Gangnam Spice

BBQ, Chicken, eCommerce, Restaurant Sites

Status:
Online
Client:
PopMenu
Established:
2024
URL:
gangnamspice.com
Location:
MA, USA
Project Scope:
Web Dev & Design, Brand Experience, OLO Optimization, Event Calendar

Project Overview

Seoul Street Energy on Boston Streets

Gangnam Spice burst onto the Boston food scene in 2024, serving quirky, crave-worthy Korean Fried Chicken late into the night. However, operating a mobile business presents unique digital hurdles: fans need to know where the truck is instantly, and ordering needs to be frictionless on a smartphone. The brand required a lean, high-impact site to anchor their roving operations.

The mission was to create a digital home that sizzles. We needed to translate the vibrant, chaotic energy of Seoul street food into a structured, mobile-first experience. The goal was to drive immediate action—converting casual scrollers into online orders, event attendees, and loyal VIPs—all on a tight launch timeline.

Challenges & Goals

The Challenges

The "Moving Target" Problem: Unlike brick-and-mortar restaurants, a food truck needs to communicate shifting locations and pop-up schedules clearly without confusing the user.

Brand Authenticity: The client used specific custom fonts (Abuget, PG Roof Runners) that are not web-standard, risking rendering issues for critical pricing and glyphs.

Labor Shortage: The site needed to function as a recruitment tool to fill cook and event staff roles ahead of the peak festival season.

The Goals

Visual Fidelity: Implement a robust CSS font stack to load custom typography while ensuring seamless fallbacks (Nunito/Fredoka) for data integrity.

Conversion Velocity: Surface "Order Online" CTAs immediately in the hero section to capture impulse buyers.

Community Building: Create a friction-free VIP signup flow to build an owned audience for new menu drops and location alerts.

Strategy & Approach

Phase 1: Brand Palette & Tech

We pulled the vibrant Red, Orange, and Green directly from the logo, establishing clear CSS variables for consistency. To handle the typography challenge, we uploaded custom font files for headings and CTAs but paired them with web-safe Google Fonts for numbers and special characters, ensuring the menu is always legible.

Phase 2: UX-Driven Architecture

We prioritized the user's immediate needs. The Hero section features a bold "Order Online" button and a summary of the signature double-fried chicken. Below that, we integrated a mobile-first Events Calendar that adjusts visibility based on screen size, ensuring fans can always find the truck.

Phase 3: SEO & Content

We wrote keyword-rich copy targeting "Korean Fried Chicken Boston" and "K-Food food truck." We structured the content into scannable sections with mini-headlines to help both Google crawlers and hungry customers process information quickly.

Solutions Delivered

Area	Highlight
Visual Design	Implemented a vibrant custom theme with uploaded fonts (Abuget) and SCSS variables to match the truck's fiery vibe.
Event Engine	Built a responsive Events partial that integrates the calendar feed, making it easy to promote pop-ups and private gigs.
Recruitment Funnel	Designed dedicated "Apply Now" cards to streamline the hiring process for cooks and event staff.
CSS Architecture	Applied a mobile-first SCSS workflow with custom mixins for buttons and typography scaling, ensuring easy future updates.
Local SEO	Optimized headings and meta descriptions for "Gangnam Spice VIP" and location-based keywords to boost search visibility.