> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# End of St. Expert advice on opening a restaurant: Don’t do it
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/end-of-st-expert-advice-on-opening-a-restaurant-dont-do-it/
- Published: 2003-05-26T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-25T00:05:22.000Z
- Author: David Pisarra
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import

I have worked in the restaurant industry in various capacities since 1986\. The best advice I can give to someone who wants to open a restaurant is DON’T.

Opening a restaurant is a recipe for the loss of your savings, long hours, a divorce, probably a bankruptcy, personal and emotional turmoil, drug and alcohol abuse, embezzlement by your best friend, long-term tax problems and a quick way to work yourself into a coronary.

And yet every year, hundreds of restaurants open and close in L.A.

That said, in the next few columns I will cover the basics, pitfalls and some of the tricks of the trade for those hardy souls who are determined to be a successful restaurateur.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION The age-old truism of location has been so repeated to the new buyer or builder of a restaurant that it does not need to be stressed here.

What does is that because everyone in the world knows that location is so important, the new restaurateur who is in the middle of a high fever of excitement and expectation, will do what all humans do: Justify the location as, “the perfect place for my type of food.”

This level of justification will convince the guy who just bought a greasy spoon between a hospital and a mortuary that this is a good location to sell chili-cheese dogs because the doctors get hungry and the mourners will want to eat to ease their sorrow.

Alternatively, the owner of a fine dining establishment will claim that opening in the middle of the desert is a good place because there is no competition from other restaurants. The fact that there is no foot traffic to expose this fine establishment will not deter him.

So, the moral is that the new owner needs to look at the new location with as hard an eye as possible, then take three steps back, ask the most negative person they know to find all the flaws with the property, then weigh whether it is still a good idea.

Because the new owner will invariably ignore all the negatives, the next area of review is being seen.

SIGNAGE A good sign will certainly help, but here you run into problems with the landlord. Unless your lease specifies that you have certain signage rights, you might not be able to put that 24-foot, neon cow that moos on the roof.

Also in a place such as Santa Monica, the city will have something to say about your signage. Depending on the location, you might or might be able to put up a sign, awning or other attraction. And they will likely have maximum height allowances, extension maximums from the building and rules as to whether or not it can be lit or electrified.

There will be zoning rules that you must comply with. Even if the landlord will let you do anything you want, the city council can overrule it. Remember that if you are in a commercial/residential area your neighbors may have some say in what you can and cannot do. Find out what the rules are on their ability to interfere with your signage. (David Pisarra is a partner in the Santa Monica law firm of Pisarra & Grist. He 310/664-9969 or by e-mail at)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 26, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/052603.pdf?ref=smdp.com)