DITCH FALLING IN LINE. Steven Kokseng (center), Harbour City Group marketing manager, shows off the restaurant’s digital ordering system at their new Ding How Dimsum House branch at the Ayala Malls Central Bloc in Cebu IT Park. With him are Raymond Kokseng (left), president of Harbour City Group; and Edward Kokseng, vice president and manager of Harbour City Group. (SunStar photo / Aper Campaña)
DITCH FALLING IN LINE. Steven Kokseng (center), Harbour City Group marketing manager, shows off the restaurant’s digital ordering system at their new Ding How Dimsum House branch at the Ayala Malls Central Bloc in Cebu IT Park. With him are Raymond Kokseng (left), president of Harbour City Group; and Edward Kokseng, vice president and manager of Harbour City Group. (SunStar photo / Aper Campaña)

Restaurant pioneers digital ordering system in Cebu

HOMEGROWN firm Harbour City Group pivots into the digital ordering system, a move that’s bringing innovation into the restaurant business.

Steven Kokseng, marketing manager at Harbour City Dimsum House Co. Inc., said the digital ordering system installed at its newest branch in Ayala Malls Central Bloc is the first of its kind in Cebu.

The company invested some P1.5 million to develop the ordering technology, Kokseng said in an interview on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020, at the opening of the firm’s second Ding How Dimsum House branch in Cebu IT Park.

“Our goal is really to improve customer experience,” he said, citing also the growing number of tech-savvy diners.

The new Ding How store is equipped with a total of 24 screens—one for each table—which allow diners to view the menu, place an order and engage in trivia, history and multimedia visuals of the brand.

“Digital innovation was the natural next step for us and we will strive for even better ways to bring Cebu’s iconic dimsum to our customers,” said Harbour City Dimsum House Co. Inc. president Raymond Kokseng.

Expansion

Steven also announced the group is looking to end 2020 with 40 branches, as it plans to open four branches this year.

Presently, it has 36 stores, including Ding How, Ding Qua Qua, Harbour City and Dimsum Break.

“In Cebu, we’re opening two this year, while another two outside Cebu,” he said, citing Butuan and Tacloban as prospective locations.

In Cebu, the firm is still negotiating for the sites.

All of the Cebu stores are company owned while those located outside the province are mostly franchised.

The restaurant operator has a presence in Tagbilaran, Dumaguete, Ormoc, Tacloban, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Butuan, General Santos and Davao cities.

About 50 years ago, the business was founded by Henry Uytengsu, who pioneered and introduced dimsum in Cebu.

Ding How was the first restaurant to open on Colon St., Cebu City in 1969 until Ding Qua Qua also came in 1987. In 1993, Harbour City came to be and Dimsum Break in 1996. (CSL)

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