gfron1

One of the opportunities that has presented itself is that some of the sites we are looking at have large numbers of residents attached to the building (condos, lofts, etc). With a couple of these buildings I have made an offer to either provide me with affordable housing or cut my commercial rate. This is what I've offered: 1. Priority reservation access to the restaurant. Upon review of our business prospectus you’ll find that we have high confidence that we will be sold out for months in advance similar to other high profile restaurants in town (Olive & Oak, Vicia) based on the past nine years of business in our remote location of New Mexico. We can set up an access code in our system that will give higher priority to the residents when making reservations. 2. Quarterly cooking classes. We can offer free weekend cooking classes for residents either in the restaurant space or in the common area on the top floor. I have many years of teaching popular, dynamic classes that are either hands-on or demonstration. 3. Quarterly cocktail parties. My mixologist has gained a national reputation for his creative cocktails. He can offer parties in the restaurant that are exclusive for residents and their guests. 4. Quarterly wine classes. My mixologist also offers wine seminars which will be scheduled for the residents. 5. Roof garden. We will set up and maintain a flower box rooftop garden for use by the residents. The garden will be organically grown and maintain an eye on a clean, classy style that fits the loft design. Residents will be encouraged to use the garden for their personal consumption, while the restaurant will use some of the herbs. 6. Private parties. We will offer our space for private parties at a nominal fee – low enough that it is clearly a perk for being a resident. The space could be used for birthday parties, family events or even work-related seminar space.

This should come as no surprise - OCD...but just at the beginning. I can tell you that I don't re-cost yearly. I know how much my cream costs and even as it fluctuates throughout the year the fluctuation in my final product is pennies so my markup can absorb that. I do not worry about OCD number crunching after I've done it the first time. I just think it's good to force yourself to think through the whole process so you don't ignore things like your time and utilities, which are harder to calculate than chocolate and cream.

I would also encourage anyone thinking about such things as pricing to do some of the things we've already mentioned, but then approach it from a different angle. Ask yourself - how much money do you want to make from chocolates this year? Maybe too big of a question...so, how much this month? This week? Today? One of those time spans will resonate and have meaning for you. So let's say this is an on-the-side gig, not a full living wage. And let's say you hope to make an additional $1,000 per month on chocolates. Is that gross or net? Let's assume gross. If you think the market will bear $2 per piece, and your food costs support that (which they should) then that is 500 pcs per month. That's roughly 17 pcs per day. That's a couple of boxes. But you won't really sell every day I'm guessing so in my mind I then say 500 pcs per month x 12 months = 6,000 per year....divide that by 52 weeks for easier math = 115 per week. Can you sell 10 boxes of 10 plus a few singles each week? Don't forget the paydays of Christmas, Valentines, Easter, Mother's Day...and if you talk to the right folks, wedding season, corporate gifts, B&B amenities.... Alos, dig deep into your true food costs (electric, saran wrap, time, a portion of your kitchen use) and get a really solid cost. That math isn't hard, but it's necessary to move from hobby to business. I can spend 3 hours making one tray of chocolates or I an spend the same time making 500 chocolates, buying wholesale ingredients. My point is, come at this from a number of angles. Maybe you can tell that I love crunching hypothetic numbers. I've helped a few people in this forum do just that and I always offer that for free to anyone.

I sell mine at $2.50 per pc and $20 for a box of 10, which is what I push. Pricing is a matter of two things in my opinion: 1. perceived value to the customer and 2. what the market will bear. Obvious statement, but it very much applies to chocolates. If you're selling enrobed ganaches they have lower perceived value than airbrushed artistic bonbons. In some ways it doesn't matter how good (taste and texture) the chocolate is because the general public is often not savvy enough to discern what we care about. And size is irrelevant. I've seen people who make these massive (3 oz maybe) truffles and try to sell them for $1.50 and they don't move. Put an exquisite airbrushed bonbon next to it and sell it for $3 a pc. Why? Because most people buy them to give as gifts or treat themselves to something special. In regards to what the market will bear, I sold mine at the prices I mentioned in my shop. But, when I went to a regional chocolate show, where mine stood out as the best of show, I was able to charge $3.25 per pc and not hear a single complaint.

Almost all yoghurts are disgusting to me. But somewhere vaguely in the back of my mind from a childhood trip to Germany, I seem to recall a yoghurt that I had for breakfast that was ultra cream, lightly sweet and more like a custard. I suppose in America we might label this European Style Yoghurt, but I've never found one that I like. Then I found Noosa. Interesting flavors, always creamy and a perfect size for me. I'm loving the blood orange and pumpkin, but liked the blackberry serrano. Cardamon pear was not my favorite but more because of the fruit texture than anything else. A friend swears by the apple which I've avoided because it feels too mundane. Anyone else a lover?

Please consider that accessibility comes into play, not just population. I used to joke with reporters that I was probably the most remote James Beard nominee in history requiring a minimum of a 3 hour drive. My town was under 10,000 btw. I think about Blaine Wetzl's restaurant which should be considered for the list.

@Alex On my book tour, in New Orleans, I stopped in the Museum of Southern Art and they had a exhibit of modern tea cups, some of which were for sale. I immediately was drawn to what she calls "Meditation Bowls," and jotted down her name for later research. Since then, she and I have had numerous conversations, and we've worked on making the materials food safe, less likely to chip and so forth. And quite frankly, I don't worry about such things as customers stealing these. If someone wants one that bad I'll bless them with it. But it won't be easy for them to get since I and my sous will be the ones placing and removing the dish from in front of them. And Alex, let her know the connection to me, she'll be tickled.

Nothing new to report. Building hunting. Popup dinners. Meeting new connections. I've been spending more time finding the artisans who will create my tableware. Here's ONE that I've already contracted with.

I'm in episode 3 and I can't not tell you all how amazing this show is. I'm learning so much! "You never eat meat with paratha, only roti. Paratha already has a layer of fat."

Thank you for doing that. I'll give it a try for breakfast tomorrow and see how it goes.

I use my dehydrator like that (mostly for chocolate) but when I need moisture I just add a hotel pan of hot water.

Host's note: this topic was moved from its original location in Japan: Cooking to China: Cooking because of information in the second post. I bought this because it looks like something I'd enjoy. A mix of grains (millet, oat, lentil, black rice, brown rice and others) but I'm not sure how to use it. My guess, based on the photo, is to add sticky rice - I'm thinking I could do it all in my rice cooker and I'm guessing at a 2:1 ratio on the brown rice setting. The photo is a rice cake so i wonder if I need to add sugar and liquid like sushi. Any better advice? [btw, I posted this in Japan Cooking but some of the text looks Korean and the product is from Taiwan so I have no idea.]

I've got to get through my two-night pop-up in Kansas City this weekend first. It will be so nice to have my own kitchen again. Lugging my kitchen around is exhausting.

@Alex All good points. The more I work through the play list, the more I add and delete. I tend to delete anything that is too up tempo, too high pitched, anything whiney and anything with vulgarity. I tend to keep midtone songs where the voice is in balance with the music. In the end, who the artist is is irrelevant to me, but how the music feels in the space. The wild card will be when I play the music in the actual dining room, which I can't do until we have a lease, build it out and put some tables and people in it. I've recently made contact with a local person who does this for a living and I'm looking forward to seeing where he takes things.

Met with a bank loan officer today. Currently we're looking to structure the finances roughly in 1/3 components of landlord financed TI (tenant improvement), bank loan and self/investor funds. While meeting with the bank they offered an equipment leasing option where I could (hypothetically) get a chocolate tempering machine with enrober that they purchase and lease to me. That's a really interesting option for me to be able to equip better but not tie up my opening day operating funds. I need to explore this more but it's interesting to explore this option. In a small detail, the credit card processing that their related company does is only 1.5%. I generally see 2.74% as the going rate. That is very interesting to me. We signed an LOI on our property last Tuesday and are still waiting for a response from the landlord.

That's all we'll have. Imagine a kitchen in the center of the room with two horseshoes tables on either side for 12 customers per side. That's the set up. When we get to that point I'll share design images.

I've thought about that and shared that with the designer. That will be a consideration in the material...or maybe we'll be the first socks only restaurant MrSpiffy - I appreciate the comments...and all the ideas being floated. The skirt over the glass floor is the perfect example of why I wanted to share my project. I did learn long ago to be open to ideas, but to stay true to my vision. At the end of the day the success or failure of Bulrush will be on my hands.

We've been exploring this idea as well.

Yep, I missed that. Thanks for flagging it for me. I do have glycerin.

what about the glass slide around the skyrise in downtown LA?

Guilty of being a guy on this. Hadn't even considered that. I'll have to think more about this. Might be resolved with parallel walkways -clear and solid.

Final semester student from the top program in the city. It's no different than back in New Mexico when I hired a cook who had worked in the other 4 nicer restaurants in town, and his first day happened to coincide with the day I picked up all of my county fair animals for butchering (4 goats, 2 lamb and a pig), and we spent the whole day breaking them down. He said it was the first time he had ever cut meat before for steaks or restaurant cuts. Crazy.

Today I am visiting a mushroom farm. I don't think I've previously shared this, so pardon me if I have...One of the key features of my new place will be that you'll walk in over a glass floor that is a window into the basement. The basement is stone lined walls (old building) with about an 8' ceiling. I'll be setting up a mushroom farm of my own down there (in addition to my wine cellar, chocolate production and koji meat processing). So, imagine walking about 20' over the forest floor with logs and hanging bags covered in mushrooms; hydroponic wild plant hanging gardens (chickweed, purslane, reindeer lichen (if I can get it to grow domestically). Every design element has a cost, and I have to justify whether or not it is worth it. In part, this is my response to Farm to Fable and the pervasive fraud in the industry. I want people to see everything about their food. I want people to feel a stronger sense of connection to food and its preparers. I'm so mindful of a culinary school student that I met a few months ago at work who didn't know how to identify the top (v. the root) of an onion. It really has become my mission to eliminate that lack of connection.

I'm not pushing hard on this anymore because currently I'm working with a chef who is very bullheaded. He is dead set on one of his recipes that is almost a chocolately angel food cake. He's not a pastry chef at all, so he likes it because he can soak it three days ahead of time and still be able to pick it up for service. Don't ask me why (hanging my head in culinary shame at the lack of freshness). I don't think he realizes the vast options that are out there for people who do pastry, and I'm reluctant to put time into a hopeless cause. What he wanted was a plated tiramisu. So I helped him get a 2" sphere of mascarapone filling that was stable enough for the cook to pick up by hand but soft to the spoon. I got him a chocolate anglaise sauce. We figured out all the garnish - chocolate plaques mostly. He is determined to do a dehydrated meringue garnish, which I hate what it does to the teeth in a dessert like this. I've been arguing for texture. Tiramisu is all smoosh and no crunch. That's fine when you're serving it out of a 9x13 as a square, but as a plated dessert that's not acceptable. I've suggested some type of granola inspired crunch using almonds and brandy. But mostly I wanted the cake to have some crunch to it, but still not be so far away from a traditional tiramisu that people ordering it get disappointed. There is a stark difference in visions and ultimately in this case he is the chef so I've backed off.