Restaurant owner simulator

Your morning in Chicago starts with a check of your daily to-do list. You use place search to visit a market in the West Loop and buy produce. Back at your restaurant, you hold a pre-shift meeting with your head chef outside the building. Buildings show from the outside only, so you play out the kitchen rush through conversations.

In the afternoon, your bartender texts you to say a line cook called out sick. You reply in your own words to adjust the schedule before dinner service. After closing, you join your crew for a late outing at a nearby bar. The day ends with a recap of your moments and changes to your cash.

Real owners work split shifts across the Front of House and Back of House. They inspect morning deliveries, rotate inventory using FIFO, and check walk-in coolers with probe thermometers. During service, they watch covers, comp meals for unhappy guests, and help when the kitchen is in the weeds. At closing, they count cash drawers and use accounting software in a small back office.

No formal degree is required, though some train at the Culinary Institute of America or Institut Lyfe. In the United States, owners need a Health Department Food Service Permit and a certified manager via the ServSafe exam. In the United Kingdom, owners register with Environmental Health and use HACCP food safety rules. In France, owners register with the trade register and take a 20-hour course for a Permis d'exploitation.

Claire, 34, opens a small sidewalk bistro in Paris. On her first Monday, she sets a life goal to win over the neighborhood regulars. She uses place search to visit Rungis International Market and talks with a supplier about cheese.

On Friday afternoon, her main walk-in cooler breaks down, and her line cook quits by text. Claire uses a group text thread to call in her cousin and buys ice from a shop down the street. When a regular guest complains about a missing dish that is 86'd, Claire comps his wine. The guest remembers the kind gesture in his journal and returns the next week with friends.

In LifeSim, you play out your hospitality career as an open story over many years. You can start as a young baker running a weekend pop-up in London near Borough Market. Every person in your world has a weekday routine, goals, and memories of what you promised them.

As your character ages through life stages, your focus can shift. You can edit your cast to bring your grown children into the family business in New York City. When a rival opens across the street, you keep your regulars through conversations and happenings like a grand opening.