Cabarete Soul - located where "The Chinese Restaurant" used to be

jd426

Gold
Dec 12, 2009
10,077
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Blue Collar Town in New Jersey
The People who should be opening their Own Restaurant , ie people who REALLY KNOW how to Cook, went to Culinary school, get Compliments on every dish they make .. Alas, those People , some of whom I know personally, they dont want the Job... its a LOT of work to do it right and they KNOW it , and would never put their Names out there , unless the Food was RIGHT , every single day .. and they Inform me that you need either a Big Family, who will pitch in and Help, or very close friends who you trust who will help you run it .
Its a 24/7 dedication.. and you have to really Love it ..

and Then otoh, the People who open Restaurants in Sosua .. it absolutely Boggles the Mind how Delusional some of them are
Its not just a Bad Business Model, they are simply delusional , and absolutely clueless.. they have ZERO chances of making their spot work.
People who are GOOD at it , and work Hard, Their Chances are no where near Guaranteed ..and then you have these Dreamers ,
u cant even make fun of them, because they are so special and not in a Good way.
 

BermudaRum

Bronze
Oct 9, 2007
1,328
476
83
I think the Cabarete Soul proprietors were only renting it. It's available for $1500/mo as far as I know.
You misunderstood my point. Before the owners throw in the towel, they should see if there is a sucker that would buy a business that doesn't exist.
 
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El Hijo de Manolo

It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous!
Dec 10, 2021
5,508
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Dominican Republic
The People who should be opening their Own Restaurant , ie people who REALLY KNOW how to Cook, went to Culinary school, get Compliments on every dish they make .. Alas, those People , some of whom I know personally, they dont want the Job... its a LOT of work to do it right and they KNOW it , and would never put their Names out there , unless the Food was RIGHT , every single day .. and they Inform me that you need either a Big Family, who will pitch in and Help, or very close friends who you trust who will help you run it .
Its a 24/7 dedication.. and you have to really Love it ..

and Then otoh, the People who open Restaurants in Sosua .. it absolutely Boggles the Mind how Delusional some of them are
Its not just a Bad Business Model, they are simply delusional , and absolutely clueless.. they have ZERO chances of making their spot work.
People who are GOOD at it , and work Hard, Their Chances are no where near Guaranteed ..and then you have these Dreamers ,
u cant even make fun of them, because they are so special and not in a Good way.
Of course it never hurts to be a trained chef before you open a place, but it's not a requirement for success. What you do have to have experience with is bringing the right team together, to be able to deliver a superb customer experience and, at the same time, understand how food costs work vs price points. You need to be a good marketing person also as you'll need to constantly pull in customers until you reach the point where your name alone propels the establishment. You don't have to be a Ramsey or Flay, but you do have to be a good business person. You understand your restaurant from the inside out, you know accounting, you know marketing, you know how to build and manage teams, you know how to source the best ingredients, you can build relationships easily. You understand how to deliver an experience. This is how you roll.
 

cavok

Silver
Jun 16, 2014
11,054
5,019
113
Cabarete
Same as Jolly Roger in Sosua. Doesn't stop them from asking $400.000 for the bussines ;)
No. They can ask for whatever they want, but they don't have a business to sell. I think they just flushed a lot of money down the drain renovating that place. I'm sure the owner is very happy.
 

El Hijo de Manolo

It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous!
Dec 10, 2021
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Dominican Republic
No. They can ask for whatever they want, but they don't have a business to sell. I think they just flushed a lot of money down the drain renovating that place. I'm sure the owner is very happy.
The JR did very well for a long time. They attempted to value the business on some goodwill/intangible assets number. The issue was that the client base was in no way a guarantee for the next owners. It's a restaurant and the customer base may very well end up buried with the past ownership. A win for the JR ownership regardless. As Cristo Rey says, know before you go!
 

cavok

Silver
Jun 16, 2014
11,054
5,019
113
Cabarete
The JR did very well for a long time. They attempted to value the business on some goodwill/intangible assets number. The issue was that the client base was in no way a guarantee for the next owners. It's a restaurant and the customer base may very well end up buried with the past ownership. A win for the JR ownership regardless. As Cristo Rey says, know before you go!
In the case of Cabarete Soul, one wouldn't have to worry about losing the customer base. It didn't have much of one in the first place.
 

cavok

Silver
Jun 16, 2014
11,054
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Cabarete
I'm thinking the proprietors of Cabarete Soul would probably be very happy just to find someone to get them out from under paying on the lease they're probably locked into.
 

El Hijo de Manolo

It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous!
Dec 10, 2021
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Dominican Republic
In the case of Cabarete Soul, one wouldn't have to worry about losing the customer base. It didn't have much of one in the first place.
They have nothing to sell except valid inventory and equipment. They've only been open a month. They have no customers, if you don't count the occasional surfer mooch eating out on mom and dad's western union remittances
 

cavok

Silver
Jun 16, 2014
11,054
5,019
113
Cabarete
Another intrepid investor has decided to try his luck with the old Chinese restaurant. It's now called "Surf and Dine". The sign says "all day breakfast and coffee shop". It was open today.
 

JD Jones

Moderator:North Coast,Santo Domingo,SW Coast,Covid
Jan 7, 2016
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"If at first you don't succeed,........:"
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
44,197
7,002
113
Another intrepid investor has decided to try his luck with the old Chinese restaurant. It's now called "Surf and Dine". The sign says "all day breakfast and coffee shop". It was open today.
What a pity. Good luck to them, but is another breakfast place needed?
 
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windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
44,197
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I've never been under the impression there are a lot of breakfast places. Am I wrong?
As was pointed out, two just across the street. And yes there are more in other areas of Cabarete, just not sure how many are still in business with the drop off of tourists over the past years.
 

Astucia

Papa de Negrita
Oct 19, 2013
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I've never been under the impression there are a lot of breakfast places. Am I wrong?
Depends what you like. But Dick's Bakery and Friends are directly across the street and they almost always seem busy in the morning. And Belgium Bakery is just up the street. Been to all three and I like them.
 
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JD Jones

Moderator:North Coast,Santo Domingo,SW Coast,Covid
Jan 7, 2016
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Are they all eggs and bacon and homefries type places?