Restaurants and Institutions

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Prologue: It's Time to Open a Restaurant, So Where to Begin?
July 13, 2006

Stu Stein

July 13, 2006
There was no epiphany, no blinding white light and no Beethoven symphony playing in the background. It was, and is, a compilation of time, experience, luck, money and much frustration. Dante said there are nine circles of hell; Elisabeth Kübler-Ross said there are five stages of grief.

I say there are 11 stages involved in starting a restaurant.

•Come up with a Great Idea;

•Write a business plan
(see the table of contents);

•Look for the perfect place;

•Beg for money;

•Pay too much for a lawyer, architect and graphic designer;

•Get really frustrated;

•Get really excited and concentrate on the details;

•Get really frustrated again;

•Build-out, purveyor negotiating and employee hiring;

•Get really frustrated yet again;

•Open.

Yes, I know there are numerous steps in between, and much of the detail is missing, but it is my intention to fill in some of that detail as we continue on with this blog.

It will be an interactive forum to discuss what is involved in opening a restaurant in general and specifically, Terroir Restaurant & Wine Bar, the seasonal-sustainable Pacific Northwest small-plate restaurant I’m opening next spring in Portland, Ore. It will have everything you could want in a story: intrigue, great characters, mystery, immaculate plotting, plus wit and warmth!

OK, maybe not. But my blog will follow the journey of a business startup and the pitfalls and successes related to the restaurant and hospitality industries. It will encompasses the Pacific Northwest, an area exploding with growth, and also will touch on sustainable issues (local purveyors, eco-building techniques, local artisans and environmentally sustainable practices) that are moving beyond trendy to become firmly engrained in the mainstream.

Cheers!
Stu

Posted by Stu Stein on July 13, 2006 | Comments (0)