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Forced 'donation' meant to show appreciation to fishermen for salmon roe making up signature dish
Here's a restaurant that gives new meaning to all those warnings you heard growing up from your parents to clean everything on your plate.
Hachikyo, a seafood restaurant in Sapporo, Japan, actually fines patrons who fail to finish every last morsel of their signature tsukko meshi dish: a bowl of rice topped with all the salmon roe you can eat, according to several reports, including this one, this one, this one, this one and this one.
The policy is clearly stated on its menu, according to the reports. As is the explanation: The fishermen who provide the roe work in such tough conditions that the fine, in the form of a donation, is meant to show appreciation. The meal itself runs the equivalent of about $20 to $25, according to the reports.
Here's a first-hand account from a blogger, who notes another rule: The rice arrives first; it can't be touched until the roe arrives, or the whole meal is revoked.
One waitress assured the blogger that "hardly anyone" doesn't finish the meal. And the eatery is popular enough that a second location is opening, according to the reports.
Canadian among 24 social entrepreneurs worldwide honoured
Janet Longmore, founder, president and chief executive officer of Ottawa-based social enterprise Digital Opportunity Trust (DOT), is the lone Canadian among 24 chosen from around the world by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship as a social entrepreneur of the year for 2013, according to this release. She is also only the second Canadian ever chosen for the award, the release said.
DOT runs youth-led economic, education and leadership programs around the world. "Harnessing the power of youth, we transform young people (DOT interns) into leaders of change as they facilitate technology, business, and entrepreneurial learning experiences to people in their own communities," explains its website, noting that, since its launch in 2002, it has "mobilized the talent and energy" of more than 4,000 interns worldwide.
"This award recognizes the critical role that young people, linked with technology, can play in designing solutions that seize the social and economic opportunities that exist in their communities," said Ms. Longmore in the release.
Here's the full list of winners.
World's most innovative companies: Fast Company list
Fast Co. has published its list of businesses whose innovations are having the most impact on their industries and "our culture as a whole."
U.S. startups hiring, but finding talent search tough: survey
Nearly nine in 10 – 87 per cent – of U.S. startup companies are in hiring mode, but the same proportion say they are finding it challenging to find talent with needed skills, according to The Silicon Valley Bank Startup Outlook report. The survey of 750 private companies in software, life sciences, hardware and cleantech sectors also reported that 66 per cent of them say that their biggest challenge to retaining talent is finding and competing for people with the right skills.
KEY EVENTS AND DATES
Communitech 2013 Tech Leadership Conference
Research in Motion Ltd. chief executive officer Thorstein Heins and marketing guru and author Seth Godin are among speakers lined up for this year's annual Communitech Tech Leadership Conference being held in Kitchener, Ont., on March 7. The one-day gathering will bring together a range of interested parties from startups to investors to academics. Along with keynote speeches, the day will include breakout sessions for networking, a tech expo showcase of companies and a closing reception. For more information, click here.
East Coast Startup Week
The first East Coast Startup Week will be held in Fredericton from March 20 to March 24, offering events ranging from seminars to workshops to trade shows, all aimed at encouraging entrepreneurs in Atlantic Canada. For more information, click here.
EDITOR'S PICKS FROM REPORT ON SMALL BUSINESS
Four ways to build on Oreo's winning Super Bowl marketing play
When the lights went out, the cookie maker proved itself a nimble player in real-time marketing, writes marketing expert Ryan Caligiuri in his latest column, offering four other ways to capitalize on that trend.
FROM THE ROSB ARCHIVES
Why would a company change its name?
After years of work to build recognition, why would an established company change its name? It was a question asked of Achievers, formerly known as I Love Rewards, in this article that ran in October, 2011, examining why companies change their monikers.
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