Go Outback Tonight, Via Korea

Outback Steakhouse International exec Steve Nilsen sent us this gem of a commercial. (Thanks, Steve!) 

It’s part of a series the restaurant chain has been running in Korea since 2008, and Nilsen says comps rise as much as 25 percent when they’re on air.

In this a-dor-a-ble commercial, a boy and girl are set up on a blind date. Nilsen writes: "This is very common in Korea and includes specific ‘tells’ so the arranger of the date can sit at a different table and watch how the date progresses.  In this case the ‘tell’ is that the boy will order steak if he likes the girl, and bread if he does not."

View the Korean Outback commercial.

It’s charming and apparently quite successful. Would it play in the States? Maybe not. But Outback got to know its audience and their traditions, and made a very effective series of commercials. I can’t tell if the voiceover is a man with an Australian accent, though.

What do you think? Comment below.

And, as always, if you have a restaurant-chain commercial you’d like to see in this space, send a note to chainleader@reedbusiness.com. We’ll do our best to accommodate.