What's Plan B?

So, the restaurant isn't going to happen. The discussion at the meeting basically came down to "We think that your idea won't sell here, and we won't lease to you unless you change the menu to something more casual. Or you can come up with $300,000 to buy the building and you can do whatever you want." Drat. We're actually feeling pretty good about decision to walk away. Here's how we rationalize "feeling good"....

1. We never meant to do this so soon. When we moved from D.C., our five-year plan was to get decent jobs, buy a house, build equity and savings, and then try for a restaurant when the kids were older and both in school. We're going to go back to that plan, although we're a year behind now after the fire and after all the futzing around we've been doing working on Palmetto for the last four months.

2. When we got caught up in doing this, we thought that Ryan would be able to bring in a significant amount of cash. That never materialized. And as we began to look at how much debt we'd have to take on, it seemed less likely that the profits could handle the extra interest expense. And personally, I was NEVER happy that Dan decided to bring in someone else. Yes, we needed front of house experience, but I want the restaurant to be "our" restaurant, and having a partner was always going to rub me the wrong way.

3. A lot of people were doubting that our menu and prices would work in Canton. In contrast, we don't think that the alternative ideas will work in that building. It could be good to see what someone else does there. I don't really want the next occupant to fail, because I'd like a decent place to eat in town. But maybe in a few years they'll want to sell, and the town could be ready for our plans then.

We'll keep our eyes open for other opportunities. If we start with something smaller, it will be much easier to get it off the ground. This was an ambitious plan, and could have quite easily swamped us. It was a good experience, we learned a lot, we'll know where to start next time blah, blah, blah. I'm just kicking myself for quitting all my online classes. Whoops.

Now that I'm not spending hours each week fiddling with Business plans, I'm looking for a new job instead. My part-time gig is boring, boring, boring, boring. And pays crap. Hopefully something better will come along.