In 2005, I had an idea for a restaurant based on the New York Stock Exchange. As more people bought a particular item on the menu, the lower the price would become.  It would be the purest expression of free market principles of supply and demand.  The place would be electric.  Prices would fluctuate on monitors and rapidly changing digital ticker tapes all around the restaurant.  A few of my friends suggested it would be a stressful environment in which to eat and drink. I thought it would be dynamic, not to mention educational!

The biggest hurdle I had for getting the idea off the ground was that I didn’t know anything or anyone having to do with the restaurant business. 🙂

Fortunately, though, I wasn’t the only one with this idea.  Last weekend, while listening to the splendid table on KUT, I heard a story about a restaurant called The Big Board in Washington D.C.

And just this morning, on my way into GSD&M, I passed by a new bar on 6th street (imagine that!) under construction. It’s called the Brew Exchange.

So far, it seems like both these places are relegating the supply and demand element only to beer prices, but I wouldn’t be surprised if more restaurants and retail outlets follow in their footsteps. After all, we live in an era of rapidly changing information, full of status updates and Twitter feeds. Why shouldn’t our dining and retail experiences be just as dynamic and entertaining?