Monday, December 28, 2015

The Deal on Sunday Nights at Al-Masri Egyptian Restaurant in San Francisco



Running a restaurant is no easy task.  It takes real guts and a strong solid character, both of which I've had to develop; especially when the ethnicity of that restaurant doesn't even belong to my ethnic background!  It also takes...to say the least...a lot of luck and a whole bunch of perseverance.

It's easy for me to say that one of the biggest joys I've ever experienced is that of someone telling me how delicious the food is that I cook, especially when it's out of the mouth of an Arab.  When I hear that, I'm on Cloud Nine, and I know I've accomplished something.  And, I'm very proud to say that I am told that almost every time.  Which goes without saying that it's even harder for me to take criticism, especially when it's given by people who don't even know what they are talking about.  I mean, take mulukhiya, for instance….

Growing up in Spain and Thailand, I never dreamed I would be running, much less owning a restaurant of any kind, and in one of the restaurant capitals of the world, San Francisco -- the City who made Rice-a-roni a San Francisco treat.  Sure, we all know it's a San Francisco treat, but, realistically, where do you think the idea for Rice-a-roni came from?  According to the people who love to criticize my rice pilaf, made specifically the Egyptian way -- the way it has been made, like, since forever -- I'm cooking up the San Francisco treat and passing it off as Egyptian!

Fear and anxiety can get the better of you, and it has gotten the better of me -- more than once; heck more than a dozen times; I'll be honest, almost every day.  All I knew before was how to take dictation at 140 wpm and type letters at 90 wpm for a corporation with benefits and a monthly check.  But once I learned how to master the necessary processes dictated by the City, State, and Federal government Small Business requirements, the long haul of owning a restaurant took on a different meaning.  Problem is that, by that time, I had spent so much time, money, and sleepless nights, in all that trial and error, start-up reality, and retraining policy, that by the time I became somewhat knowledgeable about what needed to be done or have happen, I wistfully found myself in what my mother used to say, "up a creek without a paddle.", only it wasn't just a creek.

Don't get me wrong.  I love my little restaurant, and I wouldn't change what I have for the world.  My paycheck may not come as a corporate monthly deposit into my bank account, but it works for me; and, more importantly, I'm my own boss.  All the rest is now small stuff.

But being the boss also takes on an altogether different reality.  All my former bosses in the corporate world were either somewhat of a bit of a tyrant, a suck-up, a yes man, or a mealy mouse, so I never really had a solid role model in how to emulate what a boss should be.  That, too, has been a learning process; and that, too, has come at a cost.

I've learned that it's really all about confidence and how one treats people, but it's not all that simple.  Learning how to "boss" takes a lot of training, and it all comes from experience.

Seven years ago, I re-introduced live music to Al-Masri Egyptian Restaurant on Sunday nights, and since have made it mainstream on almost every Sunday night.  Along with live music, I provide an all-you-can-enjoy buffet dinner, which includes an appetizer with bread, salad, rice pilaf, about six to eight entrees, and around two vegetables, as well as dessert.  Providing the food is not all that expensive, but it's also no easy task; I shop and cook all day.  Additionally, offering live music on those nights by some of the best in the business can really raise the expenses to my overhead.  

So, to keep these Sunday nights going, I take the regular nightly menu away and do something different.  For only $25, one can come in, dine leisurely, fill his/her plate up as much and as many times as he/she wants, provided there is no unnecessary uneaten food waste, and watch some of the best dancers dance and listen to some of the best musicians play.  Heck, the movie theater down the street from Al-Masri charges $10 for ONE two-hour movie, including popcorn and a drink.  But is it LIVE?  And it's popcorn and ONE non-alcoholic drink!

So, I guess by now you're wondering, what's my point??

On several occasions during these Sunday nights, some people have come in to see the show at Al-Masri.  They are told at the onset and upon entering the front door that the offering for the evening is an all-you-can-enjoy buffet dinner along with live music and six to twelve different belly dancers, which they can sit and watch while eating for the entire six hours (we open at 5:30pm and the show ends around 11:30pm) for only $25.  That's a far cry from a two-hour movie, popcorn, and one non-alcoholic drink.  However, once they hear that they have to buy dinner at $25 or pay a $20 cover charge to stay and watch the show and enjoy the live music -- which I've hired for them to enjoy -- it becomes apparently as horrifying as highway robbery!

So, I guess I'm a little confused.  Apparently, movie goers won't question paying $10 to see a two-hour movie and get a cup of popcorn and one non-alcoholic drink. But those same people will visibly convulse uncontrollably at paying a $20 cover charge for an endless glass of lemon-flavored water -- a lot more drink than one drink at any movie theater -- and six hours of live music and belly dance entertainment!  I say, splurge!  Pay that extra $5 and have dinner all night long!  That cup of popcorn isn't going to last through the entire two-hour movie, and the second one will probably cost you five bucks!

Bottom line, like the movie theater down the street, I have overhead as does every business in this country.  I love seeing my dining room filled to the max, and I know that the max loves participating in these fun-filled Sunday nights of live entertainment.  Movie goers don't just walk into the theater and expect to watch the movie for free, do they?  Then why do some people walk into my restaurant and think they can sit at one of my tables and watch the show for free?  No other business tolerates that. 

So, let me take a moment at this time to thank all of you who unhesitatingly and very happily forked over $25 for the all-you-can-enjoy dinner buffet, and who also enjoyed live music, belly dancing, and, frankly, a fun-filled evening of live entertainment; for without you, my Sunday nights would have closed long ago.  

I fully support the movie theater down the street, and encourage everyone to go and watch a two-hour movie of their choice when it comes to town with popcorn and a non-alcoholic drink at least once for $10.  But know that, while you're waiting for the next blockbuster to arrive, $25 will get you into Al-Masri for a different show every single time you come, freshly made Egyptian food, and at least six hours of live entertainment, which, by the way, unlike inside any movie theater, you are fully welcome to participate in.  But if you've already been to the movies and are too full with popcorn and the one beverage to partake in the all-you-can-enjoy dinner buffet, expect to pay a $20 cover charge to have the special privilege of sitting at one of my tables inside the ONLY Egyptian restaurant in Northern California, and enjoy the live cultural entertainment and an endless glass of lemon-flavored water.  You're even welcome, in fact, encouraged to participate in it if you want.

Hope to see you at the next Sunday night all-you-can-enjoy dinner buffet and live entertainment, even if you've already been to the movies down the street at the local movie theater.

No comments: