Better business: Bab Haus

Leyli Homayoonfar founded Bab Haus in 2019 after returning to her home of South Wales following 10 years in London. She worked at development kitchens including Jamie Oliver HQ and Waitrose Cookery School, researching, training and discovering world cuisines, as well as learning marketing skills to broaden her repertoire as a future business owner. After a few pop-ups and supper clubs she was presented with the opportunity to buy a commercial kitchen on an industrial estate on the outskirts of Caerphilly in South Wales and she jumped at the chance to set up her own events catering business.

"The problem was that we got the keys in autumn 2019 and we missed the wedding season, so I decided to start a street food business to get us through the quieter months," explains Homayoonfar. "With my Iranian background I decided to play around with kebabs, which was something I didn't think had been tapped into in South Wales. We offered different flavours and toppings with handmade flatbreads and it gave us room to grow."

Gaining popularity

Bab Haus first had a month-long residency in Sticky Fingers in Cardiff, which was so popular it was extended for a further six months. As Bab Haus gained more traction through social channels, Homayoonfar signed for a permanent site within the Goodsheds development in Barry, but due to a conflict of interest with one of the other food traders, she had to change from a kebab concept to Tex Mex barbecue. However, that decision strengthened the brand even more, with Bab Haus now offering the likes of baby back ribs, smoked pork belly burnt ends, Queso fries and corn ribs. "Mexican and Middle Eastern food have similar cooking techniques and flavours when you really delve into them," explains Homayoonfar.

A few months later and Covid descended, putting her plans for a catering company further out of sight. "I quickly realised we'd get swallowed up if we didn't adapt. And because of my background in development, and because I had this factory full of kitchen equipment, I was able to develop meal kits, and I had a head start."

The commercial kitchen was also turned into a pick-up point for Bab Haus takeaway called the Smoke Shop, which Homayoonfar calls a "life line" and which helped the business not just survive but thrive.

"We couldn't control the crowds," she says. "We opened over Easter weekend 2021 when nowhere was open. When we announced it, I thought it was either going to be dead or really busy – next thing there's a three-hour-long queue. And we got a bit of a reputation for our queues."

Those queues led Homayoonfar to offer pre-orders online, which helped to manage customer expectations as well as help the business plan its capacity. "The barbecue takes at least 24 hours to prepare and smoke the meats and it is hard to gauge portion sizes and stock quantities, so we allocated time slots for customers so we knew when they were coming."

Expansion

As restrictions began to lift, oil drums were placed outside the Smoke Shop to provide casual tables, which fitted in with the industrial estate aesthetic. Meanwhile, a second site, Bab Haus Mex in the Goodsheds development in Barry opened, which her sister Sophia now runs.

Social media has been a huge part of the business's success, but Homayoonfar calls it a blessing and a curse. "You're never off. I struggle to put my phone away, so I'm always working," she says. "But it's given us a platform and a connection with a strong foodie community."

Another Bab Haus Mex has recently opened in the Newport Market food hall, and while Homayoonfar would love a more traditional restaurant setting one day, she is focusing on what makes sense for the business as the UK enters recession. This may include revisiting meal kits and expanding a condiment range they have started selling at Newport Market.

"The idea of having a restaurant is a dream, but giving the times we're in, it would be a passion project. I can control the business as it is now," says the self-proclaimed control freak, who looks after an all-female team of six. "Even before the pandemic, I saw when I was in London that dining attitudes were changing and it was becoming more informal. My style of food fits that trend and there are fewer overheads."

Indeed, her Smoke Shop commercial kitchen is only open to serve pre-orders Friday to Sunday, but that part of the business takes the same amount of money as five days at Goodsheds in Barry or Newport Market. This year is the first financial year Bab Haus has traded without any interruptions and its predicted turnover is in the region of £650,000 with net profit margins of 12.5%.

Bab Haus is clearly a successful formula she can roll out to other sites. She already has Cardiff and Bristol on the cards, with her second sister, Sorarya, who looks after operations, constantly on the look-out for new venues.

Bab Haus may have started as a pop-up in an industrial estate in Caerphilly, but with Homayoonfar's Birria Queso tacos selling out each week, it doesn't look like this crowd-pleaser is going anywhere any time soon.

Homayoonfar's revelations

Favourite hotel?

Coombeshead Farm in Devon or the Standard in New York City

Favourite restaurant?

The Heathcock in LLandaff, Cardiff

Favourite book or film?

Goodfellas

Perfect drink?

Vesper martini

Which chef/restaurateur/hotelier has most inspired you?

Siblings Natalie, Tom and Owen Morgan of Forty Four Group and Bar 44 and Assador 44 in Cardiff

What's the most important lesson you have learned in business?

Save for a rainy day and don't spend the VAT money. Look after yourself your staff and your customers, because you're nothing without them

From the menu

• Baby back ribs £14
• Smoked pork belly burnt ends £14
• Mac and cheese £5
• Corn ribs £6
• Beef brisket fries £10
• Pickled cabbage, apple and jalapeño slaw £4
• Smoked maple-cured bacon cheeseburger £24
• Queso fries £7