How My Pakistani Chopped Cheese Brings In Up To $140K A Month In NYC
Zean, a Pakistani-American entrepreneur, opened Nishan restaurant in NYC featuring fusion dishes like Pakistani chopped cheese. After winning a food truck competition and investing his $70,000 life savings, his restaurant now generates $100,000-140,000 monthly through social media marketing and community support.
Summary
Zean is the founder of Nishan, a Pakistani-American fusion restaurant in New York City that specializes in unique dishes like the Pakistani chopped cheese. Growing up in Chicago's Devon neighborhood with Pakistani parents, he was inspired by his mother's creative cooking approach of combining flavors without restrictions. His menu features fusion items like Pakistani chopped cheese (made with chi kebab spices, ground beef, pepper jack and American cheese, lime cilantro sauce, and tamarind chutney), Bihari Barbacoa tacos, and buffalo tandoori chicken sandwiches. Before opening his restaurant, Zean worked in finance at companies like JP Morgan, but after being laid off, he decided to pursue food entrepreneurship. He started by selling at Smorgesburg food festival, sold out in 2 hours, and was subsequently cast on and won the Great Food Truck Race, which gave him confidence to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant. He invested his entire $70,000 life savings into the restaurant, spending $30,000 on deposit, $10,000 on electrical work, $15,000 on equipment, and $10,000 on remodeling. The restaurant has been highly successful, generating between $75,000-140,000 monthly in revenue over its first seven months, with November being the peak month at $140,000. His monthly expenses include $6,100 in rent, $15,000 in meat costs, and $25,000-30,000 in employee costs. While profitable, he reinvests earnings back into the business and currently lives off his severance money. Social media, particularly TikTok and influencer Moan Appetite who rated his food highly, has been crucial for driving customers to the restaurant. The South Asian community has been particularly supportive, and Zean notes that as 1% of America's population, capturing just 1% of the other 99% would ensure survival. He currently works 14-hour days compared to his previous 4-hour schedule and, while tired, plans to continue expanding with more locations.
Key Insights
- Zean explains that his mother's approach to cooking without rules, making combinations like lentil dah sandwiches with cheese that nobody criticized, shaped his philosophy of just making food that tastes good
- Zean states his menu does not exist anywhere else in the world, featuring unique items like Pakistani chopped cheese made with chi kebab spices mixed into ground beef with multiple sauces
- Zean reveals he invested his entire life savings of $70,000 into opening the restaurant, with $30,000 going to just the deposit alone
- Zean reports generating between $75,000-140,000 monthly over seven months, with November hitting the peak at $140,000 and maintaining six-figure months consistently
- Zean argues that as South Asians representing 1% of America, if he can capture just 1% of the other 99% of the population, his business can survive
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] The way I would describe the John is Pakistani American street food. Unreal. >> Taking American classics and adding Pakistani flavors into it. >> Chop cheese. >> Good. Right. >> This is banging. >> I'm Zean, founder of Nishan, home of the Pakistani chop cheese. My whole goal in life is to feed people. I'm an American kid with a Pakistani background. It's all the flavors I grew up with from both cultures, American and Pakistani, and I'm just combining them into my menu at Nishan. So, I grew up in [0:32] Chicago. Uh, I grew up in Devon, which is a neighborhood of like Pakistanis, Indians. My dad was a taxi driver in the beginning, and then now…
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