Permits, Permits, Permits, OH MY!

I wish there was a booth somewhere where I could walk up to and say, "Hi, I'm opening a restaurant, what do I need to do." Someone kindly gives me a list, I complete the list, I open a restaurant.

Instead, it seems like we've bounced from one department to the next figuring out all the different permits we must have to open.

Permits for electrical, walls, plumbing, grease traps, dumpsters, outdoor seating, selling alcohol, food manager certification---eek!
I spent two weeks working on our beer and wine license application. In full, it was at least 25 pages thick. I happily walked in thinking I was turning in a complete application, only to find out I had only finished step 1 of 10. Sigh.

The journey continues. One month left. Each and every day over the last month, I've devoted an average of 10-13 hours a day working on something for this place. And yet my parents are still working even harder than that. They amaze me and I learn so much from them, even still today.