One week into the restaurant business

[tinknal]

Well, to start I now know how to spell "restaurant" without getting gigged by spell-check.

I've already dropped soup and salad. Just didn't sell. I had a couple of soup orders and no salad orders. I might try soup again when I have enough ham bones. It is clear that I am going to live or die by my burgers. It's so simple to make a good burger. There is only one secret and that is FRESH BEEF!. Everyone else goes with the frozen patties and they just are not the same. My "Big Al" burger is a half pound, on Texas toast with garlic sauteed mushrooms, bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles. The basket has home made fries served with malt vinegar (also a new thing for the locals). I watched a petite little princess (she really was a doll) tear into one today like a starving lumberjack.

I've been stubborn with my pulled pork. It is not a local favorite but I am bringing people around., Again, fresh pork, home made sauce. I've added a pulled pork Quesadilla. the beauty of this is that it only requires one (cheap) ingredient that I didn't already have on hand (tortillas). Every once in a while I spread out a bunch of nacho chips on a platter and put a dab of pulled pork on them and hand them out as samples. People like my chili,( not my kind of chili) they like beans and tomatoes here, but the chili cheese nachos are a hit.

Every few days I make a batch of huge chocolate chip cookies. I sell them for a buck.

Wednesday while it was slow I walked up and down the street and handed out fliers and menus to local businesses. On Friday (I'm closed Thursdays) I had a great lunch crowd ( I LOVE mechanics, they get paid good and like to eat). If I can establish a good lunch crowd it will make the difference between success and failure.

I think the key is a few ingredients that can be used in a multitude of ways. My chili can go in a bowl, on chili cheese fries, on chili cheese nachos, and on chili cheese dogs.

Pulled pork goes into a sandwich, or the Quesadillas (Hey, that just gave me an idea, pulled pork cheese nachos). Add ons are huge. Black olives, sour cream, jalapenos, onions. Fifty cents for stuff that Sams Club sells for pennies. The best hundred dollars I ever spent is on the devise that turns a potato into french fries in about a second. I think I'm going to spend another hundred dollars in a thing that turns potatoes into chips (again, in about a second). G-d bless the humble potato. Fries, chips, hash browns.

I haven't sold a lot of breakfast food (served all day) but I'm sticking with it because it is so easy (and profitable).

The extra 15 cents I spend by putting another potato in an order of fries is the best money ever spent. I don't EVER want someone leaving feeling like they got gyped.

I've gotten great reviews. I think the best one I got was today, from the aforementioned little gal who savaged the Big Al basket. When I asked how it was she said, AMAZING!

[AngieM2]

Congratulations on doing so well and learning so much!

I hope that the reports continue to be as glowing for you.

Angie

[Sawmill Jim]

Note to self don't read these Big Al reports this time of night

It is 11.30 and i am now starving Wish you the best sounds great

[Vernitta]

That is so cool! Congratulations!

lol For some reason this reminded me of a little restaurant my family and I went to a couple of months ago. Here's an excerpt from when I wrote about it on our blog.

When we started to get hungry we decided to try out a little "hole in the wall" restaurant. Our friends decided to eat at the river. So, we climb into the Land Cruiser and head on down the road. We stop at the second restaurant we see. There were signs advertising "Fried Chicken", "Dinner starts at 5", "Home cooking". We park in back and walk around to the front. We step through the only door that didn't say "Employees Only", right into a bar. Here's this family of five, three small kids, standing in a bar. Oh if the pastor could see us now. Someone asks if they could help us. Jarrod's like, "Umm, we want food". A man gets up and says he hopes we like fried chicken. Well, if you know Jarrod then you know he LIKES fried chicken. Loves friend chicken. A lady comes up to us and asks if we want to sit in the bar or in the dining room. I'm sure you don't have to guess our answer. We said the bar! Just kidding. They weren't kidding when they said "Dinner starts at 5". They had to turn the lights on for us and light all the candles at the tables. The lady asked if we wanted fried chicken (we said "sure") and said it would be 15 minutes. Then another lady comes in and Jarrod asks for a menu. Her response? "We don't have any. We are serving fried chicken today." She asks if we want some water to which we respond, "sure". When she comes back with the water Jarrod asks if they have anything else to drink. Her reply was "at the bar". We stuck with our water. I had gotten up to use the facilities. When I came back I noticed the floor was really leaning to one side. When Crimson spilled her water our assumptions were correct. All the water went to one side. The lady came back and asked if she could take our order. I didn't know what to say. "Umm, chicken?" Oh, she wanted to know what piece of chicken. The chicken was really really good. Oh, the gravy!

They had really good food and we would definately go there again.

[tinknal]

Originally Posted by Sawmill Jim

Note to self don't read these Big Al reports this time of night

It is 11.30 and i am now starving Wish you the best sounds great

I could mail you one, but not sure they travel well.......

[Reptyle]

Originally Posted by Sawmill Jim

Note to self don't read these Big Al reports this time of night

It is 11.30 and i am now starving Wish you the best sounds great

What he said...

[tamsam]

Our local rest. here makes a wonderful stacked ham and swiss sandwich on a bun. The ham must be 3/4 inch thick and loaded with cheese. They heat the ham on the grill to melt the swiss. Another one is the cheese, fries with pieces of bacon on them. Dang now I may have to have a snack.
A big congrads on your business. Make good food for a good price and people will come. Sam

[Ken Scharabok]

Have you contacted the local newspaper and suggested they do a food story on you? Offer a free meal/tasting to their food reporter/critic. Even suggest titles, such as "The Big Al Burger Basket: Best in town" or a they publish article such as:

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

VFW Post #XXX Now Offering Food Service

After being absent for X years VFW Post #XXX again offers food service. Al XXXXX has reopened the kitchen and now offers a varied menu tailored to fresh quality and local tastes. Among the menu offerings are...... (Highlight your burger basket as fresh, never frozen burgers, buns and homemade French fries). Servings can be requested either at the bar or table. Hours are...

Don't hide your light under a basket.

[gladetop]

Back home in Missouri the best bbq joint serves bbq nachos with pulled pork or brisket. Everybody gets an order for an appetizer. There awesome. You should really try it.

[Cheribelle]

Hey! Glad your first week went so well! You sound still enthused, and your menu sounds perfect.

[FarmerChick]

WOW I am so happy to hear you are doing well and gung ho on your new business.

In this economy you are doing fab!!!


One thing???

should you be closed on Thursdays? Thiursday is when most people get paid in my area and want to go out to lunch and spend money.


Most restuarants are closed Sunday and Monday here. Then hit that Tues-Sat business.


just wondering

[WolfWalksSoftly]

Soup and Salad didn't go over well ? Must not have a large Women lunch crowd YET. Maybe make it a one day a week lunch special or do a mini Soup and Salad Bar.
Ham and Bean's is also a cheap, easy and hearty meal.
Good Luck.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Glad to hear things are going well so far for you in the new buisness. Don't get discouraged, I've been a waitress for over 30 years & January is the slowest month for Restaurants.
Since we've moved North I work at a little Hole in the wall place. Most everything is homemade & the food is really good. A younger couple owns it, they've been there going on 17 years now & we are litterally in the middle of no where.
They keep there menu not to big & change a couple things once a year. Specials are usually things that are NOT already on the menu so folks like that too.
Soup & salad Bar is a daily special & it goes pretty well here. He makes his soup's homemade & folks know he makes really good soup's.
Only myself & 2 other employee's so they keep payroll down but usually I make good money, April will be 5 years since I started working there.

Word of Mouth is your best weapon, get your new restaurant out there as many ways as you can, maybe have some kind of coupon printed up in a local newspaper for $1.00 off a Burger Basket or something like that.

Don't give up, we need more places like yours & less Fast food places. Better food, Better for you too!
Good Luck & congratulations!

Oh, & they are closed on Wednseday's there.

[ronbre]

if i ever get to Minn i'll want to try your pulled pork and chili..as i'm a huge fan.

[Beeman]

Congratulations. Living and dieing by your hamburgers is a good thing. Now set out to make burgers that the food network would come to eat. Have you tried any variations?, maybe a pizza burger, chili cheeseburger or oddball stuff like an egg on it. Fresh burgers are worth traveling to a restaurant for so if it works go with it.
Potatoes are obviously your friend especially when it comes to heaping the plate full. How about onion rings?, have you tried fresh ones?
No soup or salad? Don't tell me the vegetarian menu didn't work either.

[willow_girl]

I'm glad you're having fun! I'd love to work in a little place like that with REAL food. I waitressed all through high school and college, and loved it.

I think the key is a few ingredients that can be used in a multitude of ways.

You hit the nail on the head there! Waste will hurt your bottom line like nothing else.

Good luck and best wishes for your continued success!

[Annie in MN]

You had me at garlic sauteed mushrooms.

[tinknal]

Originally Posted by FarmerChick

One thing???

should you be closed on Thursdays? Thiursday is when most people get paid in my area and want to go out to lunch and spend money.


Most restuarants are closed Sunday and Monday here. Then hit that Tues-Sat business.


just wondering

Not my choice. The VFW and American Legion have functions on almost every Thursday that preclude my from using the kitchen at least part of the day. Since I need a day off now and then it makes most sense to just close on Thursday.

[reese]

LOL>..ditto here Annie...I wouldn't even be able to eat half of it though. That's a family sized meal in one LOL>.

[navygirl]

Yay! Congrats on you sucess and wishing you much more in the future!