Million Pound Menu (2018–…): Season 1, Episode 2 - Finca and Wholesome Junkies - full transcript
I'm Fred Sirieix.
I've worked in
the restaurant industry
for 25 years.
Right now, the UK's restaurant
scene is the envy of the world.
And all it takes is
one great idea to make
a fortune on the high street.
But has the next generation
of restaurants
got what it takes to become
a multi-million pound business?
Over the next six weeks,
here in Manchester,
the food capital of the North,
twelve of the most exciting
new restaurant ideas
are in with a chance
of a life-changing investment
from some of the UK's
most respected investors.
These are the men and women
who can turn an idea
into a national brand.
[Darrel]
We're looking at putting
a lot of money
into the absolute
best concepts.
This is the kind of model
that you dream of.
If I find the right operator,
I'll be fighting for it.
[Fred] Each week,
the investors will give
the people behind
two great new food ideas
a unique opportunity.
Ah, this is brilliant.
[Fred] Their own
pop-up restaurant.
-[dings]
-[man] Right.
Rock and roll, man.
[Fred] They'll have just
three days to prove...
Nobody seems to know
the table numbers.
[Fred]
...they've got what it takes...
That's a disaster.
[Fred]
...to make it
on the high street.
When you start to rush,
that's when you start
-to make more mistakes.
-[clattering]
There's a big backlog
of customers at the door.
What are you gonna do about it?
If I was to invest, it'll take
half a million to £750,000.
Time to make some dough.
[Fred] After the three days,
will the investors
walk back
into the restaurants...
[deep sigh]
[Fred]
...and make them and offer?
It's a £600,000 lunch.
We are not gonna leave
without an investment.
I'm sorry. The time is up.
The doors are
open for business.
Welcome to Million Pound Menu.
[Fred]
Every year, we spend
over thirty-three billion pound
in the UK, eating out.
No wonder the investors are
looking for the next big thing.
A new idea could
make them a fortune.
[narrator] Times might be
challenging on the high street,
but chains based on
strong, simple concepts
are still making money
in towns and cities
across the UK.
So what is the next big idea
to get us queuing for a table?
Well, we might be
about to find out.
Hi, I'm Paul Mason,
I'm the founder
of the Fruit Tailor.
[narrator] The men and women
behind some of the most
successful businesses
on the high street...
At the end of day,
what you do get is a truly
delicious cheese toasty.
[narrator]
...have met to hear ideas
from the next generation
of restaurant entrepreneurs...
You know, we do
wanna be the best.
To make the best burger
they've ever had,
[narrator]
...who think their concept
is worth big money.
There's an explosion
of these... these concepts.
They're really successful.
[narrator]
Over 400 people competed
for the chance to run
a trial pop-up,
to prove their idea
was worth investment.
Conceptually, it's
very simple to do,
it's very Instagramable.
[narrator]
The panel chose the two ideas
with the strongest food,
brand, and business plan.
FINCA is a Cuban
street food concept
based in Liverpool, which
has been trading there
for the past 18 months.
[narrator]
The first idea to be selected,
a group of friends,
who think Britain's
high street is ready
for a Cuban food revolution.
[man] The reason
why we chose
Cuban street food,
is because we believe
it's a cuisine that hasn't
really been delved into.
There's also a huge opportunity
for drink sales
in our restaurant.
We have trialed
our Cuban cocktail menu
at some of the pop-up events
that we've done.
It has been very,
very successful.
[narrator]
The young team at FINCA
are asking for £150,000
to open their first,
proper place.
I think this business is
very much of the moment.
Great team, great brand,
great product.
[Lydia]
I think they're fantastic.
Such a cool new concept.
In Berlin,
we've got this rooftop bar
on top of our hotel
to roam there which I think
would just be amazing.
I couldn't see a Cuban
surname in the four owners.
They looked authentic.
They also did say
their take on Cuban food.
Just raising a point.
They've got a great brand,
they seem
incredibly passionate.
There was nothing I saw
that didn't tick
pretty much all the boxes.
Food offer's really strong.
It screams fun, and I'd love
to see it in Manchester.
My name is Jeremy Roberts,
I am the CEO
of Living Ventures,
which is a group of
45 or so restaurants.
FINCA excites me.
It's... It's sexy.
I think it's a great name.
That gives you a huge
amount of potential
for the...
the booze side of things,
the bar element to it.
I think this has definitely
got the opportunity
to be a national brand,
you know, in 10, 15 sites
across the UK, unquestionably.
My name's Darrel,
I'm a partner at Imbiba.
We're ultimately looking
to build these businesses
to 10, 15 units.
And that requires investment
of up to five, six,
seven million.
If there's a chemistry,
if there's a spark there,
we will push you hard.
Hi, my name's Chelsea.
And I love, love,
love, love, food.
[narrator] Next,
a 27-year old who wants
to sell vegan food
that appeals to everyone.
[Chelsea] Wholesome Junkies
is vegan junk food
with a wholesome taste.
It is an exciting new way
of looking at eating
vegan food.
[narrator]
Chelsea's after £95,000
to start her first restaurant.
[Chelsea] I want to take
Wholesome Junkies
to the next level
and that means
having my own unit,
and to work
with a really nice
big, lovely team
Thank you so much for watching.
And I really hope you share
the same vision as I see.
[Lydia] I thought she was
super enthusiastic,
which is great,
but I have to say that
I thought the branding sucked.
I'm trying to think of
somebody who'd want to go
and have an unhealthy, fried,
but a vegan food.
I don't mind the idea
of vegan junk food.
My name's Chris Miller.
She's trying to do
vegan junk food.
The junk food burger
market in the UK is
a three billion pound market.
So, if she can take
a fraction of that market,
then it will be a very exciting
investment opportunity.
I'd like to be able to see
one of these in every
university, town across the UK.
[narrator]
The ideas have been chosen.
There's just
one person interested
in Wholesome Junkies.
But four investors
could end up
fighting over FINCA.
[Fred]
Wholesome Junkies and FINCA
are open today
for business in Manchester.
They are here to prove
they've got what it takes
to take over the high street.
Get it right,
and they could
secure an investment
that will change
their lives forever.
[narrator] The two ideas
will take over identical
existing restaurant sites,
just 100 yards apart.
Today, Chelsea,
and the FINCA team
are about to see
their new restaurants
for the first time.
[Joe] This opportunity's
absolutely huge.
We're gonna be meeting
some of the biggest investors
in the UK.
Looking good, that.
Nice menu, that.
-Let's get going.
-Let's do it.
Hey-yo.
Yes, laddie.
[narrator]
Over the last month, they've
been working with a designer
to bring their
restaurant to life.
[chuckling] This is class.
This is superb.
We're not gonna stop
fighting for this.
We're gonna work
as hard as we can
to make sure that
everything goes well.
This opportunity is huge,
and if we get there,
that'll be amazing. Yeah.
No, not "if we get there,"
when we get there.
[narrator]
FINCA was born
18 months ago.
as a Cuban-inspired
pop-up in Liverpool.
I'm Joe. Uh, I look after
the PR and marketing.
And I will buzz for you
when it's ready.
Hi, I'm Michael, I'm one
of the directors here at FINCA.
I also help plan the food,
the menus.
My name is Oli,
and I'm also the head chef
alongside Michael.
[narrator]
Thirty-four-year-old Michael
went on holiday to Cuba,
and fell in love with the food.
A lot of people come,
they've never tried
Cuban food before.
Hi, guys.
[Joe] It's nice
when they come back.
and say they like, "The food,
"it changed my life."
[laughing]
Would love to get
the first FINCA open.
But we're ambitious,
so we're looking
at five FINCAs
in the first five years.
[narrator]
Opposite FINCA,
Manchester local, Chelsea,
is also about to see
her restaurant
for the first time.
Being here, and doing this
is the most exciting thing
I've ever done in my life.
Oh, I love it.
I'm a bit of a tree hugger.
[laughing] So...
Perfect. An actual kitchen.
I'm used to working off this.
[Fred] After ten years
of working front of housing
restaurants,
Chelsea took
a gamble last year,
and set-up a vegan food stall.
[Chelsea]
The first event that I did,
I did really, really well
that I thought, "This is easy,
this is how it works."
No.
The next five markets,
I had nothing,
I lost money, I carried on
and persevered.
I'm finally getting there now
where I'm making good money
on each event.
[narrator] There are now
nearly two million vegans
and vegetarians in the UK.
Chelsea wants £95,000
to set up a restaurant
to help her capture the market.
Veganism is becoming
really popular, and it's sort
of peaking at the moment.
And it was now
or never, really.
It was either miss the boat,
or catch the wave.
Tomorrow, in just 24 hours,
the investors will be
arriving for lunch.
We need to get started,
like, ASAP,
because there's
quite a bit to do.
[narrator] So this evening,
both restaurants will open
to the Manchester public
for their one and
only practice run.
Tonight will be
their soft launch.
They will be serving
real customers at just
half the price.
It's a standard
industry practice,
and it's their one chance
to get it right
before the investors come.
The bag's here.
[narrator] Both restaurants
have brought their own teams
to help in the kitchen,
and with front-of-house.
including Chelsea's
best friend, Faye.
When she first made me, like,
try something, I was like,
Uh...
And then I was like,
"Oh, my God, mate,
this is amazing!"
[all greeting each other]
[Fred] How are you?
So, you're talking about
a healthy, junk, vegan food.
-Yes.
-Isn't it a contradiction?
Yeah, exactly.
It's a little bit whacky,
which kinda just goes with me.
So it's a little bit
of what everybody loves,
the naughty food,
the fried foods, but sort of
making it a little bit healthy
at the same time.
What is the actual USP
of your... of your brand?
The demand for meat
can't keep up
with the population
that's every growing,
so we need to find new ways
to be sustainable.
I mean, I love meat.
-[Chelsea] Yeah.
-Would I love your food?
I reckon we'll
win you over, Fred.
-Yeah?
-[laughing] Yeah.
All right. Listen, good luck.
-Enjoy. Bye-bye. See you later.
-[Chelsea] Thank you so much.
Thank you.
-Thank you, Fred.
-[Faye] Bye.
Can you slice the apples
into wedges, please?
[narrator] Almost a third
of the UK say they ate
less meat last year.
So, Chelsea's hoping
her junk food approach
has mass appeal.
[Chelsea] So I need 'em
about a centimeter thick.
[narrator] Her shrooms,
breaded mushrooms,
sell for £5,00
and super sprouts
with Parmesan and aioli
sell for £3,00 a dish.
but for £6,50, you could
have a bite of her bestseller.
This one dish that
I could get the investment on
is my battered
cauliflower burger.
It's called no-plucky
fried chicken,
'cause no chickens are harmed.
And it's, uh, definitely
the most popular dish.
Hello, how are you?
-Hey. How are we?
-Hello. I'm Fred.
-Good.
-I'm Joe.
Nice to meet you, Joe.
How are you?
-Bonjour.
-[Fred] I have no idea
what Cuban food is.
I mean, I know Fidel Castro,
I love Cuban cigars,
I have no idea what to expect.
It's very centered around
the Cuban sandwich, the Cubano.
So, is it like the ham
and cheeseburger in France?
It's got the, um, gammon,
and pork shoulder.
Ah! It's got gammon as well.
So it is like
the ham and cheese.
Well, look, I can't wait
to try the food.
And I've got some very,
very good news.
We don't have one,
or two, or three,
-but four, four investors...
-Yeah?
-[Joe] What good, that.
-...really interested
in your concept.
-Amazing.
-So, tomorrow
they'll be here.
-I'm nervous now, though.
-[laughter]
-[Fred] Good.
-Kicking in. Kicking in.
[Fred] Enjoy.
-Thank you, see you later.
-Bye-bye.
-Come on.
-[Michael] Let's back to work.
Yeah, yeah,
let's get cracking now.
Come on.
[narrator]
FINCA's menu features a range
of Central American delicacies.
Their twice-fried
plantain fritters
sell for £4,00.
Their Cuban fried chicken
with picked watermelon
is £7,00.
Their signature dish,
the Cubano,
is a thick, grilled sandwich
that Cubans love.
It's £7,00.
[Michael]
It does take a bit of time
in the building of it,
and the cooking time, so,
I reckon that's probably
the most challenging.
[woman] So who's
in charge of that?
Me. [laughs]
[narrator] It's 6:00 p.m.
In an hour, FINCA,
and Wholesome Junkies
will open as restaurants
for the first time.
We are about to open the doors.
Um, are we all excited?
-[man] Yes.
-Are you excited?
I am nearly excited.
[all laughing]
In my own restaurant,
I love that feeling
before service.
It's the anticipation.
Everything must be ready.
Once the first customers
walk through the door,
the battle is on.
[man] Hello there.
Is it Charlotte?
[Charlotte] It's me, yes.
The server's gonna
take you to the table now,
show you where to go.
[narrator]
With food at half price,
tonight's soft launch
is popular.
So, both restaurants face
two full sittings.
First check's on.
It's all go.
The sweet potato fries.
Tostones, FINCA fries,
and then empanadas?
Good stuff.
[narrator] Half an hour in,
FINCA are at full stretch.
One veg Cubano,
one meat Cubano,
three portions of fries...
Cubano and tostones,
please, mate.
Just been icy at
the first few orders out
and just
get in a bit of rhythm
of things like that.
[woman] The sweet potato fries
are possibly the nicest
sweet potato fries
I've ever had.
It's really good.
It's really tasty
and interesting
with lots of new flavors.
I ordered the Cuban sandwich,
and it's massive, but
it's really, really delicious.
-Wow, what an atmosphere.
-[Joe] I know.
[Fred] This is full.
-[Joe] What can I get
for you, Fred?
-I must try your,
-er, Cubanos.
-Thank you very much.
Thank you.
We've got one sea bass,
one Cubano
sweet potato fries,
some croquetas,
and empanadas, please.
Chased our tail
a little bit,
but it's soft launch,
so it's how
we thought it'd be.
Hey, check on,
we've got one Cubano,
one sea bass, one fries...
[Joe] Is table two ready to go?
[Oli] One Cubano, and each one
sea bass, and each one
sweet potato fries
and each one croquetas...
And then we have,
uh, cha-cha-cha.
Do you know how long
my food is going to be, please?
Yeah, it won't be
too much longer.
Fred's next up, isn't he, Oli?
[Oli] Yeah, I'll take,
er, two minutes.
-Two minutes.
-Thank you very much.
Thank you.
I love the atmosphere
of the restaurant.
The thing that worries me
is that the service is slow.
The food takes a long time
to come out of the kitchen.
I've ordered Cubanos,
and I still haven't got it.
[Michael]
This Cubano's done.
It'll be 30 seconds.
[bell dings]
At last.
[Fred] The food is absolutely
delicious at FINCA.
Very good.
The thing is, it took
at least 15 minutes
for me to get my Cubanos,
which is basically a ham
and cheese sandwich.
I really don't understand
how this can be possible.
They've got so many
staff in there.
Their staff ratio is
just as high as the Ritz.
How are they gonna
do that in the high street?
[Chelsea]
Everything altogether, yeah?
Okay, perfect.
[narrator]
At Wholesome Junkies,
the half price offer is
also drawing in the customers.
The chips, you can use,
the end ones are gluten-free.
I'm a bit just sort of,
in shock, I think.
Everyone's coming in,
and they're ordering
one of everything,
-So, what, two covers
in, uh, ten orders.
-[laughs]
[narrator] And Chelsea's
got a problem just
ten minutes into service.
I will have to go, Faye.
-You have to go?
-I have to go.
[narrator] Anna, who's
in-charge of starters,
has to leave.
Her boyfriend's been
rushed to hospital.
[indistinct chatter]
Go. Go, go, go.
[narrator] So, Faye will
have to take her place.
[Faye] I mean, I feel like
I can do this.
Yeah, you're on that.
Yeah, you need some
parmesan on the side.
Chelsea's unlucky. One
of the chefs had to go home.
I'm afraid this is the reality
of the restaurant business.
You never know
what's going to happen.
This is a real test
for Chelsea.
How well can she
cope with struggle?
[Chelsea] Oh shit,
the, uh, fires are off.
One minute.
The fire's off.
Er, yeah.
I'm fine.
[Faye] Have we got
the sprouts and the fries? No?
Sprouts are in, fries,
just waiting for electricity.
You are booked in for...
What time? Now.
Um, we are running
a little bit behind.
Um, hi there, guys,
um, we are running
a little bit behind.
Yeah, mate, don't cry.
-No, I'm not.
-No.
[Chelsea] I'm not.
[Faye] Yeah. Don't.
[narrator] Despite the wait,
the meat-free food is a hit
when it reaches the tables.
This is so, so tasty.
You're not thinking that
you're eating vegan food.
It's just so nice.
You'd never think
this was vegetarian,
uh, vegan. Never.
No. You'd think there
was actually meat in it.
[indistinct chatter]
[Fred] Excuse me?
[man] Yes?
Do you know what's happening
with all these people?
-They're all waiting, or...
-Yeah, they're all waiting.
[Fred] So how many more
people have you got?
It's five tables.
Five tables?
Chelsea, I'm sorry
to trouble you.
I'm sure you've seen
there's a big backlog
-of customers at the door.
-[Chelsea] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
What are you gonna do about it?
I was just sort of explaining
to everybody coming in
that I'm having a little bit
of trouble in the kitchen.
And just check with them,
see if they're okay
to wait a little bit.
I'll leave it with you.
[Fred] Right now,
in Wholesome Junkies,
it's mayhem.
Customers are coming in,
people don't get served,
the food doesn't get
out of the kitchen.
In restaurant terms,
this is called going down.
And Chelsea has gone down.
There're a few things
that she could do.
She could, for example,
offer take away
to the people who are waiting,
she could reduce her menu,
she could stop serving dessert.
What I want to know
is if she's going
to take any actions.
Everyone's who's finished,
I'm really sorry, guys,
we need the tables back.
I'll get you a bill.
-Oh, yeah.
-Was the food okay, though?
If it's more than two hours,
just be really polite,
say we've got a queue.
[narrator] Slowly, but surely,
Chelsea's plan
to turn the tables
starts to work.
Thank you so much for waiting.
[Faye] It would have been me
and Chelsea alone
[laughing] if, like,
it went smooth sailing.
[laughing]
But hopefully,
everyone's had a nice time.
It's the morning
after the night before.
Wholesome Junkies and FINCA
are recovering
after a bruising service,
but there is no time to relax.
In just about three hours time,
the people who could
change their life
are coming to lunch.
Good morning, guys.
So, are you ready for today?
Just getting set now, yeah.
You've got four
of the biggest investors
coming for lunch today.
It's not about
getting one offer.
-What you need to start
is a bidding war.
-Yeah.
And you can go
for the best offer.
-I don't think we really
thought about it.
-[laughter]
[exhales]
My heart's beating.
Wanna feel my heart?
Yeah? Bup-bup-bup-bup.
All right. Good luck, guys.
See you later.
-Thanks a lot. Catch you later.
-Some pressure now, ain't it?
[laughing]
[Oli] Get them pitching to us.
Imagine that. Ha!
[narrator]
Over the next two days,
the investors will test
the restaurant's business plans
in service.
But today's private lunch
is all about one thing.
The food.
First to arrive,
two of the main partners
of investment group, Imbiba,
Darrel Connell,
and Simon Wheeler.
They've invested
over £50 million pounds
in Handpicked Partners.
The biggest part of
any investment decision
for us at Imbiba
is the quality of the team
that we are backing
to execute
on the business plan.
The FINCA concept,
and the FINCA brand,
there's something
special there.
The question is
whether that can translate
into a real business
that can be on the high street.
[narrator] Joining them,
Lydia Forte
of luxury hotel group,
Rocco Forte.
It's her job to develop
new bar and restaurant ideas
for the five star business.
Realistically,
you could easily spend
up to half a million,
uh, doing a site,
and launching it.
If the quality isn't there,
it's gonna be really difficult
to commit the funds
that we need to commit to it.
[narrator] Next, Tim Gee,
a property developer,
Allied London,
Their inner city developments
cost hundreds of millions
of pounds.
You can't just build
boring boxes anymore
if you want to be
a successful
property developer.
You've got to actually
put the heart and soul into it.
As important as any part
of any property development
in any district,
is making sure
that you give people
places they want go,
and eat and drink.
[narrator] And finally,
Jeremy Roberts.
CEO of Living Ventures.
His string of businesses
features cocktail bars
as well as restaurants.
Bar element's important,
because it adds a certain
level of excitement,
it gives you another
strength to the boat.
Uh, people coming for a meal,
are coming for a meal,
they come for a few drinks
first or a few drinks after,
then... then you've got
a really wide range
of opportunity
to increase revenue.
It's always great to see
a business that's got
an equal focus.
[Lydia]
I love the idea of FINCA
that is cocktails and food.
It's a great,
really lively atmosphere,
attracting a younger audience.
[Darrel] Great ideas come
from great entrepreneurs
across the country.
FINCA look like they've...
they've captured something
very special,
and I really can't wait to see
that the product lives up to
the quality of the proposition.
-Hi.
-Hello.
-How you doing?
-Hello, I'm Joe.
Let's get this, er,
nice big table there.
Um, we've got the...
the food menus here.
-Couple of drinks menu here
for you guys.
-Thank you.
I'll let you guys have a look,
and I'll, uh, be back
to get your drinks.
-All right.
-Cheers. Thank you.
[Lydia] So I was hoping
that there was gonna be
cocktails on here.
[Jeremy] So did I.
I mean, that's exactly
the same thing...
Hey, guys, can I get
some, uh, drinks orders?
Not getting cocktails
today, then?
I'm afraid not today. No, no.
Erm...
Just, just, er...
wanted to get... Well...
It was... It was a lot safer.
-But it is part
of the final concept?
-It's a huge part.
It's a huge part.
I think on the food side--
Yeah, we kinda
wanna try everything.
-[Lydia] Yeah.
-So you wanna go for a...
One of everything, yeah?
I like their t-shirts.
Yeah, I think the image is,
just generally speaking,
is very, very good.
This, this feels...
feels real at the moment,
yeah?
Just wanna go,
get everything right.
[narrator]
On FINCA's menu today,
their signature Cubano,
Cuban fried chicken
with pickled watermelon,
and spring onion croquetas.
So, guys, we've
got the croquetas.
[Darrel]
For a new food concept,
people need to be blown away.
Mediocrity is not good enough.
[crunch]
[narrator]
In Wholesome Junkies,
Chelsea's perfecting
her dishes.
No, that's great, guys,
let's not worry about it.
Yeah, okay.
[narrator] And she's hoping
today might be the next step
in her dream
to be her own boss.
I was an only child
up until about,
sort of, 15.
And then I've got a couple of
half brothers and sisters now.
Learned to be very independent
from a young age.
But I've never been
content with working
for somebody else.
I've always wanted
to do my own thing.
And then I realized,
I'll do what I love
and that's cooking.
I know how to be really
creative, and if I could
combine the two together,
then I'm gonna be
onto a winner,
because that's me. [laughs]
-You can do it. Okay?
-[sighs] Yeah.
-Right. We're gonna
smash it, right?
-Yeah.
[narrator] Chelsea's one shot
at investment rides
on Chris Miller.
He runs the White Rabbit
investment vehicle.
This multi million pound fund
has backed four new ideas
in the last year.
[Chris]
Having the best quality product
does not mean
you're gonna make
the most successful business.
In fact, the ability
for the management team,
and the founder
to actually scale that business
is almost as important
as the food.
There are many places
that I absolutely love
for the quality,
but the management team
just hasn't been able
to execute a roll-out plan.
So, backing the right person
is fundamental to
an investment decision.
-Hello. Hi.
-Hello. Hi.
-Chris.
-Nice to meet you, Chris.
My hands have got very soggy.
Er, that's all right.
[laughs]
-Took my glove off as well.
-Don't worry.
-How are you?
-A little bit nervous.
-But good nervous though.
-Good.
I'll give you a little tour.
-Yes, please.
-Just start you around, so,
-yeah, this is me.
-This is you? [laughing]
This is me, like, if I could
put myself in art form.
-Yeah.
-I mean I'm already
half-way there
with the hair,
and the flowers...
[Chris] And the...
the ears.
This is like a permanent
addition to my
-everyday attire. [laughing]
-Okay.
And then I made a lot of things
like this as well,
which I just absolutely love.
[narrator] Chelsea's chosen
to serve Chris three starters.
Mac and cheese balls
with a cashew nut sauce,
her fried sprouts,
and then breaded mushrooms.
[Chris] I'm so excited
for the concept.
I don't think she should
be looking at
the vegan-vegetarian market.
I think her competitor
should be McDonald's,
or Byron, or GBK.
But the food has
gotta be great.
[Chris]
Had a taste of everything.
-So the crispy mushrooms--
-Yeah?
-...is a brilliant dish.
-Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
That is phenomenal, and, um...
I could see that
doing very well.
The sprouts is definitely
something in there.
Yeah, yeah.
The mac and cheese ball,
-bit too stodgy for me.
-Yeah, yeah.
So let's get some, uh,
mains on the go for you.
[narrator] For mains, Chelsea
is serving her signature
battered cauliflower burger.
[Chris] This is the star dish.
Her hero dish is her burger.
and in reality, if you
put a burger onto any menu,
that would be
the biggest selling item.
So, if that first burger
is great,
it'll be a pretty quick
yes from me.
-Enjoy.
-Thank you.
[narrator] In FINCA,
the investors have a verdict.
That's excellent, isn't it?
Well, I thought about
all the component parts,
the bread's right,
the pickles are right,
the meat's good quality.
It's absolutely delicious.
It's really, really good.
What they've come up with
is really, really interesting,
and really good,
and tasty, but I just wonder if
-is it Cuban?
-[exhales]
[Darrel] 'Cause to me,
this isn't obviously Cuban,
this isn't the kinda...
-This is a different thing.
-Cuban-inspired,
as they said.
Maybe this is the best way
for Cuban food to be.
Not, er, Cuban,
but yeah, yummy.
[Lydia] Joe, you do all
the marketing side and
the branding and everything.
And what... What are
your main roles, and--
Chef role. We play the part
of creating the food.
So when you open
your first restaurant,
and you've got
a general manager.
Who do they report to?
Who's looking after...
We're, sort of, ready to
take on them roles ourselves
if it needs be.
You can tell that they
enjoy working together.
And that they've come up
with a great idea,
and they believe in themselves.
[Jeremy] The Cubano sandwich,
certainly very tasty,
but I think the surprise
for me were some of the,
er, the peripheral dishes
which, um, which I wouldn't
have expected to be
as good as they were,
which is a really good sign.
I think it needs more drinks.
For whatever reason,
they only had beer,
but it will actually do
really well with cocktails.
And certainly,
if I was to invest,
I could help them with that.
The food, from
a consumer proposition,
is strong enough.
It's definitely got
the scalability, it's got
the dynamism about it.
As a team, they clearly
get on with each other,
they enjoy each
other's company,
but it's just not clear
who's gonna be
in-charge of operations,
who's the real leader.
[Lydia] Normally,
when I look at doing a concept,
I really do want it
to be authentic.
I want it to mean
that it has a history,
and, you know, the chef
has an understanding
of the culture.
So, I'm just a little bit
worried that this isn't
actually a Cuban sandwich,
and some Caribbean,
and some Latin American
dishes thrown in.
[Chris] The crunch to this,
is better than most
fried chicken that I've had.
It falls apart great.
And very tasty.
Yeah, it's a great dish.
I just realized I'm probably
giving you everything
fried on the menu.
Should've given you
something else.
I think that's... My...
That so far is some
really exceptional parts of it.
Yeah, yeah.
It's about balancing it out.
It feels quite heavy.
By virtue of it being vegan,
I think having a...
Um, a couple of dishes
which do feel
a little bit healthier...
Yeah.
I think she's great.
Uh, she's... She's got
a hell of a lot of character.
There were a couple of
exceptional dishes in there.
The fried mushroom was...
was brilliant.
There's one thing,
Vegan food already
has quite a stigma
of the kind of hippy...
hippy lifestyle around it.
I'm not sure
her tie-dye uniforms
really help that.
But I think there could be
a very interesting
lifestyle brand in there.
[Chris] I think you've got
a lot of potential.
So, yeah.
-[Chelsea] Thank you.
-Thanks very much for lunch.
I think she's... she's quite
happily doing a nice, local,
vegan restaurant.
Amazing. Thank you
so much, Chris.
But it should be going up
against a McDonald's
as a choice
once or twice a week,
and we just need to
help it a bit with that.
-Oh, man!
-I don't know. How was it?
-That was really positive.
-Ugh!
-How can you not think
that that was positive?
-[exclaims] Ah!
-Come here.
-[exclaiming]
[both laughing]
[narrator] Tomorrow lunch-time,
the pressure continues.
The investors will
get to see how well
the restaurants cope
when they're full
of paying customers.
But today isn't over.
Chelsea and the FINCA team
still have private meetings
with the investors...
How are you, guys?
...to talk business
later this evening.
You have four
business plan meetings.
You've gotta perform in
each and every one of them.
-Yeah.
-[Joe] We need to get
in our zone now, don't we?
And get our heads back...
back into our business plans,
and we've got the figures
where we think they should be,
and we've got the...
the concept where we
think we should be.
[Fred] Who's gonna do
most of the talking?
[Michael] That'd be Joe.
-[laughing]
-[Joe] All three of us will
be chipping in, and, uh...
It's gonna be like
going to 12 rounds
with Anthony Joshua, no?
[all laughing]
I wish you all the best.
Really proud of you,
and really...
Really excited for you.
I can't wait
to see what happens.
See you later. Take care.
-Thanks a lot. Bye.
-See you later. Bye.
[narrator] 5:30.
Chelsea's meeting is first.
Five minutes. Let's go.
[narrator] Chris has one hour
to grill her on every aspect
of her operation,
and to see if they can make
an all-important connection.
In this business,
50% of what you're backing
is... is the food.
-Good to see you
-Non-sweaty hand now.
-[laughing]
-Right.
And about 50% of it
is the person.
From what I saw today, and...
How do I put this?
-Um--
-Nice. [laughing]
But nicely crazy--
[laughing]
But my fear is the stigma of
vegan, vegetarian restaurants.
Yeah.
There's this, sort of,
hippy, lentils...
Yeah.
And would you be open to
I guess, making it
more accessible to...
to people who aren't
vegans or vegetarians already.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So branding is one thing.
On the menu, it's a bit
rough around the edges
at the moment.
-Yeah.
-Um...
It can't all be fried.
There's gotta be
a slightly more of...
a few more levels on the menu.
[narrator]
During the meeting,
the investors can choose
to spell out the offer
they'll make
if, and only if
they decide to invest.
Should tomorrow impress,
the offer would be
closer to, um,
-spending time
on the branding...
-Yeah.
Getting you in with
my development chefs,
to actually help you structure
that menu to do it en masse
with the ultimate goal
of putting it
into a standalone site,
that will be way more
than the money
that you've asked for,
it would be closer to £400,000.
-There's a lot of
work to be done.
-Mmm-hmm.
But I do think there
could be something
quite interesting in this...
-Okay.
-...if it's packaged right.
-Interesting.
-Without tie-dye.
[Chelsea laughing]
[Chris] She's a bit rough
around the edges.
The business acumen
needs a bit of work.
But it's got potential
to turn into something...
Into something big.
He just said that
it's gonna need
about £400,000 investment,
which is just like
next level crazy.
This meeting tomorrow is
a hell of a lot scarier
because it needs
to be shipshape perfect.
[narrator]
Now, it's FINCA's turn.
As all four investors
see FINCA as a serious
business opportunity,
they'll each have their
own hour alone with
Oli, Joe and Michael.
The boys are asking
for a £150,000 investment.
My biggest concern, personally,
is the authenticity
of the concept.
Yeah, it isn't authentic
Cuban street food,
'cause we're not Cuban. Um...
We were inspired by them,
ultimately, we were inspired
by the place, you know,
-inspired by the food.
-But you've been to Cuba
once ten years ago,
-you guys haven't.
-Mmm-hmm.
None of you are Cuban.
Perhaps, um,
you know, addressing that
once we get more
of a full time...
Well, not full-time operation,
but a bigger operation--
Or even if it's you guys,
um, going to Cuba.
Yeah.
When I do something
in one of our hotels,
I always want it
to be the best possible version
of that cuisine.
And so, it's... It's hard
for me to sell a concept
which is Cuban-inspired,
but there's no
real story behind it.
[Lydia] The problem
is the authenticity of
the Cuban-inspired concept.
If I'm going to be
totally honest,
after today, I think
that you're gonna
have a great future,
but I think, maybe,
it's not the best thing for us.
Okay, that's fair enough.
[Lydia] Going into
the meeting with them,
I wanted to give them
a chance to tell me
that there was
a little bit more depth
to the Cuban inspiration,
um, and it just... Yeah,
it was clear that
there really wasn't,
and I think, that was
the moment when I thought,
better let them move on.
It was a major blow, like,
you know, we were
going in there,
being really positive and then
it was a bit of a, like,
comeback to answer with,
and reality check.
[narrator] Lydia Forte
has pulled out.
The other investors
have strong views, too.
Um, first thing
I'd like to say is, um,
yeah, food wise, I thought
it was really good.
What I was displeased about
was it kind of
just feels to me
like it's crying out
for cocktails.
There was a reason behind
deciding to leave them
off the menu today.
Erm, mainly due to the fact
that we...
That it's not an area
we are directly experienced in.
In terms of profitability,
yeah, bars are more profitable,
because you don't need
as many people
to deliver the product.
A plate of food needs chefs,
it needs waiters.
A bar, you really
only need a bartender.
Simple economics.
To me, the most
directly comparable brand
in the market is Turtle Bay.
They've got a huge bar area,
and it's full of students,
spending boat loads
of money on cocktails.
Yeah, we probably should
have gone bigger on that
side on the business plan
to get that across.
You know, it's gotta be
really important, upfront
and center in your brand.
Yeah.
So who's the boss?
Um, I guess we all
take control of our
different areas.
-Mmm-hmm.
-It might sound
a bit of a...
Cop-out.
When you're leading a business,
you need someone to lead it.
And at some point in time,
you have to decide
who that person is.
-Yeah.
-[Joe] Yeah.
'Cause it can't be
all three of you.
So, you're obviously
committing a lot of your time,
but what are you
planning to invest
in that first permanent unit?
We're willing
to look at raising
finance individually,
aren't we,
if we're needed to.
You know, we've spoke
about this before
this process started,
like, could that be something
that might come up.
I think, from our perspective,
once you've got confidence
in the people,
the next level of reassurance
we expect to see is actually,
you're putting your money
where your mouth is.
[Joe] Yes.
[narrator] At the end
of their session,
it's the investors' turn
to lay out their
potential offers.
The flaw in the plan
at the minute,
for the first project
is that your budget's too small
to hit the potential
to include the drinks.
It's probably two and half
to three times
lower than it needs to be.
In their business plan,
they're asking for £150,000.
What they need,
based on the evidence
I've had so far,
it probably needs
around a half a million.
We would offer a restaurant,
a space for you to open
your restaurant
within our estate.
-We would assist, obviously,
with the fit out and build...
-Yeah.
...and initial overheads.
-That's how we would
like to invest.
-Mmm-hmm.
[Tim] Tomorrow's service
is incredibly important.
Tomorrow illustrates
their ability to...
to run a restaurant.
So, we need to see it
well-managed.
It's key. It's a make or break
seeing them in
that environment tomorrow.
[narrator] And finally,
Imbiba's vision for FINCA.
In the event we do decide
to make an investment,
it would be larger
than what is in here.
Somewhere in the region
of £250,000 to £300,000.
I think the other thing
to add to that is
this is the case of, all right,
we're really getting behind you
with the full might of Imbiba.
And trying to grow this,
and make it a national brand.
We do not see this
as a one restaurant business.
[Darrel] It's very,
very important tomorrow.
The number one thing
I'll be looking at,
how are the customers reacting,
how are the guys reacting
to a busy restaurant?
This... It's been a long
couple of days, hasn't it?
And that is just madness.
Potentially three... Three
offers coming in tomorrow.
We've got another day to go.
We've got to impress
them tomorrow.
[laughs]
-Well, it's good. It is.
-Yeah. I think so.
It's the final day
for Wholesome Junkies,
and FINCA.
They are now getting ready
for their last service
in a fully booked restaurant.
The investors will be
watching their every move.
[narrator] There are nearly
700 restaurants
in Manchester.
Today, two more
are open for lunch.
[Michael] Today is
back on to reality.
Back to work, and,
you know, we gotta impress
these people again.
[narrator] Two nights ago,
the Cubano slowed down service.
So, Michael's getting
everything prepped and ready.
[Oli]
Essentially, the biggest meal
that we've ever had to cook.
We'll just... We'll be
over the moon
if we got this investment.
[Fred] How are you?
[Chelsea] Hi, Fred.
-Are you okay, Chelsea?
-[Chelsea] I'm good.
-Hi, guys, how are you?
-[all staff greeting]
[Fred] How did it go
with Chris yesterday?
Um, he said some
good points yesterday
that I took on board.
One thing was the tie-dye,
lose the tie-dye.
He said it's got
a bad stigma,
it's too hippy.
So, I went straight out,
I bought all new T-shirts.
We're gonna change
the restaurant slightly,
just strip it back.
[Fred] Yeah, I agree with that.
[Chelsea] A bit more
casual dining.
[Fred] Simple.
[Chelsea] Simple. And also,
he said that he could
probably do with a bit more
variety on the menu.
Maybe a little less
fried food options.
So, last night I went out,
and we've got three
new specials on
and a dessert for him,
that are all non-fried,
just to show him
what we can do.
Um, a bit of versatility,
a bit of on-the-spot thinking.
Well, but you know
that everything is down
to that lunch today.
-[Chelsea] Everything.
-You've got three hours
to prove him what you can do.
Yeah, we're on it.
-Good luck.
-Thank you.
-Good luck, guys.
-Thank you. Bye.
See you later.
Let's do this. Team Junkies!
-[applause]
-Whoo! [chuckles]
[narrator] 12:30. Lunch time.
[Joe] Hello, is it Victoria?
-[woman] Yes, it is.
-Yeah, good stuff.
Come with me.
[narrator] And FINCA is open.
Cubano, CFC, empanadas,
and croqueta.
I'm in the zone.
I'm in the zone.
[narrator] The investors
will expect to see
a front of the house operation
as convincing as the food.
Jeremy Roberts is first in.
Hello, Jeremy,
how is it going?
Are you okay?
[Jeremy] The conclusion
that I came to last night,
was essentially that
the investment that
the guys are looking for
is not what it's gonna take to
get a first restaurant going.
To their flaw,
the risk profile goes up.
[narrator] Next, Imbiba.
Third partner, Fraser Bradshaw
has joined them.
The full board
needs to be together
to agree a major deal.
Yeah, we're still good.
Thank you.
Yesterday, we had
a very good day.
The guys really delivered.
But it was a small,
dining environment.
Today, busy,
bustling restaurant.
It's all to play for.
[narrator] And finally,
Allied London's Tim Gee.
[Michael] Veg Cubano,
no pickle,
one sea bass,
one sweet potato fries.
Hello. How are we?
-Are you waiting to be seated?
-Yes, I am.
Fantastic. Very sorry.
-What's your, uh...
What's your name?
-Tim.
[man] Uh, drinks menu?
I'll probably go
with a Diet Coke actually,
and can I get some
tap water as well?
-Tap water as well. No problem.
-Thank you.
-And the menu's just there.
-Yeah.
Thanks.
[narrator] Chris Miller's
booked in at Wholesome Junkies.
[Chelsea] Hello, Chris.
It's Chelsea's
last chance to impress.
I hope you've noticed
we've kinda stripped
everything back
to sort of how it would be,
and it looks so much
better as well.
[Chris] Yeah.
[Chelsea] So, I'll send
the dish over to you.
-Thanks very much.
-No problem.
[Chris] The colorful,
floral table-cloths
have disappeared.
And the tie-dye
T-shirts are also gone.
So, she's definitely taken
a few things on board.
When we met yesterday,
she was very excited,
but a little bit silly.
In the kitchen, she's clearly
actually running the show.
I've got your two
cheesy balls, and you've
got two sprouts there,
you've got one Kung Pao here,
you've got one more
Kung Pao on the way.
I wasn't expecting her to be
as commanding in the kitchen
as... as she clearly is.
[narrator] Chelsea's lined
Chris up with three dishes,
including her new,
healthy specials.
[Chelsea] Uh, so this is
a Mexican chipotle-spiced
jack fruit.
This is your grilled
tandoori cauliflower.
Yeah, dig in, see
what you think.
Thank you very much.
[Chris] Yesterday,
a lot of it was fried,
so it's nice to see
a bit of a difference
from big burgers.
So, the jack fruit salad
was a lot fresher,
so that was really nice.
Same thing with the tandoori
cauliflower wings.
[narrator] The third dish,
cheesy bites.
So it's a lump of vegan cheese
with bacon frazzles on it.
That's a disaster.
[narrator] Over at FINCA,
the investors' orders
have arrived.
All right. Nice presentation,
Instagram-friendly.
Thumping-big eat.
Plenty of clean plates.
I like the Cubano, boys.
What's it like
behind there? Okay?
Yeah, it's good. It's, uh...
Yeah, it's calm.
The kitchen's always calm.
It feels really calm.
Very consistent with yesterday.
So the quality was
still extremely high.
It's good. I'm impressed.
[narrator]
Half-way through service,
Jeremy Roberts moves in
for a closer look.
Fancy a change of scenery?
I'd like a Cubano coming to
table one and two as well.
[narrator] And there's
confusion over an order
[Oli] We're missing a Cubano.
We're missing one now?
Oli?
I've got one on. I've got one
on the bill right now.
-Yeah.
-You need it now, yeah?
Do we need
an extra Cubano over here?
-Er, no.
-No. Is that all right?
I think you should
take that off.
That's quite interesting
seeing how it translates
from the street food
to the restaurant.
And I can see
quite a big gap, really.
There's no real
front of house experience
in the team.
And that...
that's really a shame.
And, um, the concerns,
you know, are forming
slightly in my mind.
-See you later.
-[woman] Bye-bye.
-[Michael] Thanks, Tim.
-Thanks, mate.
[Tim] It was good.
Yeah, there were
a few challenges, but
that's to be expected.
There are few
other people involved
in the decision-making process
who are waiting
for my feedback,
and we'll take it from there.
Thanks, guys, it's great.
There's lots that we like,
there's lots that
needs to be done.
It's what they need
to do now going forward
to go from a pop-up format,
very different
to actually getting into
running a business.
And then running a business
that scales and then rolls out.
And I think we need to go,
and have a long conversation
about that, just to see
how we want to
play it going forward.
It's been a long three days,
ain't it, bud?
Hopefully, we get
some good news.
[narrator] Lunch is over.
Thanks for lunch again. Thanks.
Good to see you, Chris.
Thank you.
[narrator] Now the pressure
is on the investors.
See you.
[narrator] They have to decide
whether the idea
is worth their money.
I think that went well.
I've looked at 300 restaurants
in the last year and a half,
and I've only invested
in four of them.
The pressure now is for me
to have a think about
where I see her business
in the next three,
five years' time.
[narrator] And Imbiba also have
a difficult decision to make,
whether FINCA is worth
backing to the tune
of $400,000.
They're a really,
really nice team,
and I think they have
grown in character
and in confidence
over the last 48 hours.
How it gets
from where it is now
into a restaurant
and a roll-out
I think there's a lot of
missing links that need...
That need support.
All of that adds up to
a lot of investment of time.
Do you feel
they're in a position
where we feel we could
move towards and investment?
Do you feel they are...
Could they roll out to six,
seven, eight, nine sites
across the country
over the next four
or five years?
That is a big question.
-How are you?
-Hi, Fred.
Oh, you've got a nice smile.
-I'm nervous.
-Are you?
-[chuckles] Yeah.
-Well, look.
Chris now has a deadline.
-Okay.
-He has one hour
to make you an offer.
Wow. Okay. [laughs]
If he comes back,
he will make you an offer,
if he doesn't,
then the game is off.
This is gonna be
the worst hour of my life.
[laughs]
[narrator] Chelsea came here
looking for £95,000.
If Chris Miller doesn't
return with an offer
of investment by 6:30,
she'll walk away with nothing.
The suspense is killing me.
How do you feel?
I just want it to be over.
[laughing]
It... It's... It's, uh...
a horrible weekend.
[chuckles]
But it's not about
the hard work only.
It's about the opinion
of somebody,
and whether he believes...
[Chelsea] The business...
[ticking]
-Hello.
-[Fred] Chris.
You're nearly late. [chuckles]
[Chris] Sorry, running
a bit behind.
Um, how are you?
-[Chelsea] I'm good.
How are you?
-Very well.
[Fred] How are you?
[Chris] Good.
Don't get too excited...
[Chelsea] No, I'm not.
...before you hear
what I have to say.
-Mmm-hmm.
-So, can I ask you
to give us your offer?
Right now,
I don't think you are ready
to open a 50-seat restaurant.
Okay.
So, actually, what I would
like to offer you
is support.
I have some extremely
talented development chefs.
I would like them
to work with you.
I want you to bring
the creativity to it.
-Yeah.
-But have them support you
in turning it into
a more complete,
-and a more balanced menu.
-Polished. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
At the same time,
I have a branding agency.
We can turn it into a brand
-that is a bit more
accessible to people.
-Yeah.
And so, that's
really the offer.
If you're happy,
then I'd like some time
working together with you,
and see where it goes.
I would love to.
Thank you so much.
[Chris] Very welcome.
I am super happy.
Super, super happy.
It's so nice, I have somebody
to give me the help
and the knowledge
that I really, really,
really need.
There's no value on that.
It's just, um... I'm really
really happy with it.
Is it vegan?
It is not vegan.
-[Chris laughing]
-[Chelsea] Oh, no.
[Fred] It is the full fat.
Just a few fish guts in there.
[laughing] Lovely.
That's what is in the wine
that makes it non-vegan.
There's a lot to learn
from my side.
I think she's, um...
She's got a lot of potential.
Uh, there's a lot of
raw talent there,
that, um, needs
to be worked on.
Yeah, hopefully we'll
end up with something
that we can turn into
a really great project
for the future.
-Cheers.
-Well done.
-Well done, Chelsea.
-[Chelsea] Thank you so much.
[narrator]
Now it's FINCA's turn.
They came here
looking for £150,000.
The deadline is eight o'clock.
Will one or more investors
walk through the door?
[Fred] This is it.
God, this will decide
what we do with
the rest of our lives.
Mmm-hmm.
[Michael] It's not easy, this.
It feels...
Um, we just don't know
really, you know?
[ticking]
[Joe] Getting closer.
Hello. Here you are.
-Hi. Hi, Fred.
-[Fred] How are you?
-Yeah, I'm very, very well.
-How's it going?
[Tim] Hi, Joe.
-[Fred] Yeah. Yes.
-I'm good.
[Fred] Tim, we still have
about ten minutes.
We have to wait
until the other investors come
if they do come.
So, we have ten minutes.
[Jeremy] Good evening.
-[Fred] How are you?
-Doing well. Good to see you.
Hello, Jeremy.
[Jeremy] Good to see you.
[Fred] We're still waiting
for one more investor.
The clock is still ticking.
If we were backing FINCA just
to open one single restaurant
in Liverpool or Manchester,
I'd back them to be a success.
But can they run six, seven,
eight, nine sites
across the UK on a three
or four year view,
Don't know. We agonized,
you know, long and
hard over it,
we just couldn't get over
that final question.
Have they got what it takes,
in their experience bucket,
to do that? We just
couldn't get there.
[narrator] FINCA will
have to choose
between two investors.
But first, they have to hear
what's on the table.
Tim, you were
the first to come in.
Our offer is to set you up
in a restaurant,
fully kitted out,
and it will be FINCA branded,
and you will have that
for a year, at our cost.
Our intention would be
to support you
with the business
to see what could happen next.
And then we could see, perhaps,
further locations off that.
Thank you, Tim.
Jeremy, your turn.
When I saw you all today,
I consolidated my thoughts
on the business.
It does need to be
something of a bit more,
um, complete.
What I am keen
to put on the table
is a commitment to £150,000
in order to continue
your development
so that you are in a position
to roll it forward.
[narrator] On the table,
two offers.
From Allied London,
a ready-made
restaurant premises
with costs covered
for one year,
with potential
for further growth.
Well, I think you, maybe,
have to think about it
for a couple of moments.
[narrator] And from
Jeremy Roberts, an initial
investment of £150,000
to develop the FINCA concept,
and open their
first restaurant.
We know which way
we're leaning here.
[Michael speaking]
-[Oli] Yeah.
-This... This...
-[Oli] Yeah.
-[Michael speaking]
[Joe] Yeah.
[Oli] Yeah.
[Joe] Well, good stuff.
So, have you made a decision?
We have, yeah. Yeah.
Let's hear it.
[Joe] Um, so thank you
for coming down.
This is what we came here for.
Jeremy, um,
I think we'd be a great fit,
we'd like to take you up
on your offering.
-Fantastic.
-[Joe] Yeah.
Fantastic.
Cheers. Thank you.
-Well done, guys. Well done.
-Thanks a lot.
We want someone like Jeremy
that believes in FINCA
as a concept and a brand.
Yeah, enormously.
It's not sinking, is it?
Do you know, it was a pleasure.
[Tim] Congratulations
to Jeremy and FINCA.
I hate losing,
I'll be perfectly honest.
But I wish them all the best.
Yeah, I'm delighted.
I see a real potential
in these guys,
and I see huge
amount of passion.
And I think those two things,
as I said right at the start,
are the most important things.
[all cheering]
I hope to make some
money out of it, bottom line.
That's what it's all about.
[Joe] Cheers, cheers.
[Fred] Cheers. Good luck.
I'm blown away.
I'm blown away right now.
We're ready now.
The journey starts.
I can't get rid
of this stupid grin.
[laughing]
Got a difficult
table over there.
[waiter] Are you not feeling
the chicken burger?
[Atul] I heard that
your food didn't go well,
so apologies on the house.
For you, Ronnie, especially,
being a chef and a very
confident chef,
I felt that you were
a little arrogant.
[man] I need two fettuccines
straight in, Chef.
We've got
no more cream left.
-[woman] What's happened?
-Uh, we ran out
of white-wine cream
[sighing]
I've worked in
the restaurant industry
for 25 years.
Right now, the UK's restaurant
scene is the envy of the world.
And all it takes is
one great idea to make
a fortune on the high street.
But has the next generation
of restaurants
got what it takes to become
a multi-million pound business?
Over the next six weeks,
here in Manchester,
the food capital of the North,
twelve of the most exciting
new restaurant ideas
are in with a chance
of a life-changing investment
from some of the UK's
most respected investors.
These are the men and women
who can turn an idea
into a national brand.
[Darrel]
We're looking at putting
a lot of money
into the absolute
best concepts.
This is the kind of model
that you dream of.
If I find the right operator,
I'll be fighting for it.
[Fred] Each week,
the investors will give
the people behind
two great new food ideas
a unique opportunity.
Ah, this is brilliant.
[Fred] Their own
pop-up restaurant.
-[dings]
-[man] Right.
Rock and roll, man.
[Fred] They'll have just
three days to prove...
Nobody seems to know
the table numbers.
[Fred]
...they've got what it takes...
That's a disaster.
[Fred]
...to make it
on the high street.
When you start to rush,
that's when you start
-to make more mistakes.
-[clattering]
There's a big backlog
of customers at the door.
What are you gonna do about it?
If I was to invest, it'll take
half a million to £750,000.
Time to make some dough.
[Fred] After the three days,
will the investors
walk back
into the restaurants...
[deep sigh]
[Fred]
...and make them and offer?
It's a £600,000 lunch.
We are not gonna leave
without an investment.
I'm sorry. The time is up.
The doors are
open for business.
Welcome to Million Pound Menu.
[Fred]
Every year, we spend
over thirty-three billion pound
in the UK, eating out.
No wonder the investors are
looking for the next big thing.
A new idea could
make them a fortune.
[narrator] Times might be
challenging on the high street,
but chains based on
strong, simple concepts
are still making money
in towns and cities
across the UK.
So what is the next big idea
to get us queuing for a table?
Well, we might be
about to find out.
Hi, I'm Paul Mason,
I'm the founder
of the Fruit Tailor.
[narrator] The men and women
behind some of the most
successful businesses
on the high street...
At the end of day,
what you do get is a truly
delicious cheese toasty.
[narrator]
...have met to hear ideas
from the next generation
of restaurant entrepreneurs...
You know, we do
wanna be the best.
To make the best burger
they've ever had,
[narrator]
...who think their concept
is worth big money.
There's an explosion
of these... these concepts.
They're really successful.
[narrator]
Over 400 people competed
for the chance to run
a trial pop-up,
to prove their idea
was worth investment.
Conceptually, it's
very simple to do,
it's very Instagramable.
[narrator]
The panel chose the two ideas
with the strongest food,
brand, and business plan.
FINCA is a Cuban
street food concept
based in Liverpool, which
has been trading there
for the past 18 months.
[narrator]
The first idea to be selected,
a group of friends,
who think Britain's
high street is ready
for a Cuban food revolution.
[man] The reason
why we chose
Cuban street food,
is because we believe
it's a cuisine that hasn't
really been delved into.
There's also a huge opportunity
for drink sales
in our restaurant.
We have trialed
our Cuban cocktail menu
at some of the pop-up events
that we've done.
It has been very,
very successful.
[narrator]
The young team at FINCA
are asking for £150,000
to open their first,
proper place.
I think this business is
very much of the moment.
Great team, great brand,
great product.
[Lydia]
I think they're fantastic.
Such a cool new concept.
In Berlin,
we've got this rooftop bar
on top of our hotel
to roam there which I think
would just be amazing.
I couldn't see a Cuban
surname in the four owners.
They looked authentic.
They also did say
their take on Cuban food.
Just raising a point.
They've got a great brand,
they seem
incredibly passionate.
There was nothing I saw
that didn't tick
pretty much all the boxes.
Food offer's really strong.
It screams fun, and I'd love
to see it in Manchester.
My name is Jeremy Roberts,
I am the CEO
of Living Ventures,
which is a group of
45 or so restaurants.
FINCA excites me.
It's... It's sexy.
I think it's a great name.
That gives you a huge
amount of potential
for the...
the booze side of things,
the bar element to it.
I think this has definitely
got the opportunity
to be a national brand,
you know, in 10, 15 sites
across the UK, unquestionably.
My name's Darrel,
I'm a partner at Imbiba.
We're ultimately looking
to build these businesses
to 10, 15 units.
And that requires investment
of up to five, six,
seven million.
If there's a chemistry,
if there's a spark there,
we will push you hard.
Hi, my name's Chelsea.
And I love, love,
love, love, food.
[narrator] Next,
a 27-year old who wants
to sell vegan food
that appeals to everyone.
[Chelsea] Wholesome Junkies
is vegan junk food
with a wholesome taste.
It is an exciting new way
of looking at eating
vegan food.
[narrator]
Chelsea's after £95,000
to start her first restaurant.
[Chelsea] I want to take
Wholesome Junkies
to the next level
and that means
having my own unit,
and to work
with a really nice
big, lovely team
Thank you so much for watching.
And I really hope you share
the same vision as I see.
[Lydia] I thought she was
super enthusiastic,
which is great,
but I have to say that
I thought the branding sucked.
I'm trying to think of
somebody who'd want to go
and have an unhealthy, fried,
but a vegan food.
I don't mind the idea
of vegan junk food.
My name's Chris Miller.
She's trying to do
vegan junk food.
The junk food burger
market in the UK is
a three billion pound market.
So, if she can take
a fraction of that market,
then it will be a very exciting
investment opportunity.
I'd like to be able to see
one of these in every
university, town across the UK.
[narrator]
The ideas have been chosen.
There's just
one person interested
in Wholesome Junkies.
But four investors
could end up
fighting over FINCA.
[Fred]
Wholesome Junkies and FINCA
are open today
for business in Manchester.
They are here to prove
they've got what it takes
to take over the high street.
Get it right,
and they could
secure an investment
that will change
their lives forever.
[narrator] The two ideas
will take over identical
existing restaurant sites,
just 100 yards apart.
Today, Chelsea,
and the FINCA team
are about to see
their new restaurants
for the first time.
[Joe] This opportunity's
absolutely huge.
We're gonna be meeting
some of the biggest investors
in the UK.
Looking good, that.
Nice menu, that.
-Let's get going.
-Let's do it.
Hey-yo.
Yes, laddie.
[narrator]
Over the last month, they've
been working with a designer
to bring their
restaurant to life.
[chuckling] This is class.
This is superb.
We're not gonna stop
fighting for this.
We're gonna work
as hard as we can
to make sure that
everything goes well.
This opportunity is huge,
and if we get there,
that'll be amazing. Yeah.
No, not "if we get there,"
when we get there.
[narrator]
FINCA was born
18 months ago.
as a Cuban-inspired
pop-up in Liverpool.
I'm Joe. Uh, I look after
the PR and marketing.
And I will buzz for you
when it's ready.
Hi, I'm Michael, I'm one
of the directors here at FINCA.
I also help plan the food,
the menus.
My name is Oli,
and I'm also the head chef
alongside Michael.
[narrator]
Thirty-four-year-old Michael
went on holiday to Cuba,
and fell in love with the food.
A lot of people come,
they've never tried
Cuban food before.
Hi, guys.
[Joe] It's nice
when they come back.
and say they like, "The food,
"it changed my life."
[laughing]
Would love to get
the first FINCA open.
But we're ambitious,
so we're looking
at five FINCAs
in the first five years.
[narrator]
Opposite FINCA,
Manchester local, Chelsea,
is also about to see
her restaurant
for the first time.
Being here, and doing this
is the most exciting thing
I've ever done in my life.
Oh, I love it.
I'm a bit of a tree hugger.
[laughing] So...
Perfect. An actual kitchen.
I'm used to working off this.
[Fred] After ten years
of working front of housing
restaurants,
Chelsea took
a gamble last year,
and set-up a vegan food stall.
[Chelsea]
The first event that I did,
I did really, really well
that I thought, "This is easy,
this is how it works."
No.
The next five markets,
I had nothing,
I lost money, I carried on
and persevered.
I'm finally getting there now
where I'm making good money
on each event.
[narrator] There are now
nearly two million vegans
and vegetarians in the UK.
Chelsea wants £95,000
to set up a restaurant
to help her capture the market.
Veganism is becoming
really popular, and it's sort
of peaking at the moment.
And it was now
or never, really.
It was either miss the boat,
or catch the wave.
Tomorrow, in just 24 hours,
the investors will be
arriving for lunch.
We need to get started,
like, ASAP,
because there's
quite a bit to do.
[narrator] So this evening,
both restaurants will open
to the Manchester public
for their one and
only practice run.
Tonight will be
their soft launch.
They will be serving
real customers at just
half the price.
It's a standard
industry practice,
and it's their one chance
to get it right
before the investors come.
The bag's here.
[narrator] Both restaurants
have brought their own teams
to help in the kitchen,
and with front-of-house.
including Chelsea's
best friend, Faye.
When she first made me, like,
try something, I was like,
Uh...
And then I was like,
"Oh, my God, mate,
this is amazing!"
[all greeting each other]
[Fred] How are you?
So, you're talking about
a healthy, junk, vegan food.
-Yes.
-Isn't it a contradiction?
Yeah, exactly.
It's a little bit whacky,
which kinda just goes with me.
So it's a little bit
of what everybody loves,
the naughty food,
the fried foods, but sort of
making it a little bit healthy
at the same time.
What is the actual USP
of your... of your brand?
The demand for meat
can't keep up
with the population
that's every growing,
so we need to find new ways
to be sustainable.
I mean, I love meat.
-[Chelsea] Yeah.
-Would I love your food?
I reckon we'll
win you over, Fred.
-Yeah?
-[laughing] Yeah.
All right. Listen, good luck.
-Enjoy. Bye-bye. See you later.
-[Chelsea] Thank you so much.
Thank you.
-Thank you, Fred.
-[Faye] Bye.
Can you slice the apples
into wedges, please?
[narrator] Almost a third
of the UK say they ate
less meat last year.
So, Chelsea's hoping
her junk food approach
has mass appeal.
[Chelsea] So I need 'em
about a centimeter thick.
[narrator] Her shrooms,
breaded mushrooms,
sell for £5,00
and super sprouts
with Parmesan and aioli
sell for £3,00 a dish.
but for £6,50, you could
have a bite of her bestseller.
This one dish that
I could get the investment on
is my battered
cauliflower burger.
It's called no-plucky
fried chicken,
'cause no chickens are harmed.
And it's, uh, definitely
the most popular dish.
Hello, how are you?
-Hey. How are we?
-Hello. I'm Fred.
-Good.
-I'm Joe.
Nice to meet you, Joe.
How are you?
-Bonjour.
-[Fred] I have no idea
what Cuban food is.
I mean, I know Fidel Castro,
I love Cuban cigars,
I have no idea what to expect.
It's very centered around
the Cuban sandwich, the Cubano.
So, is it like the ham
and cheeseburger in France?
It's got the, um, gammon,
and pork shoulder.
Ah! It's got gammon as well.
So it is like
the ham and cheese.
Well, look, I can't wait
to try the food.
And I've got some very,
very good news.
We don't have one,
or two, or three,
-but four, four investors...
-Yeah?
-[Joe] What good, that.
-...really interested
in your concept.
-Amazing.
-So, tomorrow
they'll be here.
-I'm nervous now, though.
-[laughter]
-[Fred] Good.
-Kicking in. Kicking in.
[Fred] Enjoy.
-Thank you, see you later.
-Bye-bye.
-Come on.
-[Michael] Let's back to work.
Yeah, yeah,
let's get cracking now.
Come on.
[narrator]
FINCA's menu features a range
of Central American delicacies.
Their twice-fried
plantain fritters
sell for £4,00.
Their Cuban fried chicken
with picked watermelon
is £7,00.
Their signature dish,
the Cubano,
is a thick, grilled sandwich
that Cubans love.
It's £7,00.
[Michael]
It does take a bit of time
in the building of it,
and the cooking time, so,
I reckon that's probably
the most challenging.
[woman] So who's
in charge of that?
Me. [laughs]
[narrator] It's 6:00 p.m.
In an hour, FINCA,
and Wholesome Junkies
will open as restaurants
for the first time.
We are about to open the doors.
Um, are we all excited?
-[man] Yes.
-Are you excited?
I am nearly excited.
[all laughing]
In my own restaurant,
I love that feeling
before service.
It's the anticipation.
Everything must be ready.
Once the first customers
walk through the door,
the battle is on.
[man] Hello there.
Is it Charlotte?
[Charlotte] It's me, yes.
The server's gonna
take you to the table now,
show you where to go.
[narrator]
With food at half price,
tonight's soft launch
is popular.
So, both restaurants face
two full sittings.
First check's on.
It's all go.
The sweet potato fries.
Tostones, FINCA fries,
and then empanadas?
Good stuff.
[narrator] Half an hour in,
FINCA are at full stretch.
One veg Cubano,
one meat Cubano,
three portions of fries...
Cubano and tostones,
please, mate.
Just been icy at
the first few orders out
and just
get in a bit of rhythm
of things like that.
[woman] The sweet potato fries
are possibly the nicest
sweet potato fries
I've ever had.
It's really good.
It's really tasty
and interesting
with lots of new flavors.
I ordered the Cuban sandwich,
and it's massive, but
it's really, really delicious.
-Wow, what an atmosphere.
-[Joe] I know.
[Fred] This is full.
-[Joe] What can I get
for you, Fred?
-I must try your,
-er, Cubanos.
-Thank you very much.
Thank you.
We've got one sea bass,
one Cubano
sweet potato fries,
some croquetas,
and empanadas, please.
Chased our tail
a little bit,
but it's soft launch,
so it's how
we thought it'd be.
Hey, check on,
we've got one Cubano,
one sea bass, one fries...
[Joe] Is table two ready to go?
[Oli] One Cubano, and each one
sea bass, and each one
sweet potato fries
and each one croquetas...
And then we have,
uh, cha-cha-cha.
Do you know how long
my food is going to be, please?
Yeah, it won't be
too much longer.
Fred's next up, isn't he, Oli?
[Oli] Yeah, I'll take,
er, two minutes.
-Two minutes.
-Thank you very much.
Thank you.
I love the atmosphere
of the restaurant.
The thing that worries me
is that the service is slow.
The food takes a long time
to come out of the kitchen.
I've ordered Cubanos,
and I still haven't got it.
[Michael]
This Cubano's done.
It'll be 30 seconds.
[bell dings]
At last.
[Fred] The food is absolutely
delicious at FINCA.
Very good.
The thing is, it took
at least 15 minutes
for me to get my Cubanos,
which is basically a ham
and cheese sandwich.
I really don't understand
how this can be possible.
They've got so many
staff in there.
Their staff ratio is
just as high as the Ritz.
How are they gonna
do that in the high street?
[Chelsea]
Everything altogether, yeah?
Okay, perfect.
[narrator]
At Wholesome Junkies,
the half price offer is
also drawing in the customers.
The chips, you can use,
the end ones are gluten-free.
I'm a bit just sort of,
in shock, I think.
Everyone's coming in,
and they're ordering
one of everything,
-So, what, two covers
in, uh, ten orders.
-[laughs]
[narrator] And Chelsea's
got a problem just
ten minutes into service.
I will have to go, Faye.
-You have to go?
-I have to go.
[narrator] Anna, who's
in-charge of starters,
has to leave.
Her boyfriend's been
rushed to hospital.
[indistinct chatter]
Go. Go, go, go.
[narrator] So, Faye will
have to take her place.
[Faye] I mean, I feel like
I can do this.
Yeah, you're on that.
Yeah, you need some
parmesan on the side.
Chelsea's unlucky. One
of the chefs had to go home.
I'm afraid this is the reality
of the restaurant business.
You never know
what's going to happen.
This is a real test
for Chelsea.
How well can she
cope with struggle?
[Chelsea] Oh shit,
the, uh, fires are off.
One minute.
The fire's off.
Er, yeah.
I'm fine.
[Faye] Have we got
the sprouts and the fries? No?
Sprouts are in, fries,
just waiting for electricity.
You are booked in for...
What time? Now.
Um, we are running
a little bit behind.
Um, hi there, guys,
um, we are running
a little bit behind.
Yeah, mate, don't cry.
-No, I'm not.
-No.
[Chelsea] I'm not.
[Faye] Yeah. Don't.
[narrator] Despite the wait,
the meat-free food is a hit
when it reaches the tables.
This is so, so tasty.
You're not thinking that
you're eating vegan food.
It's just so nice.
You'd never think
this was vegetarian,
uh, vegan. Never.
No. You'd think there
was actually meat in it.
[indistinct chatter]
[Fred] Excuse me?
[man] Yes?
Do you know what's happening
with all these people?
-They're all waiting, or...
-Yeah, they're all waiting.
[Fred] So how many more
people have you got?
It's five tables.
Five tables?
Chelsea, I'm sorry
to trouble you.
I'm sure you've seen
there's a big backlog
-of customers at the door.
-[Chelsea] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
What are you gonna do about it?
I was just sort of explaining
to everybody coming in
that I'm having a little bit
of trouble in the kitchen.
And just check with them,
see if they're okay
to wait a little bit.
I'll leave it with you.
[Fred] Right now,
in Wholesome Junkies,
it's mayhem.
Customers are coming in,
people don't get served,
the food doesn't get
out of the kitchen.
In restaurant terms,
this is called going down.
And Chelsea has gone down.
There're a few things
that she could do.
She could, for example,
offer take away
to the people who are waiting,
she could reduce her menu,
she could stop serving dessert.
What I want to know
is if she's going
to take any actions.
Everyone's who's finished,
I'm really sorry, guys,
we need the tables back.
I'll get you a bill.
-Oh, yeah.
-Was the food okay, though?
If it's more than two hours,
just be really polite,
say we've got a queue.
[narrator] Slowly, but surely,
Chelsea's plan
to turn the tables
starts to work.
Thank you so much for waiting.
[Faye] It would have been me
and Chelsea alone
[laughing] if, like,
it went smooth sailing.
[laughing]
But hopefully,
everyone's had a nice time.
It's the morning
after the night before.
Wholesome Junkies and FINCA
are recovering
after a bruising service,
but there is no time to relax.
In just about three hours time,
the people who could
change their life
are coming to lunch.
Good morning, guys.
So, are you ready for today?
Just getting set now, yeah.
You've got four
of the biggest investors
coming for lunch today.
It's not about
getting one offer.
-What you need to start
is a bidding war.
-Yeah.
And you can go
for the best offer.
-I don't think we really
thought about it.
-[laughter]
[exhales]
My heart's beating.
Wanna feel my heart?
Yeah? Bup-bup-bup-bup.
All right. Good luck, guys.
See you later.
-Thanks a lot. Catch you later.
-Some pressure now, ain't it?
[laughing]
[Oli] Get them pitching to us.
Imagine that. Ha!
[narrator]
Over the next two days,
the investors will test
the restaurant's business plans
in service.
But today's private lunch
is all about one thing.
The food.
First to arrive,
two of the main partners
of investment group, Imbiba,
Darrel Connell,
and Simon Wheeler.
They've invested
over £50 million pounds
in Handpicked Partners.
The biggest part of
any investment decision
for us at Imbiba
is the quality of the team
that we are backing
to execute
on the business plan.
The FINCA concept,
and the FINCA brand,
there's something
special there.
The question is
whether that can translate
into a real business
that can be on the high street.
[narrator] Joining them,
Lydia Forte
of luxury hotel group,
Rocco Forte.
It's her job to develop
new bar and restaurant ideas
for the five star business.
Realistically,
you could easily spend
up to half a million,
uh, doing a site,
and launching it.
If the quality isn't there,
it's gonna be really difficult
to commit the funds
that we need to commit to it.
[narrator] Next, Tim Gee,
a property developer,
Allied London,
Their inner city developments
cost hundreds of millions
of pounds.
You can't just build
boring boxes anymore
if you want to be
a successful
property developer.
You've got to actually
put the heart and soul into it.
As important as any part
of any property development
in any district,
is making sure
that you give people
places they want go,
and eat and drink.
[narrator] And finally,
Jeremy Roberts.
CEO of Living Ventures.
His string of businesses
features cocktail bars
as well as restaurants.
Bar element's important,
because it adds a certain
level of excitement,
it gives you another
strength to the boat.
Uh, people coming for a meal,
are coming for a meal,
they come for a few drinks
first or a few drinks after,
then... then you've got
a really wide range
of opportunity
to increase revenue.
It's always great to see
a business that's got
an equal focus.
[Lydia]
I love the idea of FINCA
that is cocktails and food.
It's a great,
really lively atmosphere,
attracting a younger audience.
[Darrel] Great ideas come
from great entrepreneurs
across the country.
FINCA look like they've...
they've captured something
very special,
and I really can't wait to see
that the product lives up to
the quality of the proposition.
-Hi.
-Hello.
-How you doing?
-Hello, I'm Joe.
Let's get this, er,
nice big table there.
Um, we've got the...
the food menus here.
-Couple of drinks menu here
for you guys.
-Thank you.
I'll let you guys have a look,
and I'll, uh, be back
to get your drinks.
-All right.
-Cheers. Thank you.
[Lydia] So I was hoping
that there was gonna be
cocktails on here.
[Jeremy] So did I.
I mean, that's exactly
the same thing...
Hey, guys, can I get
some, uh, drinks orders?
Not getting cocktails
today, then?
I'm afraid not today. No, no.
Erm...
Just, just, er...
wanted to get... Well...
It was... It was a lot safer.
-But it is part
of the final concept?
-It's a huge part.
It's a huge part.
I think on the food side--
Yeah, we kinda
wanna try everything.
-[Lydia] Yeah.
-So you wanna go for a...
One of everything, yeah?
I like their t-shirts.
Yeah, I think the image is,
just generally speaking,
is very, very good.
This, this feels...
feels real at the moment,
yeah?
Just wanna go,
get everything right.
[narrator]
On FINCA's menu today,
their signature Cubano,
Cuban fried chicken
with pickled watermelon,
and spring onion croquetas.
So, guys, we've
got the croquetas.
[Darrel]
For a new food concept,
people need to be blown away.
Mediocrity is not good enough.
[crunch]
[narrator]
In Wholesome Junkies,
Chelsea's perfecting
her dishes.
No, that's great, guys,
let's not worry about it.
Yeah, okay.
[narrator] And she's hoping
today might be the next step
in her dream
to be her own boss.
I was an only child
up until about,
sort of, 15.
And then I've got a couple of
half brothers and sisters now.
Learned to be very independent
from a young age.
But I've never been
content with working
for somebody else.
I've always wanted
to do my own thing.
And then I realized,
I'll do what I love
and that's cooking.
I know how to be really
creative, and if I could
combine the two together,
then I'm gonna be
onto a winner,
because that's me. [laughs]
-You can do it. Okay?
-[sighs] Yeah.
-Right. We're gonna
smash it, right?
-Yeah.
[narrator] Chelsea's one shot
at investment rides
on Chris Miller.
He runs the White Rabbit
investment vehicle.
This multi million pound fund
has backed four new ideas
in the last year.
[Chris]
Having the best quality product
does not mean
you're gonna make
the most successful business.
In fact, the ability
for the management team,
and the founder
to actually scale that business
is almost as important
as the food.
There are many places
that I absolutely love
for the quality,
but the management team
just hasn't been able
to execute a roll-out plan.
So, backing the right person
is fundamental to
an investment decision.
-Hello. Hi.
-Hello. Hi.
-Chris.
-Nice to meet you, Chris.
My hands have got very soggy.
Er, that's all right.
[laughs]
-Took my glove off as well.
-Don't worry.
-How are you?
-A little bit nervous.
-But good nervous though.
-Good.
I'll give you a little tour.
-Yes, please.
-Just start you around, so,
-yeah, this is me.
-This is you? [laughing]
This is me, like, if I could
put myself in art form.
-Yeah.
-I mean I'm already
half-way there
with the hair,
and the flowers...
[Chris] And the...
the ears.
This is like a permanent
addition to my
-everyday attire. [laughing]
-Okay.
And then I made a lot of things
like this as well,
which I just absolutely love.
[narrator] Chelsea's chosen
to serve Chris three starters.
Mac and cheese balls
with a cashew nut sauce,
her fried sprouts,
and then breaded mushrooms.
[Chris] I'm so excited
for the concept.
I don't think she should
be looking at
the vegan-vegetarian market.
I think her competitor
should be McDonald's,
or Byron, or GBK.
But the food has
gotta be great.
[Chris]
Had a taste of everything.
-So the crispy mushrooms--
-Yeah?
-...is a brilliant dish.
-Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
That is phenomenal, and, um...
I could see that
doing very well.
The sprouts is definitely
something in there.
Yeah, yeah.
The mac and cheese ball,
-bit too stodgy for me.
-Yeah, yeah.
So let's get some, uh,
mains on the go for you.
[narrator] For mains, Chelsea
is serving her signature
battered cauliflower burger.
[Chris] This is the star dish.
Her hero dish is her burger.
and in reality, if you
put a burger onto any menu,
that would be
the biggest selling item.
So, if that first burger
is great,
it'll be a pretty quick
yes from me.
-Enjoy.
-Thank you.
[narrator] In FINCA,
the investors have a verdict.
That's excellent, isn't it?
Well, I thought about
all the component parts,
the bread's right,
the pickles are right,
the meat's good quality.
It's absolutely delicious.
It's really, really good.
What they've come up with
is really, really interesting,
and really good,
and tasty, but I just wonder if
-is it Cuban?
-[exhales]
[Darrel] 'Cause to me,
this isn't obviously Cuban,
this isn't the kinda...
-This is a different thing.
-Cuban-inspired,
as they said.
Maybe this is the best way
for Cuban food to be.
Not, er, Cuban,
but yeah, yummy.
[Lydia] Joe, you do all
the marketing side and
the branding and everything.
And what... What are
your main roles, and--
Chef role. We play the part
of creating the food.
So when you open
your first restaurant,
and you've got
a general manager.
Who do they report to?
Who's looking after...
We're, sort of, ready to
take on them roles ourselves
if it needs be.
You can tell that they
enjoy working together.
And that they've come up
with a great idea,
and they believe in themselves.
[Jeremy] The Cubano sandwich,
certainly very tasty,
but I think the surprise
for me were some of the,
er, the peripheral dishes
which, um, which I wouldn't
have expected to be
as good as they were,
which is a really good sign.
I think it needs more drinks.
For whatever reason,
they only had beer,
but it will actually do
really well with cocktails.
And certainly,
if I was to invest,
I could help them with that.
The food, from
a consumer proposition,
is strong enough.
It's definitely got
the scalability, it's got
the dynamism about it.
As a team, they clearly
get on with each other,
they enjoy each
other's company,
but it's just not clear
who's gonna be
in-charge of operations,
who's the real leader.
[Lydia] Normally,
when I look at doing a concept,
I really do want it
to be authentic.
I want it to mean
that it has a history,
and, you know, the chef
has an understanding
of the culture.
So, I'm just a little bit
worried that this isn't
actually a Cuban sandwich,
and some Caribbean,
and some Latin American
dishes thrown in.
[Chris] The crunch to this,
is better than most
fried chicken that I've had.
It falls apart great.
And very tasty.
Yeah, it's a great dish.
I just realized I'm probably
giving you everything
fried on the menu.
Should've given you
something else.
I think that's... My...
That so far is some
really exceptional parts of it.
Yeah, yeah.
It's about balancing it out.
It feels quite heavy.
By virtue of it being vegan,
I think having a...
Um, a couple of dishes
which do feel
a little bit healthier...
Yeah.
I think she's great.
Uh, she's... She's got
a hell of a lot of character.
There were a couple of
exceptional dishes in there.
The fried mushroom was...
was brilliant.
There's one thing,
Vegan food already
has quite a stigma
of the kind of hippy...
hippy lifestyle around it.
I'm not sure
her tie-dye uniforms
really help that.
But I think there could be
a very interesting
lifestyle brand in there.
[Chris] I think you've got
a lot of potential.
So, yeah.
-[Chelsea] Thank you.
-Thanks very much for lunch.
I think she's... she's quite
happily doing a nice, local,
vegan restaurant.
Amazing. Thank you
so much, Chris.
But it should be going up
against a McDonald's
as a choice
once or twice a week,
and we just need to
help it a bit with that.
-Oh, man!
-I don't know. How was it?
-That was really positive.
-Ugh!
-How can you not think
that that was positive?
-[exclaims] Ah!
-Come here.
-[exclaiming]
[both laughing]
[narrator] Tomorrow lunch-time,
the pressure continues.
The investors will
get to see how well
the restaurants cope
when they're full
of paying customers.
But today isn't over.
Chelsea and the FINCA team
still have private meetings
with the investors...
How are you, guys?
...to talk business
later this evening.
You have four
business plan meetings.
You've gotta perform in
each and every one of them.
-Yeah.
-[Joe] We need to get
in our zone now, don't we?
And get our heads back...
back into our business plans,
and we've got the figures
where we think they should be,
and we've got the...
the concept where we
think we should be.
[Fred] Who's gonna do
most of the talking?
[Michael] That'd be Joe.
-[laughing]
-[Joe] All three of us will
be chipping in, and, uh...
It's gonna be like
going to 12 rounds
with Anthony Joshua, no?
[all laughing]
I wish you all the best.
Really proud of you,
and really...
Really excited for you.
I can't wait
to see what happens.
See you later. Take care.
-Thanks a lot. Bye.
-See you later. Bye.
[narrator] 5:30.
Chelsea's meeting is first.
Five minutes. Let's go.
[narrator] Chris has one hour
to grill her on every aspect
of her operation,
and to see if they can make
an all-important connection.
In this business,
50% of what you're backing
is... is the food.
-Good to see you
-Non-sweaty hand now.
-[laughing]
-Right.
And about 50% of it
is the person.
From what I saw today, and...
How do I put this?
-Um--
-Nice. [laughing]
But nicely crazy--
[laughing]
But my fear is the stigma of
vegan, vegetarian restaurants.
Yeah.
There's this, sort of,
hippy, lentils...
Yeah.
And would you be open to
I guess, making it
more accessible to...
to people who aren't
vegans or vegetarians already.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So branding is one thing.
On the menu, it's a bit
rough around the edges
at the moment.
-Yeah.
-Um...
It can't all be fried.
There's gotta be
a slightly more of...
a few more levels on the menu.
[narrator]
During the meeting,
the investors can choose
to spell out the offer
they'll make
if, and only if
they decide to invest.
Should tomorrow impress,
the offer would be
closer to, um,
-spending time
on the branding...
-Yeah.
Getting you in with
my development chefs,
to actually help you structure
that menu to do it en masse
with the ultimate goal
of putting it
into a standalone site,
that will be way more
than the money
that you've asked for,
it would be closer to £400,000.
-There's a lot of
work to be done.
-Mmm-hmm.
But I do think there
could be something
quite interesting in this...
-Okay.
-...if it's packaged right.
-Interesting.
-Without tie-dye.
[Chelsea laughing]
[Chris] She's a bit rough
around the edges.
The business acumen
needs a bit of work.
But it's got potential
to turn into something...
Into something big.
He just said that
it's gonna need
about £400,000 investment,
which is just like
next level crazy.
This meeting tomorrow is
a hell of a lot scarier
because it needs
to be shipshape perfect.
[narrator]
Now, it's FINCA's turn.
As all four investors
see FINCA as a serious
business opportunity,
they'll each have their
own hour alone with
Oli, Joe and Michael.
The boys are asking
for a £150,000 investment.
My biggest concern, personally,
is the authenticity
of the concept.
Yeah, it isn't authentic
Cuban street food,
'cause we're not Cuban. Um...
We were inspired by them,
ultimately, we were inspired
by the place, you know,
-inspired by the food.
-But you've been to Cuba
once ten years ago,
-you guys haven't.
-Mmm-hmm.
None of you are Cuban.
Perhaps, um,
you know, addressing that
once we get more
of a full time...
Well, not full-time operation,
but a bigger operation--
Or even if it's you guys,
um, going to Cuba.
Yeah.
When I do something
in one of our hotels,
I always want it
to be the best possible version
of that cuisine.
And so, it's... It's hard
for me to sell a concept
which is Cuban-inspired,
but there's no
real story behind it.
[Lydia] The problem
is the authenticity of
the Cuban-inspired concept.
If I'm going to be
totally honest,
after today, I think
that you're gonna
have a great future,
but I think, maybe,
it's not the best thing for us.
Okay, that's fair enough.
[Lydia] Going into
the meeting with them,
I wanted to give them
a chance to tell me
that there was
a little bit more depth
to the Cuban inspiration,
um, and it just... Yeah,
it was clear that
there really wasn't,
and I think, that was
the moment when I thought,
better let them move on.
It was a major blow, like,
you know, we were
going in there,
being really positive and then
it was a bit of a, like,
comeback to answer with,
and reality check.
[narrator] Lydia Forte
has pulled out.
The other investors
have strong views, too.
Um, first thing
I'd like to say is, um,
yeah, food wise, I thought
it was really good.
What I was displeased about
was it kind of
just feels to me
like it's crying out
for cocktails.
There was a reason behind
deciding to leave them
off the menu today.
Erm, mainly due to the fact
that we...
That it's not an area
we are directly experienced in.
In terms of profitability,
yeah, bars are more profitable,
because you don't need
as many people
to deliver the product.
A plate of food needs chefs,
it needs waiters.
A bar, you really
only need a bartender.
Simple economics.
To me, the most
directly comparable brand
in the market is Turtle Bay.
They've got a huge bar area,
and it's full of students,
spending boat loads
of money on cocktails.
Yeah, we probably should
have gone bigger on that
side on the business plan
to get that across.
You know, it's gotta be
really important, upfront
and center in your brand.
Yeah.
So who's the boss?
Um, I guess we all
take control of our
different areas.
-Mmm-hmm.
-It might sound
a bit of a...
Cop-out.
When you're leading a business,
you need someone to lead it.
And at some point in time,
you have to decide
who that person is.
-Yeah.
-[Joe] Yeah.
'Cause it can't be
all three of you.
So, you're obviously
committing a lot of your time,
but what are you
planning to invest
in that first permanent unit?
We're willing
to look at raising
finance individually,
aren't we,
if we're needed to.
You know, we've spoke
about this before
this process started,
like, could that be something
that might come up.
I think, from our perspective,
once you've got confidence
in the people,
the next level of reassurance
we expect to see is actually,
you're putting your money
where your mouth is.
[Joe] Yes.
[narrator] At the end
of their session,
it's the investors' turn
to lay out their
potential offers.
The flaw in the plan
at the minute,
for the first project
is that your budget's too small
to hit the potential
to include the drinks.
It's probably two and half
to three times
lower than it needs to be.
In their business plan,
they're asking for £150,000.
What they need,
based on the evidence
I've had so far,
it probably needs
around a half a million.
We would offer a restaurant,
a space for you to open
your restaurant
within our estate.
-We would assist, obviously,
with the fit out and build...
-Yeah.
...and initial overheads.
-That's how we would
like to invest.
-Mmm-hmm.
[Tim] Tomorrow's service
is incredibly important.
Tomorrow illustrates
their ability to...
to run a restaurant.
So, we need to see it
well-managed.
It's key. It's a make or break
seeing them in
that environment tomorrow.
[narrator] And finally,
Imbiba's vision for FINCA.
In the event we do decide
to make an investment,
it would be larger
than what is in here.
Somewhere in the region
of £250,000 to £300,000.
I think the other thing
to add to that is
this is the case of, all right,
we're really getting behind you
with the full might of Imbiba.
And trying to grow this,
and make it a national brand.
We do not see this
as a one restaurant business.
[Darrel] It's very,
very important tomorrow.
The number one thing
I'll be looking at,
how are the customers reacting,
how are the guys reacting
to a busy restaurant?
This... It's been a long
couple of days, hasn't it?
And that is just madness.
Potentially three... Three
offers coming in tomorrow.
We've got another day to go.
We've got to impress
them tomorrow.
[laughs]
-Well, it's good. It is.
-Yeah. I think so.
It's the final day
for Wholesome Junkies,
and FINCA.
They are now getting ready
for their last service
in a fully booked restaurant.
The investors will be
watching their every move.
[narrator] There are nearly
700 restaurants
in Manchester.
Today, two more
are open for lunch.
[Michael] Today is
back on to reality.
Back to work, and,
you know, we gotta impress
these people again.
[narrator] Two nights ago,
the Cubano slowed down service.
So, Michael's getting
everything prepped and ready.
[Oli]
Essentially, the biggest meal
that we've ever had to cook.
We'll just... We'll be
over the moon
if we got this investment.
[Fred] How are you?
[Chelsea] Hi, Fred.
-Are you okay, Chelsea?
-[Chelsea] I'm good.
-Hi, guys, how are you?
-[all staff greeting]
[Fred] How did it go
with Chris yesterday?
Um, he said some
good points yesterday
that I took on board.
One thing was the tie-dye,
lose the tie-dye.
He said it's got
a bad stigma,
it's too hippy.
So, I went straight out,
I bought all new T-shirts.
We're gonna change
the restaurant slightly,
just strip it back.
[Fred] Yeah, I agree with that.
[Chelsea] A bit more
casual dining.
[Fred] Simple.
[Chelsea] Simple. And also,
he said that he could
probably do with a bit more
variety on the menu.
Maybe a little less
fried food options.
So, last night I went out,
and we've got three
new specials on
and a dessert for him,
that are all non-fried,
just to show him
what we can do.
Um, a bit of versatility,
a bit of on-the-spot thinking.
Well, but you know
that everything is down
to that lunch today.
-[Chelsea] Everything.
-You've got three hours
to prove him what you can do.
Yeah, we're on it.
-Good luck.
-Thank you.
-Good luck, guys.
-Thank you. Bye.
See you later.
Let's do this. Team Junkies!
-[applause]
-Whoo! [chuckles]
[narrator] 12:30. Lunch time.
[Joe] Hello, is it Victoria?
-[woman] Yes, it is.
-Yeah, good stuff.
Come with me.
[narrator] And FINCA is open.
Cubano, CFC, empanadas,
and croqueta.
I'm in the zone.
I'm in the zone.
[narrator] The investors
will expect to see
a front of the house operation
as convincing as the food.
Jeremy Roberts is first in.
Hello, Jeremy,
how is it going?
Are you okay?
[Jeremy] The conclusion
that I came to last night,
was essentially that
the investment that
the guys are looking for
is not what it's gonna take to
get a first restaurant going.
To their flaw,
the risk profile goes up.
[narrator] Next, Imbiba.
Third partner, Fraser Bradshaw
has joined them.
The full board
needs to be together
to agree a major deal.
Yeah, we're still good.
Thank you.
Yesterday, we had
a very good day.
The guys really delivered.
But it was a small,
dining environment.
Today, busy,
bustling restaurant.
It's all to play for.
[narrator] And finally,
Allied London's Tim Gee.
[Michael] Veg Cubano,
no pickle,
one sea bass,
one sweet potato fries.
Hello. How are we?
-Are you waiting to be seated?
-Yes, I am.
Fantastic. Very sorry.
-What's your, uh...
What's your name?
-Tim.
[man] Uh, drinks menu?
I'll probably go
with a Diet Coke actually,
and can I get some
tap water as well?
-Tap water as well. No problem.
-Thank you.
-And the menu's just there.
-Yeah.
Thanks.
[narrator] Chris Miller's
booked in at Wholesome Junkies.
[Chelsea] Hello, Chris.
It's Chelsea's
last chance to impress.
I hope you've noticed
we've kinda stripped
everything back
to sort of how it would be,
and it looks so much
better as well.
[Chris] Yeah.
[Chelsea] So, I'll send
the dish over to you.
-Thanks very much.
-No problem.
[Chris] The colorful,
floral table-cloths
have disappeared.
And the tie-dye
T-shirts are also gone.
So, she's definitely taken
a few things on board.
When we met yesterday,
she was very excited,
but a little bit silly.
In the kitchen, she's clearly
actually running the show.
I've got your two
cheesy balls, and you've
got two sprouts there,
you've got one Kung Pao here,
you've got one more
Kung Pao on the way.
I wasn't expecting her to be
as commanding in the kitchen
as... as she clearly is.
[narrator] Chelsea's lined
Chris up with three dishes,
including her new,
healthy specials.
[Chelsea] Uh, so this is
a Mexican chipotle-spiced
jack fruit.
This is your grilled
tandoori cauliflower.
Yeah, dig in, see
what you think.
Thank you very much.
[Chris] Yesterday,
a lot of it was fried,
so it's nice to see
a bit of a difference
from big burgers.
So, the jack fruit salad
was a lot fresher,
so that was really nice.
Same thing with the tandoori
cauliflower wings.
[narrator] The third dish,
cheesy bites.
So it's a lump of vegan cheese
with bacon frazzles on it.
That's a disaster.
[narrator] Over at FINCA,
the investors' orders
have arrived.
All right. Nice presentation,
Instagram-friendly.
Thumping-big eat.
Plenty of clean plates.
I like the Cubano, boys.
What's it like
behind there? Okay?
Yeah, it's good. It's, uh...
Yeah, it's calm.
The kitchen's always calm.
It feels really calm.
Very consistent with yesterday.
So the quality was
still extremely high.
It's good. I'm impressed.
[narrator]
Half-way through service,
Jeremy Roberts moves in
for a closer look.
Fancy a change of scenery?
I'd like a Cubano coming to
table one and two as well.
[narrator] And there's
confusion over an order
[Oli] We're missing a Cubano.
We're missing one now?
Oli?
I've got one on. I've got one
on the bill right now.
-Yeah.
-You need it now, yeah?
Do we need
an extra Cubano over here?
-Er, no.
-No. Is that all right?
I think you should
take that off.
That's quite interesting
seeing how it translates
from the street food
to the restaurant.
And I can see
quite a big gap, really.
There's no real
front of house experience
in the team.
And that...
that's really a shame.
And, um, the concerns,
you know, are forming
slightly in my mind.
-See you later.
-[woman] Bye-bye.
-[Michael] Thanks, Tim.
-Thanks, mate.
[Tim] It was good.
Yeah, there were
a few challenges, but
that's to be expected.
There are few
other people involved
in the decision-making process
who are waiting
for my feedback,
and we'll take it from there.
Thanks, guys, it's great.
There's lots that we like,
there's lots that
needs to be done.
It's what they need
to do now going forward
to go from a pop-up format,
very different
to actually getting into
running a business.
And then running a business
that scales and then rolls out.
And I think we need to go,
and have a long conversation
about that, just to see
how we want to
play it going forward.
It's been a long three days,
ain't it, bud?
Hopefully, we get
some good news.
[narrator] Lunch is over.
Thanks for lunch again. Thanks.
Good to see you, Chris.
Thank you.
[narrator] Now the pressure
is on the investors.
See you.
[narrator] They have to decide
whether the idea
is worth their money.
I think that went well.
I've looked at 300 restaurants
in the last year and a half,
and I've only invested
in four of them.
The pressure now is for me
to have a think about
where I see her business
in the next three,
five years' time.
[narrator] And Imbiba also have
a difficult decision to make,
whether FINCA is worth
backing to the tune
of $400,000.
They're a really,
really nice team,
and I think they have
grown in character
and in confidence
over the last 48 hours.
How it gets
from where it is now
into a restaurant
and a roll-out
I think there's a lot of
missing links that need...
That need support.
All of that adds up to
a lot of investment of time.
Do you feel
they're in a position
where we feel we could
move towards and investment?
Do you feel they are...
Could they roll out to six,
seven, eight, nine sites
across the country
over the next four
or five years?
That is a big question.
-How are you?
-Hi, Fred.
Oh, you've got a nice smile.
-I'm nervous.
-Are you?
-[chuckles] Yeah.
-Well, look.
Chris now has a deadline.
-Okay.
-He has one hour
to make you an offer.
Wow. Okay. [laughs]
If he comes back,
he will make you an offer,
if he doesn't,
then the game is off.
This is gonna be
the worst hour of my life.
[laughs]
[narrator] Chelsea came here
looking for £95,000.
If Chris Miller doesn't
return with an offer
of investment by 6:30,
she'll walk away with nothing.
The suspense is killing me.
How do you feel?
I just want it to be over.
[laughing]
It... It's... It's, uh...
a horrible weekend.
[chuckles]
But it's not about
the hard work only.
It's about the opinion
of somebody,
and whether he believes...
[Chelsea] The business...
[ticking]
-Hello.
-[Fred] Chris.
You're nearly late. [chuckles]
[Chris] Sorry, running
a bit behind.
Um, how are you?
-[Chelsea] I'm good.
How are you?
-Very well.
[Fred] How are you?
[Chris] Good.
Don't get too excited...
[Chelsea] No, I'm not.
...before you hear
what I have to say.
-Mmm-hmm.
-So, can I ask you
to give us your offer?
Right now,
I don't think you are ready
to open a 50-seat restaurant.
Okay.
So, actually, what I would
like to offer you
is support.
I have some extremely
talented development chefs.
I would like them
to work with you.
I want you to bring
the creativity to it.
-Yeah.
-But have them support you
in turning it into
a more complete,
-and a more balanced menu.
-Polished. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
At the same time,
I have a branding agency.
We can turn it into a brand
-that is a bit more
accessible to people.
-Yeah.
And so, that's
really the offer.
If you're happy,
then I'd like some time
working together with you,
and see where it goes.
I would love to.
Thank you so much.
[Chris] Very welcome.
I am super happy.
Super, super happy.
It's so nice, I have somebody
to give me the help
and the knowledge
that I really, really,
really need.
There's no value on that.
It's just, um... I'm really
really happy with it.
Is it vegan?
It is not vegan.
-[Chris laughing]
-[Chelsea] Oh, no.
[Fred] It is the full fat.
Just a few fish guts in there.
[laughing] Lovely.
That's what is in the wine
that makes it non-vegan.
There's a lot to learn
from my side.
I think she's, um...
She's got a lot of potential.
Uh, there's a lot of
raw talent there,
that, um, needs
to be worked on.
Yeah, hopefully we'll
end up with something
that we can turn into
a really great project
for the future.
-Cheers.
-Well done.
-Well done, Chelsea.
-[Chelsea] Thank you so much.
[narrator]
Now it's FINCA's turn.
They came here
looking for £150,000.
The deadline is eight o'clock.
Will one or more investors
walk through the door?
[Fred] This is it.
God, this will decide
what we do with
the rest of our lives.
Mmm-hmm.
[Michael] It's not easy, this.
It feels...
Um, we just don't know
really, you know?
[ticking]
[Joe] Getting closer.
Hello. Here you are.
-Hi. Hi, Fred.
-[Fred] How are you?
-Yeah, I'm very, very well.
-How's it going?
[Tim] Hi, Joe.
-[Fred] Yeah. Yes.
-I'm good.
[Fred] Tim, we still have
about ten minutes.
We have to wait
until the other investors come
if they do come.
So, we have ten minutes.
[Jeremy] Good evening.
-[Fred] How are you?
-Doing well. Good to see you.
Hello, Jeremy.
[Jeremy] Good to see you.
[Fred] We're still waiting
for one more investor.
The clock is still ticking.
If we were backing FINCA just
to open one single restaurant
in Liverpool or Manchester,
I'd back them to be a success.
But can they run six, seven,
eight, nine sites
across the UK on a three
or four year view,
Don't know. We agonized,
you know, long and
hard over it,
we just couldn't get over
that final question.
Have they got what it takes,
in their experience bucket,
to do that? We just
couldn't get there.
[narrator] FINCA will
have to choose
between two investors.
But first, they have to hear
what's on the table.
Tim, you were
the first to come in.
Our offer is to set you up
in a restaurant,
fully kitted out,
and it will be FINCA branded,
and you will have that
for a year, at our cost.
Our intention would be
to support you
with the business
to see what could happen next.
And then we could see, perhaps,
further locations off that.
Thank you, Tim.
Jeremy, your turn.
When I saw you all today,
I consolidated my thoughts
on the business.
It does need to be
something of a bit more,
um, complete.
What I am keen
to put on the table
is a commitment to £150,000
in order to continue
your development
so that you are in a position
to roll it forward.
[narrator] On the table,
two offers.
From Allied London,
a ready-made
restaurant premises
with costs covered
for one year,
with potential
for further growth.
Well, I think you, maybe,
have to think about it
for a couple of moments.
[narrator] And from
Jeremy Roberts, an initial
investment of £150,000
to develop the FINCA concept,
and open their
first restaurant.
We know which way
we're leaning here.
[Michael speaking]
-[Oli] Yeah.
-This... This...
-[Oli] Yeah.
-[Michael speaking]
[Joe] Yeah.
[Oli] Yeah.
[Joe] Well, good stuff.
So, have you made a decision?
We have, yeah. Yeah.
Let's hear it.
[Joe] Um, so thank you
for coming down.
This is what we came here for.
Jeremy, um,
I think we'd be a great fit,
we'd like to take you up
on your offering.
-Fantastic.
-[Joe] Yeah.
Fantastic.
Cheers. Thank you.
-Well done, guys. Well done.
-Thanks a lot.
We want someone like Jeremy
that believes in FINCA
as a concept and a brand.
Yeah, enormously.
It's not sinking, is it?
Do you know, it was a pleasure.
[Tim] Congratulations
to Jeremy and FINCA.
I hate losing,
I'll be perfectly honest.
But I wish them all the best.
Yeah, I'm delighted.
I see a real potential
in these guys,
and I see huge
amount of passion.
And I think those two things,
as I said right at the start,
are the most important things.
[all cheering]
I hope to make some
money out of it, bottom line.
That's what it's all about.
[Joe] Cheers, cheers.
[Fred] Cheers. Good luck.
I'm blown away.
I'm blown away right now.
We're ready now.
The journey starts.
I can't get rid
of this stupid grin.
[laughing]
Got a difficult
table over there.
[waiter] Are you not feeling
the chicken burger?
[Atul] I heard that
your food didn't go well,
so apologies on the house.
For you, Ronnie, especially,
being a chef and a very
confident chef,
I felt that you were
a little arrogant.
[man] I need two fettuccines
straight in, Chef.
We've got
no more cream left.
-[woman] What's happened?
-Uh, we ran out
of white-wine cream
[sighing]