Charly Robinson discusses plans for casual-dining F&D Kitchen & Bar, F&D Cantina
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Former Real Mex Restaurants Inc. CEO Charly Robinson is building a multiconcept hospitality company in Orlando, Fla., around his F&D Kitchen & Bar gastropub, which opened in June 2015, Robinson said this week.
After stepping down from the helm at Cypress, Calif.-based Real Mex in 2014, Robinson founded F & D Kitchen & Bar in Orlando. The restaurant features a menu of local craft beers on tap and farm-to-table fare.
Next month, a Mexican-themed variation of the same concept, called F&D Cantina, is scheduled to open, also in Orlando. A third brand will join the group later this year, but Robinson said he’s not ready to reveal it.
Robinson said he has spent years developing casual-dining concepts for companies like Orlando-based E-Brands Restaurants, where he previously served as president and chief operating officer. At Real Mex, he rebranded the Who Song & Larry’s concept as a Mexican gastropub. Earlier, Robinson held executive positions at the casual-dining concepts Planet Hollywood and Rainforest Cafe.
“I’ve done so many concepts for other companies, I wanted to go back and do my own thing,” he said. “I’m more of an entrepreneur, and I think I function better in the entrepreneur world.”
For the F&D concepts — “F&D” stands for “food and drink” — Robinson is joined in the partnership with Neil Leach, former owner of the Barnie’s Coffee & Tea chain, which was acquired by Starbucks Corp. in 2006. Robinson’s son, Tim Barber, is also an investor in the F&D brands.
The goal is to build about 10 restaurants in the Orlando area under the three brand banners and move out to other second-tier or tertiary markets, Robinson said. The group will keep build-out investment costs low by converting existing restaurant spaces and operating under one umbrella.
Initially the group’s restaurants will all be company owned, Robinson said, but franchising may be a possibility down the road.
The restaurants will all fall between the relatively small size of 3,000 square feet to 5,000 square feet. They will be designed to uniquely reflect the neighborhoods they serve as an “unchained” chain.
The restaurants will also aim for a high percentage of sales from the bar, Robinson said. F&D Kitchen, for example, sees about 40 percent of sales from the bar, which is helped by live music played on weekends and a social-dining vibe that encourages groups to hang out, he said.
“We’re not trying to create a bar that becomes a vamp club at night,” he said. “But our clientele is primarily adults. We see kids in mostly only on Sundays for brunch.”
The menu, developed by chef Pete Morales, offers a spectrum of price points, allowing customers to spend $15 or $50, Robinson said. The average check at F&D Kitchen is about $38 to $39, and it will be around $27 at the Cantina.
Robinson said communities like Orlando are underserved when it comes to contemporary casual dining. But rather than building “$2.5 million businesses that have to make monster money to see a return on investment,” the F&D concepts are designed to have low initial build-out costs and high consumer engagement.
“People want a place they can call their own that serves good and fresh food,” he said. “There are different ways to get to your total number. The way I’m looking at it is fine for us.”
Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected].
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