A Restaurant Only Works If Guests Book Their Next Visit on the Way Out
New places fill up once, but staying open depends on guests returning for regular nights and special occasions.
David Senra · Lessons on Building Carbone, ZZ's & a Restaurant Empire | Jeff ZalaznickJeff Zalaznick, the co-founder of Major Food Group, the company behind Carbone, ZZ's, and The Grill, tells everyone who works for him that the only thing that matters is whether the customer comes back.
He argues that coming once is easy. Any new restaurant will fill up, he says, because everyone wants to try what is new, to check it off a list and to take a photo proving they were there. What is hard is what happens after that, when the novelty is gone and the guest has to decide whether to spend money with you again, and feel good about it when they leave.
For Zalaznick, that is the whole business. He says a restaurant is there to entertain, to delight, and to feed people, and to send them out smiling and wondering when they can get in again. His ideal, he says, is the guest who books the next visit at the reservation desk on the way out.
He connects that return visit to survival. Zalaznick cites the familiar rule of thumb that "nine out of 10 restaurants close within the first year of their being open," and says "Many restaurants have a great first three months and then no one shows up again." The alternative he describes is a blend of regulars who come back once a week or more, alongside first-timers who waited months to get in and who, he hopes, cannot wait to book their return for business, for pleasure, and for special occasions.
Questions people ask
Do nine out of ten restaurants really close in the first year?
It is a much repeated rule of thumb rather than a precise count. Studies of restaurant openings find that failure rates are high, especially in the early years, because rent, labor, and food costs leave little room for error. Zalaznick cites it to make the same point, that lasting past the opening is the hard part.
Why do so many restaurants have a good first three months and then fade?
A new opening draws curiosity seekers, reviews, and social media posts that fill seats for the first few months. The test comes when those guests have been once and have many other new places to try. Without regulars who return often and celebrations that choose the restaurant, sales fall faster than costs can be cut.