Many decades ago, my grandparents took a gamble and opened a small chicken restaurant on a corner of Bourj Hamoud in Beirut, Lebanon. They didn’t realize it then, but it would go on to open many branches thousands of miles away, and provide jobs for scores of people for many decades to come. They got the recipe right from the beginning. They unknowingly followed most of the advice contained in this book.

They gave it a great name-Zankou Chicken, which helped establish it as a legacy brand. They opened in a great location, a corner they knew many Armenians and Arabs would love to purchase delicious food. They made it fresh to order. They took good care of customers. They made new friends and met great people. They motivated employees by being good to them.

I remember both my father and my father teaching me the importance of being a good person. They often talked about integrity, trust, and generosity. They spoke of working hard to make lots of money, but never allowing the power of money or greed to rule over your life. They spoke of reciprocity- giving back to the community. My father used to say to us- “It is better to die than to be a type of person that hurts other people. You should be a contributing member to society. Always give back. Be generous.”

My mom always taught us to be polite, to speak nicely to people and about people, and to always strive to be exceptional. My parents and grandparents didn’t have POS systems back then. There was no social media. And you know what, it didn’t matter, because the principles we are talking about here and most of the things we went over in the book are eternal principles. They transcend time and space and culture.

One theme throughout the book was teamwork. This is very important, that you start with the right team and attract the right kind of people to work in your organization. Along with that, you need the right location, the right food experts working with your, and a great understanding of this business. You have to know operations and marketing well. You have to teach yourself to become a better negotiator.

What would you say were the top take-aways from this book? One point I want you to take home is that even if you apply and do everything in this book, it would still not work unless you did it the right way, with the right team, and in the right place and time. We discussed the importance of continuous self-improvement, continuous learning and growth for people inside the organization. The real “secret of the sauce” is that we must apply all of these principles in unison. Just like a fine-tuned orchestra, every instrument is required; but it is also necessary that the right person plays it at the right time.

I hope you learned a lot in this book. I’ve always believed there are many ways to learn, but teamwork is the best way. I’ve integrated this into my course, because I believe the very best way to master a subject is what I call Inspired Learning Through Cohesive Education™. We learn by listenings, doing, teaching, and most of all be hearing our partners and friends out when they have advice to give us on how to solve our most vexing problems.

You won’t become an expert just by reading. You will become an expert by doing; and this requires making mistakes. No one ever became a Restaurant Marketing Expert™ by reading a book and putting it away. Besides, people learn in different ways. For some attending seminars and hearing the message is profound, for others they like to watch the videos at home and learn at their own pace. But no one learns and grows without taking chances and making mistakes. Everyone dreams of providing a better future for their family, and opening a successful restaurant is a great way to make that happen. Hey, it worked for us, and many others. It can also work for you.

I hope to meet you all at my next seminar or class. Thank you for buying my book. I hope you have found it resourceful, and if you have please thank me by leaving me a rating. God bless you, and I hope to meet you soon! I will leave you with one last verse.

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33