How to Build a $10 Million Restaurant: Chef Sam Marvin, founder of Bottega Louie

I've always viewed the restaurant industry as risky but Chef Sam Marvin sees no risk. He's able to pump out hit after hit without missing a beat. From Bottega Louie to Echo & Rig, the chef has proven that success in the hospitality industry is a formula and it's a formula we can learn. On today's show, we'll be discussing the formula he used to turn Bottega Louie into a 10 million dollar blockbuster.

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SHOW NOTES

Started a consulting job in LA

Met a family who dined at the consulting restaurant 89 times over 10 months

Father of the family was son of CEO of Hilton

Pitched him on the idea for Bottega Louie

Spent 2years working closely to create the restaurant

Restaurants have opened the same way fro 100years

Key pillars of focus

Shift from restaurant business to experience business

Goal to create egocentric gratification in guests

Investing in experience

Keeping average check mid-range

Goal to bring guests back 3 times per week

Industry goal is one guest to come back every 90 days

Focusing on the human psyche

Tapping into subconscious

130 metrics including the 5 key pillars

Example: $1300 leather-bound reservations book

Example: Intentional confusion whe a guest walks in because restaurant is open plan. Create opportunity for connection from hosts

Opportunities during tragedy

Bottega Louie opened during economic crash of 2009

Invested over $6million on the opening

Opportunities and tragedy move at equal pace

Inspiration from European restaurants

Laduree inspired macarons

Italian is the #1 food genre in the world

Why choose Downtown LA

Has a reputation of being homeless town

Research showed surrounding restaurants were doing well

Research on local population

Size of population

Average income

Average check amount per restaurant

Bottega Louie made $8-9million

Zero profit in year one

Investing in the future

Four points for decision-making

Good for employee

Good for investors

Good for guests

Good for community

Why Sam left Bottega Louie

Stayed for 5.5years

Wanted to control his own destiny

Gained business knowledge

Strategy to open a new restaurant

Figuring out what the community needs

Finding gap in the market

Lots of Research and Development

Echo & Rig strategy

Studying surrounding steakhouses in Las Vegas

$28 or $88 check average - nothing in between

Decided on $53 check average

Studying the weight of meat

Steakhouses serve large steak because it is the norm

Do guests really need 30z steaks?

Decided to serve best possible steak at smaller size

Is Covid going back to zero?

Everything has changed

Grand revenue numbers hide flaws

Previously needed to make over $90k a week to make a profit

Retooling to create bigger and better businesses

Feeling excited about the future

Improving delivery

Elevated packaging

Making guests feel special even outside the restaurant