Go Back to the Beginning . . .

All seems lost. The fair Buttercup is imprisoned in the castle, seemingly doomed to marry the sinister Prince Humperdinck. Our hero, Westley, is all-but dead in Count Rugen’s torture chamber. The solution, as instructed by Vizzini, is, “Go back to the beginning”  So, here we are. (Thank you, The Princess Bride)

Good advice whenever you find yourself at an impasse: regroup, evaluate your concept and your earlier decisions, and refine your plan.

Many operators and developers, in their haste to define their concept and create their restaurant make poor decisions, accept compromise too early, or give in to alternate ideas that are inconsistent with their vision because they are tired of explaining their concept or fighting a deadline. Sometimes, you just need to step back, take a walk and realize that you are off your mark and must “go back to the beginning”.

There is great pressure to move ahead, get the design nailed down, complete the construction documents, get pricing and start building so you can open by some arbitrary date. This pressure, self-induced or imposed by others, can cause you to stray from your core concept or give up on a cool idea because it requires too much time to flesh out.

The Vizzini rule – “go back to the beginning” - forces you to retrace your steps and take a fresh look at what you really want to create and how you plan to execute your concept. Take a day, a week or longer to reflect on what your true goals and objective are, clarify your market and the type of restaurant you want to present to the public. This is time well spent. Others (investors, design team members, friends and family) may claim you are losing momentum or incurring added and unnecessary costs.  But, you are the one who will be operating and living with this venture for many years. Take the time you need to get it right!