Erik Reese – From Restaurants to Real Estate

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Erik Reese is no ordinary restaurant and retail real estate adviser. In fact, restaurants are kind of his super power. He comes to the table (no pun intended) with an impressive set of credentials including receiving his BSBA in Hospitality Management at the University of Denver, and graduating at the top of his class from Le Cordon Bleu Paris. From there, he went on to hone his skills at Le Taillevent, famed for being the only restaurant to twice rank #1 in the world.

When he moved to the Bay Area, Erik turned to the business side, parlaying his considerable talents into a 20-year career creating, designing, and opening restaurants, including Asqew Grill, BurgerMeister, Cream, and Fleur de Lys (Las Vegas).

Parliament Rendering(Shown above: Watercolor Rendering, Parliament, Oakland, 2014)

Over the years, Erik built great relationships with leading Bay Area hospitality companies like Restaurant Design Concepts and MCG Inc. Today, his network of restaurateurs, consultants and contractors keeps Erik on top of all the latest industry news.

“I’ve always had a passion for restaurants. It takes something special to ride this roller coaster and be successful. Over the years, I’ve worked with so many talented creative people in the industry and it’s great to be able to share that knowledge and experience with my clients, to help feed their success.”

Erik’s “Ingredients” for a Great Restaurant Site (plus a couple of Showstoppers)

  1. Smart Kitchen layout – How well does it flow? Is it a 2-person line or a 5-person line?
  2. Good Ventilation –  Is there make up air? (Drawing from the outside, not just recycling,) Where does it come from and where is it blowing?
  3. The Building has “good bones” – Everything is up-to-code including ADA, fire and building requirements.
  4. Tested and Fully-functioning Plumbing and Electrical Systems

Here’s a couple of Bucket List items, just for good measure:

  1. Wood-burning Stove
  2. Handmade Wooden Bar
Parliament(Shown above: Completed Restaurant, Parliament, Oakland, 2014)

Looking for more information on restaurant real estate? Email Erik.Reese@tricommercial.com or call (415) 268-2200. To learn more about TRI Commercial/CORFAC International, check out our web site at www.tricommercial.com .

Collaboration: A Vital Tool to the Trade

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Building Great Relationships with Collaboration  

Commercial real estate negotiation can be adversarial, even among parties on the same side of the deal. Experienced professionals like TRI agents Scott Vix and Gary Cohen use collaboration to turn the tables on conflict. Recently, they had a chance to demonstrate the power of cooperation and compromise. 

For more than 10 years, Scott and Gary have had a successful relationship with a client who shared ownership of multiple SOMA properties with a group of family members (a total of nine entities). Several months ago, the family decided to sell one of the buildings, with separate ownership groups wanting their own agent-representative involved in the process.  

The situation spiraled into a stalemate, a common issue with family-owned property, and it could easily have derailed the $1.68M sale. To break the deadlock, Scott and Gary volunteered to team up with another agent and share the listing.  

“At the end of the day, it’s all about doing what’s best for your client,” they noted. 

In the end the property closed to the satisfaction of all parties because the brokers put family considerations before their own.