Steve Zimmerman Of
Restaurant Realty Speaks To Restaurant Management &
Culinary Students At Cornell University , City
College San Francisco & The California Culinary
Academy
In
recent months I have had the opportunity of speaking
to management and culinary students at the schools
mentioned above and I will continue speaking
regularly for the
remainder of this year at the
California Culinary Academy.
My purpose
in speaking with these students is to share my 20+
years of restaurant experience and 7+ years of
restaurant brokerage experience and to encourage
them to pursue the restaurant industry as a career,
as there is a shortage of college trained restaurant
management students and professionally trained
chefs. Additionally many of these students have
indicated that they wish to buy their own restaurant
in the near future.
At Cornell I
spoke about the advantages and disadvantages of
buying an existing restaurant versus developing a
restaurant from scratch which I discussed in a
recent Restaurant Rap article.
At City College of San
Francisco and the California Culinary Academy my
topic is A Checklist for Buying A Restaurant. The
first part of my presentation includes - What You
Need Before You Make An Offer which discusses the
following topics:
a. Preparing a Business
Plan,
b. Raising Your Money,
c. Having Your Key
Personnel Lined Up and
d. Preparing a Personal
Financial Statement and Resume.
The second part of my
presentation includes The Buying Process. In this
section we cover the following topics:
a. Qualifying the Buyer,
b. Offer, Counter Offer and
Acceptance Stages,
c. Contingency Removal
Stage,
d. Bulk Sale Transfer
Process,
e. Obtaining Permits and
Licenses,
f. Inspections by City and
County Agencies and
g. Close of Escrow Process.
I emphasize
the need for them to be properly capitalized, have
well trained personnel, negotiate a favorable
premises lease, present good price value to the
customer and have consistently good food and service
in a well maintained and clean environment.
The students of today
are the buyers and sellers of tomorrow.
Restaurateurs of the Quarter -
Roxanne And Michael Klein Of Roxanne’s - One Of The
Most Innovative New Restaurants In The Bay Area
Restaurant Realty had the opportunity of selling the
original Java Cafe in Larkspur to Michael and
Roxanne Klein who converted the restaurant to
Roxannne’s, a 65 seat fine dining restaurant.
Chef/Owner Roxanne Klein has created quite a stir in
culinary circles nationwide by introducing a new
fine dining cuisine based on raw, organic vegetarian
ingredients. The restaurant’s “living food” cuisine
has earned rave reviews from both diners and food
critics. Gourmet Magazine has stated, “Roxanne’s is
simply the most innovative restaurant of our time.”
Famed Bay Area critic Michael Bauer has said
Roxanne’s offers “truly four-star dining, with a
world class wine list and elegant decor.
A graduate
of the California Culinary Academy , Roxanne Klein
has worked at internationally recognized restaurants
in the U.S. and France. Her creativity with living
foods cuisine and her broad knowledge of organic
ingredients has earned her respect from a variety of
culinary authorities. She is currently working with
renowned chef Charlie Trotter on a living foods
cookbook due out from Ten Speed Press early next
year. Her second book, also to be published by Ten
Speed press is due out early the following year. Of
his collaboration with Roxanne, Trotter has said,
“Roxanne’s cuisine is amazing! Working with her and
eating her dishes has opened my eyes to a new way to
prepare food. Her dishes explode with many
dimensions of flavors and textures. Roxanne’s
culinary vision is extraordinary, and it has
inspired me on many levels.”
Co-owner
Michael Klein heads up the business end of the
operations. A former technology entrepreneur with a
Harvard M.B.A., Michael is also an environmental and
social activist who adheres to a clear set of
ecological principles in construction of the
restaurant, including use of sustainable building
materials and a photovoltaic solar system on the
roof to help power the facility.
Congratulations and
best wishes for continued success to the Kleins for
their outstanding new concept.
