Restaurateur Mikhail Gokhner — on the lifesaving delivery service and projects in London.

Mikhail Gokhner is a prominent figure in the restaurant business. In 1995, he opened Moscow's first Argentine steakhouse, El Gaucho, at Krasnye Vorota, followed in 1999 by the Russian country cuisine restaurant "Na Melnitse" in an ancient mansion on Sadovaya-Spasskaya Street, and in 2002, he launched Villa, a high-end French cuisine restaurant. In 2006, he introduced the first venue in the Bocconcino chain of Italian restaurants, and eight years later, in 2014, a restaurant opened in the Mayfair area of London.

Unlike most Moscow restaurant projects, Mikhail Gokhner's holding survived the lockdown and pandemic with minimal losses and no closures; furthermore, a new venue was opened in the middle of January at Depo.Moscow. We decided to find out from Mikhail the formula for a restaurant's success in an unstable market and ongoing economic crisis.

In April, all restaurateurs were truly shocked because they didn't understand what to do. Honestly, it was easier for us than for others. Everything must be done at the right time. About five years ago, we created our own delivery service with a website, call center, a team of couriers, etc. It took a lot of effort, time, and money to get this structure working like clockwork. I can imagine how hard it was for my fellow restaurateurs to start delivery from scratch within a couple of weeks. And yet, they were still operating at a loss. Why did our delivery model work? Because it was meticulously thought out. We have seven Bocconcino restaurants, located both in the city center and in "quality" residential areas. Thanks to this, we are able to deliver orders within 40–50 minutes. Italian dishes, pizza, pasta can be delivered without any problems during this time. And if we talk about the El Gaucho steakhouse, that concept simply couldn't work during the lockdown. Who wants to eat a cold steak?

Sushi indeed was in demand and traveled well. We make sushi in two Bocconcino restaurants. It all started when we opened a large restaurant (over 1000 sq. m) in the Oceania shopping center. There was too much space, and to fill it, I opened a sushi bar there. Now, when regular customers call with orders, they often ask, "Do you have sushi for delivery?" Somehow, in people's minds, three concepts are connected: delivery, pizza, and sushi. (Laughs.) At Krasnye Vorota, we make sushi and rolls exclusively for delivery to the city center in a dark kitchen format. Returning to the lockdown... We moved all products to two locations — on Patriarch Ponds and on Strastnoy Boulevard. The shopping centers were all closed. And we operated out of these two spots throughout the pandemic, paid staff salaries, and emptied the warehouses of all our restaurants, so nothing was wasted.

The restaurant business is structured in such a way that you pay people's salaries from today's revenue for the previous month and likewise settle accounts with suppliers. The problem with the lockdown was that this chain was broken, and people really had nothing to pay with. We were close to operational zero, but we managed to cover current expenses: staff salaries, purchasing products. And when there wasn't enough money, I added from my own pocket.

In delivery, there are two key things a restaurateur must perfect. First, ensure that the customer receives the high-quality product they ordered. Second, the order must be delivered quickly. Our project is network-based; we can quickly deliver quality food. However, if you have a dozen restaurants, one with Greek cuisine, another with Caucasian, another with Italian, etc., then, in my opinion, delivery will likely not be effective. This is because the food will take two hours to reach the other side of the city through traffic. Even dishes made from the highest quality ingredients will become barely edible. Therefore, many restaurateurs turned to aggregators—Yandex.Food, Delivery Club, etc.—to shift their delivery problems onto their shoulders. But since aggregators take about 25-35%, restaurateurs were practically breaking even. It was easier for us. We have long cooperated with them, and our project is network-based, so we pay less in percentage.

Yes, it was the first steakhouse in Moscow and it opened 25 years ago. The first one was at Krasnye Vorota, the second at Paveletskaya, and the third at Mayakovka. For certain reasons, I closed two of the establishments, but decided to keep and develop the third flagship two-story one at Paveletskaya. During the lockdown, I realized that it was necessary to update the restaurant while preserving the atmosphere that our regular guests love so much. As a result, we updated the technical aspects and the interior: we replaced the old grill with a new stainless steel one, installed marble floors, and changed the furniture. Now, it's a beautiful and modern (as of 2020) premium meat restaurant.

At first, I couldn't figure out what to do with the large display window that came with the premises. I invited a professional—Daniil Berg—and he designed the windows in the style of an Argentine colonial city, complete with bright, interesting details.

I generally favor a traditional menu. There are main dishes that are inherent to our concept, which serve as the restaurant's calling card. Each season we introduce 4–5 new items to the menu. Some catch on, others don't. You might ask, why should you go to El Gaucho? Firstly, we use really very good meat—from various producers, but of the highest quality. Secondly, this natural meat is cooked over fire without any smoking or other tricks. Excellent, quality-grilled meat is the hallmark of El Gaucho.

We take exactly what we need from all suppliers. Yes, nowadays you can order steaks in any restaurant, but usually, they come from one producer. At El Gaucho, you can try different kinds of meat: Argentine, from Russian producers, and Japanese Wagyu. It's unlikely anyone else in Moscow has such a wide assortment. The same goes for wine. We have assembled a huge collection of the finest wines. Nowadays, not every restaurant can afford to buy wine to store it for a year. But at El Gaucho, it's part of the concept, where there are rare wines.

Before the pandemic, we planned to open two Bocconcinos—at "Depo.Moscow" and the "Aviapark" shopping center. During the lockdown, we calmly completed their construction and for now have decided to pause further expansion. It makes no sense to build restaurants in the absence of guests and without clear prospects. As soon as the market situation stabilizes and we see an increase in the number of visitors, average checks, and revenue, we will immediately start expanding. The restaurant business is good in that it scales quickly.

When we talk about a "challenging location," we need to consider the synergy between the location and the concept. It seemed to me that the Bocconcino concept would feel right at home here. Our product fits perfectly into the profile of consumers who come here for gastronomic diversity. "Depo" is a point of attraction. And every person who comes here is our target audience.

Regarding Bocconcino, I initially did not intend to make it a chain, but I quickly saw the potential and began to create a network. All Bocconcino establishments have the same menu, but there are certain differences related to location, as the consumer base varies slightly. There are restaurants in shopping centers, as well as on streets in the center of Moscow. As for expansion into the regions, about five years ago we opened the first Bocconcino in Nizhny Novgorod. This is not a franchise, but a joint project with our business partners. The restaurant is successful and still operates today. I often receive inquiries about franchising, but franchising is a serious business process (like delivery) that needs to be properly set up and packaged. Speaking of other countries, I opened a Bocconcino in London's Mayfair area in 2014.

Yes, I see the British market as a promising one, and I plan to open my next restaurants there. Firstly, just think of the figures! One restaurant in London generates revenue like three restaurants in Moscow. And a restaurant opened in a Russian city with a million inhabitants will yield even less revenue than a Moscow restaurant. That is why just before the first lockdown started, I was looking for a suitable location in London. The rental rates there are quite high, so you have to decide on the traffic of guests, etc., and then the business model will take shape. Secondly, the English enjoy going to restaurants, they do not skimp on quality food. The standard of living there is high.

Yes, there are no tourists now. My restaurant is located right in the city center next to the headquarters of international corporations, but now they can afford to keep all their employees working remotely. So there are not many people in the center. However, my restaurant is doing well even in such difficult conditions, although it is already six years old. Until the second strict lockdown, which was announced at the end of December 2020, there were many guests on weekdays, and it was completely full on Fridays and Saturdays. As for opening a new restaurant in London, it is not a very fast process. In England, you cannot build a restaurant in less than a year. Any local construction company will study the contract for a month, because there will be negotiations, etc. Everything there is extremely calm and regulated. But you know in advance what will be allowed and what will not. If the project is done in accordance with all the requirements, you will get permission. So business in Britain is going well and has great prospects, but still, the business model there is very different from the Russian one.

As in many megacities such as Paris, Madrid, and London, there are restaurants in Moscow that have been operating for 30 years or more and are still popular. This is close to me (El Gaucho has been around for over 25 years), and this is exactly what Moscow is missing. Such projects retain the audience and maintain a high level for a long time. It is important to be able to adapt to modern realities and catch trends, but it is no less important to create them yourself and thus set an example for others. At the moment, the constant that is in demand among the affluent audience is high-quality products, service, and, of course, a comfortable atmosphere.