Divine was awesome...too bad. But Maple Leaf is filled with strapped, layoff-panicked families who spent too much on their houses (and people like Vince, who love to brag about eating Top Ramen 5 nights a week), and won't eat out unless it's cheap and kid-friendly. Divine was neither.
@8: the Buck in another location is not the Buck. And certainly not the core of fuckin' yuppiemont. Shitty location with clueless owner = instant fail.
Technically, if you look at this in terms of the restaurant business cycle, now is the best time to be opening a restaurant.
You've got low labor costs, cheap rents you can lock in with long leases, and a recovering economy that has dropped more than 1 pct in unemployment rates in just this past quarter. The only problem is access to capital for a small business, but President Obama would have to Trust Bust the big banks to change that.
Look, first rule of restaurants is the average lifespan is only about 2 years. Usually due to location, traffic, rent, and inspections/licenses.
It could be worse. It could be the Eastside - now that's a disaster zone.
Mmm, ramen.
Like I said, we're doing fine.
You've got low labor costs, cheap rents you can lock in with long leases, and a recovering economy that has dropped more than 1 pct in unemployment rates in just this past quarter. The only problem is access to capital for a small business, but President Obama would have to Trust Bust the big banks to change that.