What I Loved About Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar

It's hard to believe it's been nearly two months since I closed Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar. As I've been looking back on the experience and analyzing the positive and negative aspects of running that restaurant operation, a picture is beginning to emerge that will help me with figuring out my next moves.

It's always easier to harp on what went wrong; so I'm going to buck convention here and focus this post on "What I Loved About Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar":

• Promoting the business - I'm a marketing person with a talent for spreading the word, and I really had the opportunity to do some cool and interesting marketing campaigns -- e.g., celebrity appearances, joint marketing with local businesses, unusual events, live music and entertainment.


• Differentiation - Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar was the only concept of its kind in Beaverton. If I had decided to open "yet another" Pacific NW bistro, Mexican, Italian, coffee shop, or fast-casual restaurant, I would not have lasted as long as I did.


• Getting recognition - Yes, I enjoy being in the spotlight, but that doesn't mean I didn't share credit. I worked hard to get the awards, accolades, recognition, and acclaim I received for the business, but I shared it with my team for doing their part.


• Creative process - I knew going into this business that I wasn't going to be the person busting out the food every single night, for despite how easy it looks on the Food Network, commercial cooking takes as much as discipline and skill as it does art and magic. However, I enjoyed working with my team to determine which food and beverages we'd feature on our menu each season and watching them generate ideas that would eventually become signature dishes.


• Design and decor - Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar, as you can see in the photo, was a great looking place. Ankrom Moisan Architects did a phenomenal job to bring my vision of a sophisticated, chic place that was also welcoming and inviting to life. In the early days, we had lots of "spies" who would come in just to check out our design and decor. Also, I cannot tell you how many customers asked if they could take my martini glass and wine glass mirrors and sofa and chairs right out of the place!

I was truly honored and privileged to have brought this business to life, regardless of how it all turned out in the end. It's amazing how much I've grown and matured as a professional in the last five years of being an entrepreneur.

Next, I'll share the lowlights, but lucky for me, there aren't enough of them to deter me from trying again. In fact, one of my mentors told me a long time ago when I started seeing the first signs of Dessert Noir Cafe & Bar's demise that I shouldn't be too hard on myself if it failed. For many entrepreneurs, their first act on the stage is not their best effort, but rather it takes a second or even third act to get "the script" right.