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#1
03-26-2007, 11:59 AM
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Opening a bar/restaurant
My friend Glenn and I have been talking for over a year about opening a bar/restaurant, and it looks like we’re finally going to actually do it. Here’s a little background...
-Together we have 15+ years working in and managing restaurants. -We both have excellent credit, so we should be able to get a business loan. -Glenn’s father successfully owned two restaurants in Chicago in the ‘80's and made a few million dollars. Unfortunately, he blew all his money on cars, women, coke, gambling, etc, and had to sell his stores to pay his debts. He’s someone we can go to for advice. Atleast on how to make money. -Glenn has a family recipe for some delicious food... steaks, rib tips and pork chops. I’ve seen people literally eat his food at BBQ’s until they throw up. It’s that good. I know Dids or guids (I get them confused) has been talking about doing this same thing, so maybe you can chime in with some advice here too. Anyways, here’s what we have so far... Drink Specials Monday- Military night- 50% off drinks with a valid military ID Tuesday- Law Enforcement night- 50% off drinks with a badge Wednesday- Tatoo night- $1 off drinks if you show us your tatoo Thursday- Industry night- $3 cover, $1 domestic drafts for resturant workers (must show current pay stub from resturant) Friday - College night- $4 domestic pitchers, $1 off shots with valid college ID Saturday - THE SPECIAL (see below) Sunday- Bears day- $1.50 drafts if you are wearing Bears clothes (This can run all year or only during football season) I was also thinking something like .35 cent Buffalo Wings THE SPECIAL- Starting at 7pm, all domestic drafts are 50 cents. The first time someone goes to the bathroom or leaves, the price goes up 50 cents. This continues on until the price is $2.00, where it stays all night. Also $2.50 shots and $3.00 well drinks. Other attractions... Live Music (I figure we can charge a small cover and the band gets a share of that) Kareokee TV's with NFL Total Access and NCAA College Gameday packages UFC and Boxing Pay Per Views Outdoor Patio Bean Bag game... Leave credit card at bar as deposit for bags Other possible specials- Gun night- discount for NRA members or if you have a FOID card Bike night- discount for motorcycle owners Big Game night- Big sports game on TV, discount for people wearing home team's clothes Outdoor night- Discount for valid fishing/hunting liscense Big Lebowski night- $3.00 White Russians and the movie plays on the TV Month of January- Almost Summer Month- $4 Margitas and Pina Coladas and other "umbrella drinks" $3 Long Island Iced Teas In Illinois, minimum wage for people working for tips is $3.90. We want to pay slightly more than that so we can get good people with a good attitude with good experience. Here's how I see the pay scale.... Servers $5.25/hr Bartenders $6.00/hr Host/Hostess $5.50/hr Cooks $8.50/hr Busboy/Dishwasher $6.50/hr "Shot Girls" $5/hr. They would buy the shots from us for $2.50 each and re-sell them for $3.00. They keep all their tips and profit from shots. Servers tip out 3% of thier total sales, 1% each to bartender, busboy/dishwasher, and host/hostess Bartenders tip out 2%, 1% each to busboy/dishwasher and host/hostess That way we can pay them less than minimum wage and they can still average $12-$15/hr, plus it makes the host/hostess try their best to be polite and give great customer service, because the more business we get, the more money we make. Menu items I was thinking of Appetizers/Snacks... Nachos Wings Fries Onion Rings Cheese Sticks Chicken Fingers Texas Cheese Fries Main Items Breaded/Grill Chicken Sandwich Meatball Sandwich Italian Beef Italian Sausage BBQ Ribs An entire section for burgers Friday Night All You Can Eat Fish Fry And of course all of the delicious stuff that Glenn makes. We’re looking to set up shop somewhere in the West suburbs of Chicago. If you live out here, or if you just enjoy going to bars and restaurants, let me know what it is you like and dislike about the places you go to. We don’t want to be a trendy hangout for 21-25 year olds, but we also don’t want to be a super-classy $16 Martini place, or a hole in the wall bar. We’re trying to create a place that everyone of all ages can enjoy and have a good time. Thanks for your advice in advance. Cliff's notes... Want to open a bar/restaurant and need advice. 
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#3
03-26-2007, 12:10 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
[ QUOTE ]
I’ve seen people literally eat his food at BBQ’s until they throw up. It’s that good. [/ QUOTE ] lol
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#4
03-26-2007, 12:11 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
My initial reaction:
1. You're trying to be too many things. Cop night, tattooed-people night, band night, sports bar on weekends, etc. It will be difficult, if not impossible, to build an identity. 2. If your friend's father was successful in the business, see if he has connections for possible investors. I have a feeling it will not be easy to get a loan (see above post about high failure rate)
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#6
03-26-2007, 12:30 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] Dids or guids (I get them confused) [/ QUOTE ] I'd be willing to bet that doesn't happen much. [/ QUOTE ] I almost considered not responding due to that little "comment". Hithard, search for guids and restaurant, and you should find some threads I started. One thing that I dont think was covered in any of my threds, is the small business loan. It is almost impossible to get a small business loan to open a restaurant, the only way to do it, is to buy an actual piece of property, and get a loan for the property, even then the restauarant/bar has to occupy at least 51% of the total space before they will give you a loan (at least that was what my rep at USbank has said). You may have to get more "creative" than you think if you dont have a lot of cash to put down, if you have good credit, becuase w/o outside investors it is pretty much impossible to get a loan specifically for a restaurant or bar.
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#8
03-26-2007, 12:34 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
Ps, "the special" night will drive away girls, Ive seen this promo done at a couple college towns and here in st louis, it is a total sausage fest because no chicks wants to have the spotlight on her as she gets done pee'ing. It also looks like the crowd you are trying to attract is probably going to be a rough one (bad), but hard drinking (good), make sure you get some good security guys if you are going into more of a bar direction.
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#9
03-26-2007, 12:34 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
There are way too many "conditions" for drink specials. Too much micromanaging to see if you've gone to the bathroom. Try to make it simple. People like 1/2 price appetizer specials, draft beer specials, football game wings discounts, etc. Make it accessible to everyone, not just military or police officers. If you want to go for a 10% off for cops and military on top of everything, that's up to you.
At a bar near me, they have a thing where you buy a nice looking stein for $100 or whatever, and during the year, you can get the stein filled with beer for $2, anytime. They hang the steins up and number them, so you know which is yours. It makes people feel like this is "their" bar.
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#10
03-26-2007, 12:36 PM
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Re: Opening a bar/restaurant
[ QUOTE ]
Glenn’s father successfully owned two restaurants in Chicago in the ‘80's and made a few million dollars. Unfortunately, he blew all his money on cars, women, coke, gambling, etc, [/ QUOTE ] ? Seems like a worthwhile cause to me.
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