“Writing about Motto is somewhat of a challenge... The place has become quite an institution in certain circles, including foreigner ones... Somehow, the place has been in operation long enough to become an institution... Motto has good decor, generally a good atmosphere, a good standard of cuisine, and happily, while popular with foreigners living in Sofia, is not a stereotypical wall-to-wall expat hangout.”

This is an excerpt from The Sofia Echo’s restaurant review of Motto. But, The Sofia Echo’s restaurant critics customarily visit dining establishments anonymously and return several times so as to sample the entire menu. This single visit to Motto for the purpose of this article was to meet one of the two owners of the place to try to explore the ideas behind one of Sofia’s favourite restaurants.

Well, Vladislav Kirov, one of the two owners of Motto, would not allow us to call it a restaurant.

“I have set myself a rule. Whatever I open I never describe it as a restaurant or a bar, or a bar and diner. People just call it Motto and it is enough for them and for me,” says Kirov.

Kirov has been in the hotel and restaurant business for about two decades and now considers himself somewhat of an expert in the field. The status of an expert, however, came after some serious education and experience.

First, he graduated in Varna, which is Bulgaria’s Black Sea capital of tourism. However, his personal belief was that having only knowledge from within Bulgaria would hardly be enough to be a successful restaurant or hotel manager. That is why Kirov opted for Switzerland and the famous International Tourism Institute in Lucerne.

“I went to Switzerland quite overconfident. My first impression was that I knew everything about the hospitality industry after spending some time at some of Sofia’s trendiest places like Eddy’s Diner. So, I went to Switzerland just to add another diploma to my collection, but it appeared that I knew nothing. There I learned my most important lessons about this business, and this is what helped me later in Bulgaria,” says Kirov.

After spending time in Switzerland, not just learning but also experiencing the local hospitality industry, he returned to Bulgaria and worked for a year at the newly opened Sofia Hilton Hotel as assistant to the food and beverage manager.

Then came Motto, the first establishment of a small empire, and today a favourite spot for both Bulgarians and foreigners in Sofia.

“Motto is our first establishment. We will be celebrating its fourth anniversary in October,” Kirov says. The impression among many people that the place has existed for a longer period of time, he explains with the fact that “a lot happens there.

“From time to time we do a survey here among our clients and the most recent thing we learned was that about 30 per cent of all customers come to Motto five times a week. Compared to the average for any other place in Sofia, this is high. Having such loyal clients helps us understand that we have something unique,” says Kirov.

Motto is no longer the only place owned by Kirov and his partner Lyubo Vassilev. In the past three or so years they have added Palette, Opera and Spaghetti Company. Although not as popular as Motto, the three have already entered the list of Sofia’s trendiest places.

“The interesting thing about Motto is that younger people visit us in the winter. They come here because we play nice music, and on Friday and Saturday we have a DJ. When summer comes, however, the young people leave Sofia for the seaside or anywhere else, and this is the time when our clientele mainly consists of more mature people that come here for the food and for the summer garden,” Kirov says. In his view, this is what makes Motto a very lively place.

At Opera they have quite a permanent army of young clientele. Opera hosts many events - concerts, DJ parties, promotional activities and others. But even more mature people feel at ease spending time in Opera, because of the carefully selected and music that is not excessively loud.

Spaghetti Company, the newest link in the chain, still has novelty appeal. Therefore, it is still visited mainly by people who are open for innovations and are always keen to taste what is new. Spaghetti’s uniqueness stems from the show-cooking model that the owners have chosen for it.

Palette is the least prominent among the establishments. It is also the quietest of them all and its intimate atmosphere, according to Kirov, is the secret of its success.

“In Palette we have the richest menu and it is the place closest to the description of a restaurant. We call it Palette Kitchen & Cafe. The idea is for the people who come to Motto five times a week to spend the sixth and seventh times in Palette, while still having the same standard of service and quality. About 90 per cent of the clientele there comes from Motto,” he says.

Even the most casual eye may spot that some very famous people - both Bulgarians and foreigners - visit Motto and the other places within the chain. Kirov says that this is because of the incomparable atmosphere that these establishments create.

“Famous people come here for mainly two reasons. On one hand they are seen, which they need. On the other hand, they are not bothered by those who spot them,” he says.

Kirov is happy about the fact that he, as one of the owners, or his team do not need to create a special atmosphere in Motto or the other establishments, other than what they have already settled as furniture or decoration. He strongly believes that the visitors should be the one to set the atmosphere.

“All kinds of people visit us and this is what makes the places colourful. When an architect or a designer makes the blueprints of a restaurant, he or she usually imagines the place as empty. But, the most important part of the interior is the people. They are the ones we pay attention to mostly. Everything else is just an addition to the big picture,” Kirov says.

He and his partner did not need much of a design for Motto. He said the place was built using own ideas and efforts. Which is not the case with Opera and Spaghetti Company. For Opera they used the designer services of Tanya Glebova, a famous Bulgarian architect, while Israeli architect Eyal Tahor designed Spaghetti.

One thing Kirov cannot refute, however, is that all their places appear luxurious. Maybe it is the interior design, or the downtown locations or the people who visit them, but something makes them look like spots where you have to thrust your hand deeper into your pocket. In Kirov’s view this is because of what he calls “exclusivity”.

“My idea was never to have exclusive places, both in terms of clientele and prices. Because, in Bulgaria we are not yet ready, and we do not have the market, where you can offer something different or even exotic at a much higher price. The reason is that we still lack the confidence to experiment,” Kirov says.

And indeed, they would not dare to offer something exotic at a very high price. Not because they cannot offer it, but because the customers are not yet ready to accept it. People would usually ask themselves: “What if I pay the high price and it does not make a good meal?” And such a danger exists, especially for traditionalists like Bulgarians, who love their national cuisine.

Motto and the other places in the family hardly touch Bulgarian national cuisine. Yes, most of them have the famous shopska salad, a favourite meal for Bulgarians and for foreigners, but it is served in a different way or with a special dressing. This is part of Kirov’s belief that even the traditional stuff should be offered in an innovative way.

“I learned in Switzerland and in my experience that people first eat with their eyes and then the food goes into their mouths. This is why we have to offer them something to attract them to the food, regardless of what cuisine it represents,” says Kirov.

He says the clients have started experimenting more. Speaking of Bulgarians for example, many of them have already lived or at least spent some time somewhere abroad. This means that they know  world cuisines and are looking for what they have eaten, for instance in Paris, or in New York. The taste of Bulgarians is changing for the better.

It appears that many other places in Sofia today are made to resemble Motto. Therefore, the place is no longer unique, but it continues to be like a flagship of an industry.
“Yes, Motto was the first of its kind. At a certain point of time, there was a vacuum for such establishments that offer both food and entertainment. Today, we are not the only ones who have found out about the success of this powerful combination. But, we are proud to be copied,” says Kirov.

And tells of an interesting case he was personally involved in at Motto.

“A company of people came one they, obviously from a rival restaurant or maybe they were planning to open something like Motto. They had a photographer brought with them, who started shooting our menu. I just laughed at them and told them to visit our website, where they can find a copy of the menu,” Kirov says.

The one question that bothers the mind of each person who knows Motto, Palette, Opera and Spaghetti Company is why all these places have different names. From a marketing point of view it is always easier to just create a label and multiply it. Kirov said that multiplying was never a challenge to him and his partner Vassilev.

“We both love challenges. We are not just making profit out of our establishments,  we are also very much dedicated to this business. Therefore, we never wanted to do the simple thing and multiply Motto for instance,” Kirov said.

Nevertheless, he reveals that now they have plans to open more Spaghetti Company restaurants.

“This is the concept that proved to be most popular among people. This is why we have plans to actually multiply the Spaghetti Company establishments, and in a way turn it into a chain,” Kirov says.

The future plans of Kirov and his partner are related to a new phenomenon for Bulgaria -  shopping malls. They have particular intentions and are even in negotiations for opening establishment in some of the shopping malls, Kirov says, but would not elaborate further.

Other plans include the opening of a new place - a night club, which will be in downtown Sofia and will have the usual standard of service and quality that are among the unique features of Motto and the chain.

Kirov does not have a recipe for how a person can be successful in the restaurant and hotel business in Bulgaria. But, he makes a forecast for the future, which is somewhat different from the ones made by state institutions or other experts in the field.

“There was a period in Bulgaria when everyone having some money, and not having what else to do, would open a hotel or a restaurant. This is behind us now. People see that this business is not easy and that the efforts spent are too great for many entrepreneurs,” Kirov says.

He believes that the near future will bring large international hotel and restaurant chains in Bulgaria, which will prove to be fatal for most of the now existing establishments. The large chains will set a new level of service and will throw out those entrepreneurs that are not completely dedicated to the business.

“The ones that will remain on the market will be the small family restaurants and hotels. These are the places where the owners are present all the time, and they personally give the atmosphere of the establishment,” Kirov says.

He had seen this in Switzerland.

“I used to work in a family hotel there with 250 beds. The owner was a third-generation hotel and restaurant keeper. He got up at six every morning and first entered the kitchen, where he would help with the breakfast preparation. The entire day he would spend at the reception desk and in the evening he would work at the restaurant,” Kirov remembers.

This is what, he believes, will give the colour to the restaurant and hotel business in Bulgaria and will keep in it only the most dedicated professionals.