42. Buy a burger.

For Jack, everything was going smoothly. The sales in the first few weeks were amazing after setting up the burger stand at San Jose State University. The investment in one of the country's top chefs was completely worth it, as the new and extravagant flavors were essential to the continuous burger purchases by students, workers, and referrals. Even with his optimism, he never expected to have to place orders with suppliers again, but this time asking for double the quantity. The purchases would stabilize, and so would the supply chain.

The T-Box Burger location, occupying nearly 100 square meters, was bustling with different customers, with lines and waiting times still present. They were dispatching 1,200 burgers a day, with the restaurant's six hands handling the workload. Jack had to step in as the manager, operating the cash register, serving as a waiter, and cleaning tables.

-Matteo, three tomato jam burgers, - Jack shouted.

-Coming right up, boss, - Matteo replied with a friendly smile.

Assistant Rick was busy frying the potato wedges. Luckily, they had a particular machine for peeling the potatoes, and an incredible kitchen team to help manage the work. The most challenging part was organizing the entire restaurant, and having all the meat, sauces, and cheeses ready... it was a damn mess, he thought.

-Matteo, three burgers: roast beef, Mexican, and marmalade, - Jack said, jotting down the following order on a white piece of paper.

-Rick, hurry up with those fries, - Matteo instructed.

-Samuel, take care of the roast beef. There's meat in the oven that you can start shredding, - Matteo said. It was 11:30 in the morning, and the madness of the day was about to begin. From here until 5:00 in the evening, this place would be filled with people, and the food orders would keep coming, one after another.

-Julio, start packing the burgers, - Matteo said. - You know how busy it gets at noon, - he added.

And so it began, customers started arriving one after another, in a domino effect of recommendations. Each burger was simply delicious, even the vegetarian menu had a decent influx for those who didn't eat meat. Billy had thought of a vegetarian and breaded chicken menu, as there are cultures that avoid meat altogether, and even red meat can cause discomfort for some people... catering to those who don't consume such meats was a smart move.

-Now I understand why we have such a large kitchen, - Jack thought.

-Tatiana, I need to make some urgent phone calls. I'll be back in half an hour, - Jack said. He assisted Tatiana in delivering some orders and cleaning tables after the first week and the growing number of returning customers.

-Anne, how's it going? - Jack asked from his small office, just a few square meters in size.

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-Oh, it's a pleasure to hear from you, Jack, - Anne replied from her desk, munching on some donuts.

-How can I assist you? - Anne inquired.

-Well, I'll send the invoices by fax and let them know that we're opening a part-time job for a student, - Jack said.

-Perfect, - Anne said, pulling out a large black book and a file folder containing all the paperwork and documents that T-Box Burger had generated.

-Perfect. I'm coming on Saturday to try the burgers myself. Mr. Thomas has already said they're the best burgers he's ever tasted,- Anne remarked.

-You have no idea. Although I recommend you come early. The place is impossible on weekends. I hope the sales continue to hold up in June and July, - Jack said.

-Summer vacation, well... you always have the support of the Carsons. They make a great duo, especially young Billy. He's talented, - Anne said.

-I hope so. I must let you go, - Jack said.

-Oh, okay, - Anne replied.

Jack Common hung up the phone, organized the accounts, and began his almost ritualistic task of keeping the business in order. He wrote down the restaurant's inventory on a whiteboard using markers, marking in red those items that might require a possible order for the following week.

-Mr. Thomas, good to see you, - Jack said.

-Mr. Jack, - Thomas responded.

-Well, I just sent the financial reports to Anne, along with the restaurant's records in the books. I'm also in the process of hiring a part-time worker. The evening service has become impossible, and we need an extra hand, - Jack said.

-Oh, good. Prepare the contract - Thomas said. He had recently been promoted to his law firm. As financial freedom grew, stress diminished, and both salary and clients came more quickly.

-That's great, Mr. Thomas. I have to hang up, - Jack said.

-Very well, see you next month, - Thomas said.

-Goodbye. -

Once again, Jack sorted out a few things and prepared to attend to the whole restaurant. Another day of work, another day of earning money... although he was content. It was a good job, and he could use his studies in this role.

Closing time came at exactly 9:00. Everyone went home. Jack was with Mateo and Julio.

-I'm dead, buddy. Let's grab a beer three blocks away, - Mateo said.

-Well, that sounds nice, - Jack replied. He knew the area well and hadn't visited the university bar, where he had some pleasant memories and even had a few encounters with professors, in a long time.

-I've never seen a business thrive so quickly, - Samuel said. - It makes me want to set up my burger stand and sell. -

-Well, I think Mr. Thomas has invested about $50,000 in the whole place, - Jack said.

-Well, that's simply too much. It's just a burger joint, - Samuel said.

-I think so too. However, not everyone is doing as well. My cousin opened a restaurant and lost a lot of money in the first six months. He had to borrow more to close it down two months later, - Mateo said.

-Is it that difficult? - Samuel said, incredulous.

- It's quite challenging. Once you realize that it's not just about cooking, everything becomes a stressful whirlwind, - Mateo said. - What did Mr. Thomas do to succeed like that? -

- Well, besides having a lot of money, I think he hired an international chef to make the burgers, and we use the best ingredients. Have you seen the faces of the customers? - Jack said. - Plus, they have a study on the top five burger franchises in all of California. It means that if you want to make burgers, you just have to make them and pay the best.-

-Let's go for that beer! - Mateo said. - I want to get drunk. -

-Hey, I'm your boss. We have work tomorrow, - Jack said.

-Well, we open at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow. There's nothing to worry about, - Samuel said.

-Same here, - Mateo said with a smile.

The hamburger is an icon of American food. Billy knows that the most important factors are quality, affordable prices, and catering to the vegetarian market.

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