Jus Mac

Its becoming more and more difficult for one off concepts due to the investments needed to open.  Rent has escalated at an astonishing rate over the last 2 years.  Just 2 years ago you could get into a space at around $25 - $29 sq ft.  Today those same spaces are now at $50 - $70 sq ft and that's the gross rent not including the NNN's.  The larger restaurant groups/chains that have scale have also contributed to the rise in rent rates.  This is why you're for the most part only seeing restaurants from out of the city i.e hopdoddy, shake shack, etc.  These are huge players with deep deep pockets.  If you look around you'll find smaller local restaurants struggling to keep pace with rent and labor increases.  A lot of these restaurants arent advertised as struggling publicly but many are up for sale or attempting to have their spaces subleased out.  

Today's restaurant landscape is a day and night comparison from only a couple of years ago.  Expect food prices to keep going up to combat the cost of doing business.  Its a perfect storm;  buyer habits have changed, cheaper groceries, a down economy combined with what I say is an over saturation of restaurants. 

While I have no desire to get in the middle of this sticky situation, I just want to say that I waited tables for more than a decade at everything from tourist trap to TexMex to white table cloth and rarely, if ever, were employees given free food. I worked at one restaurant where the closer got a free meal because they would be there until after midnight, but in every other single instance, 1/2 price was standard.

Its not even a sticky situation. We actually like David..he just stopped coming to work. Its strange that we are even having a conversation about him but alas we are.

Yes, when he stated that we should be feeding our employees for free every day I was perplexed on how he came up with this. Then he stated he should be eating free because he worked here. I know of no restaurant who does this.

Not even really quite sure why somebody would post this totally false information. Its really sad to be honest with you. David came to us about a drug addiction, received his check and we never heard from him again. That was months ago.

Tread carefully? He wasn't in jail and he wasn't arrested or charged for anything. You can check that yourself. Do an Internet records check if you don't believe me. You seem to be the expert on baseless accusations. The fact is that you refused to pay him his tip income for the time he worked. I believe it amounts to a few hundred dollars. In my book that's unethical, and stealing.

Low turnover? That's not what I hear. How about letting your employees have a little macaroni on the house so that they know what you're selling and also feel good about who they work for?

The problem you're faced with now is that you treated an employee unfairly and expected to not have any repercussions. Well, guess what? You're busted.

You're obviously a friend of David. And now I know for certain its him that is the basis of this conversation. David didnt report to work for two weeks straight..no phone call and no call from any of his family members. We have a business to run and that includes having employees to do certain tasks. It isnt our responsibility to monitor our employees after they leave Jus' Mac. At some point you have to be held accountable for the actions you take and understand those actions can and will affect your place of employment. We attempted to contact David but the phone number we had on file was no longer a working number. At some point you have to fill the position and that's what we did.

David then came into our establishment 2 weeks later stating we was arrested and placed in jail for having drugs on him. Then proceeded to tell us he is going to rehab for his drug addiction. End of story...

There are no repercussions...he never returned to work. He received his paycheck for the time he worked. He was an hourly employee and thus was paid for the time he worked. When you're in jail (according to him) you kinda don't make money at that point.

And the food situation...he wanted us to provide him with free food daily. That isn't our policy and never has been. We offer all our employees discounts if they choose to eat at the restaurant.

Lets hope that they start treating their employees better. I have first hand knowledge that Jus' Mac doesn't provide any food to servers and distributes tip revenue unfairly. There's at least one case of a former employee who quit and they confisicated his tip revenue. They claimed that all he was due was the below minimum wage they pay.

I personally will not patronize them.

OutfieldDan,

I would suggest you tread carefully with the statements you just provided. These accusations are ENTIRELY FALSE. We have NEVER paid anyone below minimum wage and in fact ALL employees make well above minimum wage.

We know exactly which employee you are referring to because for one all our employees are very well compensated and we've had very little turnover. By the way...he didnt quit, he was in jail for 2 weeks due to a drug possession felony. Of those 2 weeks we had no clue as to where he was. That is called job abandonment.

Again, if you chose to provide false information then we can solve this in the appropriate manner.

Jus' Mac

Ready or not...here we come!!! We anticipate November opening at the old Cupcake Cafe location behind the mall.

We'd like to thank all those that have supported us over the last 10 months because without you we wouldn't have been able to expand into Sugar Land. Here's to spreading the cheese!!!

Here is our list in no particular order:

1. Chilosos (We eat here every Sunday)

2. Someburger

3. Big Mamou

4. Freebirds

5. Berry Hill

Place i am really looking forward to is: Jus Mac

i am literally DROOLING thinking of how i can put some chicken, frank's red hot an blue cheese together to create this dish. yummy, yummy, yummy! i love franks. LOVE IT.

We love it too!!!

So...there are varieties of cheese, what about pasta? Macaroni noodles just don't get me pumped about eating.

Mac and cheeseburger? Buffalo mac? I might be the only one who wants those but they sound awesome right now.

You'll get pumped over what we will be serving I was pumped eating it over the weekend.

Firstly, I have to say I'm super excited about the concept. Mac+cheese is one of my favorite combinations of foods.. I've never met one that I didn't like and the varieties that come out of my kitchen are endless. A few months ago I even bought a macncheese cookbook.

My only concern is method of service. Please don't do another lola's/dragonbowl counter service thing. If I have to stand in line and order at a cash register I sure as hell don't want to spend $10-15 a plate. Every time I go to Lola's I can never remember to grab cutlery.

Regardless.. You have my support! Bring on the cheese and whatever you choose to serve underneath it will be good.. pasta.. veges.. shoes.. lamps.. Just cover it in quality cheese and I'll try it

Shoes and lamps??? Dang...let me dig out some old things I've been trying to get rid of...lol...j/k.

You are truly a die hard mac and cheese lover. We hope to see you often!

Market timing? So is mac and cheese cool now or something?

Its always been cool...we just didnt know it.

We won't tell anyone, promise!

LOL...I think this forum is what attributed to all the recent buzz. Should I give you guys one dish???? Hmmmmmmmmm....

Just be careful when you start adding meat. You don't want to start reminding people of Hamburger Helper.

Thanks for the concern! Thats funny but no hamburger helper here. I never enjoyed hamburger helper as a kid nor do I as an adult.

Its oh so tempting to just blurb out the menu. I wont though...

Looking forward to your opening - I just hope it isn't *too* foofoo or has something like (mandatory) valet parking...!

I spent $20 for two at a non-high end restaurant the other day if you need perspective...lol

No foofoo...we are youngsters here so expect a trendy and hip atmosphere. No valet either...we have the vacant lot next door so you can park your own car, truck, van, light SUV, moped or whatever gets you to us.

I agree.

Hopefully, the menu price range will run the gamut.

The truffle one is intriguing though.

Man, I need to stay off this thread, I'm getting hungry again.

The menu price range will run the gamut. If you want to eat high end mac and cheese you can but if you dont...you have many other choices.

Concept questions aside, if it's in my neighborhood i'll visit. i don't drink coffee but go to Antidote. i support small businesses and i love to eat so places like Jus Mac are right up my alley.

I think one thing that drives successful restaurants in the Heights is being open to feedback and always having a dialogue with your customer base. Renowned Chef Robert Gadsby didn't do that and, in this girl's opinion, it was part of the downfall of Bedford. After all, they can't blame the location.

From their FB page to comments in this thread, Jus Mac seems like they really do want to engage their community. This can only serve them well. Happy customers will find a reason to eat mac'n'cheese once a week if they feel they are doing it somewhere where concerns have been listened to.

Also (and this goes to what CPA said), an owner who listens is probably also willing to evolve. I am not saying that Jus Mac should or wil need to change their concept, but being open to customer feedback may give them some ideas down the road that they haven't even thought of yet. You just never know.

Despite the statistics, most restaurants in this neighborhood that offer good food and good service are going to do well. I would say we have more successes than failures. Just ask Shade and Glasswall. And if Happy All Cafe can stay open, anything can!

And this is why we are actively engaging through Facebook and any other forum where we are discussed. The whole point is to touch base with what people are wanting while still upholding the integrity of the concept. Its not too often you see restaurants or any business for that matter posting pics and documenting the entire process. We're just two regular people who enjoy great food and great company. No feedback is bad feedback in our minds...its just one step closer to giving what you want.

As long as Jus Mac is in business we will always be right here for questions, concerns and ideas. To be close minded would only lead to our demise.

I think you've got a great concept and the timing is perfect. Mac & Cheese is taken more seriously now than it was just a few years back.

I frequent some of the nicer restaurants in Houston every weekend. I'd say my wife and I spend about $150-$400 on one meal every weekend. I've noticed that Mac & Cheese is the "in" thing at the moment. I've made a point of trying it at every good restaurant I go to. One of the best is Smith & Wollensky's Truffled. A couple at the table next to us scoffed at Mac & Cheese as a side plate on a $300+ meal. My wife and I knew that they had just passed up one of the best dishes at the restaurant. The Mac & Cheese Squared at Yard House is not bad either. It goes very well with a beer on a cold day.

I'm sure I'll be trying your place about a month after opening. I hope you're planning to go a little on the higher end on this. I think you need to have the best Mac & Cheese in Houston to succeed.

Thank you for the confidence in the concept and we feel the timing is perfect as well. We have visited all the restaurants known for their mac and cheese in the Houston area and are confident that our mac and cheese will be the best in Houston hands down. All the homework has been done and we cant wait to roll out the menu which will have some higher end versions.

Speaking of which, any idea about when you'll open?

Projected opening is late June early July given we do not run into any major obstacles with the City. Facebook us and if you are a facebook friend send a message...we would love to show appreciation to our supporters.

Your source has checked in.

Thank you...not many people actually know the failure rate but now you've given hope to everyone that wants to open one....j/k. We're foodies so the more restaurants out there the better.

Pretty much what I thought when I saw this. In high school, the lunch ladies burned the top of the Mac/Cheese and served pears for dessert...Repeatedly. As a teenage boy I was...well, underwhelmed.

Ingredients can make a difference. I have since learned that poached bosc pears in cointreau are fabulous. I am still hopeful about the mac/cheese.

Yes! Gruyere..with bacon and wilted greens.

MMM...

{Hungry now}

Please visit us when we open...we'd like to change your mind about mac and cheese. The ingredients go a loooooooooooooooong way.

Note that the article cited by the cpa refuted his own claim.

The overwhelming majority of restaurant failures result not from "too narrow a niche", but from too little money, followed by lousy management. "Too narrow a niche" would be included in that 11% of factors that are too small a percentage to merit mention in the article.

You my friend are exactly right as to why most restaurants do fail.

Does anyone have the stats on what the failure rate is for any business in general? I'm sure those statistics arent too favoring either.

Can you imagine where we would all be if we let stats/people dictate the decisions we make in our lives? I know for a fact its not a 80% failure rate for the restaurant business but lets entertain that for a second and give praise to those 20% that did succeed. Houston would be soooooo boring and bland without all these fantastic restaurants.

We will still welcome Heights CPA with open arms. And if he does walk thru our doors then we will chalk that one as a small win for us.

Heights CPA:

I hope you werent referring to us a being defensive or negative because we werent. We addressed your concerns and offered our own opinions.

to all the people saying "if my kids were still young" i don't think that's the intent. Jus Mac can correct me, but when you have a Mac and Cheese restaurant that has a lot of specialty items, its geared towards adults. kids want simple Kraft, nothing mixed in. I'm sure you can get there out, but the real drive to go here would be all the meats and veggies and special cheeses, that adults would be more interested in.

just a thought. and some more free advertising.

BINGO!!! We are not out to be Chuck e Cheeses.

I know I'll get hammered on this one but... I don't see "Noodle Houses" or "Pizza Joints" having this issue. What about Souper Salad? Seems to me it's pretty successful and sustainable. I don't see them spending money on advertising to show the fact that they have sandwiches as well to bring in business.

I'm also a bit confused how your prediction of the downfall of McCain's Market supports your point that Jus' Mac is a dumb idea? Your statement also implies that you would have to be a patron of the establishment in subject to predict its downfall, which would then lead me to believe you would discover that it isn't just Mac n Cheese. Quite the pickle we are in here.

Where it wouldn't be my first choice in business, I wouldn't venture to predict its downfall just off the name alone.

Its a great debate! Brand awareness is a vital part of any successful business and I think we're doing a bang up job in that category so far without even trying to at this point. WE love this forum!

So they are named Jus Mac but they will spend money on advertising to make the point that they are NOT Jus Mac? That is counter-intuitive at best.

I predicted the demise of McCain's Market after my first visit there.

Whats great is the more you talk about us the better. And we have yet spent a dime on advertising. The more you are in the dark in terms of our concept and business sense the more we will be talked about and the more word will spread. Keep up the great debating folks...we love it!

P.S.

McCains had no identity...we knew its outcome as well without ever stepping in.

I am anything but closed minded when it comes to food. However, my comment was not a culinary one but a business one. I have evaluated hundreds of projects in over 30 years of experience and I have a good feel for what will work in the long run and what will not. It may be a short-term sensation but it will NOT go the distance if it does not expand the menu and then - it will cease to be "Jus Mac". My point will be proven either way.

A much better concept would have been "Mac n More".

We can appreciate your input but isnt this what people thought about places that served:

Only Pizza (Name any of them)

Only Burritos (Freebirds, Mission Burrito, Bullritos)

Only Hamburgers (5 Guys Burgers)

Only Doughnuts (Shipleys)

The list goes on and on but you get the point. We look to revisit with you years down the road.

Have you ever purchased bottled water? Crazy concept considering!!!

I've been instructed to post this per the wife.

"Open your mind, my dear “Dumb Idea” friend. Mac n’ cheese is anything but narrow. Have you ever thought of what’s in most of Italian food dishes? Pasta, cheese, sauce…. Hmmmm… sounds a bit like the ingredients to your Plain Jane mac n’ cheese. I dare you to put on your creativity cap for a sec, and think about all the wonderful variations there could be to this fine traditional dish. Perhaps some pancetta could spice up your oversized macaroni noodles, or a different type of cheese beyond the powder and/or Velveeta (try Gouda, Grueyere, or a nice Alfredo sauce), or they might even be able to add …gasp?!... VEGETABLES?!!!

I invite you to give it a whirl. You may be surprised what others can do to open your closed minded taste buds. I’d truly hate to see you miss out…."

Mrs. D

Wow...you're wife's vision is in line with our own. The sky is the limit here and we intend to take it over the top. Yup...Vegetables is on that list

Tell Mrs. D to facebook us so we can make sure to keep a very close eye out for her when she walks through our doors and be sure to be alongside her when she does. All we ask is to allow us the opportunity to take you to places with mac and cheese you didn't think were possible.

Did someone mention Gruyere ...We gotcha covered and its one of my favorites. Actually they are all my favorites!

Hello All,

We understand some people will not totally agree with the concept and its viability but we're up for the challenge. Yes, you can do a lot with Mac and Cheese...as mentioned already. As much as I'd like to give out the full menu I'll wait till the opening date gets closer. For those that are curious though, we do have over 20 different varieties with more to come but not all will be rolled out at the same time and yes there are some gourmet versions like our "Park Avenue" (Hint-Truffle). Individuals who are watching their figures can opt for one of our salads with homemade dressings. Lets not forget about delicious desserts!

And no...this isnt your Kraft Mac and Cheese

You can follow our progress http://www.facebook.com/jusmac