A model of this publish initially appeared on October 27, 2025, in Eater and Punch’s publication Pre Shift, a biweekly publication for the business professional that sources first-person accounts from the bar and restaurant world.
This ship is introduced by Sq. — the expertise firm that makes commerce and monetary providers simple and accessible.
This fall, we’ve been bringing Pre Shift to you, internet hosting a collection of stay occasions with the individuals behind a few of our favourite eating places in Atlanta and New York. In partnership with Sq., we spoke with six operators who’ve constructed profitable ideas that embody an condominium pizza operation-turned-brick-and-mortar and a viral Indian barbecue spot.
Right here, they share how they approached constructing, and sustaining, their applications. Learn on for his or her ideas on managing traces, deciding when to develop the enterprise, and the worth of regulars.
On establishing techniques to answer buyer demand
Typically it’s a must to embrace expertise. “Day one, I made three burgers. Day 5, we made 123 burgers. It was an entire catastrophe within the kitchen. We had no techniques. I assumed I had this cool system the place we had been going to write down names on baggage, like Starbucks. And there have been two of us within the kitchen that day, plus my son, who was 12 on the time, taking orders. By the next Tuesday, we had printers and tablets and all types of stuff. The expertise was a giant assist as a result of nobody was going to return again a second time had we not improved.” —Billy Kramer, NFA Burger, Atlanta
Somewhat transparency goes a good distance. “The psychological clock that begins in individuals’s minds was one thing that we had been actually conscious of. Folks will wait in line, however as quickly as they place that order, that’s when their actual clock begins, and that’s whenever you actually type of need to ship. We knew what number of tortillas we had right down to the final tortilla ball. So as soon as I knew we had been like, 70 % via promoting what we had, I might exit into the road and I might actually go individual by individual, asking, ’What number of tacos are you getting?’ till I received to the top, after which I’d need to say, ’Hey, that is the top of the road.’ At that time, individuals had been truly grateful, like, ‘Oh, thank God, I didn’t have to attend one other hour simply to rise up to the entrance and understand you had been offered out.’” —Amanda Rosa, Border City, New York
Working via the rising pains. “At first, I made just a few pies per week at my condominium, like 20 per week, so no one might get in. Folks accused me of deliberately making it scarce, which is loopy as a result of I used to be simply utilizing the oven in my condominium and I might solely match one pizza in there at a time. And after we first opened the store, we did this silly factor on opening day the place we’re identical to, all proper, “Come on in. Let’s take all of the orders.” The wait was like two and a half hours or one thing and all people fucking hated us. However then, you realize, undergo these rising pains and also you’re like, okay, let’s determine this out.” —Chris Hansell, Chrissy’s, New York
Count on the surprising. “In our first 90 days, we had been shut down by the Division of Well being as a result of the gasoline station was working beneath a license from the Division of Agriculture, regardless that we had been informed that was okay. We had simply had an article written about us within the Atlanta Journal-Structure that was revealed on the day we closed. So two weeks later, we reopened with all the identical tools, all the identical stuff, only a completely different piece of paper on the wall. I feel the most important factor is, like I say to my youngsters, maintain your head on a swivel. Nothing is ever sure.” —Kramer
Catering gives one other income stream. “We realized with this primary location that the catering facet of issues is a giant alternative that we simply couldn’t actually hack into. The neighborhood we’re in now, Greenwich Village, there’s quite a lot of college students, we’re subsequent to NYU, it’s actually residential. We’ll be opening the second in Flatiron in just a few weeks, and we wish it to be surrounded by companies.” —Gilli Rozynek, Brown Bag Sandwich Co., New York
Take into account employees bandwidth. “I wanted to rent assist. Each time I posted on Instagram, as an alternative of hysteria, I began getting concern, for all of the individuals which might be displaying up and the entire work I’d need to do. The principle factor I needed to change was prep—as an alternative of creating 40 kilos of meals, now I’m making over 200 kilos of meals [for our pop-ups].” —Jay Patel, Dhaba BBQ, Atlanta
On constructing a loyal buyer base
Popping up in several neighborhoods helps construct a following. “You actually minimize your enamel doing pop-ups on a small scale. I went throughout Atlanta [when Phew’s Pies first started] and that basically helped get my title on the market. Respect the infant steps.” —Matthew Foster, Phew’s Pies, Atlanta
Accessibility is vital. “We truly haven’t raised costs since we began a yr and a half in the past as a result of it’s a restricted overhead. I would like individuals to have the ability to come with out worrying about having to pay a premium for Indian meals. I’ve been attempting to make Indian meals accessible to everybody, but in addition overhead is low as effectively, so there’s no purpose to maintain them excessive or increase them. It’s my burden.” —Patel
Preserve your focus native. “It’s actually cool to have any individual from Boston or St. Petersburg, Florida, drive three hours out of the way in which to have a burger. That’s actually superior. However your commerce space is crucial factor it is advisable concentrate on. It’s that three miles round your location that’s going to maintain you in enterprise.” —Kramer
Respect the regulars.“I truly assume influencers have been actually useful for us after we launched. They’ve introduced individuals from throughout city in and also you want a few of that. However we’re a neighborhood type of store; everybody within the block is aware of one another. There’s this man, Monty—he’s received to be like 100 years previous—who walks in on daily basis. If there’s an influencer within the store or there’s 100-year-old Monty, he’s most likely getting the sandwich first.” —Rozynek
Since our dialog, Phew’s Pies introduced its first location will shut; it can proceed to run pop-ups and catering. Border City will open its flagship brick-and-mortar in Greenpoint this fall.
Interviews have been edited and condensed for size and readability.
