So, last week has been and gone and it was pretty much the same old story!
More roadworks, the quiet November continues, but a good Friday night and a good Sunday! Oh, and I lost 2 lbs!
That's more or less what happened at work, apart from one major piece of news!!!
For a few months now, I have been teasing you with news of an impending something...... Well, that something has NOT come to fruition! I was talking to a hotel about he possibility of 'taking over' their kitchen and talks had reached an interesting stage. That was until I was informed that they would be closing the hotel for a few months in the new year for refurbishment and then were unsure as to the direction they were going. It is possible that it will be turned into apartments or similar, so I shelved that particular project. There was also interest from a 'company' who wanted to talk to me about the possibility of me becoming a chef for them in their 'new venture' in the new year. Nothing happened there.
So there I was on Thursday afternoon, prepping the food for the evening service and wondering what next year was going to bring, when a chap came upstairs to talk to me..................
He is the owner of a successful sports bar about a mile up the road from us and he came to talk to me about taking over his kitchen. We had a good chat and he left me with a huge decision to make. I had to weigh up whether to continue in the restaurant that we had built from nothing over the past 3 and a bit years, or undertake a new challenge.
On one hand, we have a restaurant that we have put our all into and turned from an ailing pasty shop into a very successful concern. Maybe its not the most financially successful concern, but customer wise, we have grown from strength to strength. We reached no.1 on the Tripadvisor rankings and received a achievement of excellence award for 2012 from them. At one point we were ranked 3rd from over 4,000 restaurants listed on the Costa Blanca. The problem we have are the overheads. You cannot begin to imagine the crap we have to pay out! Without listing every bill we have, if I was to say that we have to earn 5,000€ a month JUST TO BREAK EVEN, you can begin to understand how difficult it can be. So yes, we have made a 'success' of our restaurant, but financially, it has been very difficult to survive at times, especially during this recession. So, on the other hand, when we receive an offer like the one we got on Thursday, we have to give it plenty of thought.
We have thought and thought and though again and have decided to undertake the new venture! From a financial point of view, we wont have anything like as many commitments as we do now, so a huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders. From a challenge point of view, I probably need a new one, and am really looking forward to it. The bar is currently NOT serving food, so we are basically starting from scratch again. I don't think I'll be able to serve 'my food' at first, but I look forward to designing a menu more in tune with my new clientele. It'll probably start off pretty basic, but I hope to introduce them to my talents quite soon! I am happy to listen to any food suggestions or ideas you have...
Although it will be sad to leave the restaurant, it wasn't a difficult decision in the end. We have decided
to make Christmas day our last and we start at the Sports bar on Wednesday 2nd of January, so we even get a week off! It'll probably take us a couple of days to move our stuff out and in to the new kitchen, so still might be able to relax for a bit.
Okay, that's it for now, apart from letting you know that today they started paving the little section outside our doors that they have left for 6 weeks! A touch of irony there somewhere!
Sweet dreams all and I ill speak to you all very soon. Thanks for reading
Jimbo
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