03.28.08
Breaking it down
So, friends….Evangeline has made more progress this week than we have in 6 months. We are CLOSE. The equipment is in, the paint is done, tile is shiny, fire suppression system is installed. The door we had to demolish to get the low-boy 93″ long cooler with 6 drawers in, is now replaced. The Evangeline Pig is on the window, awaiting the rest of the acrylic to be installed.
Joe and Sean are building a KILLER wine program. Mitch is building everything. He just wants to cook, but has successfully installed the door mentioned above, AND installed a phone. Two firsts for Mitch. More on that later.
We met with Rob Tod, owner and brewer of Allagash, here in Portland. Rob’s beers will be featured in our wine program. More on that later as well.
What really stuck with me today (aside from BACON IN A GLASS…..more on THAT later as well…thanks, Joe Ricchio), was an interaction with a gentleman in line at a coffee shop…..
GENT: “You’re the fella who ran Bandol……When is Evangeline opening?”
ME: “Soon! Thanks for asking!”
GENT: “Well, it had BETTER be CHEAP!”
ME: “How do you mean?”
GENT: “Will you have Steak Frites?”
ME: “Naturally!”
GENT: “How much?”
ME: “Well, a 12oz _______ steak plate for under $20 bucks.”
Gent: “What about Whole Roast Chicken???”
ME: “I think about $28 bucks for a whole fat chicken for two……served in three courses, good garniture, some sauce. Presented tableside…..”
GENT: “Escargot?”
ME: “Farm raised, fresh, tender snails….about 10 for $8 bucks, garlic butter, etc..not the canned leather globules….”
GENT: “I can buy a fucking steak at Hannafords for $12 bucks. Fuck you. I can buy a whole chicken for $12 bucks. I can get a can of escargot for $16 bucks. Fucking CRIMINAL!”
??????????????????????????
He proceeded to yell at the young lady behind the counter for “watering down the goddam coffee…..I can brew a cup of coffee for 30 cents at home!!!” and walked off.
Now, my point…….
There isn’t a great profit margin in restaurants, or any foodservice business. In fact, most independent restaurant owners wont be driving a Maserati any time soon. For every plate we put out, and every beverage we pour, we have to pay a certain percentage to various expenses. Cooks, dishwashers, managers, gas, electricity, insurance, servers (yes, they dont survive only on tips), bank loans, flowers, linens, investors, capital expenses, payroll liabilities, POS machines, leaky faucets, broken plates, stemware, cleaning products, licenses, trash disposal, security systems, paint, accountants, CREDIT CARD COSTS, taxes, printing…
…those are only the tip of the iceberg.
In order for us to source QUALITY products, we actually may LOSE money. All of the above expenses get paid before any owner gets a paycheck. Remember, it is a business. Not a hobby. I have sacrificed an entire months worth of pay so a half dozen folks could enjoy Alba White Truffles until they almost overdosed….or a party of four could gorge on a quarter pound of Gold Asetra caviar. The look on their faces was worth it at the moment.
Have you ever served a Foie Gras Entier? I have. I didn’t eat for a week. I had to feed my dog ramen and frozen fish sticks from 1998.
There is really no overpriced high end restaurant in Portland. I know what the product costs, and, although I don’t know exactly how other restaurateurs I run their businesses, I think they are all in it to please the guest. Really.
All of the best digs in town (Rob & Nancy, Steve & Michelle, Guy & Stella, Sam & Dana, Larry, Miyake, Krista) are here to make the diner happy, and to run a business. Not to rape the guests for their hard earned cash. The next time you buy a coffee at Starbucks for fourbucks, think about the local chef who sits in his/her basement office worried about the fact that they have to pay a plumber for a pipe that burst, while their salaried sous chef is being paid for doing no work while the restaurant is closed for 2 weeks because business is slow….While the CEO of Starbucks drives the Maserati most chefs will never own.
Really, we are all here to please. Not to buy Maseratis. If you want to buy your steak at Hannaford’s, go for it. Buying a plate of food at a local restaurant is a little bit different than cooking up a WFM steak on your home range. Support small business. The gesture spreads far and wide. The young cook who will toil in front of a hot range and stand on her/his feet for 16 hours (and get screamed at by me) has to pay bills too. If we charged what the steak costs us, there wouldn’t be a restaurant. Where would you get Canard Presse?
(my apologies to any chef in town who doesn’t agree……)
