Location is everything
You might have an incredible concept, a well-trained staff and the best menu, but without a good location, your restaurant is doomed to fail. In the 30 years she's been in business, Paola Bottero moved her Manhattan eatery three times before settling on her current location. Marco Pipolo, owner and executive chef of Marcony Ristorante in New York City has learned valuable lessons from each of the five restaurants he's owned, but one of the most important is that location can make or break your business.
Daniel Shemtob, owner of Los Angeles-based TLT Food, got his start in the industry with his mobile restaurant called The Lime Truck. While lower inventory costs and the ability to move around mean a much lower risk when starting a food truck, location can still present an issue.
"On our first day, [my co-founder and I] were in the middle of nowhere — we didn't have propane to cook, and the truck wouldn't start," said Shemtob, who recalled having to hotwire the truck and wait for someone to come help them. "Then, there are other factors, like traffic," he added.
Experience helps tremendously
Getting your bearings in the restaurant industry as a first-timer can be difficult. If you don't have any previous experience in the business yourself, it's important to partner with or hire someone who does.
When Astarita started his restaurant, he and his partner had worked on both the food preparation and management sides of the industry, but he didn't know much about commercial leases.
"I wish I had understood how to negotiate them when I started," he said. "I think that any new restaurateur who is unfamiliar with commercial leases should hire a lawyer who specializes in that field."
Tony Doyle, owner of HK Hospitality Group, has worked in restaurants since age 12 and has opened several successful restaurants, but he still had a lot to learn when he opened his first establishment.