Remzi, who has worked alongside his restaurateur father since the age of 16, opened the new 1,500sq.ft restaurant on Beckenham High Street this week. His first solo venture is a fast-casual concept serving high-quality steak and burgers, a restaurant Remzi hopes will be the first of many.
The leasehold of the ground-floor Beckenham venue, which had previously been operated by Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK), was bought by Remzi who was advised by leisure property advisors Davis Coffer Lyons.
Daunting
Speaking to BigHospitality ahead of the opening, Remzi said his father had been a great mentor and was free to offer advice when not busy with his own business but it was still a frightening prospect to be completely going it alone.
"It is a young age and if anything it is quite daunting. It is a big step and coming out of a structure that Dad has got with his restaurants. 'Why not start while you're young' - I have got quite a few years up on when Dad started so maybe by his sort of age I might be in an even better position," he said.
"In some ways I prefer it that way - I have to do well, it's not about having anything to fall back on," he added.
Affordable steak
Describing Argentine-themed restaurant chain Gaucho as one of the inspirations behind the new concept, Remzi said he had been able, over the last few years working in the industry, to gauge food trends and observe and analyse the growth of major restaurant chains. Those observations and inspirations formed the basis of the new concept.
"Steak is always a very popular meal but unfortunately it has always come with this idea that people know it is going to be expensive. You have places like Gaucho which are of a very high quality but they are also extremely expensive," Remzi said.
Branded: Steak & Burger is designed, Remzi revealed, to target the resurgence of steak restaurants but to change the mind-set of dining out and eating steak from a 'once a month' experience to something that can be enjoyed more often.
As opposed to Argentinian steak, which Remzi said was experiencing a Gaucho-driven revival but his father could remember when it was the cheap alternative, the menu contains all British cuts of meat. Rib eye, sirloin and fillet steaks are all available for under £20 with sauce included; not charged as an extra.
Remzi chose the Beckenham location due to the closeness to his Bromley home and also to take advantage of the growth of the area as a night-time eating out destination and extra knowledge he has of the area. Olgun Remzi operates a Miso in the town but is also present in Croydon and Bromley after selling up three sites in 2010 to consolidate the business.