Restaurants That Work: Case Studies of the Best in the ... (ISBN 0823045404)

Excellent resource for anyone in or interested in "the biz":
I own a pretty sucessful bar in Santa Barbara California and decided (about a year ago) to try my hand in the Restaurant Business. Before I could turn back, the lease was signed, money was coming in...there was no escape. I was pretty terrified. I decided to learn everything I could about design, management, success' and failures. The principal way I did this was to order an armada of books about the business. In all I think I bought roughly 20 books. Most of them were somewhat helpful, but none of them approached the value of this fine book. Chronicling almost 3 dozen successful cases from such diverse business' as China Grill and Farallon, every aspect of the business is covered - design, capitalization, management organization, revenue and profit - FANTASTIC. I can't recommend this book any higher. It was an enormous help to me in putting my new restaurant together. Christian Hunter Owner - Sevilla Restaurant, Santa Barbara

Excellent and Insightful:
If you are seeking concrete information into the whys and wherefores of creating and building upon a solid restaurant concept, this is the book for you. It is overflowing with detailed descriptions, practical advice, layouts, menus, square footage, operation costs... much more than I anticipated. Although at first glance it seems to be another glossy "picture" book with a high design value (which is greatly appreciated), it is in fact a true workbook and manual. The numbers are all here, allowing the reader to compare and contrast. If you are working on a business plan, this is ideal, because it is a great aid for making realistic projections. Restaurants That Work is extremely thorough and well worth the price. I am very pleased and my only gripe is that I didn't purchase this sooner!

The Best:
This is without a doubt the best book I have found on restaurant design. From concept to completion and everything in between, this a truly indsepensible book for reference. Every prospective restauranteuer and restaurant designer/architect should have a copy and USE it. Martin E. Dorf asks all the right questions and explains possible solutions to prevent common restaurant design mistakes.

pretty good- but dated:
Need a book like this but more up to date. Very informative though.

Really Good Book...But Dated.:
This book has a lot of great information in it. Alot of the information is timeless. However, this book is from 1992 and all the restaurant case studies are from then as well. As I read the book and they discuss restaurants like Mesa Grill and they speak of it as being new, when I know it has been around for 15 or so years, it just seems off. Also the stats such as average checks and other sales data is kind of dated. You could definitley learn from the case studies but it would be nice if they would update the book.