From Food Truck to Restaurant: Establishing Your Brick-and-Mortar Business

From Food Truck to Restaurant: Establishing Your Brick-and-Mortar Business

by | Jul 29, 2016 | Management

Your ultimate dream was to open a restaurant, but you didn’t have a lot of money. So instead you opened a food truck – and it’s been a soaring success. Your customers love your food, and you feel confident in moving forward to bigger things. So what’s the next logical step? Opening that brick-and-mortar store, of course! And, here are a few things to keep in mind.

Review your original goals

Why did you want to open a food truck in the first place? Was it because you wanted to be a chef while being your own boss? Maybe it was a step forward in your strategy to grow your business. Whatever the reasons, successful food truck owners should consider how they want to grow professionally before pursuing brick-and-mortar options. If it doesn’t fit in with your plans, perhaps you should stick to the truck. But for those looking to expand, moving on to a restaurant could be a great idea.

You might discover that a particular location is too crime-heavy for your tastes, or it may prove better than you expected.

Consider various locations

Take advantage of the mobile nature of the food truck. Use it to scope out the neighborhoods where you’re considering opening an established restaurant. You might discover that a particular location is too crime-heavy for your tastes, or it may prove better than you expected. It’s also a way to test whether your customers will follow you to purchase your food. If so, then chances are they’ll go out of their way to check out your new restaurant.

Run the numbers

It’s no surprise that brick-and-mortar restaurants require many more additional expenses than the food truck. Besides renting the building, you would need to purchase decor and insurance as well as hiring additional staff. And that doesn’t include the need for more food. Consider the cost versus the profit, and look over past accounting records for your food truck. You’ll need to know what sells and what doesn’t as you consider your options.

Consider the cost versus the profit, and look over past accounting records for your food truck.

Plan your strategy

Reevaluate your menu and figure out if you need to add any items. Consider sticking to a simple menu to minimize potential food waste. You will also need to allocate your resources. Keep in mind the amount of time management required for scheduling future employees and food prep. If you decide to add new items, figure out the best places to purchase the food while keeping to your budget.

What about the truck?

If you open a brick-and-mortar restaurant that will be open year-round, you may need to re-examine what purpose your food truck serves towards the success of your business. Depending on your circumstances and location, perhaps the truck will continue its normal route as it has in the past.

Another option is to offer catering for special events, such as birthday parties or local concerts. Regardless of the truck’s new role, it will double as a mobile advertisement for your new location. Without needing to invest any additional funds, your food truck will become an indispensable marketing tool.

Regardless of the truck’s new role, it will double as a mobile advertisement for your new location.

You may also decide to run the truck only during the warmer months and keep your business strictly to your anchored establishment throughout the winter. If your area experiences regular cold and harsh winters, this move can be a boon to your business when previously you only had the truck. The brick-and-mortar establishment will provide a safe haven to your customers who may want to purchase your food but would rather not face the elements.

Don’t forget the legal issues

Leasing a property can be complicated. Remember to take care when negotiating lease terms and consider hiring an attorney to make sure everything is as it should be.

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What Makes A Great Line Cook

What Makes A Great Line Cook

by | Jul 6, 2016 | Career

Few line cooks want to be cooking on the line for the rest of their culinary careers. Most dream of becoming head chef or even opening their own restaurants somewhere down the road. That is why most line cooks do it, to learn the ropes of the restaurant industry, get valuable hands-on experience in a kitchen and rise up the ranks. So what can you do to make yourself a better line cook and stand out in a crowded field? Let’s find out!

Show up on time

The importance of punctuality in the restaurant industry cannot be understated. Why? Because the meal service will start on time regardless of whether or not you are ready.

If you show up late or miss a prep, then somebody else have to cover your work and their own, delaying the entire kitchen’s flow. This will also send a negative message to the higher-ups. All in all, no one will be happy with you.

The importance of punctuality in the restaurant industry cannot be understated.

This is not the kind of attention you want to draw. The very first step in being a great line cook is simply showing up on time for the shifts you are scheduled. Not too hard right?

Prep your mis en place

Preparation goes a long way in making your life easier when the restaurant gets busy and you have numerous tickets to fill. When the tickets start coming in, you want to be able to focus on the food without worrying about chopping up your mis en place or making stock.

When you’re not fully prepared with your mis en place, you’ll end up distracting yourself from the incoming orders to chop more vegetables or make more stock and usually the overall quality of the dish suffers when you can’t give it your complete focus.

If you want to prove to head chefs that you have what it takes to move up in the industry, prepare your mis en place and be on top of your tickets.

Ready your station before service begins

Sure, you might not be busy right at five o’clock when service starts, but that does not mean your station should not be ready for a full on dinner rush.

Once again preparation is key to being a great line cook.

Once again preparation is key to being a great line cook. Those who prepare stand out to head chefs and other industry professionals, so make sure that you have enough clean dishes at your station, all your pots, pans, tongs, and other utensils are clean and ready to go, and of course make sure your mis en place is already prepared.

The last thing you want to be doing is scrambling around to get clean dishes in the middle of a dinner rush because that is your time to shine and do your best cooking.

Give every dish your all

Some nights will be harder than others to find the motivation and inspiration to give your best performance, but that is no excuse not to give everything you have every night.

It’s key to remember that for the customers, this is their night out or their special dinner. They came out and are spending good money for the food you are making.

Don’t let them down because they may never come back to your restaurant if they had a bad time, and that is very bad for business.

Clean, clean, clean

When your shift is over, clean your station and the kitchen thoroughly. If you see other stations that haven’t been cleaned properly, take it upon yourself to make sure it’s done right. After all, there is nothing worse than working in a dirty kitchen.

After all, there is nothing worse than working in a dirty kitchen.

In addition to cleaning, be sure to organize your area. This will not only help you when starting your next shift, but show your superiors that you know what it takes to lead, and someday run, a restaurant kitchen.

Working hard and going above and beyond to make sure the job is done right is a great way to stick out to a head chef. If you want to be a great line cook and move up the ladder of the restaurant industry, you have to be willing to do more than is required and always have a positive attitude.

Find Cook jobs on Sirvo now →

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Open Call Departure Restaurant Denver

Open Call Departure Restaurant Denver

by | Jun 20, 2016 | Sirvo Stories

Departure Restaurant, the newest concept from the Sage Restaurant Group, is now hiring for all positions and will be holding an open call this Friday, June 24th. Don’t miss your chance to join this thriving team!

Must come prepared with a copy of your resume.

Or apply ahead of time at www.sagerestaurantgroup.jobs

When & Where

Friday, June 24th 2016

11:00 am – 2:00pm

2817 E. 3rd Avenue

Denver, CO 80206

Now hiring for:

  • Restaurant Servers
  • Bussers
  • Runners
  • Bartenders
  • Hosts
  • Cooks
  • Dishwashers
  • Banquet Servers
  • Banquet Housemen

How to Behave at a Sushi Restaurant

How to Behave at a Sushi Restaurant

by | Jun 17, 2016 | IndiNews

Everyone seems to be eating sushi these days. What some people do not realize, however, is that eating this traditional Japanese food comes with its own set of rules, most of which are in regards to showing respect to the chef that prepared the food. If you would like to learn how to behave at a sushi restaurant, here are some things you should know.

Sushi is Art

Traditionally, one learns to appreciate art by going to a museum or gallery to observe it. The beginning sushi chef starts his or her career by watching other sushi chefs for as long as the first month of training. Chefs use certain body movements and ways of cutting and arranging the food that results in beautiful arrays that vary in color, texture, size and taste, and, therefore, a true culinary art. The appearance of the sushi is as important to the chef as the flavor, so one should take his time to observe and appreciate the food when it is served.

If seated at the bar, it is proper etiquette to order sushi directly from the chef, but to reserve drink orders for the wait staff.

If one would like to see the artful process involved in making the sushi, he or she should request to sit at the bar in front of the prep area. If seated at the bar, it is proper etiquette to order sushi directly from the chef, but to reserve drink orders for the wait staff.

If a tip jar is provided at the bar, it is proper to place tips into it. However, if no jar is available, tipping the regular way when the check arrives is perfectly acceptable.

Chopsticks

Although some people prefer to eat sushi with their fingers, which is perfectly acceptable, it is most commonly eaten with chopsticks. There are all kinds of chopsticks. However, unless the sushi restaurant is a particularly high-end establishment that provides high-gloss, finely carved chopsticks, the sticks are usually provided in thin paper packages that diners open and extract themselves.

It is considered insulting to the sushi chef to rub the chopsticks together to remove these splinters, because this indicates that the sticks are inferior, so just leave them.

Upon opening chopsticks, one often finds they are joined at one end. A quick pull about midway down the stick will liberate one from the other, which is good, but sometimes, one detects small splinters of wood protruding from the area where the sticks were broken apart. Believe it or not, it is considered insulting to the sushi chef to rub the chopsticks together to remove these splinters, because this indicates that the sticks are inferior, so just leave them, unless they appear in areas that obstruct the fingers, or there is a danger of consuming them.

If one is dining from a communal table where the sushi is served on a shared platter, the chopsticks should be reversed to their wider ends to remove the food, and then flipped to the pointed ends for eating.

Condiments and Dipping

Sushi is usually served with certain condiments, such as soy sauce, a green horseradish called, “wasabi,” and thinly-sliced, preserved ginger. Diners are provided with small, shallow bowls to hold the soy sauce, and often use their chopsticks to place a little of the wasabi into the sauce and mix it with their chopsticks for an added flavor kick. However, This practice is considered incorrect. The wasabi should be dabbed onto each piece separately as it is eaten, and used sparingly.

 When prepared correctly, sushi is finely crafted with perfect, delicate balances of flavor that are overshadowed by the flavor of the ginger.

Dipping the fish side of the sushi into the soy sauce keeps the food in place. Dipping the rice side in can cause the rice to dislodge and fall into the sauce, which can again, insult the chef. However, the bites should be eaten with the rice side down, so the taste buds will not be overwhelmed by the salty flavors of the sauce.

Never place ginger directly onto the sushi. When prepared correctly, sushi is finely crafted with perfect, delicate balances of flavor that are overshadowed by the flavor of the ginger. The pink condiment should be consumed between bites to cleanse the palate in preparation for the next bite.

Gratitude

In addition to a tip, a polite “thanks” should be given to the chef and/ or staff. A quick, “domo arigato” is sufficient, but “thank you” will also suffice.

Sidenote: If you love sushi and you’re looking for a job, find opportunities with top sushi restaurants on Sirvo!

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Catering Company ‘Eat Offbeat’ Staffs Kitchen With Refugees

Catering Company ‘Eat Offbeat’ Staffs Kitchen With Refugees

by | Apr 25, 2016 | IndiNews

From traditional Nepalese dumplings and Iraqi baba ghanouj to heaping containers of East African lentils, the variety of authentic cuisines prepared in the kitchen of New York City catering and delivery company Eat Offbeat spans the globe.

Even more refreshing? So do the men and women who make up its kitchen staff. In fact, all seven of Eat Offbeat’s employees came to the United States as asylum seekers or refugees who fled other countries. And, not one of them had any prior professional culinary experience.

One of the company’s two founders, Manal Kahi, who plans to continue to hire and train refugees to work in the kitchen, explains that her motivation is partly humanitarian and partly business-savvy. She and her co-founder/brother, Wissam Kahi, believe that in a city saturated with excellent ethnic cuisine, their hiring practices lend them a way to stand out from the crowd.

We are really focusing on these new and off-the-beaten-path cuisines. Refugees are coming from countries that have cuisines we don’t really know…it’s not cuisines that you find at every corner.

The experience of being an international transplant in New York is one that Manal understands well having moved to the city from Lebanon as a student. Coincidentally, in 2014 when she started considering the possibility of running her own kitchen, Syrians had begun fleeing their homes in droves heading for her native Lebanon.

Ruminating on how she could contribute to the humanitarian efforts to aid the Syrian refugees, Manal stumbled upon the idea of employing them to make the traditional recipes she had come to love.

I was feeling very hopeless about it. When I got this idea of making hummus, I thought maybe Syrian refugees could be making it.

While other aspects of her eventual business plan changed, the idea of employing refugees remained. To get the ball rolling, Manal, having recognized the impact that an industry influencer could bring to her cause, enlisted the help of high-profile chef Juan Suarez de Lezo. By then partnering with the International Rescue Committee, an organization with a humanitarian mission to resettle refugees and asylum seekers, Manal and her brother were able get staffing underway.

Now, only five months into their soft launch phase, Eat Offbeat is already preparing nearly 200 meals each week out of a rented commercial kitchen in Queens. While catering is only currently available for groups of at least 10 people, plans are in the works to open up delivery to individuals.

As for the menu, that is expected to change as well, with Manal planning to take dishes out of the rotation if and when the employee who makes the recipe leaves her employ.

We want to keep it tied to them.

While every employee learns how to make recipes other than his or her own, Manal shares that retiring dishes from the menu is a nod to the fact that Eat Offbeat is just as much about celebrating people as it is about the food those people make.

Wherever they go from here, it seems clear that Manal and her brother have a bright future in the culinary industry. After a successful start in New York, any other market should prove child’s play. As Frank Sinatra famously sang, if you can make it there you’ll make it anywhere.