If you go with the BBQ be sure to serve smoked collard greens !
These are simple to prepare and always get raves , especially from Southern diners . All you have to do is put a large pot of cleaned raw collards into the smoker while bbqing the meats . Particles of fat will deposit onto the greens and season them for you as they smoke . The greens will always come out tender and delicious . [8D]

When I lived in Californica collards were hard to find , and good collards were nearly impossible to find . BBQ pretty much originated in the South , so this always puzzled me . For the health consious diner these greens are low in calories and carbs , and will have only a negligible amount of fat . They are also loaded with iron and several vitamins .

I got a kicker for ya:

FATTEN UP FRIDAYS. All you can eat BBQ for X amount of dollars.

Taste is important.

Wait staff is important.

Uniqueness is important.

price is important.

Menu selection is important.

If you are targeting tourists you will be targeting a group that is not large on repeat visits.

You will need to attract them from the road. Sell them on the place before they are past. Advertise at the campgrounds. BUT I hate to see the touristy places that are screaming,"stop here! stop HERE!" That to me is always a turnoff. You have to hit the right combination of advertizing without seeming like a 60's era tourist trap.

So ATTRACT them. Good food will make them rave, but ya got to get them inside first!

1. Nice big parking lot. You will need room for those motorhomes.

2. As mentioned, hit them with some music as they get out of the vehicles. Don't put speakers out in the lot on poles or such. Put the speakers by (on) the restaurant pointing towards the lot. Get good speakers. If it sounds tinny or has scratchy static.... remember, FIRST IMPRESSIONS!

3. If possible, get that BBQ smell OUTSIDE into that lot if at all possible. They will be coming through the front door with a gleam in their eye and fangs sprouting!

4. Also, if you do everything right and you are getting lines outside. Good music, good benches, and BBQ SMELL will keep them there! Maybe have one of your (cutest, bounciest) waitresses take out some cold ones for 'em. They will stay.

5. You will be targeting tourists... They tend to ask people where a good place to eat is.... the people they tend to ask are locals and PARK RANGERS... hmmmmm.... park rangers.... how can you get them into your place and keep 'em coming back for my finger-lickin' food...

6. It's been a while since I was at Yosemite. If you have a good view from your restaurant, USE IT! Remember, tourist are just out sightseeing for a few weeks. They wanna see beautiful nature... show 'em your scenery.

7. (see #6) If you have beautiful scenery, maybe you should open up the restaurant in that direction and have a semi-open air restaurant...

8. I love seeing that grill at work with chickens, pigs, steaks are sizzling and smoking away... Food should always have a visual appeal. Plus, an open grill out in the dining area will give your place "Atmosphere".

All very good advice.

the tourists here are of 2 ditinct groups....

1st is international (japan, italy, germany..ect..) and those from several states away...those would be the least likely to be repeat or even 1st time customers (unless word of mouth/advertisement at hotels caught their eye/ear)...

the 2nd and larger group is folks from within California and they are for the most part those that have permanent Summer palces up here or make it a yearly/bi-yearly custome to vacation here...they tend to visit regularly in the spring and summer for the lakes, weather and of course Yosemite and in the fall and winter for the skiing...these are the ones that will most definately be repeat cutomers looking for the good food with a local feel.

no need to worry about it being an 'tourist trap' that is not at all the direction that i am going with this....the business would fail if that were the focus not to mention that the employees would be seasonal for the most part with too much turn over and that would result in folks working for me that really couldn't care less about how well they are doing their jobs....

one other hint. I used to order a burger for lunch everyday at a local bar and grill. The meat came freshly ground at 10 am from the butcher 2 blocks away. but I always told the barmaid,or tender to hold the potatoe salad and cole slaw. It was commercialy made and came in buckets. Wasn't that bad, but after a great burger, why spoil it. So maybe some fresh homemade salads are in order. Or potatoe chips that aren't stale. Salt will get them drinking more beverages and after all , thats where the $'s at.

Yup, Got the homemade salad thing going!

Mom's Potato Salad, Mom's Macaroni Salad and Old Fashioned Sweet Coleslaw...All are family recipes and delicious...

I will even be making the dressings for the green salads from scratch...again from family recipes....

My mom is a great cook and every mac or potato salad that I have ever had in any restaurant/deli has just been dissapointing to say the least (some were just ineddible!)...too much this, too little of that or just processed tasting....so in my place it will be all about good food that tastes great and not about making it convenient for me or my staff by getting bulk made stuff shipped to me from God knows where.

Mike I sent that e-mail to you.

Thanks!

I thought that it might be from you but I didn't recognize the email address.

ok.

i just emailed my dad with the restaurant idea.......i am completely stressed out!!!!

[&:]

i found a great loccation and if things work out i will be able to attract lots of locals and high schools students and teachers as well as the tourists.

i have a local guy that has offered to be an investor and if my pop goes for this then it will really happen....if not then it is going to banks for business loans and things which will make this happen much later and by then the property may be gone.........

stressed and freaking out!!!!!!


send up some prayers for me......if this works then my wife can quit her teaching job and be home with our children and i can stop working for other people and making almost no money..........God I Hope this really works out!!!!!!!

Mike, let us know how it's progressing.