◇ 文 |本刊記者 胡 婷 圖| 游 宇
10 月18 日上午,我們在龍湖源著一家名叫“香腸兄弟”的餐廳里見到了馬?。∕artin)。
一米九四的身高,一頭金色的頭發(fā),留著絡(luò)腮胡,五官立體的馬丁在人群中格外顯眼。
馬丁今年27 歲,來自德國科隆,大學(xué)在英國念的金融。讀書時,馬丁和一位重慶姑娘認識后相愛。
五年前,馬丁畢業(yè)后便和女朋友來到重慶。結(jié)婚、生子、創(chuàng)業(yè),他在重慶開啟了自己新的人生。
“香腸兄弟”就是馬丁開的。
閑聊中,看見有客人進店,馬丁立刻化身“店小二”,拿著菜單向客人推薦:“你好,我們的特色菜是香腸、豬肘,這是點得最多的。我們還有套餐,你們可以在美團或者大眾點評上團購?!?/p>
頭一回上門的客人總是會驚訝地盯著馬丁,他們沒想到馬丁的中文說得這么溜。
——為什么你的中文這么好?
——是在一所非常好的大學(xué)學(xué)的。
——什么大學(xué)?
——社會大學(xué)啊。
幽默的回答,逗得在場的顧客咯咯直笑。
雖然馬丁在重慶已經(jīng)有了3 家德國餐廳,但他卻說自己對做飯和美食并不“感冒”。
既然不喜歡做飯和美食,為什么會在重慶開西餐廳?
馬丁略顯靦腆地回答,“我確實不會做飯,但是喜歡和人交流,餐廳就是一個不錯的交流場所。”
早在2016 年的3 月,馬丁便在解放碑王府井開了第一家“香腸兄弟”,“香腸兄弟的初衷是提供一個外國人與本地人互動交流的場所,用德國的方式享受德國的美食,體驗德國的文化和生活?!?/p>
餐廳開起來后,馬丁在這里結(jié)交了很多朋友,中文也是在那個時候和客人聊天練出來的?!爱?dāng)時店面很小,只有20 平方米左右。而且只有香腸和啤酒,很多人給我們提出建議,這兩樣太單一。和大多數(shù)人想象的西餐不一樣,店里沒有座位,因為在德國,大家喜歡直接站著吃香腸、喝啤酒。但中國人卻很不習(xí)慣,他們更喜歡坐著吃東西?!?/p>
去年,恰逢王府井宣布退出解放碑商圈,馬丁的餐廳也就隨之關(guān)閉了。
有了第一次開店經(jīng)驗,馬丁開始認真思考起創(chuàng)業(yè)這件事,“畢竟我是德國人,做起事來還是很嚴謹認真的。”
為了搞好“香腸兄弟”,他做了詳細的市場調(diào)研。
01 在店面裝修上,馬丁特地選了更年輕化、更開放式的設(shè)計風(fēng)格
02 香腸兄弟的招牌菜品
03 特色菜是香腸、豬肘
04 馬丁與大廚合影
“以前,在解放碑,有一些高端的西餐廳,但后來都失敗了,因為重慶人對西餐的接受比較慢。此外,高端西餐的價格還普遍偏高?!瘪R丁告訴我們他當(dāng)初的市場調(diào)研結(jié)果,“我們的餐廳主要針對的是更年輕、更大眾化的群體?!?/p>
為此,在店面裝修上,馬丁特地選了更年輕化、更開放式的設(shè)計風(fēng)格,“比如店面的門口是開放式的,沒有門,客人可以直接從外面看到餐廳里面的情況。此外,廚房也是開放式的。餐廳整體設(shè)計比較簡單,桌子全是木質(zhì)的,燈光是溫和的色調(diào)。同時,在餐廳里也會有一些德國的元素,比如墻上掛了些德國城堡、街道的老照片?!?/p>
“餐廳要面向大眾市場,價位上就不能太高,但是也不能太便宜,因為份量要足,要保證顧客能吃飽。在菜品上,我們也在以前的香腸和啤酒的基礎(chǔ)上,增加了豬肘、排骨、意面、甜點等傳統(tǒng)西餐?!瘪R丁說。
“來我們餐廳的,百分之九十九的客人都是重慶人。很多已經(jīng)成為我們的常客。”目前,馬丁三家餐廳的運營都非常成功,他已經(jīng)在籌備再開兩家新店了。
馬丁在開店的時候發(fā)現(xiàn),來餐廳就餐的人群普遍是兩三個人。于是,他專門在美團和大眾點評上做了2-3 人的團購套餐。
“我們的套餐在每個季節(jié)都會調(diào)整,比如冬天快到了,套餐里的黃啤會改成味道更濃郁的黑啤,南瓜湯會換成胡蘿卜湯。到圣誕節(jié),我們還會上一個德國傳統(tǒng)的圣誕紅酒,是熱的。”馬丁說。
馬丁經(jīng)常會在手機上翻看美團和大眾點評,看看顧客們的反饋意見,以及他們對菜品以及餐廳的評價。
去年,他的餐廳被評為大眾點評的“五星商戶”。
平時,馬丁都會在店里呆著,和客人聊聊天,同時也會聽取店里客人的意見,做一些改進?!氨热绲聡隳c本身偏咸,一般配著酸菜吃,可以減輕口感上的咸度。但很多重慶人顯然還是不習(xí)慣,我就讓工廠把香腸的咸度降低了一點?!?/p>
馬丁還記得,以前烤排骨有一款醬料,味道類似于牙膏,外國人喜歡這個味道,但是大部分中國人并不是那么接受,于是就換成了其他的醬料。
“未來,我想把餐廳開成連鎖店,扎根在山城?!瘪R丁笑著說。
“Sausage Brothers” and Martin
◇ Article | Reporter Hu Ting Figures | You Yu
05 在重慶電視臺參加美食節(jié)目
In the morning of October 18, we met Martin at a restaurant called "Sausage Brothers" in Longhuyuanzhu.
With the height of 1.94 meters, blond hair and whiskers, and pronounced facial features, Martin stood out in the crowd.
Martin is now 27 years old. He comes from Cologne, Germany and has studied finance in the UK. At college, Martin met a Chongqing girl and quickly fell in love with her.
Five years ago, Martin and his girlfriend came to Chongqing after graduation, then got married, had children and started a business, starting his own new life in Chongqing.
Martin is Sausage Brothers' owner.
During the chitchat, as soon as Martin saw a guest coming, he took the menu and recommended specialties in Chinese as a waiter, "Hello, our specialties are sausage and pork leg, which are the most ordered." We also offer packages. You can order on Meituan or Dianping.com."
First-time guests who don't expect Martin to speak Chinese so fluently would often stare at Martin in amazement.
--Why is your Chinese so good?
--I studied at a very good university.
--Which university?
--The society.
Such humorous answer made the customers giggle.
Although Martin already owns three German restaurants in Chongqing, he said he is
06 馬丁為客人送上啤酒
FACES OF EXPATS not interested in cooking and food.
Why did you open western restaurants in Chongqing if you don't like cooking and food?
Martin replied somewhat shyly, "I can't cook, but I enjoy talking to people. A restaurant is a great place to talk."
As early as March 2016, Martin opened the first "Sausage Brothers" in Wangfujing of Jiefangbei. "The original intention of the Sausage Brothers was to provide a place for foreigners to interact with locals, enjoy German cuisine in a German way, and experience German culture and life."
When the restaurant opened, Martin made a lot of friends here, and it was at that time that he learned Chinese by chatting with his guests. "At that time the shop was very small, only about 20 square meters, and only sausage and beer were served. So, many guests suggested that more dishes could be added to the menu. Unlike most people's impression of a western restaurant, there are no seats here, because in Germany people usually eat sausage and drink beer standing up. But Chinese people are not used to eating while standing up. They prefer sitting while eating."
Martin's restaurant was closed last year when Wangfujing announced its withdrawal from the Jiefangbei business district.
With his first restaurant experience, Martin began to think seriously about starting a business. "After all, I'm German, and I'm serious about doing things."
In order to do a good job of "Sausage Brothers", he did a detailed market research.
"In the past, there were some high-end western restaurants in Jiefangbei, but they all failed because people in Chongqing were slow to accept western food. In addition, the highend western food is generally pricy," Martin told us of his initial market research findings. "Our restaurant is aimed at younger groups and the majority of people."
For this reason, Martin chose a younger, more open interior style in his restaurant. "For example, the entrance of the restaurant is open and there is no door, so guests can see the inside of the restaurant directly from the outside." The kitchen also adopted an open design. The overall design of the restaurant is relatively simple, inside are wooden tables, with a mild tone of lighting. It also incorporates German elements, such as old photos of German castles and streets on the walls."
"Since the positioning of our restaurant is the mass market, the food should not be too expensive. However, considering that the portion of food should be guaranteed to satisfy the guests, the price should not be too cheap. Besides sausage and beer, we now offer pork legs, ribs, pasta, desserts and other traditional western food." Martin said.
"90 percent of the guests in our restaurant are Chongqing natives, many of whom have become our regular customers. "So far, Martin's three restaurants have been very running successfully, and he is already planning to open two more.
07 圣誕節(jié),餐廳還會舉辦主題活動
In running the restaurant, Martin noticed that most of the time, two or three people come together. So he made a group-buying package for 2 to 3 people on Meituan and Dianping.com.
"We adjust the menu according to the season, and as winter approaches we offer stronger stout instead of bright beer, and carrot soup instead of pumpkin soup. For Christmas, we will also offer a traditional Christmas red wine from Germany, which is warm." Martin said.
Martin often checks suggestions from customers on Meituan and Dianping.com on his phone, as well as their comments on dishes and restaurant.
Last year, his restaurant was named "five-star merchant" by Dianping.com.
Usually, Martin would stay in his restaurant to chat with customers and listen to their opinions, then make some improvements. "German sausage, for example, has a salty taste, so it needs to be eaten with sauerkraut to make it tasted not too salty. But many people in Chongqing are still not used to the salty taste, so I asked the factory to put less salt."
Another thing Martin said was that he used a paste that tasted like toothpaste when he roasted ribs. Foreigners liked it, but most Chinese didn't, so he stopped using it.
"My future plan is to develop my restaurants into a chain brand, setting up my own business base in Chongqing, the mountain city." Martin said with a smile.