opening a restaurant in 23 days

[tb86]

Have any of you guys attempted to open a place in less than a month? this includes all construction staffing training, ordering, planning and costing..... not the ideal situation i know, but its what i have been dealt. Any advice and or tips??

[onocoffee]

Don't take offense to this, but are you nuts??? What kind of circumstances are forcing this? (You needn't answer, it's more rhetorical)

I mean really, if that's the constraints you better be in touch with your dept of health ASAP because there's a lot to deal with them. Get your floor plans and layout together. Meet with contractors. Do you have any restaurant experience? If you're a first-time restauranteur, this kind of approach is frought with disaster.

[hathor]

We did it in 3 months. It was an empty space that hadn't been used since the 12th century. Easy to clean, already stripped, but we had to lay all the utility lines.

The food suffered, the wait staff suffered, the boh suffered...our customers suffered. I sincerely don't recommend it.

I know you've been dealt this. I know that which does not kill us makes us strong...but step back from the urgency and decide what compromises and sacrifices you are willing to make, as there will be many. Then decide if it even makes sense. Sit in a room, alone, and think about it.

[tb86]

Don't take offense to this, but are you nuts???  What kind of circumstances are forcing this? (You needn't answer, it's more rhetorical)

I mean really, if that's the constraints you better be in touch with your dept of health ASAP because there's a lot to deal with them.  Get your floor plans and layout together.  Meet with contractors.  Do you have any restaurant experience?  If you're a first-time restauranteur, this kind of approach is frought with disaster.

←

yes i question my own sanity, on a daily basis, it was 30 days 7 have passed kitchen is finished very nice all electrolux the works, foh is gonna be done by the first, i live in thailand so we have about triple the amount of skilled workers at about 1/4 the price working 24hrs a daycrazy to go home at night, come back in the morning and the place looks totaly different.

This will be my 4th opening, bernardus lodge in carmel, providence in la, the new aquavit in nyc, so im ok with the process. were running a friends and family for a month before we launch, just feel like beating my head against a wall sometimes like when you hear the sure we can get those for you,,,,,,, in 90 days....

[KarenDW]

As this is your 4th opening, of course, you have arranged for an off-site kitchen so that menu testing and staff training can be done whilst construction occurs.

[Jakea222]

It sounds like to me you are rocking and rolling - getting vendors set up it the only challenge I see from your post...the rest is tough but do able. You have a long few weeks - labor as you said if you have good ones training should not be as hard then - I would not open anything in the US right now the economy is a killer!

[tb86]

As this is your 4th opening, of course, you have arranged for an off-site kitchen so that menu testing and staff training can be done whilst construction occurs.

←

nope kitchen is done today, 22 days left to test. unpacked with sous chef today and stages start on friday

[RAHiggins1]

As this is your 4th opening, of course, you have arranged for an off-site kitchen so that menu testing and staff training can be done whilst construction occurs.

←

nope kitchen is done today, 22 days left to test. unpacked with sous chef today and stages start on friday

←

It sounds like you know what you are doing. I think maybe you could tell us how to do it. Maybe do a write up on business plan, contracting the design, development, construction. Layout a timeframe and what hurdles you can expect to cross, licensing, permits, etc..

I'd love to get my own place started but it all seems so daunting and risky.

Share your wisdom.

[tb86]

It sounds like you know what you are doing. I think maybe you could tell us how to do it. Maybe do a write up on business plan, contracting the design, development, construction. Layout a timeframe and what hurdles you can expect to cross, licensing, permits, etc..

I'd love to get my own place started but it all seems so daunting and risky.

Share your wisdom.

Less to do with wisdom, more border line obsessive compulsive behavior, our budget is crazy small 70,000 for large kitchen eq and construction that includes hoods and duct work... 60 for all foh construction and design tables chairs ect. 25,000 for everything else pots, pans, plates, silver, glasses..... Graphic design 1,000. PR 10,000, Opening inventory 3k for a grand total of 169,000... usd of course it will go lot further here than in the us when it comes to labor ect.. But our prices for western equipment are much higher due to our import taxes. Example pacojet ate 7,500 of our 25,000 small wares budget.... hurts, lot when you gotta buy plates and a espresso machine, by the way why in the hell do they need to be so expensive? Its not like they are terribly complicated machines, but whatever.. I will start to post some pics of the place and food/ sample menus if you guys want, as we speak im staring at a custom wood place setting, trying to figure out why it went horribly wrong and how to remedy it by friday......

Edited June 18, 2008 by tb86 (log)

[tb86]

oh yeah i left out the bribe money, amazing that a little cash will make liquor, and all other permits just materialize ..... gotta love 3rd world policies

[tb86]

It sounds like to me you are rocking and rolling - getting vendors set up it the only challenge I see from your post...the rest is tough but do able.  You have a long few weeks - labor as you said if you have good ones training should not be as hard then - I would not open anything in the US right now the economy is a killer!

←

Yeah were standing on the brink of another coup de ta, should be big fun.... oh the new government is only 4 months old,,,,, and already the natives are restless.. power compay is threatening to shut off power to all govt offices, seems the owe 500,000 usd in elect bills, surely not a good sign, but this is amazing thailand .......

[scottie]

I helped open a restaurant here in NYC a few months ago. It was a turnkey operation, so fortunately most permits and vendors, etc., were already in place. We had three days to turn it around: cleaning, painting, new menus, ordering, cooking stocks and sauces, it was nuts.

The planning process was about two weeks long. Recipe testing happened while we were already open. Staff training happened on the fly. It was all on the fly, and I'm proud to say that four months later the restaurant is doing really well. We enjoyed a good review in New York magazine, as well as a few good mentions in some other local rags.

The first month, we had a hell of a lot of people turn around and walk out when they learned there were no longer any crepes available. But now they love it. It was crazy, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Good luck to you!

[chefgregory]

Have any of you guys attempted to open a place in less than a month? this includes all construction staffing training, ordering, planning and costing..... not the ideal situation i know, but its what i have been dealt. Any advice and or tips??

←

I never started from scratch before, the when I bought the pub, one of my biggest saving grace was the 4 hour I spent building a time line on my computer.

It's hard to coordinate and keep a lot of workers focused and on task - for me; stapling the time line (which did change a little over time:-) to the wall for all the contractors to see _really_ helped.

My advice, don't just pay people - reward them with extras!

Cheers

GB

[tb86]

20 days to go, pacojet came, graphic design all done, wine glasses and water, drink glasses showed up, foh uniforms came yesterday.... getting there, our first pre soft opening opening parties are scheduled for the first but its only 35 ppl for a sit down, and a passed desert event for 300 on the same day but its luckily in the same building as we are in,.

[RAHiggins1]

20 days to go, pacojet came, graphic design all done, wine glasses and water, drink glasses showed up, foh uniforms came yesterday.... getting there, our first pre soft opening opening parties are scheduled for the first but its only 35 ppl for a sit down, and a passed desert event for 300 on the same day but its luckily in the same building as we are in,.

←

I require pictures. Food, facility, staff, etc..