Mastering the Art of Simultaneous

So we have our LOI signed. We have a lease in our hands. We have a stack of permit applications, all asking some kind of impossible question or using jargon that is foreign to us restaurant novices. For instance, do we serve PHF's (potentially hazardous food) or non-PHF's (non potentially hazardous food)? I feel like this is a trick question. "Do you intend to kill your patrons? Yes or No?" Luckily we have Trish, our attorney extraordinaire, because these applications are hurting my brain.

These next few weeks will be spent coordinating all of our engineer contacts: the architect is in charge of aesthetics and will provide CAD drawings and a materials list, a kitchen supply engineer who will help us plan our kitchen layout and corresponding electrical and gas outlets, the mechanical engineer who will design a ventilation system based on how our equipment is placed, the kitchen plumbing guy who will configure our plumbing based on placement of sinks, the kitchen electric guy who will take the kitchen plans and install the electrical components of the kitchen, the non-kitchen plumbing guy who will plan pipes for our bathroom, the non-kitchen electric guy who will engineer a plan for lighting fixtures and what not, a sign builder (don't be fooled - this is a long process of about 2 months - the plans for a sign must go through the Boston Redevelopment Authority for approval then to the Inspectional Services Dept.) and finally our contractor who will take everyone's plans and build them out.

(Really, I made it sound more complicated than it is, since our contractor will be coordinating most of the efforts of these men and women himself)

And while all of this is going on, we must cultivate our menu and make decisions around products, packaging, staffing, and other misc. things that involve decision-making. And while all of that is going on, we must continue to work at our industry jobs for a meager sum, barely scraping by but inheriting invaluable information and experience in exchange.

(Sorry, I couldn't resist including the ever so banal "mastering the art of..." in the title of this post)

A little stitious

We've been pretty silent for a while. And I don't know about my colleagues but for me, it's a combination of being ridiculously busy and a weird feeling of not wanting to jinx anything.

We have made progress. The LOI has been signed. Which means we can start our permitting process on the space. And we will sign the lease soon.

When this first happened, it was such a relief and at the same time- stressful. I didn't want to announce it too much in case our permits didn't work out. I'm not superstitious, but I am a little stitious.**

So I was fairly tight lipped about it. (Except for the tiny toast with my friends- even the toast went a little something like, "Lets not get too excited yet though. We haven't had any permits approved. No one start thinking this is for real yet." Drink.) However, the time had come to post about it. Now our focus is permits, gas lines, and starting construction.

On a different note, I've ended my time at my PR internship and took a job at a restaurant to gain some practical experience. I've learned a few things so far.

1. Gas lines are dangerous. The fire department will ax your door down if they suspect a leak, so treat that with a serious respect.
2. Employee training isn't something that should be half-assed.
3. Customers ask specific questions about the food, employees should know what everything tastes like.
4. I am not strong enough to fill the ice in the soda machine.
5. I do not know what to look for in a fake id.

I know I've learned more. But I'm too tired to continue thinking about this job on my day off.



** Name it!