Advice on new restaurant concept? (San Antonio, Howe: theater, trendy, rated)

[IonRedline08]

Originally Posted by Dopo

I find it very weird that you are asking this question

If you really want to know what price is reasonable, you have to go and find out yourself.
People are willing to pay more depending on the location, atmosphere, quantity of food, quality of food, etc.
So, it's something that you have to go and find out yourself.

We can't just tell you "$10 would be great" because people don't just pay for the food, they also pay for the experience, the service, the location (other things to see close by), etc, etc.

Very true.

[cr1039]

my answers bolded

Originally Posted by tbjork88

Hey everyone, I'm new to the San Antonio area and am looking for good private investors in a new restaurant concept. Moderator cut: one sentence - see comment

It's a very High Tech system, touch screen tables that recognize food and drink, place your order the old fashioned way or order directly from the table, how would the waitstaff be guaranteed to make money if people can order by them or by the touch screen?it offers interactive games while you wait or read the news, you can use the surface to call your waiter or waitress when you need them, etc. Interesting idea, maybe it is me - but when I do go out to eat I want to have my water refilled without asking, have the staff inquire if I would like a fresh wine, to check on me after 2 bites...etc.

Very modern, reasonably priced dining. An experience unlike anything in San Antonio right now.

Also, I already have all my information, but I'd just like some feedback from real people in San Antonio.

What would you like to see on the menu?
Where would you like it to be located? (Planning on the RIM, La Cantera, or Stone Oak area at the moment)
What would be a reasonable dining price for you?
If you could take someone here on a date, what's something you would expect from your restaurant?Many of the games you mentioned.
Is there something you ALWAYS wish a restaurant did or had, that you would love to finally see?Staff who can answer questions about the menu and who can approach the kitchen staff if needed to. Proper recorking when taking an unfinished bottle of wine.
Is there anything as far as service you would like to see done differently?
Open kitchen or closed kitchen? Managers and chef to visit table more frequently I know I like to see in the kitchen, it adds to the atmosphere and experience.


Thanks!

I'm Travis by the way!

[SAFD_Wife]

Here are my opinions...I am not claiming them to be worth much

In the AR area, there is not much competition, however, and no one shoot me, I can go a week or maybe a month without hearing someone say "I want to eat out and have a good healthy meal!" I know there are those that love a good health store, and I know Panera is gaining popularity, but I just don't know if a health centered establishment is the way to go. Now, you could always be the person who turns people onto a new trend, but I for one wouldn't be a frequent visitor. For my family, eating healthy is when how we cook at home. When we go out, we are ready for a change!

I don't like loud restaurants, so I would hope volume at the games/televisions at each table could be monitored. If I were going on a date or were going to spend $15 or $25 on a meal for myself, I would really dislike part of my group perusing the Internet during the meal. I think a good alternative would be group centered trivia games or something that could involve everyone at the table.

A good bar would be a plus, but it would be even better to be ample sized and separate from the dining room. Have plenty of seating when there is a waiting list.

I have a friend who owns a restaurant, he made a comment once about the staggering challenges of offering too many menu choices. He said keeping up with that many choices is so difficult because you have to have so many fresh ingredients in stock on a daily basis. He said the trends of what people order fluctuate so you end up wasting ingredients for dishes that weren't popular in a given week. He said basically you have "standby" ingredients just in case someone orders that one random dish. It's funny that you mentioned offering all of the different cuisines because a friend and I just had a conversation about how much it grosses us out when restaurants mix them. I said that place Wok-A-Mole disgusts me, and she had seen a place that offered Mexican and Italian and she said the thought of it made her sick.

I am imagining the ordering screens to be something like Bucc-ees on I-10. Anyone ever eaten there? The screens are fast and convenient. I actually like it, but the only downside is you can't completely personalize your order. Of course at a restaurant you could be more detailed.

I am excited and I hope you do well. We love trying new places. If you need a wait staff let me know. I have plenty of students who SHOULD be working

[djw]

Wow, some great feedback here! I hope the energy level keeps up and you can get a solid idea off the ground.

I've been mulling your questions, and for the most part I agree with what's already been said. But one of my newest complaints about just about everywhere I eat out is the wastefullness an un-green-ness of it all. I hate to end a meal with the dillema of wasting food or promoting the use of styrofoam. There's a certain burrito place that I won't name, but it gets my business far more than it should simply because of it's earth-friendly containers.

Other dining considerations....noise level, attitude of staff, and cleanliness of table and menus (as well as the rest of the place). If I've got to wait for a table, make sure I know where the bar is, or offer me some appatizers or munchies or something. Nothing over the top, but walking through with a tray of hot something will go a long way!

Good luck!

[lemonfresh]

tbjork,

How much in terms of funding are you looking for with investors?

[tbjork88]

Hey everyone, awesome suggestions! I agree with the more group oriented games and what not, the browsing could be enabled in maybe a certain area for people just stopping by for breakfast or a cup of coffee on their way to work.

As for the volume, there wouldn't be an issue as most of the entertainment on the surface would be stuff like finger painting on the table and very lite gaming.

Let me explain a little bit about the table. It's just like any other restaurant table except the entire top is a touch screen. When you set food or a drink on it, it recognizes the item. If you'd like a refill on say, an appletini, just tap the table near the drink and press order and it will bill it to your tab automatically.

Heres a general video to give you an idea:

YouTube - Microsoft Surface Teaser

Theres plenty more videos on YouTube as well if you're interested!

[IonRedline08]

Also, being new here, I obviously don't know the area that well.

However, I think a quality sports bar is always a great thing. I enjoy Buffalo Wild Wings, especially since the chain started near my home town and I have been going there for almost 15 years now.

We had a place called Panini's, a small chain up in Ohio. It was a great place

They had a Full bar, and lots of big screens. The food was KILLER. They had amazing Panini sammiches, as well as other bar types of food.

The most awesome thing about this place, though, was the fact that every booth has a small flat screen tv in it. It was hooked up to Direct TV ( I think), so you could watch whatever you wanted. If there was a game you wanted, you could tune it in, as well as control the sound in your booth. They also had lots of gorgeous waitresses that wore these hot little referree uniforms, which always helps bring in guys.

Great concept. This place was packed to the GILLS every night

[Dopo]

I also recommend you putting LOTS of pictures of the dishes on the menu.

I usually get the same thing because I don't want to get something that I have no idea what I'm getting, how much I'm getting, etc.

[tbjork88]

Originally Posted by Dopo

I also recommend you putting LOTS of pictures of the dishes on the menu.

I usually get the same thing because I don't want to get something that I have no idea what I'm getting, how much I'm getting, etc.

Thats not only a great idea, it's incredibly simple to do, especially with a virtual menu!

I really suggest yall go take a look at the Surface teaser to get an idea of what all the tables will be like.

And to go back a little bit about the amount of menu choices. You have a great point, too many dishes may be a waste, which is why we would try to diversify without over stocking. Use the same ingredients in different ways and cooking techniques to create new and interesting dishes.

How much in terms of funding are you looking for with investors?

lemonfresh, I sent you a private message. If anyone else is interested in how much something like this would cost, please send me a private message.

[rd2007]

So you're going with Microsoft's Surface? I've seen and read a little about it and it's impressive, but it's also really complicated. Hopefully they get it right..
how about a vegetarian/comfort food restaurant? You could partition it so the meat haters don't have to see us carnivores enjoying some blood.
but seriously, that area seems to have a lot of people that are more health conscious, but this is also San Antonio and most of us like to eat real food.