This Monday, Oct 14th on my Best of Laguna Beach™ show at KXFM 104.7, I introduced one of the most prolifically successful restaurant designers in the United States. Bruce and I first met in 2015 when his Dallas-based restaurateur client asked him to oversee the Laguna development of what would become “Taverna” at 222 Ocean Avenue. I was on the prowl, covering all the restaurant happenings in Laguna Beach. We’ve been fast friends ever since.
I consider Bruce Russo the most consequential, definitive restaurant developer and designer in the U.S. Having developed nearly 600 restaurant concepts and operated multiple concepts of his own creation, Bruce has a sweeping mastery of what it takes to create a successful, thriving restaurant from the ground up. Since I’m the one who is more commonly called in to help fix or tout restaurants in a more strategic way, we figured we’d have some interesting points to offer restaurateurs as well as some surprising insights for patrons who love dining out. Bruce will be joining me every 3-4 weeks on my Monday radio/podcast show.
Key Moments in the Interview
1:55 Bruce’s 22-year connection to Laguna Beach and the “highly historical” retail building he turned into a restaurant here.
3:53 What got Bruce into restaurant design in the first place. (It started with a hamburger joint that he helped construct as a teenager.)
5:57 What was decided for Bruce when he was in the womb.
6:58 Bruce’s total restaurant concepts all over the U.S. and here in California (and 14 on deck through 2026!).
8:38 The biggest challenges with Bruce’s buildout of the Laguna restaurant (first “Taverna”) and the demands for the historical architectural refurbishment of the apartment up above.
12:35 The reason why Bruce completes restaurant builds so quickly, and why hospitals and restaurants are surprisingly similar in nature.
14:58 Why restaurant development is ALL about the Opening Day
15:56 The primary restaurant concepts:
Fast Casual ($10-20 check average, like Papa’s Tacos or Lost Pier Café) …
Chef-Driven Fast Casual ($25-$40 check average, like Finney’s or Coyote Grill),
Fine Dining ($85+ check average like Oliver’s Osteria with “traditional” wait staff), Upscale Fine Dining ($150+ check average like The Drake Laguna Beach),
Upscale Prix Fixe Dining ($200-$350 check average, like Rebel Omakase)
19:05 Why “Fast Casual” is on the rise nationally.
“In fine dining, wait staff is your front and center of your concept. They are your concept. The hardest part for any restaurant owner who has wait staff is trying to drill the DNA of the concept into the staff so that the staff sells the concept to the client as if they were the owner themselves.” – Bruce Russo
22:00 Why staffing of restaurants is so difficult in a town like Laguna Beach.
22:41 The concepts Bruce prefers to build and why 3,500-square-feet is a benchmark for restaurant operation and the “profit void” that occurs.
24:18 Why the loyalty of the local Laguna Beach people is paramount in order to survive as a restaurant in Laguna Beach.
24:47 How a larger restaurant in Laguna Beach can more efficiently create multiple concepts in the same space. (And how NOT to end up “in the weeds” when private dining (PDR) happens with 50 tickets at once, OR how to create kitchens and menus that can accommodate multiple concepts, including places like The Rooftop).
27:28 Bruce talks about the two gigantic pickleball facility concepts he’s designed, using the example of 3 bars and 2 kitchens to accommodate an additional 150-person restaurant at the top. He explains how the two kitchens differ for greatest efficiency, even when dealing with those occasions when a 2,500-person tournament occurs.
29:34 Bruce' explains the strategy behind 2 cook lines and 2 prep/expo lines in the same kitchen (when you can’t shoehorn a second kitchen into your existing space).
31:17 Understanding the battles, challenges, needs and pitfalls of restaurants, which are actually “manufacturing plants.”
“We’re not an architect that comes in; we’re a complete design team that understands the operations of the machine that we’re building for them. Restaurants are manufacturing plants. You’ve got raw materials that come in the back … something has to happen to these materials in the kitchen, and you have finished product coming out the front. That all has to happen flawlessly. You have to understand how that all operates and functions.” - Bruce Russo
32:43 How you design a kitchen for slow days and busy days, and when kitchen staff works in a 4-foot x 8-foot square vs. a 4-foot x 4-foot square.
“Most restaurants are not designed to make money.” - Bruce Russo
35:20 The biggest reasons why restaurants don’t make money in the kitchen, and why large kitchen demands are different than small kitchen demands.
38:02 The biggest mistake Bruce made in a restaurant’s development.
“The kitchen facility should never exceed 30% of the entire space. That’s all the real estate you need.” - Bruce Russo
40:26 How you store and display your wine bottles for two different audiences in your restaurant.
43:08 As a restaurant owner in Laguna Beach, here’s your highest priority.
46:10 Why restaurant owners choose Bruce and his team over others.
“Owning a restaurant is a commitment and passion that so few people understand. You have to be there every single day and every single night; it’s endless. When I had my big marketing agency, I was hired by two Michelin-starred restaurants in Las Vegas … and that was it. I was IN for restaurants for the rest of my life! I shifted my whole 20-year agency to “hospitality” because it’s so amazing to see people working in that place of passion. I love it. I love the food, the owners, the chefs and the towns and resorts that house them; I love the fact that they make such a huge commitment to their craft. They just feel they have to create this concept … and how many people in life really have that kind of passion?” - Diane Armitage
50:08 Bruce tells the story of famed Restaurateur Norm Brinker who, on his opening day, asked Bruce to wait 90 days to pay Bruce for his development work … and Bruce agreed. Here’s what happened from there.
53:29 Why it’s so important for patrons to understand just how complex a restaurant operation really is, and what to do on the first days when a restaurant is newly opened.
Show Notes
Bruce Russo will join me again next month at KXFM 104.7, Laguna’s only community radio. You can stream in from anywhere in the world (see details below). Contact Bruce Russo for restaurant development and consulting:
Contact me (Diane Armitage) for restaurant concept consulting and strategic marketing:
Join me LIVE on Mondays, 2 pm PDT/5 pm EDT at KXFM 104.7 Radio for new restaurant news and reviews, the best Laguna events, and plenty of rockin’ interviews with Laguna Beach chefs, restaurateurs and downright interesting people.
If you’re not nearby to twirl that radio dial … in fact, if you’re one of my subscribers hailing from one of those 32 countries, download the free KXFM Radio app from Google Play or the App Store … OR just go online to KXFMRadio.org
[Listen] Award-winning restaurant designer Bruce Russo