Jake's Philly Steaks and Rockets Games You've obviously spent a considerable amount of time and thought in to how Jake's should be owned and managed. Let me try and give you a little insider information as to why we are doing things the way we are and attempt to answer a few of your questions. First of all, Jake's is not my livelihood; I have been an independent oil and gas explorationist since leaving Halliburton in 1989. The Mama's connection that you now mention more than us, is there because that is where we twisted for more than 30 years and I basically liked a few things over there.....a few of the employees, and the chile con queso and the ranch dressing. As far as Jake's goes, we bought it because we didn't have a place we liked to twist at anymore, or play golden tee, and it needed a lot of help. On the plus side, Jake's had a good name, 20 years in business, and a good following. We're not changing that, we're not changing the Philly concept, we're not changing the Philly red color, we're not changing the Philly Cheesesteak, etc. etc. But if you would have eaten at Jake's 4 months ago, you probably couldn't have swallowed your first bite without a roach walking across the table; you were watching TV's that were on boxes that hadn't been cleaned under in over 10 years; you were looking at huge gaping holes in the ceiling from leaking AC's; you we're drinking draft beer pumped with substandard pure CO2 served at about 45 degrees; you were eating in the summer months in a place that couldn't maintain an inside temperature of 72 degrees; you were eating lesser quality chicken that was frozen the day before; you were using the back bathroom and handicap bathroom that had the AC drain pipe dripping above the sink and wetting your hair; you couldn't have found a piece of soap to wash your hands with; you couldn't get a decent appetizer; if your wife or friends didn't like cheesesteaks, you were out of luck going to Jake's because they didn't have anything else on the menu; if you wanted a fresh, clean, quailty, fountain drink, you didn't get one; if you wanted a place to sit outside comfortably and have a cigarette with a clean ashtray, you didn't get one; if you wanted a Halloween party paying $ 75 for the best costume and free appetizers, candy, and quality, fresh baked deserts, you didn't get it; if you wanted a Christmas decorated, cozy feeling restaurant and bar, you didn't get it; if you wanted a shot of alcohol or you wanted a quality scotch, or you wanted a $ 13 beer, you didn't get one....etc. etc. etc. Now, all of the above you have in three short months, plus you still have your Jake's Philly Steak and your concrete floors and your cafeteria style seating. We're not stupid, we have to keep quality and consistency (we addressed that again late last night after closing and it wasn't pretty for our employees), we have to keep the media stuff up to date (you think we don't know our web page sucks and that we're not having one designed as we speak with all of the glitter, the Facebook, the twitter), and we know we have to put all of the puzzle pieces together to have a full presentation; but it takes a lot of hard work and dollars to complete. You think we're going to spend money on a web page before we spend thousands of dollars cleaning the place up? Not in my business no matter where I am. Have you failed to notice that there is no more Jack-in-the-Box, nor a Taco Cabana anymore at the corner of Richmond and Chimney Rock; they can't afford the space. Have you not noticed that Big Woodrow’s has a listing to sell and will probably not be around much longer? Do you know that Chimney Rock in front of Jake's has more daily traffic than almost Fountainview and Richmond combined? Do you have any idea what it takes for Jake's to extend its hours by 5 additional hours a day? Not much and easily reversed. I could go on forever but I can assure you of a few things....Jake's food and lunch counter and cheesesteaks will remain the same....Jake's will try other avenues of revenue....no one group of customers or patrons solely supports Jake's financial requirements....but we will continue to cater to our Eagle's Nest crowd, our Clutch Fans and Rockets Fans, our sports Fans, our Golden Tee players, our breakfast taco fans, our evening drinking patrons, and whomever else wants a piece of us, and under any term and condition where we can make their stay more pleasurable, comfortable, and more affordable. Now maybe we can put this subject to rest and get on with more fun things in life like eating, drinking, and watching sports.
Okay, obviously we come from different schools of business. Firstly, no where did I say you didnt know how to keep your media stuff up to date...all I said was "get your new site up ASAP". Secondly the bolded part should scare you MUCH more than I believe you are. Third, I will drop this as its apparent you have ZERO appreciation for someones suggestions. But let me tell you one thing before I leave you to make your own decisions...Me and 3 of my peers have set up a network of business rehab and consultants that is called upon constantly by some very desperate and cornered people. It pays my bills, and covers the deficit I face on running a non-profit that literally runs on my consulting business earnings. I actually do know a metric **** ton of how to run, fix, and create business. Ive done it over 130 times in the last 3 years with a success rate of 80% or better. Nothing I said to you was out of line, nor was it not rooted in legitimate concerns based on all the spewage youve unloaded. I am no longer going to concern myself with you for your blatant disrespect for free advice, you wouldnt even give a "thank you for your concern we will run numbers to see what works best." So, best of luck. If youre half as smart as you think I am dumb, then I will be seeing Jakes become a multi-location franchise since you have all the answers.
No one asked for your business advice. I hope you come across better in person because I would throw you out of my office in a NY minute.
WHY DO YOU CARE SO MUCH? What they do doesn't alter your life at all... Let the guy do his marketing and give people a place to hangout - just ignore this thread.
Thoughts for friendly advice YaosDirtyStache, If I may reply to some of the postings that you've sent to Jake's: For what its worth, I would suggest NOT doing this 7 days a week, at least the until 2AM thing RESPONSE: Not your place if you do it Sunday-Sunday youre gonna start attracting a crowd I dont think you want. RESPONSE: I'm not sure what kind of crowd you may be referring to, but I can assure you that we're attracting degenerates. You're making assumptions based upon how your assessment and not the facts. I cant believe I gave sound business advice to this dude and he didnt even bother repping in return. Or mention it. RESPONSE: You were upset because Jake's didn't respond, or give you rep. Seriously?! Let the success of others that you've helped provide that rep. . You can ease off the quality a bit once your doors are busted down daily...until that day comes you must give everyone better than they pay for. RESPONSE: I sincerely hope that any of your potential clients, or their potential patrons, don't read this little bit of post. Every hour you add to your business increases your needed gross profit RESPONSE: Really?! That isn't advice! That's basic understanding of how business works!!! Theres no reason to add 3 hours to your close time if you only have 2 customers who arent spending any money in there RESPONSE: From the time we started going to Jake's in early March to the time we took over, it was the same 3 - 5 regulars in the evenings. Sometimes they stayed open until 10pm, sometimes they would close at 8pm. Look out how the evenings have changed since taking over September. Look, here's what it boils down to, you have no idea of the marketing strategy, target audience, the ties that we have to that target audience, etc. You came on here and got pissed because we didn't pat you on the back for advice that we never asked for. I'm sorry, but I don't need to bend over backwards to accommodate all of the wonderful people that we've met since taking over. It comes pretty natural to me. I'm excited everytime I meet someone new, and the next time I see them they've brought a friend. Success is not just measured in the bells and whistles you throw at people. It's also the people behind the business. And the people in the front lines, like myself. Anyone who is on here that has had the opportunity to meet me will tell you how I am. And for what it's worth: I AM HANK!!
Thanks for replying to me, lets agree to disagree on how we believe business to be run. I do wish you well, and I will continue to eat there as the time I went this week was much better than Papa Genos and it is not too far from my NPO's office which I am at 3x a week. Accept my 15.60 for lunch tomorrow was a good will gift.
Jake's Philly Steaks and Rockets Games Thank you but how did you know it was me? Thanks, Jake's Management.
The Bolded Part Sorry, I just saw the bolded part you put in. Did you not remember reading that we also originally bought the strip center and the real estate (making our lease space a little more manageable wouldn't you think)? My short notice to the other establishments that are no more was to make note that that is two to three less places that have food and/or drink available in the area, not to establish that everybody is going under. Trulucks moved from Westheimer across from Berings because of a dramatic rent increase. Magnolia is no more because of a dramatic rent increase they refused to pay. The NE corner of Richmond and Chimney Rock is available for approx. 15k per month on an NNN, so anybody is going to have to cover probably around 250k a year before they put a dime in their pocket. We plan on picking up the slack. We appreciate the advice but it's just amazing to us how somebody t keeps posting threads about how stupid we are and what we should do or not do and how we should do it. You probably need to start working on Best Buy, Sears, Hostess (whoops we're late on that one), NASA, HISD, etc. Just having fun, thanks, Jake's Management.
Jake's Philly Steaks and Rockets Games You'all are cool and we appreciate the support; it's just trying to help. Thanks, Jake's Management.
Okay, ate their today for lunch. I've been eating at Jake's for about 10 years...probably a couple of times a month. Huge fan (and I am a TCU grad, and the prior owner was a TCU alum who always played the hard to get games when we were in terrible conferences). The service was better than it was before. Old ownership was always friendly, but my food was actually brought to my table and picked up for me, which was never done before. Also like the fact that you have a combo special, which was never offered before. Looks like some TV's have been added and some older model TV's taken away. Also love the fact that the giant TCU flag is still up on the wall! Went with my one of my favorite orders, the fajita philly chicken with grilled onions. The bread was a bit softer (seemed fresher) and did not tear apart in the middle under the weight of the chicken and the dampness of the queso...first time I have been able to eat it without a fork/knife. Excellent. The only difference that I noticed was the queso on the sandwich. While it seems a bit thicker now, it tasted kind of like velveeta...it didn't taste bad, but it wasn't "excellent". Now, it wasn't "excellent" before, but it was a bit more preferable on the sandwich, though the new stuff would probably be better with chips in a bowl, as it is less watery than before. It was still a great sandwich and I still plan on going a few times a month. Kudos to keeping a great restaurant great.
