Richmond, Capital One offering restaurant 101 seminar

The city of Richmond’s Office of Minority Business Development, in partnership with Capital One, will offer a free information session for current and prospective restaurant owners in April, covering topics such as setting menu prices, meeting city requirements and creating improvement plans.

Award-winning Richmond chef, restaurateur and consultant Jason Alley, who’s now the city’s policy adviser for restaurants and small businesses, will facilitate the virtual seminar, which will take place April 11 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The registration deadline is April 6, and as of Thursday afternoon, 30 out of 100 slots were filled.

Alley said in an interview Thursday with Virginia Business that this seminar — the first the city has offered through its Diverse Supplier Mentoring Program with Capital One, which started in 2020 — will cover “restaurant 101” subjects, including general industry trends, business requirements and knowledge, how to open a food service business in Richmond and determining appropriate business ventures.

“It’s really difficult to find help, and everything is more expensive,” said Alley, who co-owned the restaurants Comfort and Pasture in Richmond, as well as others. “And that’s true nationwide. The only way to be successful in an environment like this is to know what your costs are and be nimble. I’ve been trying to tell people for years, we have to charge what things cost. The business owners can’t continue to absorb those costs.”

Alley notes that nationwide labor shortages are impacting restaurants, and that pressure is raising hourly pay at many eateries. That’s a positive trend overall, he says, but it raises costs that need to be covered by higher menu prices much of the time. He also says that the city’s staff — people who approve building plans and rezoning, for example — are also affected by the labor shortage, which slows the process of opening new restaurants.

Supply chain constraints, meanwhile, are affecting construction, as well as the availability of certain foods. For example, Alley says he’s hosting a breakfast event next week that will not have any cream cheese, due to a widespread shortage. That will mean “dry bagels,” although Alley’s already considering substitutes like butter.

All of these are issues restaurant owners have to contend with, and they have to respond with creativity and flexibility, Alley notes, adding he hopes to share this advice with up-and-coming restaurant owners. If next month’s seminar is successful, he hopes to host more events, possibly delving into more specific issues experienced by local restaurateurs.

“I hope there are a lot of budding entrepreneurs hoping to open a food-related business” who attend April’s session, Alley says. “But I would love, love, love for existing restaurant owners to participate.”