Former suit-and-tie guy Josh Copeland, after spending 20 years in corporate banking, decided to move on from his long-term career and venture into the unknown – the bar and restaurant industry.
At the time, Copeland said he’d rather try and fail at his dream of opening a new restaurant instead of working in the banking industry, where he felt no connection.
Today, Copeland’s successful restaurant – Camino Alto in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights neighborhood – is one of the city’s best kept secrets among locals. The restaurant features a healthy menu of California cuisine with Mexican influences.
“Banking is a noble profession that needs good people with good leadership,” said Copeland, who noted that he became his own person again, once he launched his business in the bar and restaurant industry. “For me, I'd rather create a space for those people to decompress and share a story after the day is done. I want to create an experience. I can't imagine anything more important [than] using my limited skillset to create an experience for others.”
Copeland said he used to like his job before, but now he loves his job. “I've never had more problems and I've never been happier... well, maybe in college,” he said. “Banking was as good of a training ground as any other for this new adventure. I learned service, hospitality, comfort with numbers, contract editing, management skills, and how to thrive within a highly regulated industry.”
After making the life-changing career decision to become a restaurant owner and operator, Copeland launched Camino Alto in 2021.
“Camino Alto is a neighborhood restaurant focused on alignment, done through supporting a better food system, attention to ingredients, community, and service,” said Copeland. “Our decisions are based on long-term results. Repeat customers, farmer relationships, seasonal menus and promotion of a long health span.”
Camino Alto’s menu is inspired by some unexpected health issues that Copeland faced in his 30s, which led him on a journey of dietary exploration. As a result, the restaurant’s menu is full of nutritious, sustainable ingredients, which Copeland sources seasonally from local markets.
Aligning the Restaurant with a Bigger Mission – People and the Planet
Copeland explained that Camino Alto aligns its business with its customers, its suppliers, and the planet. “Our produce is mostly sourced from local farmers' markets using organic practices,” he said. “Our proteins are from sustainable, regenerative farms. We cook with ingredients that have been used for ages, like extra virgin olive oil for 95 percent of our cooking, coconut oil, ghee, and grass-fed butter for the rest. We restrict other ingredients that tend to create inflammation in most people, whether they know it or not. Our food is intended to make you feel good and well. Most of the credit for our food comes from the farmers we work with and a little help from our wood oven.”
Copeland pointed out that he’s not trying to be different with Camino Alto; instead, he’s trying to be “simple and delicious” with the restaurant and its menu.
Yet, when one considers what the restaurant is doing in comparison to the typical restaurant, it turns out Camino Alto is a little different, according to Copeland, who shops at the local farmer’s market two times a week and builds relationships with nearby farmers and makers. Some of his favorite farms and local businesses to work with include Veso Aperitifs, Tomatero Farms, and Kandarian Organic Farms.
Copeland uses the locally sourced ingredients in his gluten and dairy free menu, which features items such as: socca, a French chickpea pancake with jamón ibérico, melon, bitter greens, and toasted pine nuts; half “pasture bird” chicken with morita salsa, celery root, market greens, and tortillas; roasted cauliflower with eggplant puree, chermoula, and pomegranate; and seasonal fruit crisp with coconut whipped cream.
“As a restaurant that focuses on being gluten free, low-dairy, and seed oil-free, as well as responsibly sourcing our meats and seafood, we do have quite a few restrictions and challenges in how we’re sourcing our ingredients,” shared Copeland. “We are constantly going to markets to determine what’s in season and how we can best utilize it.”
For other restaurants that want to focus on nutritious and sustainable ingredients, Copeland suggested that operators prioritize simplicity and embrace relationships with local famers. “We’re operating on a long term goal of improving the food system and trying to execute at a higher level with less options than traditional restaurants, and the mindset of embracing what we have to work with at a local level has been critical for our team,” he said.
Copeland said his best advice for other operators is to get to know their local farmers and connect with them by asking questions – what’s in season, what are you harvesting, how long will you have this?
“Farmers will tell you what the peak time is for specific products and what’s coming up,” said Copeland. “Stick to what you know, because it’s easy to get excited about all of the different products available. Ordering in advance from local farmers always helps them out, and you’ll build relationships that will help you improve the quality of your products and improve the community’s food system.”
Camino Alto also updates its menu nearly every day, based on what they have to work with. Typically, they only need to adjust a few ingredients, determined by what’s available from the local markets. For example, Copeland said they might swap vegetables and fruits for different options, or they may change the flavor profile of a chutney or sauce.
“Don't fill your menu with filler – stuff you think people may expect,” advised Copeland, when it comes to creating or updating a menu. “Every dish needs to be bank on. Every dish needs to be one that if the right person orders it, it will be loved. Then it's up to the servers to help guide the customer to the right dishes. Not every dish will be loved by every customer. Also, put attention on other parts of the restaurant as much as the food. It doesn't have to be fancy, it has to be thought out. Don't think you'll just make yummy food and the rest doesn't matter that much. It all matters. A good restaurant has an intangible appeal. It's hard to pinpoint because it's a bunch of little things that cumulatively turn into a great experience.”
Launching a Restaurant – Lessons from an Industry Newbie
Copeland’s best overall advice for other restaurant owners and operators who are about to open their doors for the first time is to worry about everything. “That's why you need to start simply,” he revealed. “Try to do too much and you'll get overwhelmed. You have time to grow and add but start small. When we opened, we only opened the front room and we only offered four entrees, four starters, and maybe 10 wines. The menu is larger now but not much larger.”
According to Copeland, other important areas of consideration when launching a new restaurant include money, budget, the customer base, and figuring out a work-life balance. He said: “Where's the money coming from and what, exactly, are the expectations of those providing the money? How much is the budget and is there a practical model of return? What kind of customers will the location attract and is that the right psychographic for your concept? Do you plan to be an owner or an operator? Maybe most importantly, if you're planning to be an operator, are you prepared to give up your social life and put a strain on your family that could take years to rebalance. No joke, you better be ready to not be available for much of anything for a long time.”
Copeland said it will become overwhelming for new restaurateurs when they start to consider everything that's involved and all the decisions that come with a launch. “Start at the table and work your way out,” he suggested. “In other words, don't worry about whether to use a delivery service, or what color paint to use, or if you should get logo hats. Think about the experience you want a person to have when they sit down at one of your tables. You have to make them say, ‘This is my new place. This place can't leave.’ Then you work outward from there.”
For Copeland, one of the biggest mistakes a restaurant owner/operator can make before launching is not focusing on culture and not preparing to be unprepared. “Shit will come up that you had not anticipated,” he said. “You have to have a culture that embraces the setback, views it as a challenge, and adjust, work together to grow from the experience. Esprit de corps [or cohesion] is often what makes great restaurants great. With so many new relationships forming prior to opening, it's the owner's responsibility to create a constructive, supportive culture.”
Stay Positive, Trust in Your Restaurant’s Concept, Be Seen as Remarkable
For Copeland, as a new restaurant operator, he’s constantly trying to get better at everything he does, and he always stays positive with his team.
“Try not to get mad,” said Copeland. “Try to keep it positive. You're dealing with some sensitive people. Stuff happens all the time, every day. You have to keep it positive, or you'll lose your positive people, and you don't want that. Constant, gentle direction, over and over and over.”
He also suggested that new restaurant owners and operators should trust in their concept but be flexible if change is warranted. “Don't change based on outside or customer advice,” he said. “Change because your vision is living, the world is constantly changing, and you may have been wrong about stuff before opening – or at least not fully optimizing the opportunity. When I say optimize, I'm not talking about squeezing every revenue opportunity. It's more about maximizing each moment to be seen as remarkable.”
Aaron Kiel is an editor, writer, and public relations professional in Raleigh, N.C., who’s worked in the beverage, tea, and coffee industries for two decades, as well as hospitality and technology. He’s a journalist at heart, but he also wears a PR and communications hat through his consultancy, ak PR Group. Aaron is a contributing writer/reporter for Questex’s Bar & Restaurant News and he’s a past editor of Questex’s World Tea News. In 2023, he was a finalist and honorable mention in the “Folio: Eddie & Ozzie Awards” for Range of Work by a Single Author – B2B,” and in 2024, he won a Gold Northeast Region Award in the American Society of Business Publication Editors’ (ASBPE) Azbee Awards. Aaron also received a 2024/2025 ASBPE Diversity Fellowship Award, which supports and recognizes diversity in the field of B2B journalism. Connect with him on Instagram: @adventurer_explorer or visit akprgroup.com.
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