Closure of the Grilled Asparagus
In case you haven’t heard, The Grilled Asparagus closed abruptly only three weeks after opening, amid a hefty helping of drama. (You can read the initial story here and a followup story here.)
It’s really a shame that this happened to the city’s first vegetarian restaurant. Although, truth be told, every vegetarian I know who ate there in its brief time (myself included) came away disappointed. I had hopes that they would iron out the kinks and improve, but it doesn’t seem as if that now has a chance of happening. At least people can’t say that it failed because it was a vegetarian restaurant—the excitement I saw and heard in the community was testament that a good, well-planned vegetarian restaurant could succeed here.
But perhaps the situation can serve as a source of valuable lessons for anyone who might open a vegetarian restaurant in the future (or, really, any restaurant). A few things for prospective restaurateus to keep in mind:
*Have a solid, well-thought-out business plan going in. Restaurants are notoriously difficult to get started and require a tremendous amount of time, energy and dedication, both before and after opening. Know what you’re getting into. Make sure you’re prepared to eat, sleep and breathe the restaurant for the first year, at the very least.
*Train the staff well. If the staff doesn’t know what’s going on, or are left standing around unsure what they should be doing, that creates delays and an unsatisfactory experience for the customer. Also, make sure you’re properly staffed—neither too few nor too many. All it takes is one bad experience for a diner to write off a restaurant forever.
*Be innovative with the menu. Most vegetarians I know are pretty creative and savvy when it comes to cooking and eating. We expect to be shown the same care and creativity that goes into carnivorous dishes at successful restaurants. Vegetarians are not going to be impressed by a few different toppings thrown on a frozen veggie burger that they can get themselves at the grocery store. Plain rice, stale bread and run-of-the-mill wraps are not the sort of dishes that inspire return visits. Get creative with different vegetarian proteins—tofu, tempeh, seiten. Don’t just throw a few vegetables together on a plate or in a wrap.
*Know the difference between vegan and gluten-free. This is a big deal to a lot of people, and a matter of health to celiacs. Mixing them up on the menu is pretty appalling for a vegetarian restaurant.
*Make sure you’re stocked with the necessary ingredients for what’s on the menu from the get-go.
Any comments on the closure of the Grilled Asparagus, or what you’d like to see in a vegetarian restaurant?
