A Rising Tide for Hightide Burrito

After ten years as owner-operator of Hightide Burrito Co., a successful fast-casual eatery in San Marco, Alex Juarez was ready to add even more to his plate and open a second location. Finding the right property took a long time, though ultimately, he was drawn to the Sadler Point Marina location and the property owner's approach to making the waterfront more accessible to the public. We had the opportunity to chat with Juarez as he gave us a tour of the new, under-construction, spot. The decision to open a second restaurant was not taken lightly, and he is realistic about the exponential increase in challenges with running multiple locations. Top on his list of concerns? Labor.  "Having the right people really makes a difference," said Juarez.

Tell us about the decision to open a second location in a relatively underdeveloped area of the waterfront.

Opening a restaurant is a challenge. You have to come up with a concept, pick a location, design the space, oversee construction, hire team members, train team members, then there is customer service, food cost, labor cost, advertising, social media etc. With all that being said perhaps the most important thing is simply having a great team in place to help execute your vision.

The decision to open a second location was a tough one. Building and running one location is one thing but logistically running two separate restaurants is a completely different challenge. You have to almost simplify the process, and ultra focus on customer service, consistency of product and team building. After years of building the business I was finally at a place where I could begin to think about another location. Truth be told, I have been looking for another location for a couple of years. I wasn't determined to open a second location but open to the possibility if a good opportunity presented itself.;

With such a successful model at Hightide Burrito, why branch out now to a different area?

Sadler Point Marina is a non-traditional location and was a unique opportunity for us. It's not everyday where you have opportunity to develop a restaurant in a marina. Our current location is relatively close in proximity as the crow flies but divided geographically by the St Johns River. The proximity will actually allow us to bundle some overhead expenses and strengthen and grow our current customer base without cannibalizing our San Marco location.