What happened to Friends Restaurant?

GILLIAN KLAWANSKY

The restaurant went into voluntary liquidation on 31 December 2018 after two years of trading, according to the restaurant’s shareholders, Russ Timothy and Dennis Cohen.

“We understood that it’s always risky when you do kosher,” says Friends Restaurant’s sole director and majority shareholder, Timothy. The decision to close wasn’t an easy one, he says, and was due to a number of factors that had an impact on the bottom line – there was no single aspect that led to the restaurant’s demise.

“A restaurant is a tough enough business as it is. I’ve been in the game for 30 odd years. When you’re dealing with kosher, it’s a whole different ball game. We learned an expensive lesson. You have Beth Din fees, you have mashgiach fees, that alone comes to about R40 000 to R45 000 a month. Then you’ve got staff fees – labour’s expensive these days and we had three kitchens. The costs just add on.”

Coupled with astronomical rental costs, that together with water and lights, came to almost R150 000 a month, running the restaurant simply became uneconomical.

Says Timothy, “Fruit and vegetables weren’t the problem, but meat’s expensive, no matter how you cut and dice it. You’ve always got to try and offer value, and it’s tough to offer value when 90% of your turnover is meat.”

With meat dishes came the challenges posed by the controversies that hit South Africa’s kosher industry in 2018. “The Stan & Pete issue affected us, we definitely felt a bit of a decline in turnover at least two months after that saga,” says Timothy. “Maybe people didn’t trust kosher anymore. We also felt it when one of the butcheries had their food pulled off the shelves at Pick n Pay because people were phoning us and asking where we were getting our meat from. They were scared to eat out.”

With low breakfast turnover and fluctuating lunchtime traffic, Friends Restaurant started feeling the pinch. “We were almost fooled into a false sense of security because evenings were good because there no-one else was really offering dinner,” says Timothy. “However, in the daytime, there was a plethora of options. No-one’s pointing fingers at anybody, it’s just one of those things. I’m disappointed, but it is what it is.”

Timothy also feels that the kosher food market has become somewhat saturated. “The community is shrinking, but if you’re looking to eat kosher food in Joburg, you have about 29 options – including bakeries, supermarkets with take-out, and restaurants.” With Nussbaums adding its own restaurant offering, things became even more complicated. “I can’t compete with its prices – I’m buying from it, how do I compete with it?” he asks.

In spite of speculation that the split from Friends Bakery somehow contributed to the demise of the restaurant, Timothy says this wasn’t a factor. “We decided to split from the bakery about a year and a half ago. For me, it wasn’t working. Our focus was on a restaurant that happened to offer bakery goods. We were never a bakery, the bakery was always offsite. The split took away a lot of turnover, but it also eliminated a lot of expense.” He also refutes claims that there were any disagreements over the use of the Friends name.

Ultimately financial negotiations with landlords, the Beth Din, and staff didn’t yield results, and Timothy and Cohen decided to cut their losses.

“No-one’s to blame, it’s just a culmination of a very crappy year, and the fact that we couldn’t come to an arrangement with people on our expense list,” says Timothy.

Yet, with the closure of the Friends Restaurant comes the welcome news that the original Friends Bakery, that used to operate in Ridge Road, will begin trading again – this time at Off The Strip in Sandringham. “We had restraint of trade after we split from the factory, so we couldn’t reopen,” says original Friends Bakery owner Ruben Genish. “But since it has now closed, we’re entitled to do so.”

After finally being granted their Beth Din license, Friends Bakery plans to open for business next week. Says Genish, “We’ll offer very unique and special products – a few styles of kitkah will be available, for example. We’re preparing many surprises, as well as all the things we’re known for. There’ll be borekas, parev and milchik products, as well as schwarmas, chicken schnitzel, sushi, and more. We’re looking forward to seeing all our old customers!”

Timothy adds his seal of approval. “It’s fantastic that the bakery is reopening. The Friends name needs to stay alive. I wish it well.”