Primarily about the food, but not losing sight of the business

UNDER THE RADAR:Richy Virahsawmy, Richy's Bar & Bistro

RICHY VIRAHSAWMY is an exception among chefs - one who revels in the unforgiving business side of running a restaurant almost as much as he loves the creative buzz of cooking in a professional kitchen.

"Of course, it's primarily about the food," says Virahsawmy (33), "but I remember the executive chef who trained me being obsessed with the importance of costs, and that's something that made a real impression on me from the start.

"He wouldn't let any of us sign a delivery invoice unless we knew from memory exactly what the price of each product should be and were absolutely certain that we weren't paying above the odds."

It is a deeply ingrained habit which has never left him.

"I gather I'm now pretty notorious myself for haggling and giving suppliers a hard time," says Virahsawmy, who has cooked for Tony Blair and countless high-profile guests - including Bertie Ahern - at 10 Downing Street, and is currently consultant chef to dancer Michael Flatley.

"On the other hand," he adds quickly, "I should say in my defence that I always pay my suppliers on time, which can be rare enough these days."

Virahsawmy and his Finnish wife, Johanna, a marine biologist - "she studies 'em, I cook 'em" - opened Richy's Bar & Bistro in Clonakilty in west Cork in 2002, and have built a business with turnover just shy of €800,000 last year and a culture of keeping overheads to a minimum.

"My chefs will only sign for a delivery once they have checked the produce against our internal purchasing sheet, which covers every single product line - something that makes them much more cost-conscious in their treatment of ingredients as well.

"At a time when there are lay- offs and closures in the industry, even very close to us here in west Cork, we hammer it home to everyone on our team that if they're not careful, that could be the end result.

"It's a matter of keeping an eye on the detail: all our kitchen appliances are thermostat- controlled so they'll cut out if they're not being used; we have renegotiated terms with all our main suppliers; we are energy- conscious to the extent of turning off all pilot lights at night; we even operate a line at the sink so that it's not constantly being refilled for pot-washing."

Even without a recession, the restaurant business is notoriously difficult - and Virahsawmy has worked in enough high-end kitchens in Britain and Ireland to have received that message loud and clear.

"It's not an easy game," he agrees. "Generally when a restaurant gets into difficulty, it's because overheads are too high, rent is too high or there's too little control of staff costs - which, incidentally, we keep at 21 per cent.

" We do 2,500 covers a week at the peak, in the first two weeks of August, but in winter that drops to, say, 400 or 500 covers a week.

"When that happens, I and my sous chef will clean the kitchen and wash the pots or make coffee in the bar, no problem."

Richy's operates a tracking system which allows it to compare lunch and dinner every day with the same day on each of its previous eight years of trading.

"This year, the recession has meant a fall-off of 50 to 60 per cent in the volume of customers. Lunch has been worst affected. This time last year we were doing 100 or 120 covers on average every day, whereas now it's 40 to 50 max - although dinner is holding up.

"So we've made changes and managed to increase overall sales this year. We've slowed down service, turning over tables only once or twice as against three or four times previously, but we have achieved a higher spend.

"Our local trade off-season is strong, but in April, for instance, we introduced a three-course dinner for two with wine for €50 a head, which increased our sales by 60 per cent. People have money to spend, but they're hunting for value as never before."

On The Record

Name:Richy Virahsawmy.

Company:Richy's Bar Bistro.

www.richysbarandbistro.com

Job:Chef/patron.

Age:33.

Background:Born in Mauritius, he trained in catering at Merton College in Surrey and started his career as a commis chef in 1992. Worked as a sous chef at Rowhill Grange Country House Hotel in Kent, before moving to the Lodge and Spa at Inchydoney Island in west Cork as senior sous chef with award-winning Chris Farrell. Became executive head chef at the Department of Trade and Industry in London in 1999, managing 33 chefs and responsible for Tony Blair's dining at 10 Downing Street. Subsequently executive head chef at AstraZeneca headquarters in London.

Opened Richy's Bar Bistro in Clonakilty in May 2002. Employs 24 people, full- and part-time. Consultant chef to Michael Flatley, he recently featured in On The Menu, a cookery series on cable TV, and he runs cookery classes for children.

Challenges:"People still have money to spend, but they're much more cautious. Our challenge is to encourage customers to spend that money with us, giving them the best value we can without compromising quality."

Inspired by:"John Rogers, executive head chef at Rowhill Grange Country House in Kent, who trained me and taught me to watch costs."

Most important thing learned so far:"The importance of managing my time better as a business person, especially so that I can make time to be with my wife and two young children."