Texas chef banks on social media success

San Antonio’s Chef Jason Dady may be known for feeding the gourmet guts of San Antonio and South Texas, but it’s his gusto that also draws fans.

In between running three restaurants and a food truck, he’s whipping up new entrepreneurial ideas and using social media to entertain his audience.

Example A: The provocative Facebook post last week.

“Very tough decision. Gonna leave it up to y’all. Yes or No. That is all. Yes or No?” Dady posted.

Within minutes, 61 people responded and the resounding answer was “Hell yes.”

So does Dady have a new restaurant in the works?

“Well, I can’t talk about that yet,” Dady says, laughing. “But it was kind of mindblowing how many people responded — not only on Facebook — but by text, too.”

An early social media adopter, Dady first used the medium to virtually raffle off a free dinner from Dady’s Underground Kitchen — which meant that he and his staff cooked a meal at the winner’s home.

Every year, Dady has increased his loyal customer base by finding the right balance between personal and professional engagement.

“I got into the Twitter game early and earned a decent follower count by having real conversations with people,” Dady says.

The result: When Dady creates special events and foodie specials, it takes only a social media mention to fill the seats.

Example B: Tomorrow’s “Umai Mi,” Dady’s event at Bin 55, which sold out at $50 a ticket via a Facebook invite.

Umai Mi is a one-time, family-style, Thai-inspired dinner event, where Dady will cook up fare such as: Chilled Soba Salad, Wood Oven Mussels, Spicy Cumin Lamb and more. “It’s not straight Thai, Japanese or Chinese — it’s more of a mishmosh of Asian cuisine,” Dady says.

Dady’s also providing the music via his iPod. (Think Hip Hop.)

Selling out quickly via social media is a true analytic measurement for Dady. “It reaffirms that my core customers want new, interesting events, and that they live in this digital space,” Dady says.

Umai Mi’s goal is to raise awareness for the Austin Food & Wine Festival in April 2013, where Dady is featured as one of the guest chefs. He’ll be conducting interactive fire-pit demonstrations along with Dallas chef Tim Byres of Smoke.