Sandwich shop in California closes after social media mocks high prices

W

WhatInThe

SF VIP
A West Marin sandwich shop in California which got good reviews for their food closes after social media started mocking their menu prices including a 22 dollar grill cheese. Redditors then review bombed review sites like Yelp which owner says probably reduced customer traffic

https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/marin-sandwich-shop-closed-21316511.php

Sounds like prices more than anything. Those prices can reduce repeat business/return customers.

She basically admits affordability was an issue but didn't want to switch to cheaper ingredients or alter her selections. The owner still sets up at a farmers market. A new cafe took over her store and their highest priced sandwich is 15 dollars.
 

It's sad when any small business closes the doors... but I have to say that my first question was what kind of cheese and bread is this person using to justify $22 for a grilled cheese? I can't see the menu board in your link very well on this screen... I see sourdough bread. Does that say Artisan cheese? :unsure: At least it came with a side salad. :sneaky:
 
I'm sorry for their business going under, but if I'd happened to drift into that shop I'd have taken one look at those prices and walked right back out. Sales tax in SF is 8.25% so $23.82 for grilled cheese — the cheapest sandwich on their menu. You can bet your bottom dollar that there were also "tip opportunities" aplenty.
 

To each his/her/their own.. but when I see the word 'artisan' I immediately think 'pretentious.'
Not only would the prices be a no-no for me, so would the image of the sandwich. I'd want a grilled cheese sandwich to consist of cheese and bread (or toast).. not all of that other unrecognizable gunk.. 😮🤢
 
WhatInThe said:
She basically admits affordability was an issue but didn't want to switch to cheaper ingredients or alter her selections.
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Either she's expecting more profit than she should, or she's not a great manager. Eating out for me is a pleasure I enjoy now and then but by choice, I don't eat out often, and grilled cheese sandwiches aren't very high on my list of pleasures.
 
MACKTEXAS said:
Either she's expecting more profit than she should, or she's not a great manager. Eating out for me is a pleasure I enjoy now and then but by choice, I don't eat out often, and grilled cheese sandwiches aren't very high on my list of pleasures.
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To be fair, there were a lot of other items on the menu, GC happened to be the least expensive at $22.00.
 
StarSong said:
To be fair, there were a lot of other items on the menu, GC happened to be the least expensive at $22.00.
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I suppose prices are much higher in your area than where I live, but that even emphasizes my point of not spending big bucks eating out. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being y highest disappointment, I would say that to stop eating out completely would rate about a "1" with me. I find cooking to be the easiest chore I do.
 
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MACKTEXAS said:
Either she's expecting more profit than she should, or she's not a great manager. Eating out for me is a pleasure I enjoy now and then but by choice, I don't eat out often, and grilled cheese sandwiches aren't very high on my list of pleasures.
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I'm wondering who her regular customers were. Who can afford that even once a week.

I was out with people on one occasion and needed to eat at the closest place so they could catch a flight and their grill cheeses and egg sandwiches ranged from 9 to 20 dollars. They were located from a bunch corporate high rise offices and condos. And were by some water and a park. But the lines were out the door. Some don't think or have to think about money.
 
It sounds like she didn’t really understand her market.

I wouldn’t pay those prices but there probably are some niche markets where they might work.

It kind of makes me think of a popular pub in our Center City that used to offer a pricey artisanal peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of champagne. It was a joke but it did sell.

In the summer they had a pricey food cart that sold shrimp salad, chicken salad, etc…piled in ice cream cones. They were pricey but they had a following.
 
MACKTEXAS said:
I suppose prices are much higher in your area than where I live, but that even emphasizes my point of not spending big bucks eating out. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being y highest disappointment, I would say that to stop eating out completely would rate about a "1" with me. I find cooking to be the easiest chore I do.
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Don't get me wrong, I think $22 for a GC sandwich is beyond excessive, and well out of the range of prices where I live.
 
StarSong said:
I'm sorry for their business going under, but if I'd happened to drift into that shop I'd have taken one look at those prices and walked right back out. Sales tax in SF is 8.25% so $23.82 for grilled cheese — the cheapest sandwich on their menu. You can bet your bottom dollar that there were also "tip opportunities" aplenty.
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Interesting. Up here in BC, sales tax on prepared foods at restaurants, cafes, lunch & snack stands is 5%.

I agree that prices can turn people off from eating at some places. It's true for me, often. But private business can be a rough ride. Factors contributing to high prices may include steep lease rates for certain locations, providing good basic pay (and possibly benefits) to cooks & servers, insurance-claim deductibles, unforeseen setbacks (e,g., an epidemic), etc. Sigh.
 
JBR said:
I agree that prices can turn people off from eating at some places. It's true for me, often. But private business can be a rough ride. Factors contributing to high prices may include steep lease rates for certain locations, providing good basic pay (and possibly benefits) to cooks & servers, insurance-claim deductibles, unforeseen setbacks (e,g., an epidemic), etc. Sigh.
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All true.
 
The whole thing is a turn-off. I used to enjoy taking my daughter out to lunch on Wednesdays, but we don't do it as often as we used to. I don't like paying $40 plus for a couple of sandwiches. I can't replicate a French restaurant at home but I can make a pretty good sandwich.
 
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Braum's (a fast food / ice cream shop) here sells a quarter pound cheeseburger with all the traditional vegetables (tomato, lettuce, pickles, onions) - a large order of fries and a drink for $8.97 including tax. I can go through a drive through, or eat indoors - plenty of tables and booths, but no waiters, so no tipping.

Inside the Braums's store, they have a shop that sells frozen and fresh items like eggs, frozen dinners, cartons of ice cream, baked goods (10 large cookies for $3.48). The last time I was there, I bought a carton of ice cream, a pecan pie, and 10 cookies to take home. I just now looked for that receipt. Found it. The total for all that, including tax, was $15.27.

We have one primarily chicken restaurant ("Golden Chick"). I was there 2 weeks ago and bought a meal of 4 large chicken tenders, a large order of fried okra, a roll with cream gravy, and a large drink, all for a total of $10.06 inluding tax. I walk in and order at a register and they call my number when it's ready - I go to the counter and pick it up, so no tipping. At the end of the meal, I can go to the soft serve ice cream machine up at the counter and help myself to a free soft serve ice cream cone.

There are a few places here where no such bargains can be found and I can expect a tip of 18% to be added. Rarely, I go to one of those places, but only if that's the place chosen by someone in the group I eat out with on Sundays. Most of the people in our group are rather conserative, so that doesnt happen often.
 
MACKTEXAS said:
Braum's (a fast food / ice cream shop) here sells a quarter pound cheeseburger with all the traditional vegetables (tomato, lettuce, pickles, onions) - a large order of fries and a drink for $8.97 including tax. I can go through a drive through, or eat indoors - plenty of tables and booths, but no waiters, so no tipping.

Inside the Braums's store, they have a shop that sells frozen and fresh items like eggs, frozen dinners, cartons of ice cream, baked goods (10 large cookies for $3.48). The last time I was there, I bought a carton of ice cream, a pecan pie, and 10 cookies to take home. I just now looked for that receipt. Found it. The total for all that, including tax, was $15.27.

We have one primarily chicken restaurant ("Golden Chick"). I was there 2 weeks ago and bought a meal of 4 large chicken tenders, a large order of fried okra, a roll with cream gravy, and a large drink, all for a total of $10.06 inluding tax. I walk in and order at a register and they call my number when it's ready - I go to the counter and pick it up, so no tipping. At the end of the meal, I can go to the soft serve ice cream machine up at the counter and help myself to a free soft serve ice cream cone.

There are a few places here where no such bargains can be found and I can expect a tip of 18% to be added. Rarely, I go to one of those places, but only if that's the place chosen by someone in the group I eat out with on Sundays. Most of the people in our group are rather conserative, so that doesnt happen often.
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Those are my kind of prices and my kind of food.
 
Aunt Bea said:
It sounds like she didn’t really understand her market.

I wouldn’t pay those prices but there probably are some niche markets where they might work.

It kind of makes me think of a popular pub in our Center City that used to offer a pricey artisanal peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of champagne. It was a joke but it did sell.

In the summer they had a pricey food cart that sold shrimp salad, chicken salad, etc…piled in ice cream cones. They were pricey but they had a following.
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That last one sounds like a waste of a good ice cream cone!
 
It is, unfortunately, the cost of doing business in a HCOL area that is world-renowned for its excellent restaurants. There is a reason why there are more Michelin-starred restaurants in CA - and mostly in NorCA, btw - than any other city except NYC, in the U.S.

Apologize if this is not a free link; I'm a subscriber so I'm not sure if it's locked or not.

‘It’s embarrassing’: SF chefs are mortified by their own menu prices
Faced with rising costs, restaurant owners are caught between frustration and resignation.
San Francisco chefs are mortified by their own menu prices

(excerpt)
" … As someone who regularly has to give the go-ahead on menus, Melissa Perello, owner of Octavia and Frances, often finds herself in disbelief. “I’m like, ‘We can’t charge this much for a salad.’ But then, I take a deep breath and accept it’s what we have to f*****g charge,” she says with frustration.

" … As to why a Sweet Water pork loin with pommes purée and fennel-apple sauerkraut costs $50 at Octavia, Perello explains that it’s not just the food costs or the labor. She spends $900 a night on staff benefits like group insurance, workers’ comp, paid time off, and sick pay. Add up all the expenses, and — barring Saturdays, when the house is full and diners are feeling flush — Frances is barely breaking even. "
 
Nathan said:
Extortionately high prices will drive off customers. If they have to change $22 for a grilled cheese in order to be profitable, there's something bad wrong with their business model.
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And if they (and similar places) lose customers, they may eventually have to close up the businesses.. I wonder if they've thought that far ahead?
 

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