Thursday, April 16, 2009

time for a few small repairs

after much discussion, we've decided on a slight course correction. we're scrapping the breakfast menu and will now open for lunch at 11am.

there's a few reasons, and we think it'll all be for the best. the capper was our recent gas problem, which has actually been an issue in this kitchen since before we took over. the problem seems to lie with the stovetop burners sucking too much air back into the lines and killing the pilots. we're told by a couple of gas plumbers that the 1972-era waldorf ain't worth fixing, and we haven't got a spare $10k to replace her.

the main use for the stovetop is breakfast, we usually get by with the grill & fryer alone during lunch. so today I pulled out the spreadsheet of what's been ordered, how many covers etc. we've been doing 3 lunches to every 1 brekky. mornings start early and the stock costs are high. so dropping breakfast should actually save us money, reduce the prep hours and allow the kitchen to focus solely on lunch service.

on top of that, most of the weekend tourists up here stay in b&b's or other accom that all provide brekky.

we'll likely disappoint a few brekky regulars, but the numbers - or lack of - add up. we're struggling and we need to run this ship tight and solid. we're also having talks about combining our dining room space with a second business to increase traffic.

so I'm kind of excited about having some morning time to work on expanding the lunch menu. I've been perusing my cookbooks and various online sites for ideas and inspiration. stay tuned.