"I Hope It's Going To Be Cheap!"

Inside: The financial confessions of a first-time restaurateur (and why I'm still smiling)

A future customer stopped by the other day, hands clasped behind his back, his white shirt collar poking out the top of his navy blue polo neck.

"What's this going to be, might I ask?"

"Oh, it's going to be a Chop House."

Confused face

"Lovely cuts of meat from our farmer, Farmer Tom in Hereford, beautiful veg dishes using seasonal produce, nice puddings, fresh bread, all that jazz."

"I hope it's going to be cheap!"

Smile and nod

Price. It's the word that's been haunting my dreams lately. Not just the usual price concerns- my personal finances, family expenses, nursery bills, mortgage, utilities, or the boiler that probably needs replacing. No, I'm talking about the relentless parade of invoices that ping my phone daily, each one another financial domino in this restaurant-opening adventure. It's a weight that sits on my shoulders and flows down into my feet at night, pulsating away. My choice, though, and I'm owning it.

Meanwhile, anyone who's wandered through a supermarket lately knows the truth: food isn't cheap anymore. The comforting myth that "vegetables are affordable" feels like folklore from a different era. Flour, butter, chocolate, meat, fish, veg - everything's climbing. In this game we're not just selling food - we're selling cooked food that requires skilled hands and experienced labour, both increasingly expensive in 2025's economic landscape.

I miss those golden days when dining out cost £20 per head. Remember that? You could actually eat something decent for that. Even though I work in hospitality and fully understand the razor-thin margins, I still catch myself raising an eyebrow at restaurant prices when I go out.

This is why implementing an affordable set lunch menu is imperative for us and something we stumble upon daily in our jumbled up conversations.

Conversations that flit between a concern about Donnie teething (is it teething?). A reminder that we've forgotten to buy milk. A call from the builder to ask about the placement of a plug socket. A nod to one another whilst juggling something, to sign off on a payment, plus a raised eyebrow and mouthed 'gasp.' A shrug of shoulders and a sigh remembering that I've over committed to something. A call to the insurance to navigate an accident that wasn't my fault.

Then Mattie will intercept all of these things with "what about chargrilled courgettes when they're young and green over the grill with lemon oil and feta, that's a beauuuuty."

Yes Mattie, that does sound nice. What about the main? And for pudding? Let's do peach cobbler and clotted cream.

Can we put this on the set lunch? £20-£25 a head? I really hope so.

What I want - what I dream about at night between those invoice-induced nightmares - is for people to walk away from Gina saying "bloody hell, that's good value." Not just saying it, but feeling it in their bones.

The new budget has independent businesses backed into a corner. Some days it feels like the walls are closing in, and I won't lie—it's terrifying. But I cling to this belief that communities still value places that give as much as they take. Restaurants that serve their neighbourhoods without burning out their staff in the process.

I picture our elderly neighbours coming in for lunch, enjoying themselves without watching the clock to calculate the damage. Life is already a fucking pinch for most people - their restaurant bill shouldn't twist the knife deeper.

In this edition, I'm going to do what I promised from the start - pull back the curtain on this wild restaurant journey. I'll share exactly what we've spent so far, to give you the unvarnished reality of launching an independent restaurant in 2025 with no investors backing us. The numbers might make you wince, but hey - that's the real cost of turning dreams into dinner service.

Tomorrow I'll also be sending out a bonus recipe newsletter of braised lamb shoulder & dauphinoise. A special recipe for your Sunday lunch table this Easter from Mattie.

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Part 1: Pre-Keys