Restaurants

The Secret Restaurateur: Is putting your money into restaurants a mug’s game?

The funding scheme used by Gaz Smith at Big Mike’s in Dublin prompts our industry insider to ponder the business of opening a restaurant

Would you like a stake with your steak? The chances are that restaurants are likely to have to be more creative when it comes to funding in the future

What’s the best way to fund a new restaurant? And is investing in the sector a fool’s game for anyone who doesn’t have experience and a proven head for business?

This question has swirled around my mind since I read about an unusual method of funding a new restaurant being used by Gaz Smith of Michael’s in Mount Merrion in south Dublin.

Smith has part-funded his new venture, Big Mike’s in Blackrock, with €400,000 he ...