Opening a high-concept restaurant in Barcelona is a dream for many chefs. However, the financial reality can be daunting. Marcel Pons, co-founder and chef of ‘Incorrecte’ in the city’s affluent Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district, faced this reality. Construction works alone cost €300,000, and two years after opening, he estimates they are only halfway to recovering this investment.

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In an interview on Eric Ponce’s YouTube channel, later reported by El Periódico, Pons detailed the significant financial and personal costs of launching his culinary project. He and his brother Magí, who rose from washing dishes to head chef, aimed to create a novel dining experience. Their restaurant, which can accommodate 49 guests, offers a nine-course tasting menu designed for the modern diner. The experience is completed in 90 minutes, featuring short explanations and focusing on what he describes as “grandmother’s cooking, knowing what you’re eating”.

The Price of a Dream

The primary obstacle was financial. The brothers realised that finding a perfect, ready-to-use location was almost impossible. Therefore, extensive and expensive renovations were necessary. “We spent €300,000 on the construction work alone, without even talking about glassware, cutlery, or furniture,” Pons explained. This figure, while substantial, was lower than it could have been. “Our father is a constructor, and he did it himself,” he noted, emphasising the crucial family support that helped launch the project.

After two years, the path to profitability is slow. Pons estimates they have recovered “50% or a bit more” of the initial investment. He acknowledges that the industry standard is around five years to fully amortise such costs. This slow return directly affects him personally. “I’m earning much less than when I was working for someone else,” he admitted. “You renounce that for a time, not forever.”

Beyond the direct construction costs, Pons described the broader challenges facing aspiring restaurateurs. “Setting up a restaurant is complicated. It’s a mess of licences, regulations, and equipment,” he said. This bureaucratic maze is a well-known issue for entrepreneurs in the city. It involves a complex web of permits from the Ajuntament de Barcelona, which can be both time-consuming and expensive to navigate.

The experience of costly and complex foundational work is common in the city’s hospitality sector. It mirrors the disruption and investment seen in other areas, such as the major redevelopment that forced some businesses to close. At the same time others are betting on a post-works boom on La Rambla.

However, the most significant barrier, according to Pons, is securing funding. He highlighted a stark contrast in how banks view personal versus business investments. “The problem is that often the bank won’t give you money… It’s easier to get money for a house than for a business,” he explained. “If you need €20,000, maybe, but when we’re talking about €300,000, it’s much more complicated.”

“You either have the help of a private investor, or you’re ‘screwed’ because you don’t have the financial capacity to have €300,000 to invest in a restaurant.”

A Different Kind of Profit

Despite the financial pressures, Pons is clear that his goal extends beyond pure profitability. He aims to build a sustainable business that also prioritises the well-being of its small team, which includes just two people in the kitchen. “I also want comfort for the workers and the people,” he stated.

This philosophy is reflected in ‘Incorrecte’s’ operating schedule. The restaurant is open from Tuesday to Saturday and closes for major holidays like Christmas and Easter. This is a departure from the gruelling hours often associated with the industry. This commitment to work-life balance is intertwined with a sense of duty to his family, who provided the initial investment. “My father put in a large part of the money,” Pons shared. “And it’s not the same paying him back when he’s 80 as when he’s 70, when he can still enjoy it.”

Currently, Pons and his brother are focused on their five-year plan. They are slowly reducing their initial investment while building a reputation in Barcelona’s competitive dining scene, one 90-minute tasting menu at a time.