In the competitive Houston restaurant market, one owner stands proud above all others. Owner Ben Chen, a dedicated member of the community and the owner of three restaurants in the area, is proudest of his newest venture: 888 Bistro Restaurant. 888 Bistro serves up a variety of Szechuan cuisine from traditional favorites to experimental items not found anywhere else. Many of his customers are NASA engineers, and if rocket scientists prefer your menu, you’re destined for universal success. 

• Name: 888 Bistro


• Owner: Wenxiong (Ben) Chen

Location: 16744 El Camino Real, Houston, TX 77062

• Cuisine: Szechuan cuisine


• Capacity:200+


• Offers: dine-in, take-out, delivery, banquet room, VIP room


• Signature Dish:  888 Steak


• Drinks:


• Desserts:


• Year of establishment: 28, July, 2008


• Phone: 281-990-8888


• Website: http://www.888jxben.com/

The Format

The Scene

Located in the Clear Lake Area of Houston, Texas, 888 Bistro is situated in prime real estate. The restaurant is located near a NASA base and so many of the clientele are NASA engineers and scientists. Fully 75% of the customers are local patrons.

The restaurant has over six thousand square feet of dining space and the décor combines Western and Chinese styles. The interior is designed by a locally renowned designer Felix Fan Zhang, who incorporated the owner’s vision into the design. There are wallpaper that showcase Chinese culture, including calligraphy arts and paintings.  The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival is one of the masterpieces on display. Chinese style folding screens are used to separate the dining room into two separate rooms.  While the western classical lights and booths create a romantic and elegant atmosphere inside, two traditional Chinese kylin statues greet you before you enter the restaurant outside.

888 Bistro has a full service bar and a party room, ensuring it can accommodate a diverse spectrum of customers. The party room is used by patrons who want some privacy for their celebrations, and must be booked in advanced. The room is currently reserved through the end of the calendar year. 888 Bistro also offers a catering service.

The Food

888 Bistro offers authentic Szechuan cuisine, modified Szechuan cuisine and new-style Szechuan cuisine. According to the owner, “authentic Szechuan cuisine” is spicy and tongue-numbing, featuring a pungent taste. The “modified Szechuan” cuisine instead draws influence from other cuisines and then combines the local ingredients to make the dishes lighter-flavored with less oil and salt. Due to the different geographic influences in Szechuan cuisine, there is a great deal of variety in flavors and tastes. But one thing is always consistent, and that’s the inclusion of poultry and river food into the menu. The menu of 888 includes a large selection of seafood, a great deal of which is from the Houston coastal area.

The chefs at 888 Bistro take pride in their seasonings. Broad bean paste is a must in the Szechuan cuisine but it is not familiar to the locals and it is a little oily than what many Americans are used to. To adapt to the locals’ preference, 888 Bistro pickles spicy red cluster pepper, Vietnamese pepper and Mexican hot pepper to replace the bean paste. The owner, Ben believes that “Change and innovation is a must if you want to stay ahead.” Thus, he has adapted this traditional necessity to his local audience.

The owner has also led the way to create some other exciting dishes. The codfish with seaweed is a house favorite. The owner came up with inspiration from a Ningbo dish. The fried codfish chunks are topped with a thin layer of crispy flour which gives the dish a crunchy bite.  The owner has said that the codfish is fried to maintain its real nutrient components. If the codfish is steamed, it loses its protein. The codfish is the result of several months’ research and the entire chef team’s effort.

The 888 steak is also a popular dish. The chefs use shredded beef rib eye steak and serve with a large portion of vegetables including eggplant, asparagus, and green pepper. The dish is then topped with honey pepper from Hong Kong. The steak is a bit sweet and spicy in flavor and a crowd favorite.

888 Bistro uses fresh ingredients throughout their menu and nowhere is this more apparent than the Mango Chicken, a dish that relies on fresh ingredients to work. The Mango chicken is a mix of fruits and vegetables, including mango cubes.

The restaurant also offers a strong selection of health-focused menu items. The mushroom is now a very vogue item in American kitchens, and mushroom and agarics are also offered prolifically at 888 Bistro. There is one dish in particular that Ben strongly recommends: the Sautéed Mushroom with Pickled Pepper. The dish is seasoned with pickled pepper and garlic slice and seems to be a hit with vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.

The Service

There are 8 chefs in the kitchen, and each one is a master in his own arena. 888 Bistro has its own management style and pyramid management mode. There is one general manager who reports to the owner directly, and then is a manager of the Chinese cuisines department, the Americanized Chinese cuisine department, and the BBQ Department. In addition, each department has one chef to cook food.  There are over forty wait staff in the restaurant, and each is assigned with a clear task. Whether it is a cashier, host, or busboy, each staff member knows their duty.

The hard working staff is presented with incentives to work hard and the managers in 888 Bistro are also the share holders. These benefits help ensure a hardworking staff. Weekly meetings are held to review the last week’s business and to analyze the current sales situation. This is also a time for the staff to come together and discuss new dishes.  

Owner

This is the 3^rd establishment in the “888” series of restaurants Ben owns in the Houston area. The other are two are just nine minutes away from 888 Bistro. The owner credits his success to a basic philosophy of selflessness. “Give out first and then you will receive more,” explained Ben. Building on the success of his previous establishments, he continues to expand his small restaurant empire and hopes to open another branch in Houston.

Ben is also an active member of the community. Whenever there is need of help, Ben never hesitates to give a big hand. The Hurricane that his the Houston area this year paralyzed the city. Despite the lack of electricity in the restaurant, he still provided customers with food and comfort. He is also an active member of Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce.

His respect for his customers extends beyond charity. He surveys customers before he decides to raise prices and the customers keep coming back. “Some customers always tell me that 888 Bistro is his second kitchen,” added Ben.  

Although there are many Chinese restaurants nearby, Ben boasts that he is never afraid of competition. “I insist in walking my own way,” said Ben.

Despite the difficult economic times, Ben remains optimistic about the industry.  “There is a chance for Chinese restaurants,” said Ben, “the crippling economy made many diners choose to eat out less and cheaper, [but] this will leave space for us medium-sized restaurants. We should grasp this chance to develop our Chinese restaurants. ”