To ask my brother to change his restaurant design 3 weeks from opening

[msmacd]

Hi there, require the input of the mumsnet jury on this one. My brother is opening a cafe/restaurant/bar. It has cost a huge amount to construct and fit-out. My mother's money (she is 70) is also riding on it's success as she is the primary investor, and has mortgaged her home. I took a sabbatical to come back to my country of origin for 4 months to help him in the critical weeks. I have also invested in it.

My brother says his intention is to target the 30-50yrs demographic in particular. He now has 700 Facebook 'likes' for his restaurant Facebook page, and tellingly the majority are woman. There is a fairly trendy man tavern/sports bar close by, so he (claims) he is trying to appeal to the women (who would then bring their partners/ families). As it is in a suburban area, he also envisages getting business from the mothers after school drop off etc, as he will be open from 7:30 and acting as a cafe with cake, coffee, breakfast etc in the mornings.

The architects created it with a bit of an industrial chic vibe, with concrete floors (which i appreciate are on trend at the moment). However, there will be some banquets and some soft/more casual seating in the cafe area at the front, as well as a more formal dining area towards the back. It also has a small garden. A large bar is in the centre of the venue, as the central/focal point.

Yesterday i saw the bar go up. I have attached a photo. That is the finished product/look. The panels are fibreglass made to look like concrete. I took the photo just after they had installed part of the front, but it spans the entire bar and curves around into the cafe area (not in photo).

I'm not a fan (to put it lightly). However, it will cause a massive uproar if I ask him to make changes. His restaurant manager (who he has been working closely with to set it up) already thinks i'm an interfering cow (ha!). It is 3 weeks from opening to the public.

Given my brother is trying to appeal primarily to women (allegedly) and attract families. i must ask... what do you think? Am i being unreasonable?

Forgot to thank RhiWrites for her referring to me as a genius. Doesn't happen often on MN!

I might be english but I am married to a Dane and live in the US. Most NZlanders I have met are rather international compared to other nationalities and understand quality vs price. Also with the restaurant industry it helps to grow up with it. My teeth itch at a lot of places and when somewhere is failing I can normally pin point exactly where. OP you are totally correct to be worried about the bar. It's your cash cow and needs to invite people (which generally means a warm area).

I reckon offer kids size portions of the "adults" range too - whilst it's great to have a kids menu the chicken nuggets/burger/tomato pasta/pizza options are dull - ds loves adult dishes so would be lovely to be able to order from a main menu without having to ask if they will do a half portion.

Actually, never mind just the children's options, having small portion options would be great for those of us who can't stuff down a huge portion! Some Aussie restaurant/cafés seem to have taken on US size portions, and it's really hard to eat it all - having a small portion option (that would also work for children) would be really lovely. Of course I understand it's not necessarily practical, but sometimes it is - one of DS1's favourite meals is garlic prawns in creamy sauce, either with GF pasta or rice (luckily GF pasta is far more available now!) and it's often available as starter or main course size. Hurrah! More of that sort of thing would be great!

That stark industrial look is more on trend here than the UK I'm pretty sure.
I work for a coffee label and know many people who've made hundreds of thousands developing these kinds of places - coffee in the day, wine bar for older couples at night.

I think it could be softened later with art work, quirky decorations or plants.

This is why family and business don't mix. You are the "bank" not the owner - your brother is the owner? You need to accept that he is the decision maker.

Where in NZ? PRAYING you are going to say Dunedin and I just haven't heard about it. I want to visit (with my family!)

If you google "industrial cafe" images you'll get a range of these kinds of cafes.

The polished concrete and subway tiles are on trend, it needs bright artwork, wooden furniture, plants etc to finish it. It looks stark now but it is unfinished.

I don't think some of the suggestions here translate...the trends in Europe in design and ideas like play areas don't translate. Play areas here are for fast food like McDonald's or clubs (or actual play centres), The more kid friendly places have quiet colouring in or are close to the park/beach - the busiest cafes are just not playgrounds and have turnover of tables with people purchasing meals (average spend $30?) - not one mum nursing a $4 coffee for an hour while her kids run around.

As I said I work for a label and know many cafe owners, some turning over $40,000 plus a week.

Ok... having read the rest of the thread, i want to say you are near Riverton (given the kids meze menu!) which is really random if you are because I was there just a few weeks ago and my daughter ate that.
We would definitely come and visit your bar (UK citizens, NZ residents with small child, living in Dunedin who eat out 2-3 times a week!).

Good luck!

I worked in restaurants and hotels for most of my youth. Mum ran and owned them too. I'm most used to tiled or wooden floors. Obstacles of any kind aren't advisable if you're the one carrying the food and drinks. I don't know anything about hip/trendy restaurants. Mum was a gourmet and the hotels and restaurants that I worked in were mainly chains. The focuses were on delicate food combinations in Mum's case and in efficiency in mine. Obviously, the decor isn't unimportant. But, as long as it's bright, clean and practical, I'd have thought that would be sufficient.