From Chaos to Café Culture

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💥 How I Built My Café from the Ground Up — And What Every Aspiring Café Owner Needs to Know

Let me be brutally honest… I didn’t get this right the first time.

When I first opened Dad & The Frog Café, I made just about every classic mistake in the book.
I chased fads. I dabbled with shiny new ideas. I got swept up in trends instead of doubling down on the basics.

The hardest part? I didn’t have a clear vision. And when you don’t know where you’re going, it’s all too easy to end up nowhere.

But over time—and through a good few humbling experiences—I started to figure it out. I realised that every successful café I admired wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel. They were just really, really good at the fundamentals.

And that’s what this blog is about: sharing what I wish I knew when I started, and what I’m still learning every single day.

🧭 First Things First: Know Your Vision, or Prepare to Drift

Here’s something they don’t teach you in any barista course: your vision is your anchor.
Without it, your café becomes a mashup of menu experiments, confused team culture, and random Instagram aesthetics.

A clear vision gives your business direction. But more importantly, it gives your team something to rally behind.

At Dad & The Frog, our vision is to create a space that feels like a second home—a place where great food meets community, and high standards are wrapped in laid-back vibes. Once I got crystal clear on that, it became so much easier to make decisions, filter opportunities, and hire people who got it.

🌱 Pro tip: Your team won’t magically absorb your values. You’ve got to talk about them. Show them. Root them in your training and daily routines. Because culture doesn’t grow by accident—it’s planted and nurtured.

🧮 1. Know Your Numbers, Or They’ll Own You

This one’s non-negotiable. If you don’t know your cost of goods sold, labour percentage, or daily break-even… you’re not steering the ship—you’re just hoping for calm waters.

I learned this the hard way. Early on, I’d look at a busy weekend and assume we were “killing it”—only to find out later that our margins were razor thin.

Now? I live and die by the spreadsheet. And weirdly… I love it. Because knowing your numbers isn’t restrictive—it’s freeing. It gives you confidence to price properly, staff smartly, and scale sustainably.

🍳 2. Your Kitchen Is a Machine. Build It Like One.

Think of your kitchen like a Formula 1 pit crew. Everyone needs to know their role. Everything needs to be in its place. Efficiency = success.

That means:
✅ Clear prep lists
✅ Standardised ordering forms
✅ Rotating cleaning schedules

It doesn’t look sexy on Instagram, but this is the real stuff that keeps the wheels turning and the food coming out hot, fast, and correct.

We designed our kitchen workflow so every section—hot line, cold prep, dish—flows in sync. No bottlenecks. No shouting. Just rhythm.

And that rhythm? It gives our staff confidence. Which gives you consistency.

📋 3. SOPs: The Secret Sauce of Café Success

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are the backbone of our business.

Every action, from how we toast a sandwich to how we greet a regular, is mapped out. Not because we want robots. But because we want reliability—no matter who’s on shift.

SOPs also make onboarding staff 10x easier. No guessing. No “figure it out as you go.” Just a clear roadmap that protects our standards.

🧠 4. Train Constantly. Then Train Again.

This is where many cafés fall short: they train staff once, then expect excellence forever.

Nope.

Training at Dad & The Frog is ongoing. Weekly refreshers. Live feedback. Growth plans. Because the moment we stop investing in our team… the quality drops. And our customers feel it.

And we’re not just training for skill—we’re training for culture. For energy. For that intangible “something” that makes service feel personal.

🪑 5. Design Is a Silent Salesperson

Aesthetics matter. They tell your story before a single word is spoken.

We kept ours clean, warm, and welcoming. Think: approachable minimalism meets neighborhood charm. It’s not about trends—it’s about intentionality.

Good design guides flow, attracts the right customer, and makes people want to linger just a little longer. It’s a silent sales pitch you can’t afford to ignore.

🧼 6. Cleanliness Is a Competitive Advantage

When I was opening this place, I cleaned the toilets myself—every night.
Not because I had to. But because I knew it set the tone.

Cleanliness shows you care. And when your café feels fresh, people notice.
Customers come back. Staff take pride. Standards rise.

That’s why we treat cleaning schedules with the same importance as inventory sheets. Because a dirty café is a dying café.

🎯 Final Thoughts: Fall in Love with the Fundamentals

Running a café isn’t about being the flashiest, the trendiest, or the most innovative.

It’s about showing up. Every day. And doing the boring stuff really, really well.

If you can conquer the basics—and keep refining them—you’ll outlast the hype machines. You’ll build something that matters. And you'll create a café that feels good, not just looks good.

And hey, if you're ever in Surry Hills, come visit us at Dad & The Frog Café. You’ll see these fundamentals in action, from the first coffee order to the final plate.