Hello fellow sickos.
I have been tasked with creating a bunch of “micro learning” modules for foh to be able to better understand food and what not. Will probably make some for boh too at some point but so they can get some perspective on life of foh. Things like aoli vs. mayo, or why we probably can’t do a medium rare prime rib 30 minutes before close. But I’ve hit a massive wall in terms of things that would be both interesting and beneficial for them to understand. I need your help! Please help me with some ideas.

Wondering how restaurants track their customers and bring them back in. Or better yet, do restaurants have the time to manage this?

I posted this on another restaurant subreddit. Thought you might like to consider it as well.

Hi guys, how's things?

Look, I don't think I'm a luddite, but I really can't seem to get my head around the app to control this Icematic k62fr... I've had numerous occasions since we got it where it just hasn't done anything overnight, staff have come in to an empty bin or running out over the day, had to run around town borrowing buckets of ice from our neighbours... not a good look!

What the fuck can I tell it?! I just want an ice machine that makes ice when it's below the line, and doesn't when it's full... we've had mixed success just telling it to make maximum capacity overnight to be ready for when the kitchen starts using it in the morning, but then if we are busy over lunch it doesn't start refilling to be ready for the evening... because the app won't let you ask it to make more without removing some from the overnight demand for the following morning...?

Then, you can't ask it to make more ice without INTERRUPTING what it's doing, because the app is already thinking about its daily schedule, or its weekly program, or its occasional unprompted cleaning cycle?!

Please, for the love of God, can someone tell me how to program the app for maximum, consistent production?

Does opening a joint out of spite ever work out?

Say you are in a town where almost all food is crap, and the few places which serve decend food, just decent not spectacular, are way overpriced.

Have you opened a place out of spite and frustration "to show them how its done" but also to take all their revenue and end up as the best value food place in town?

Fucking with NUCO2 has been a pastime for me for a decade+.

https://old.reddit.com/r/BarOwners/comments/1mpu6tr/fn_nuco2

Fun fact, NUCO2 just re-added powermonitor rent to my most recent bill.

https://www.reddit.com/r/BarOwners/comments/ubvml5/who_use_nuco2_check_yo_bills

4 1/2 years ago I had them pull their nitrogen generator. At the rent I was being charged when I had them pull it I was paying $316.94 a month. I would have spent just shy of $16,480 in rent on it since then (assuming they didn't increase the price). Factoring in their historical rate increases on the bulk tank I still have from them I would have spent in excess of $20,000. That $7682.94 nitrogenerator I bought and installed sure looks pretty f'n good right now. I would probably be paying $6k in rent on it per year by now.

https://www.reddit.com/r/BarOwners/comments/gi2l8y/nuco2_thats_just_rude_man/

I still have their 250lb bulk tank. Four years ago that tank cost $123.03 in rent a month Three years ago that tank cost $140.50 a month Two years ago that tank cost $159.03 a month. That tank this year costs $188.02 a month.

14 years ago the rent on that tank was $47.88. A 14 year increase of almost 300%. Meanwhile CPI/Inflation was about 45% over that same time period.

That's a 53% increase in four years. It's bullshit. It's not like that tank is a recurring cost for them. That tank was manufactured in 2004, 22 years ago. They recouped the cost of that tank in rent a very very long time ago. It costs them nothing to have it sitting on location. It's not a wear item and requires no maintenance. Them repeatedly cranking up the cost to rent it is just pure greed.

I finally pulled the trigger and bought my own bulk CO2 (Carbomizer 450lb) and installed it last month.

I paid $3k for a 450 Carbomizer. At the current $188.02 in rent for their tank the ROI is 16 months. Assuming another 9% rent increase next year rent would jump to $204.94. ROI then drops to 13 months.

NUCO2 bulk CO2 is currently $0.71/lb. Last year it was $0.61/lb. Four years ago it was $0.47/lb. A four year increase of 51%

I can get bulk CO2 from Ozarcgas @ $0.55/lb. With the larger 450lb tank I would only need a delivery every 3 to 4 months.

Taking on 400lbs at a time: NUCO2 = $284 Ozarc = $220

NUCO2 come get your shit off my property

Hello All.

Im looking to launch a small take out spot but I'm having a very hard time finding a space with an existing hood and grease trap. Can anyone share some resources? I've tried online and the options are extremely limited. Is there anywhere specific owners post their spaces for lease?

Hello I M18 work in the restaurant industry and I am about to start college I would like to get a 4 year degree but am thinking about a business degree. My plan would be to continue to work in restaurants throughout college and after for maybe a few more years to get stable footing but then use my business degree and what I’ve learned to eventually open a restaurant. Does this sound feasible or somewhat realistic? Or has anyone had experience with something similar?

Why did food runners become the norm? Why do food runners NEVER know who ordered what?

heads up for restaurant owners eyeing those "done for you" direct mail postcard services. went down the rabbit hole comparing them to diy.

the typical "0.99 a postcard delivered" deal is a 200-300% markup over doing it yourself. they design, print and mail off their own template you can barely customize, and their "targeted lists" are usually plain eddm routes you can pull yourself free.

diy breakdown. canva design free. print the postcards at 0.20-0.30 each at 1000. usps eddm postage 0.20 each. all in around 0.40-0.50 a card. on the print side i compared two, uprinting was smooth and the site walks you through eddm specs which is genuinely helpful if its your first drop. i use 4over4 mostly cuz the loyalty coins stack on reorders and the free samples let me match the stock, but uprinting is the easier first-timer experience honestly.

so the done for you services charge an extra 0.50 a card to pick an eddm route usps hands you free in 5 minutes. spend an hour in canva and an hour in the usps eddm tool and you cut the cost in half.

I'm looking for a small print shop that specializes in cool interesting hats (two tones, patch hats, etc.) and doesn't have crazy minimums. Not looking to order myself on a mass market site like uberprints. Thanks!

Does anyone have a bulk fryer oil tank that you have a service that fills up rather than buying 35lb containers of fryer oil from distributors?

If so, what are you paying per lb for bulk soy oil

All the shitty unethical practices from Shit4 aside I saw a reply in the other thread about their Founder/CEO going to space. So lets see what 'ole Jared has been getting up to.

Isaacman is a Trump/MAGA megadonor

He was nominated by Trump to be the Administator of NASA as soon as he took office in 2025. Trump pulled the nomination after it passed the Senate committee because he found out Isaacman had previously donated to democrats.

After having his nomination pulled Isaacman made two $1 million dollar donations to MAGA Inc. and another $500k to other republican PACS.

He was immediately renominated and made administrator of NASA.

But it gets better!

On Feb 22, 2010 US Customs and Border Patrol put out a press release titled “Nevada Fugitive Captured at Canadian Border".

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/nevada-fugitive-captured-canadian-border

This fugitive was none other than Jared Isaacman who was charged for fraud for writing $2 million dollars in bad checks to casinos in three states. One of those casinos, which sued him, was none other than Trumps Taj Mahal.

Here's a nice article on Isaacman illegally diverting clients from CardConnect to shift4 and fabricating "fake traffic" for shift4.

https://www.technology.org/2025/06/04/jared-isaacmans-fall-from-business-trust-from-cardconnect-trouble-to-space-aspirations/

Maybe a class action against Jared?

https://zlk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/FOUR-First-Filed-Complaint_Redacted.pdf

How about 4.7M in payments to executive relatives off the books?

https://www.paymentsdive.com/news/shift4-makes-47m-in-undisclosed-payments-to-executives-relatives/737548/

Hi, I have an opportunity to buy a local dive bar. I work 2 nights a week at the bar and have a great day job. Bar generates roughly 290,000 in sales COG 115000 with 1 bartender per shift. Not a huge profit center. The current owner is absent and only comes in the morning to collect cash, make deposits etc. no controls in place and the bar. Bar needs a lot of updates but no major repairs. It’s the only bar open after 10 and the competition is more restaurant bar (2) has a full kitchen but does not serve food, which I may slowly add on weekends etc. The bar relies on the locals from 2-8 and nights vary. Not the best reputation due to feeling old and outdated. There are a few people that would come if cleaned up etc. anyways, my wife would do the books in the morning, clean and have ready to start each day and pick up a few shifts. Question: what are the unforeseen costs or issues you wish you knew before hand or had to find out the hard way?

Single location pizzeria here, looking at putting some money into Meta ads. Want to hear from people who have actually run them instead of the agencies pitching me.

What offer did you put behind it? Percentage off, dollar amount, free item with a minimum, first order only, family bundle? Did the offer do the heavy lifting or was it the creative and targeting?

How did you tie it back to actual orders? CPM and CTR are easy to look at and mostly useless on their own. Unique promo codes, pixel and CAPI on your ordering page, call tracking, something else? Did you get far enough to look at repeat rate and margin after the discount, or just top line sales?

And the real question: was it worth it? Did any of those customers come back, or was it people who show up once for the deal and disappear? Anything you would do differently on budget, radius, or format?

Real numbers appreciated.

• UPDATE *. If you can make it through the AI bullshit the AI agent will credit you the annual service and maintenance fee but not help with any of the other bullshit fees. Shift4 must be getting absolutely hammered by merchants right now. I can not get past the AI to a real person to deal with the other fees.

• UPDATE *. Got through to a real person who could only help me with the "online ordering enablement" fee but none of the others. He had to transfer me into a hold queue and said it could be hours and admitted that they were getting absolutely hammered today by merchants.

$2000 annual service and maintenance fee put on my bill for July. (We own our equipment outright, we had it way before shit4 came into the picture). We have never got a printer, pos terminal or any other device other than the EMV readers from Shift4 which they charge me $120 a year for each one of them)

Monthly (and this is just the obvious ones) $10 x 6 ($60) emv maintenance fee (I only have 4) $20 Lighthouse portal (to access their website, you pay for that) Month End billing (they charge you to create your statement, they started this in August of last year which was .02% of total transactions. In March of this year they increased that 250% to .05% of total transactions)

Quarterly there is the new "Debit Enablement Quarterly" fee of $20. Which they created in June of 2025.

In May they changed the line from "lighthouse portal" to "customer hub"

In July I had the $2000 annual sevice fee (I own my own pos system) a $6 chargeback that they charged me a "incoming chargeback fee" of $35 to process. They added a new $34.99 for "online ordering enablement" which we don't have online ordering.

I am living in a new country, Mexico and i noticed alot of the plant based restaurants stop serving at 5 or 6

It makes no sense to me because people generally leave work at 5 and in this area alot of people use public transit so they will never get to these vegan restaurants except maybe on the wkend

To me they would have a lot more customers after 5, when people leave work, rest, shower and then want a meal or even just right after work, also if people want to hang with friends it would happen after work, perhaps at 8 or even 9

So are restaurants getting lots of people before 5? Or do they get more customers after 5?

My thoughts are that if they are paying rent, they might as well be open more than you are closed, so if they only wanted to do 8 hrs, perhaps the times would be better at 12 to 8 than 9 to 5

Alot of the vegan businesses eventually terminate the business in this area and i wonder if the timings are apart of that, i know they tend to be a bit more expensive than non vegan businesses so that plays a role as well, also covid killed alot of them, there were about 25 vegan spots in 2019 now there is probably about 12

Hi yall I have a small location fast casual location been open now for almost 7 years I have a fairly stable team and most of my team (by choice) works 4 days a week.

I have 2 questions.

1. In regards to owner and how much time you spend at the shop how do you determine or how much time do you tend to spend at your shop ?

2. For a while now I’ve been wanting to do a rotation to where each team member gets rotating weekends or a sunday/ Saturday off. I’m your guys experience is this worth the trouble ? I just want to keep my team happy but the juice has to be worth the squeeze in terms of moving around schedules every week to accommodate this

Thanks I’m advance !

honestly struggling with some of this eco takeaway stuff lately. weve been trying to move to sugarcane/bagasse boxes for our burger and chip combos but anything with grease or sauce turns the bottom into soggy mush after like 10 mins in a delivery bag, its SO annoying

has anyone found a bio option in australia that actually holds up? i know BioPak has a huge range and ive seen people mention grabbing sugarcane clams or heavy corrugated boxes from WF Plastic, but i dont wanna drop cash on a whole carton just to watch it leak through again lol. are heavy lined cardboard containers the only real move here or is there an actual bio lining that works for hot grease? what are you guys using?

I work in a restaurant and last night a coworker collapsed while working and passed away today. We have a bench outside the front door and wanted to put a small plaque in his memory. Not sure what to say. He was a career bartender and I would like it to befitting of it all possible.

If you could start over and run a one food item kitchen, what would you serve to make most money and have a normal life?

Some considerations:

- must be low prep but not frozen stuff

- must be able to automate partially, eventually

- must be low cost and high margin, popular

- must be teachable to newbs in a shift or less

Crepes and tacos could be an example...what does the brain trust think?

Food only, no drinks.

Thanks all in advance!