AWR-guh-nahyz/
- classic /KLAS-ik/
- creative /kree-EY-tiv/
[verb] – to collect several things, often from different places or people
The campaign aims to gather enough food for the typhoon victims.
[noun] – a person whose job is to buy and sell products in large amounts, especially by trading with other countries
Being a merchant is a difficult job especially in promoting the products.
[noun] – a detailed plan for achieving success in situations such as war, politics, business, industry, or sports, or the skill of planning for such situations:
Business owners think of different strategies to boost their income.
[verb] – to make arrangements for something to happen
Volunteers organized a crowd-funding concert to help the poor.
[adjective] – having a high quality or standard against which other things are judged
Watching classic series is one of my favorite hobbies.
[adjective] – producing or using original and unusual ideas
Participants need to be creative to win the lantern making competition.
Another way to connect food merchants with their customers is by the use of delivery service. A thriving hostel in Thai capital Bangkok proposed this strategy to improve the sales of food vendors. The hostel restructured their business into a center in favor of food sellers around the vicinity. Hawkers connect with their buyers by the use of messaging app LINE with the deduction of 15 percent commission, which is more profitable to food sellers compared to other online services.
The customers will first need to place their order under the Hostel’s online delivery service. Next, the food will be delivered at the hostel. Lastly, hostel employees will organize the product to be delivered by motorbike couriers. Now the clients may enjoy their mouthwatering meal, a hassle-free way to grab delicious dishes. Through this, customers can try Thai street foods and favorite classics like pad thai and roast pork noodles.
Despite the changes caused by the pandemic, people strive to continue their lives. Being creative and innovative are some of the traits that were applied by the Asian chefs in promoting their goods. In that sense, they are worth calling as creative cooks of Southeast Asia.
Comprehension Questions:
- What did the Singaporean chef use as a medium to connect sellers and buyers?
- How many members joined the Facebook group?
- What do they call the food sellers in the Facebook group mentioned in the article?
- What is the service offered by a hostel in Bangkok, Thailand?
- According to the article, what are the food classics offered by Thai street foods?
Discussion Questions:
- Based on the article, do you agree that Asian chefs are indeed creative cooks? Why?
- What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages in using social media in promoting products?
- Do you think endors will improve their sales in spite of 15% deduction of delivery service? Why or why not?
- Do you think it’s a good idea to order food other than cooking at home? Explain your answer.
- In your own opinion, what are the other changes in people’s lives caused by this pandemic?