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INSIDE DISH: Saffron Cafe surges in second year

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Inside Dish

Welcome back to IBJ’s video feature “Inside Dish: The Business of Running Restaurants.”

Our subject this week is Saffron Cafe, which has filled a void for Moroccan cuisine downtown since opening in March 2009. Chef and co-owner Anass Sentissi broke off from his family's Bloomington restaurant, Casablanca Cafe, in hopes of finding more consistent business in a local economy not dependent on the September-May school schedule.



"It's not consistent business; it's dead in the summer," said Sentissi, who hails from the Moroccan city of Meknes. "Just by staying open, you are losing money."

Sentissi and his wife, Anne, staked out a locale for Saffron Cafe—so-named for the expensive and extremely potent Mediterranean spice—in the former home of the near-north favorite Canary Cafe. Left with the free-standing structure's shell, they spent three months rebuilding the interior and decorating with tile, light fixtures, pottery, photographs and other materials directly from Morocco.

Stricken with a tight budget, Sentissi and a handyman did most of the work themselves, apart from electrical wiring. They were able to open the restaurant's doors with $150,000 in startup capital from a variety of sources, including a $25,000 Small Business Administration loan, a $25,000 line of credit, and $50,000 obtained by refinancing the Sentissis' home mortgage.

In the early going, the cafe's marketing strategy relied on word-of-mouth referrals. To that end, the Sentissis staged a grand-opening night in which they comped the meals of about 120 diners, hoping to generate a critical mass of early buzz. This spring, they invited about 20 of the city's hotel concierges to the restaurant for free meals in order to stay front-of-mind with those vital links to the city's tourists.

Unlike many small, locally owned eateries that increasingly rely on cost-free social media, Saffron Cafe now also takes the more traditional route of advertising on an area radio station (for which they pay $550 per month) and in local print publications.

"At first you want to see if the product is working or not," Sentissi said. "If the product  is working and people try it and love it, they come back and generate word of mouth. We see a lot of repeat customers. But you also want to reach people [through advertising] who have not had a chance to hear about you."

Saffron's gross sales have grown markedly since the March 2009 opening—from $250,000 over 10 months in 2009 to an estimated $400,000 for 2010.

In the video above, Anass and Anne discuss their challenges in opening the restaurant, amassing financing, the cafe's cuisine, and the importance of achieving consistency in dishes based on family recipes and the chef's instincts. 
 

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Saffron Cafe
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621 Fort Wayne Ave.
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(317) 917-0131
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www.saffroncafe-indy.com
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Concept: Moroccan and Mediterranean-region cuisine focusing on fresh ingredients and authentic spices.
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Founded: March 2009
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Owners: Anass and Anne Sentissi
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Start-up costs: $150,000 (including a $25,000 SBA loan; a $25,000 line of credit from the same bank; $50,000 from refinancing the owners' home mortgage; personal savings; and financial support from family).
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Gross sales: $250,000 (2009); $400,000 (projected for 2010).
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Seating: 50 (14 tables), with enclosed and heated outdoor seating expected within several weeks.
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Employees: 15
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Goals: To increase catering business, and grow sales through the A La Carte Delivery service, which takes orders for and delivers food from several downtown restaurants. The Sentissis also are contemplating expansion options, such as adding rooftop dining at their current location or opening a tapas-style eatery on the far-north side.
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Good to know: Chef Anass Sentissi is an accomplished Middle Eastern percussionist who grew up in Meknes, Morocco. He's an expert in Moroccan Andalusian classical music and in 2005 co-founded the Moroccan  Andalusian Classical Music Orchestra of Bloomington, Indiana.
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  • The BEST
    Great food!
    Love the delivery service: www.alacarteindy.com
    Bringing Chef Sentissi food to my dinning room table is priceless.
  • to clarify
    not really complaining about not being able to walk-in on the weekends--i'm very happy for the owner that saffron has become so successful. it just means i have to plan ahead!
  • one complaint
    the only complaint i have is that i can't walk-in on a friday or saturday night...can't get a table until 9:30 w/out a reservation!

    great food, very nice chef/owner who wanders the dining room to meet the patrons, and GREAT FOOD! if you haven't been, it's a must try (but make a reservation for the weekend.)
    • Love it
      Our Masonic lodge group dined there several months ago. Anne and Anass Sentissi made every minute of the evening entertaining, and a completely unique, memorable and personal experience. The food is wonderful. Go. Eat.
    • Great food!
      The only place I have found that is better in Moroccan food is El Yacout, in Fez, Morocco. It is a great place to stay while in Fez, too. (Meknes is not far from Fez--we have been there).
    • Worth A VISIT
      amazing flavors and service not surpassed. A true class act to downtown.

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    1. liek the rest of America

    2. These quaint,obsessed musings by the stalkers are certainly entertaining, but I'm trying to figure out what, if anything, all the yelping below has to do with Zak Brown.

    3. It's evident that Moffett was pushing the right buttons and corporate America is now trying to squash him. He just wanted to withdraw the free pilot services provided to the company by the pilots to try and put some pressure on a company that has not been interested in negotiating a contract in over 5 years. The company does not provide a contract because not having one has saved them a bundle of money. Shame on any Republic pilots not standing behind their union leader just because things are getting tough, can you not see such strategic moves by the company as putting the last union president in a corporate position and into THEIR pocket. Do you really believe the last union president is so appalled at the attempts by Moffett, do you not remember his oppositions to the company? We stood behind him. It has been proven over and over again for thousands of years without fail, a man cannot serve two masters. Anyone that believes people vote contrary to their paycheck and livelihood deserve to be taken advantage of, the recent statements by the former union president are laughable as he denounces the current union president from his new corporate position. Have you ever seen a drafted sports player score points for his previous team, it cannot be done, he is not on the pilots side anymore, he gets his money a different way now than you and I do, and he should not be allowed to remain on the seniority list. A drafted player brings strength, credibility, tactical knowledge, and a strategic advantage to his NEW team, he would not be drafted or paid were it otherwise. We are all forced to choose only one side to play for and support, not doing so has many references in life such as insider trading and shaving points, all illegal for good reason. This basic fact is why corporate moguls, scientist, and engineers all sign non-discloser agreements and non-compete clauses, as protection in case they are lured into switching sides as our former union president has done. No NFL coach ever drafted a player so that both teams could benefit and better understand each other, they are recruited to win the game against that former team, period. Likewise the company does not recruit the former union president by accident or mutual understanding, its strategy. Don't confuse playing the game with good sportsman-like conduct in support of common business and prosperity goals, with the requirement to only play for one side. Good men we all love and favor fall subject to this manipulation, often without their knowledge, and it is not a betrayal of their friendship to oppose them when they switch sides. If we did not love and trust them, they would not have been chosen and lured to the other side in the first place. The deception by the drafted player is not made at a conscious level, it's just human nature and it's all about money and power which corrupts our ability to be objective and loyal to two masters. This is why our court system created the defense attorney, and why our military created counter intelligence. Its strategy and its propaganda, and it works, and that's why the "powers to be" manipulate the chess pieces by sometimes changing their colors. Some players know they are being manipulated when their color is changed, but it brings them more money and power so they do not care. The rest have good intentions but do not even realize they are being manipulated. This tactic is also known by another name, Divide and Conquer. In battle sending an imperfect message with an imperfect team is obviously not ideal, but it's still being sent by YOUR team, your union leader, a leader that has common goals and common rewards with you, they are the best, because we have elected them to do a job for us. If you are not backing Moffett but believing the spin by those that have recently switched sides, you are taking food out of your own mouth. Showing unity and backing an imperfect situation still results in taking just as much ground, it's about unity and bargaining power. It's not necessary to wait around for that perfect attack because it will never come, the company will spin and attempt to destroy anyone that gets in their way. Ultimately it's not about any specific attack anyway, ASAP or whatever it makes no difference, it is and always has been only about power. If this company cared about safety it would not build pairings with 8 hour overnights, come on, are you that naive? Besides, do you really think Hoffa cares, no, he got a call from corporate America and was squeezed into denouncing Moffett. If he didn't they would spin the safety card against him and the Teamsters National with implication for truckers, future contracts, insurance rates etc...saying something like the Teamsters use safety as a bargaining chip, blah blah blah... Do you really think any pilot is going to do something unsafe for the contract, absolutely not, the only ones threatening safety here is the company with reduced rest, fatigue, and poverty. Do you not find it odd that Hoffa and the Teamsters are opposing a Teamster president publicly? Would the Teamsters National not normally support and work with one of their own? Why did they not sit down and help him strategize, correct any mistakes, and charge ahead? Would the Teamsters National not normally support and leverage a contract for all those pilots that have been paying Teamster dues, isn't that why we have all been paying Teamster dues in the first place? I sure haven't been paying dues so that the Teamsters National could come along and write this kind of an article undercutting our union leader and our unity. Whose side is the Teamsters National really on, it's obviously not the Republic pilots side.

    4. No matter what Moffatt does the company is going to spin it like he is the terrorist and brainwash people like you into believing it, wake up, back your players that are trying to change things for you and your livelihood. Where has Hoffa been for the last 6 years, except collecting our dues. Seriously, do you really think an FO going for upgrade, signed off by a checkairman ready for the upgrade, who then fails, is not even capable of returning as a First Officer.

    5. whoa!

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