No Marketing Needed — The Secrets Of A Successful Restaurant Business

Shan Janjua of Naan N Curry, Issaquah & Renton, WA

Full Interview

Nate: Hello and welcome. You’ve found The Savory Secret where we talk to and learn lessons from founders on starting and growing a thriving restaurant. I’m your host, Nate Ver Burg. Our guest on the show today is Shan Janjua of Naan N Curry located in Renton, Issaquah, Washington. Welcome, Shan. It’s great to have you on the show today.

Shan: Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate it.

Nate: Yes. So, let’s start at the very beginning. Tell us where you’re from and a little bit about your upbringing.

Shan: Yeah. Absolutely. So, I was born in California in San Francisco. That is where my parents immigrated to from Pakistan in the late ’70s, early ’80s. I grew up there for a good portion of my life. And then we moved up here to Washington state in the mid-’90s. And been a local kid since. I went to Kentwood High School in Covington. Then I went to University of Washington, and I did my graduate at Seattle University. So, I’ve been in the area. And Seattle has really been our home for quite a while. And my parents, they really fell in love with Seattle when they got here. It was kind of what they were looking for when they came to this country. And they never thought about moving to another place after that.

Nate: So, what did you end up going to school for?

Shan: So, I did my undergraduate in economics. And then I did my graduate…I did my MBA at Seattle University.

Nate: And what were you planning on doing at that point?

Shan: My parents had started our first location, Naan N Curry Restaurant in Renton in 2005. And I was actually in high school at the time, it was my last year of high school. And they had started it as a side business since I was heading off to college and looking for more funds, and I’m sure a lot of immigrant families go through that. And I just wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do, I was always around business, my father was always in some type of entrepreneurial state, and he had different types of businesses growing up, but what intrigued me the most was the restaurant, there was a lot of hustle and bustle that a lot of issues every day that you had to solve, and for some people that is a deterrent for them. But for me, for some reason, I really enjoyed it. And so, after I graduated high school, and I got to undergrad, I still wasn’t sure, but the one thing that was consistent during my life at that time was that restaurant, and I was there every day after school, washing dishes, cooking, whatever needed to get done to help the family. And so, once I graduated from undergraduate, I thought that maybe we could try to take our business to the next level or expand it, kind of go behind…go more than what my parents had thought it could be. And for anybody that’s in a family business that they know that that can always be a tussle between the older generation and the newer generation. But that was ultimately my goal, was to get into the same business as my family.

So, after I graduated from the graduate program, MBA, before I made the leap into trying to open another restaurant, I did go into the corporate world, and kind of make my decision that way because the restaurant that my parents had, that’s kind of the only job I’d really seen. And before I jumped into this kind of business I’m sure as you know of how demanding it is, I wanted to make sure that I made an informed decision. So, at that point, once I was in the corporate world, I really thought, you know what, now that I have my education done to the point where I wanted it to be, and I have some experience in the corporate world, I think to kind of mesh this together and help our business expand, that’s really what I wanna do. And I think at that point, is when I really decided that, you know what, I think I want to go back into the family business.

Nate: So, how did your parents respond at this point, when you said, let’s expand it, let’s do some new things?

Shan: It was kind of a… I mean, I think for me, I was always pushing for that. For them, it was kind of more of like, “Are you sure you wanna do this?” Are you sure because of how much time and dedication it takes. Obviously, for immigrant parents, they always want a life that’s much more easier and better for their kids than they have, and because they had invested so much of their own time and their own money and their own resources into this one restaurant, they were a little hesitant that they didn’t want me to do the exact same thing, maybe they thought that besides the restaurant, I could do something else or continue in the corporate world. But I was always the one that was very persistent on the fact that, no, I think we have something special here and I think that we should try to take that opportunity now while my interest is still engaged in the restaurant that expanding might be the way to go.

Nate: So, did you begin working with them again? Or did you immediately start by branching out and starting your own?

Shan: Yeah. So, I did come back to the original location in Renton after I left my job. And I think at that point, I came in with a different mindset. Before that, it was more of like, helping my parents and maybe they need help on the weekends, or they need to take a break, they need a day off, and I would just fill in, but this time, it was more of like, okay, I need to learn the ropes from A to Z, take what I know, and kind of enhance it with what I’ve learned in school in the corporate settings, so I think I came in with a different mission at that point.

Nate: Do you find that that was helpful, even for the Renton location when you came in with that different mindset?

Shan: Oh, yeah, I definitely think so. Something that was really cool was that the MBA program that I was in, there was a lot of people that were doing it as a part-time program that were in corporate jobs. So, they’d be at Boeing, Microsoft, a lot of the Northwest Seattle companies here. So, we’d learn a concept in class, and they may have to go through hoops or hurdles, or red tape to try to implement that. Whereas the next day, I can just go in and say, “Hey, you know what, guys, I think we should try this. And it may help the business. So, why don’t we try it? If it doesn’t work, great. If it works, fantastic.” So, I think that was kind of an edge that I had compared to my classmates at that time.

Nate: Yeah. And did they work well with you in what you were trying to accomplish? Or how was that, your family dynamics?

Shan: Yeah, I mean, my mother was definitely the more cautious one. She was the more towards the sentiment of this requires a lot of time, are you sure you’re gonna be able to give all that time. My dad is more of a very extremely entrepreneurial spirit. So, he did welcome those ideas. But at the same time, he did take it with a grain of salt because being an immigrant and working your whole life. And finally, getting to a point where you have a stable business that…in an industry where it’s known to fail within the first six months. They put everything they had into that place. And so, they would listen to my ideas, but then they would also try to work with me to try to come up with a manner that worked for them and for my ideas that I wanted to do.

Nate: In family businesses, there’s all kinds of dynamics, you’ve got the families that are very supportive of one another, and they want to make it work. And then there’s this other dynamic, where they’re saying, “Hey, you went to school, you got your MBA, are you sure you wanna do this?” Was there at some point that they realized that you were serious enough that you were in it to stay?

Shan: Yeah. Definitely. And those conversations were very lengthy in our family. And it’s one of those things where I just could not keep myself awake, and one of the main reasons for that is because our culture is very much based around food. And the city where our food comes from, and where the branches of our family are from, which is Lahore in Pakistan, that is considered to be the food capital of the country. And just recently, there’s been a lot of vloggers that have gone there and talked about all the food scene there and whatnot. But over there, the culture is very much like, let’s go out and eat or what are we having for dinner today. While you’re eating dinner, you’re talking about, what’s the next meal gonna be, what are we having for breakfast. And I think, because of that, it was always ingrained in my mind of how we can have our food kind of bridge our cultures, and growing up, as a first-generation came here, you go through these moments of whether, are you Pakistani, or are you American, so you walk this fine line, your whole life of what’s your identity, and you try to make that balance. And I just found that this business or the restaurant, or the way that we present our food, it’s like the perfect thing for me because you’re kind of still conflicted in your identity, but at the same time, you’re able to present yourself in a way that is up to you, you don’t have to play by a certain rulebook. And when it came to food in our house, there was always arguments between my parents as far as who’s gonna do the cooking that was always the spot of contention in the household more than anything because both my parents love to cook.

And even in the restaurant, all the recipes are their own, they developed those, they enhanced them for commercial use and all that kind of stuff. So, I just thought that there’s so much work and effort that went into that, and the type of food that we have, there’s really a lacking of that in the Seattle area, there’s not a lot of pure authentic Pakistani restaurants. And our location was located in the suburb of Renton and more specifically downtown Renton, where not a lot of people go out of their way to go have Pakistani food. So, we got blessed that that location brought a lot of people to it. So, I thought, well, if people can drive all the way from Redmond to come to Renton just for your food, well, it’s pretty easy to say that why can’t we take this a little bit closer, and why not increase the business. So, I think getting my parents to buy into that to say, okay, fine, you’re gonna invest your life savings, and we’re gonna help you do that, that was kind of tough, but I kept pushing and pushing and pushing, I think, when I did come back from the corporate job, they saw that I really wanted to do that. And I think where it really hit home was that I had learned all the recipes, A to Z by the time I got back, and they could see that I could replicate the food that they had been doing for 12, 13 years, I could replicate that just as good. And I think that’s where they really got the confidence that, “Okay, you know what, I think that you can do it,” because our whole business model was based on the taste of our food. We never had the $20,000 chandelier or the upscale environment. It was just all about how do you get people into the door just to come for your food. And once they saw that I could replicate that I think their nerves kind of eased at that point.

Nate: Yes. And although you grew up in the business, what was it like coming back into the business and seeing the day to day, some of the challenges that you would face back when you were with them in Renton, what was that thought process of what am I doing? Should I go back to the corporate world? Or were you really all in from the beginning?

Shan: It’s funny you say that because there’s still moments of that today. I mean, now that we’re in almost year four of our location here in Issaquah.
And there’s still days of that, and I’m sure any entrepreneur will tell you that, especially through the times that we’re going through now, you question your existence, you question all of them. But the one thing that’s always stayed consistent is our food. And I think that’s what keeps me in it day to day is that we have something that I believe other people don’t. And if you fully believe in your product and I think if you focus on the bread and butter of what you’re trying to offer, a lot of the other things kind of tend to fall into place. And when we got to opening the new restaurant, it was very tough the first year, even though we had the name, we had the menu and all that, but you still go through all these hurdles that you went through 12 years ago with the other location, And there were things that I thought that I could do much better than my parents, I thought, okay, you know what? Well, they do it this way because they think a certain way. Well, whenever it comes to my turn, I’m gonna do it this way. I’m gonna do X, Y, and Z. Well, you get in there, and then you start realizing that instead of doing X, Y, and Z, you’re only able to do X because of so and so reason, and then you start to think well, they did have a reason for the way they were doing things. And you just have to learn to adapt. And I think you have to kind of put your ego to the side when things are not working and just kind of try to figure it out. And that’s where I think my relationship with my parents actually got better was at that point. And just that level of understanding that they were always trying to instill in me that I finally learned firsthand because I was in it myself at that point.

Nate: And was that a commitment that you made from the beginning that you were just gonna stick it out?

Shan: Yeah. And there was a lot of stuff happening at the time where we opened the Issaquah location. Actually, my wife gave birth to twins a couple months before we opened the location. And at that point, it was very much like, wow, do I delay the opening? Or do I just go for it? What do I do? I need to spend time at home because I’m sure as you know, you have some background in the restaurant business is that when you’re in, you’re in, and you don’t have a choice because you can hire employees, you have a great team and all that kind of stuff. But when you’re coming from a small business environment, from a family business environment, your first weapon is you and you have to get that balance between your team and you and what’s going on at home. And in a family business, all of that is interrelated. So, yeah, I mean, I kind of knew, you know what, it’s just the confidence I had, that I still have in the product that we have to offer. There is not many Pakistani restaurants in Seattle. And what tends to happen is that Pakistani restaurants get coupled into Indian restaurants as well. And that’s not a bad thing because we’re from the subcontinent, but at the same time there is distinct differences between the food and people that know Pakistani food, they’ll be able to tell you yes, this is extremely Pakistani dish, and people that are used to Indian food, they’ll be able to tell you, you know what, this is an Indian dish. So, I think with the vast amount of Indian restaurants in Seattle, and all of them doing their own region of cooking and all that, I just knew that nobody’s doing what we’re doing. And I think that’s where the opportunity was. So, it was just a matter of time, you just got to stick with it, deal with all the headaches that come along with it. But eventually, everything will fall into place.

Nate: Yeah, Shan, and how long were you working with them at the Renton location before you started planning to open up a new location in Issaquah? Or was this the plan from the beginning?

Shan: Well, the Issaquah part kind of fell into our lap, but the second location, when I left my corporate job, at that point, until we opened our restaurant in Issaquah it was about three years. And there was a lot of instances of pushing for the new location then backing off, pushing for it, backing off, pushing for it, backing off. So, in a family business, you bring all that stuff home with you. And sometimes those dynamics are the ones that hold you back at a certain point. But at the same time, I think going through that was important to really know that, yes, this is exactly what I wanna do.

Nate: For those first three years, were you also working at a corporate job at the same time, or was this at a separate time?

Shan: Well, I was working my corporate job and at the restaurant, and then when I left the corporate job, I was at the restaurant full-time. So, I’d go to work in the morning, I go to work in the morning at my job. And then in the evening, I’d be back helping my parents and then I’d be there all weekend helping them. So it’s just something that I couldn’t get myself away from. And it was never to the point where I didn’t want to do it, it was just ingrained in me that I wanted to do it.

Nate: Well, let’s take just a moment and introduce our sponsor. Today’s show is brought to us by TableTop. Are you familiar with TableTop, Shan?

Shan: I am not.

Nate: All right. So TableTop is leading in the restaurant industry as a low cost easy to use all in one front of house and back of house restaurant solution, it includes everything from POS, to inventory management, supply chain, the smart AI forecasting, automated ordering, and now mobile ordering with TableTop ToGo. So, whether your restaurant needs a commission-free mobile ordering platform that’s completely turnkey, and can be set up quickly, or you just wanna become more profitable, TableTop empowers you to take back control of your brand, and the customer experience from beginning to end. So, a question for you, Shan. TableTop is always developing new products to help restaurants solve real problems and become more profitable. If you had a tech team in your back pocket who could solve any problem that you face on a regular basis in your restaurants, what would you tackle first?

Shan: Wow, that’s a really good question. I think it’s important to think about it in terms of what’s going on today. And I think that’s a great example of all the opportunities that are out there to make life easier for restaurant owners. So, for example, if you’re saying that TableTop offers all these things, that would be something great for me to have at the moment because one of the things with the COVID going around and all the issues that businesses are facing was that we’re not able to see anybody in our restaurant right now. So, how do we reach out to all those customers that had been coming through the door, that maybe we don’t have their contact information? We don’t have their email address? How can we let them know that we’re open apart from social media? Can we text them from an app? Can we email them? Can we let them know what our menu is this week? Can we let them know that we are delivering through X, Y, and Z service? And I think for small businesses like us, we don’t come across those solutions every day. And for something to be very easy for us just to do everything in one spot, that would be awesome.

Nate: Yeah. That’s great. Right now, TableTop is offering a 60 day trial of their mobile ordering platform so you can start accepting online orders directly all commission-free, so there’s no more need for all the delivery tablets. They allow you to put those commissions back into your own pocket. So, there’s no contracts, no hidden fees, no commitments, just low cost, easy to use smart restaurant management tools to make your life easier. You can visit TryTableTop.com and see for yourself. So, Shan, you’ve decided to open the second restaurant up in Issaquah. What was that like just venturing out kind of starting that new place? Obviously, you’ve just had twins. So, there was a lot going on on the home front, personally. But what was it like? I mean, that restaurant, they’d established for a number of years here, you’re moving to the east side, you got to start marketing, you’ve got to do everything from scratch. What was that like?

Shan: Yeah, I think I was lucky and fortunate enough that we had a platform from the other restaurant, and at that point, we were deciding whether we want to expand with the same name or are we wanting to do something different, but we just kind of thought that the safer route would be to open another location with the same name and for the most part, the same menu as well. So, with that said, we were able to touch base with a lot of our customers at our Renton location because the majority of them were driving from the east side anyways to come to Renton. And the biggest success for us over all the years in our Renton location, and even now in Issaquah has just been word of mouth. One person tells another, they tell another, they bring them food over, they do takeout or they have their meets and greets at a restaurant. And when our other location in Renton, when it was getting started, the online reviews and online platforms, they weren’t really there. And they started coming into play a little bit later after we opened. So, before that, the notoriety was gained through just word of mouth, we didn’t advertise very much because my parents were very much of the mindset like, well, if we start advertising a lot, we don’t want to compromise the quality of the food, we don’t want our name to get out so much that we can’t handle what’s coming in through the door. So, they were very settled in that approach of how to do business.

So, we kind of took the same approach when we opened the Issaquah location, that we didn’t do a whole bunch of advertising, just because one of the things with new restaurants is that they’ll start off with a bang. But in order to keep up with the business, in order to keep up with the quality of the food, they get so busy that they’re not able to do that. So, what we wanted to do was kind of the opposite, where we start small, and then we just build on the business that’s coming through the door. So, we started telling all of our customers at our Renton location that, “Hey, you know what, we’re opening another location in Issaquah.” And we gained the interest that way, then there’s the little things like banners, flyers, we put the new address on our menus in our Renton location. And these are really easy things that even the listeners that are thinking about going into the business or things that you may think may not work, they actually do. Very little and simple things, we added it to our website that we’re opening another location. So, just very small steps that we took to where we could get some traffic to the door on the first day.

Nate: And since you had customers that were already coming down from the east side to Renton, was there a concern by your parents that that was going to diminish their sales significantly by having them now going to Issaquah?

Shan: Well, that was a concern at the beginning. And at the same time, one of the issues that we were having, believe it or not, is that we were getting so busy to the point where it was becoming hard to keep up. So, we thought at that point that maybe if we open another location, it’ll make things easier in the sense that where some of the load will come off of one location. And we’ll go to the other one. And that way, managing the resources, managing the process may be a little bit easier to do that. And that happened for the first couple of months. And then about a month, I would say 9 to 10 of the other location where things just really started picking up in Issaquah. And what actually happened is that we had a lot of new customers that were coming to the Issaquah location that had never been to the Renton one. So, what that did is actually, well, now that we have all these new people coming through the door in Issaquah, well, maybe if they’re down in the south side, they wanna go to the Renton one. So, business actually increased in both locations, and it just kind of…we haven’t looked back since. And it’s been kind of a blessing as well that we’ve gotten busier. And that both locations are just as busy now.

Nate: Wow. And you said that the menu you kept pretty consistent. Were there a few things that you changed as well?

Shan: Well, I think if a piece of advice from my end for anybody that’s a first-time person getting into the business where I would consider myself a first time and a half type of person because we had this family business whereas I was venturing into my own thing, but I made the conscious decision of having a small menu. And our Renton location had a pretty elaborate and extensive menu just because we’ve been there for so many years. But for me, it was important to take kind of the best hits of Naan N Carry in Renton and implement those in Issaquah and just kind of build on that, What do people come to Renton for? So, we take those 10 to 12, 15 items, and we replicate those in Issaquah and get those people through the door. And then once your confidence in your staff and your ability to run the business and cook the food enhances, you can always build on the menu, but it’s hard to offer one thing to a customer and then take it off the menu. So, I would rather just build on that. And then that’s kind of what we did over the years.

Nate: Yeah. And it sounds like you really had a great successful run even just the way that it started. And like you said, you had some customers to draw upon, some of the marketing things that you did, what were some of the harder things that happened along the way, when you were getting the Issaquah location going?

Shan: Yeah. Absolutely. The hardest thing, I think, was getting a team together because, for me, I was an integral part of the location in Renton. So, I am working at the Renton location, helping my family as well as trying to get this other restaurant up and running from which…the point that where it’s up and running, I will leave the Renton location. So, not only finding a replacement for myself but at the same time building a staff, a process at the older restaurant to where when I leave, they don’t have anything to worry about. Whereas now getting into the new spot that you need to find the right staff, the right people with a budget that’s pretty constrained. In a lot of restaurants, I’m sure you know that as well, that at the beginning, you’re counting every single penny, and you don’t have very much to spend, so you got to try to do as much as you can with what you have. And for me, the first person I turned to was one of my best friends, my best friend from 10th grade. And he always had an interest of going into the restaurant business. So I said, “Hey, you know what, if you’re not enjoying your job, why don’t you come work with me for a year, help me get everything up and going, and we’ll make sure you get paid, we’ll make sure that you get the experience that you want to get. And with that, you can implement all the ideas that you always have had to do in a restaurant without having to worry about failing, you’re just helping us get everything started.” And I was very honored and blessed that he accepted that offer. And I think that’s where things kind of started going, the ball started rolling at that point.

Nate: Yeah. And you mentioned that building a team can be really difficult. Was it helpful having him on board to help you solidify a new team?

Shan: Oh, yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. I mean, when you’re bootstrapping from day one, I mean, you’re one person, but you’re doing three to four people’s worth of work. And I’m sure you know that when you started your business. And that’s just the way it is. So, when you have a certain comfort level and a trust level, with the people around you, you’re able to concentrate your energy on different things. And my buddy, he had no idea how to run a restaurant. But the one thing I always had with him was the trust factor. That okay, if I give him a task, or if I ask something of him, I know that it’s going to be taken care of, I don’t have to question his desire, his ability to do it. And with that said, I could say, okay, hey, you know what, you’re gonna take care of X, Y, and Z today. And I’m gonna go out, and I’m gonna go try to poach some people, or I’m gonna go get some leads on people, on cooks, chefs that we can bring in and they can adapt to our style of work. So, it was really helpful, really helpful.

Nate: Yes. And Shan, finally, what would you say is your secret sauce? What is it about you that’s allowed you to start this new location, continue to grow it yourself, and work together with your parents in a family business? What is it about you or your team or your food or what is it that’s allowed you guys to endure and thrive?

Shan: Well, I appreciate you asking that reflective question. I think it’s important for any business owner to kind of ask themselves that on a daily basis, what is it about you that you’re able to do what you want to do, live the life that you’re wanting to do on a daily basis. And I think, me personally, I think the grip that my parents taught me in their own restaurant, just the way that they’ve lived their life, all the struggles that they’ve gone through, being immigrants to a country where they didn’t know anything about mixed with my desire to work with people. I think now, more than ever, your team is what really matters. And we’ve had a consistent product, which definitely is the main reason I think people come through the door, and how we present that to them, how we take care of them. I think that’s one of the most important parts but I only have two hands and I cannot do everything myself. So, I think it’s really important for just as my parents trust that me as an owner, as a manager, as a team leader to trust my team as well. And you really have to…you have to let go of the reins a little bit and the control that you want to have in order to succeed. And I know at times, it’s very hard for people to do that in a small business. But at the end of the day, when your business is running full steam, you cannot do everything yourself. And as much as you are the backbone of the business, you have to let go of the control that you have. And you have to have to trust the people that are around you because you never know who out of your team is gonna surprise you. And who’s gonna be the front runner, who is gonna be the most honest and most loyal, you just don’t know until you give it a chance.

And now, we’re to the point where we have two very busy locations, and we can’t do everything ourselves, now we’re thinking different than how we used to think about our business 15 years ago with both locations running at full steam. So, I think you have to find a balance in how you want to approach your own personal life, and then kind of apply that to your business. And I think my secret sauce is that in itself is that I’m able to do that. I’m able to stay sane, I find things that keep me going. And at the same time, I can divert my attention when I need to to just the business and take care of what needs to be done. So, I think you have to find your own secret sauce. And I think mine is my ability to kind of partition my brain to kind of tackle everything that I have to do.

Nate: That’s really good, Shan. So, tell us those who are in Seattle, how can they find you? Those who are not in the Seattle area, how can they learn more about your restaurants? And when those who are here local do visit, what are a couple dishes that you recommend, they’ve just got to try?

Shan: So, we do have two locations here in the Seattle area. One is in downtown Renton and the other is in Issaquah right off I 90. So that’s for the people that are in the vicinity, in the area. For people that are outside of our area, out of Washington, I think, for me personally of how I approach the business and how I’m in love with our food and our culture, I think it’d be nice if you took some time to kind of understand where our food comes from. There’s a lot of recent vloggers and YouTubers that have gone to Pakistan and have reported back on street food there and recipes that we implement as well. So, I think a good point for them to start would be to watch some of these YouTube videos. They’re fantastic, very entertaining, and the places where they’ve gone. I’ve been to all those places personally in the city of Lahore, and the food is phenomenal in those areas. And that’s where we draw our inspiration from. And speaking of those recipes and things like you mentioned, the few dishes that I think people should always try when they come to our place is we have two parts of our menu where we specifically designate dishes that are Pakistani specialties. And then we have weekly specials as well.

So, in the Pakistani specialties, our biryani, which is the seasoned rice and meat cooked together, that is by far our most popular dish on the menu. We do chicken, lamb, and vegetarian versions of that. And I think apart from that, there is also a section of our menu where we dedicated tandoori specialties, which is cooked in the club and skewered meats. And those are excellent. And apart from the biryani, those are probably the most popular things on the menu. And then we also have the weekly specials where we kind of do out of the norm things. So, in our Renton location, for example, we do something called Magus [SP] which is lamb brains, it’s a very special delicacy that we do. And we do things like bitter melon. We do things like roasted eggplant with roasted potatoes, things of that nature that you normally wouldn’t find at your Indian and Pakistani restaurants.

Nate: And those are a couple of personal favorites.

Shan: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And like for example, do we one with bitter melon and minced lamb. I could eat that for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Nate: Sounds really good. Well, excellent. Well, it’s really been great having you on the show today.

Shan: I appreciate it. Thank you.

Nate: And for those again who are interested, our sponsor is TableTop, you can visit trytabletop.com. And right now, again, they’re offering a 60 day trial of their mobile ordering platform so you can start accepting online orders directly all commission-free. There’s no contracts, no hidden fees, no commitments, just low cost, easy to use smart restaurant management tools to make your life easier. Well, Shan, again, it’s been great having you on the show today.

Shan: Thank you. It was great. And just one last piece for anybody that’s listening, that is questioning whether they want to get in to the business or not. There is not a right time, you just follow your gut. If this is what you wanna do, then just put your heart and soul into it. And if you have something that you’re offering that other people don’t, people will come through the door. Just don’t lose hope. And it’s a very tough business. But you have to grind it out, especially in times like this.

Nate: Oh, great, Shan. Well, thank you again for coming on today.

Shan: Yeah. Thanks for having me. I appreciate it.

Nate: Thank you again for joining us today on The Savory Secret. I’m your host, Nate Ver Burg. We invite you to click subscribe to receive all the latest interviews from founders as we discuss the lessons they’ve learned on starting and growing a thriving restaurant. Until next time, enjoy some delicious food, and we’ll talk to you again soon.