REFLECTIONS ON OUR VICTORY LAP

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend Ya’ll!

Just like RAW LAB, our email newsletters are not for everyone. However, open / read rates have been as good as the feedback. So we have decided to drop one more before the new year. It seems this is a great way to communicate and keep ties to our community strong and growing.

Additionally, it has become clear that we really had an impact well beyond Charleston. While 85% of our guests have been local, those who have come from out of state have often told us they came to CHS just to dine with us. They also tell us, there’s nothing like it in Atlanta, Dallas, New York, Chicago or San Francisco. Clearly, our business model and service style has become understood, adopted and adored by some of the most interesting & interested, well traveled and well fed people I have ever met…and they’re from all over. But the best thing to note is that a small but important community has formed around RAW LAB. What an honor, joy and thrill. THANK YOU!

THE NEXT CHAPTER: JUPITER

I’ve always loved it there and now that I have visited the space we had targeted, taken the measurements, gotten some feedback from our community and put it all in my gut…well, I know we are onto a winner. I’ve re-surveyed the local dining scene for the 10th time now and, more than ever, I am sure we will be a welcome addition not only to Jupiter but to Palm Beach & Martin Counties and the 1.5 million residents and 10 million visitors there annually. Absolute NO BRAINER! 

JUPITER DETAILS HERE

Just like we did it in Charleston, RAW LAB will make use of a distressed space, tucked into a corner of an existing business. In this case, super old school and retro The Olde Lighthouse Diner (pictured above) is our host and partner. We just can’t wait to start the build out. Guests will enter through and Old School Diner (one of the oldest in FL) and you’ll find our little haven in the back.

We plan to triple or quadruple revenues & profits by using the same space for multiple uses at different times of the week.

SEA BEANS: VITALITY BAR 7:30am - 5pm, Mon - Fri

LTLE FISH: BRUNCH 9am - 3pm, Sat & Sun + LUNCH 11am - 3pm, Mon - Fri + DINNER 5pm - 9pm, Sun - Tues

RAW LAB: DINNER 6pm - 10pm, Wed, Thurs, Fri & Sat

*Sea Beans is another experiment. It is a semi-private “Vitality Bar”. This means, next-gen coffee & tea + best in class juice & smoothie bar. A superfood menu will supplant sugary pastries typical of the average comparable concept. It will utilize the U-Shaped bar (which is the centerpiece of the space) for seating and features bespoke coffee, tea, veg & fruit beverages for members (formulations that best suit the individual nutritional needs, genetic deficiencies…etc as discovered through diagnostics and supported through ongoing consulting with nutritionists, dietitians and doctors). For the general public, healthy, Craft & Artisanal products and preparations optimized for nutrient density and bio-availability is the cornerstone offering and differentiation. MORE ABOUT THE SEA BEANS CONCEPT HERE

** LTLE FISH is an a la carte menu of Marine Cuisine & DelicaSEAS. Raw Bar standards + Raw Lab’s Greatest Hits & an plethora of tinned (featured with charcuterie). 20 seats around the U-Shaped Bar. Brunch will feature a more upscale offering with raw bar items, tinned fish.

OVERLAP-ORTUNITIES

All of these concepts will be offered in the same space such that we will have the ability to generate revenue from 7am - 10pm, 7 days a week. This is 10x what we have been able to do with RAW LAB in Charleston based on our space and our location.

SUNDAY Sea Beans 7am - 3pm + LTLE FISH Brunch 8am - 3pm + LTLE FISH Dinner 5pm - 9pm

MONDAY & TUES Sea Beans 7am -5pm + LTLE FISH Lunch & Dinner 11 am - 9pm

WED-FRI Sea Beans 7am -5pm + LTLE FISH Lunch 11am - 5pm + RAW LAB DINNER 6pm - 10pm

SATURDAY Sea Beans 7am - 3pm + LTLE FISH Brunch 8am - 3pm + RAW LAB Dinner 6pm - 10pm

JUPITER DETAILS HERE

SEATS LEFT IN CHS

DEC 24: 2 seats open. Yeah, that’s it.

DECEMBER 11 - Special Equity Crowd Funding Event - See Below

NEW YEARS EVE / DECEMBER 31 - Special Equity Crowdfunding Event - See Below

CROWD FUNDING EVENTS & CAMPAIGN

We’ve held two nights of RAW LAB service in December aside for Equity Crowdfunding: December 11th & December 31st. At some point soon, we’ll also launch a traditional Crowdfunding Campaign. 

We have formed a new S Corp which is the entity through which Equity Crowdfunding can legally be executed. Empire Unlimited, Inc ( a Delaware S Corp) will soon hold all the IP, Good Will and Assets created by Kevin Joseph via Empire Oyster Holdings, LLC and Holy City Empire, LLC since about 2012. We are doing this for the purposes of developing a core group of advisors and stakeholders who can help build other business channels, vertically integrate and expand globally in hospitality, consulting, aquaculture, consumer packaged goods and media. This very small “friends and family round” is intended to be used to help build out the new space and provide a modest PR & Marketing Budget to get things rolling in Jupiter.

I feel the same way about this Crowdfunding Tactic as I did in Aug 2021 about RAW LAB. What an outrageous goal! What an improbable task! I could not easily visualize a successful outcome for RAW LAB in Aug 21 and I was prepared for failure as a real possibility. However, I am hopeful that this will succeed as we are not pre-launch or pre-revenue as many crowd-funding campaigns are. As a proven and profitable concept our valuation for this crowdfunding at $1,000,000 is very low. Fingers crossed! Jump in!

DEC 11

Chef, Owner, Founder Kevin Joseph turns 55 on 12.11.25. Yeah, Double Nickles! Here’s a way to get a little equity in the venture AND celebrate with Kev. Not a huge ask. Not a lot of equity. Ton of value.

$1,000 Per Couple || .001% Equity Per Couple  || 6 Couples

PERK: 2 Seats @ Raw Lab @ Jupiter + Sea Salt Complex + Merch

Goal: $6,000 

*Funds will be held in escrow until we are ready to go with build out.

PURCHASE SEATS HERE

NYE - GRAND FINALE

Seats for NYE will be offered to our best customers starting on Dec 1. After Dec 5, anyone interested is welcome to purchase any remaining seats. We will use these funds to generate capital for future operations. Yeah, crowdfunding for equity is legal now…for an S Corp.

This will include dinner, some pretty significant merch perks, $2,000 worth of seats at the next RAW LAB and 1% equity in the future of the venture. 12 - 14 seats will be on offer. 4 have been verbally committed to so far.

$5,000 Per Couple || .05% Equity Per Couple || 6 Couples

PLUS: 4 Seats @ Raw Lab @ Jupiter + Merch Galore

Goal: $30,000

PURCHASE SEATS FOR NYE HERE AFTER DECEMBER 5TH

TRADITIONAL CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN

Running Jan - Mar via a traditional platform like Kickstarter, this will offer discounted Raw Lab seats at the new Jupiter space for a 50% discount. Contribute $250 for 2 seats or $500 for 4 seats, for example. Simple. Not pre-revenue or pre-launch, per se, like many traditional crowdfunding offerings, as we’ve done this for 4 years in Charleston with rave reviews. Keep an eye on instagram for more details in early 2026.

ANGEL INVESTING OUTSIDE OF CROWDFUNDING

We’ve had a few inquiries. We’re open to it. Please reach out directly if you are interested. While we are not in need of much capital but we are in need of a broader community of supporters, advisors and partners to help scale the existing concepts and adjacent business opportunities world-wide.

NOTES ON ALL INVESTMENTS / CONTRIBUTIONS:

• Company Valuation will be set at $1,000,000. Very conservative and generous, based on historical revenues and profits. 

• Funds will be held in escrow until we are ready to go with build out.

WHY MOVE ON?

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED x 1000: This venture owes me NOTHING and neither does Charleston. I took a run at doing something outrageous (and starting it during COVID in a town where I am not from) and I not only survived, I THRIVED! What a huge hit and learning experience this has been. It’s been a joy to develop and polish the concept and live in The Holy City. And what a blast we have had with so many great locals and visitors to town. It’s been a massive blessing and we’ve polished it to the point where there’s very little left to add or improve now. We’ve earned and maintained 4.9 Stars on Resy and that’s elite in any market at any price point. What a miracle and a gift. We literally “RAISED THE RAW BAR” and redefined what a dining experience can be worth. We established that $340 per seat, pre-paid can and IS, “worth every penny”. Evidence of that comes in many forms but the best example is how often guests come back with friends and family.

OPEN IN MARKETS WHICH HAVE THINGS WE NEED TO THRIVE & SCALE BEYOND WHAT WE CAN DO IN CHARLESTON: The truth is that while Charleston is a GREAT food town, it is a LONG WAY from “other major markets”. Atlanta and Charlotte are 5 and 4 hours drive from CHS, respectively. Jacksonville, Columbia, and Savannah are closer but these are not huge or particularly affluent markets. We now need to be in a metropolis (or adjacent to one). In Jupiter we’ll be less than 3 hours or less from Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Naples, Jacksonville, Gainesville and Sarasota. We are hoping to tap into more food media, culinary schools and/or a much larger pool of talent. It’s time to challenge ourselves again. It is time to graduate.

WE HAVE OUTGROWN OUR SPACE: I was willing operate in the very limiting space we have while we proved and polished the model. Now we need to expand the offering from 3 nights a week to 7 days a week + coffee + brunch + lunch. We need a set up where we can prep in an area that ISNT ALSO our service area / dining room. This will allow for us to triple our revenue if we can hire, train and staff the three pronged concept we envision which would operate 7 days a week. DETAILS HERE

WE SEEK A MARKET WITH MORE EXPENSE ACCOUNTS AND HAS A GREATER DENSITY OF VERY AFFLUENT PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT PRICE SENSITIVE & LOOKING FOR ELITE DINING EXPERIENCES. Charleston is affluent but not “Palm Beach Affluent”. Expense accounts will be more common near “Wall Street South” where finance professionals regularly entertain clients. We just don’t have that in Charleston and this is how you stay busy Monday - Wed. There is just 1000x more of this in Jupiter & Palm Beach, nevermind Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

TAP INTO A FINE DINING DESERT: Having lived and dined all over FL (in fits and starts) for 15 years of my life, I can say, definitively, that while there a many dining options, few are excellent. Restaurants are commonly common, even at high price points. Also, there is a demand now (post covid) that wasnt there before. Sophisticated consumers from all over the US have moved to FL in droves and they’re consistently let down by their dining options. Plus, international visitors are common in Palm Beach County. Millions of Europeans, Brazillians and Asians visit the Palm Beaches every year. We’ll attract those consumers and turn them into raving fans.

WE HAVE TO EXPAND INTO OTHER VERTICALS: Having studied the success of other Chef’s and Restauranteurs over the decades I can now clearly see that the restaurant is more of a positioning tool than a core revenue stream. The bigger money is clearly in the content, consulting, real estate, media and e-commerce. We have to develop these channels and verticals. Being vertically integrated would be great too. If we can TRULY own and operate our own aquaculture facilities and feature that product in our raw bars, sell that product direct to consumers and receive visitors (agro-tourism) and we’ll be diversified in a way we can monetize beyond what brick and mortar raw bars can do.

HOW WE FEEL ABOUT IT: Excited and a little “out of our range”. Which is where all good things come from. We’ll meet the challenge and thrive in the years to come with the support of our existing and new friends, family and community.

GOALS

TO SCALE THE BUSINESS I NEED TO WORK ON THE BUSINESS MORE THAN WORK IN THE BUSINESS…FOR A HOT MINUTE.

I proved the brick & mortar model could work for this fusion concept and I did it with minimal personal investment and no investors. It was a nano-model experiment. It worked. My ROI over 5 years was 400+%. I did it with grit, hustle, perseverance and passion. I’ve made a living here, with 242sf dining room (though not a killing). I got through the end of Covid and came out of it alive and well. To scale the business globally (as is the goal) I’ll need investors and they will need to see a return. I must find a way to do these things to scale the business.

So the next challenge is to see if we can open more spots like we have now, or, perhaps, build a move-able / modular unit and take the concept on tour. Perhaps both. Maybe we’ll use shipping containers and maybe we’ll move those around on trucks or with barges and tour like a band or a hit Broadway show. We also have to figure out HOW to build this out in other spaces, find talented licensees, investors and other strategic partners.

Also, we need to be able to offer more than 3-4 dinner shifts per week. That’s a function of space, mostly. I think we’ve got that sorted out with our next spot in Jupiter. That is what we’ll need to duplicate.

Time, thought, effort, planning and research is needed to sort these things out and find ways to operate in many, much larger markets or more populous and affluent regions.

THE ULTIMATE GOAL FOR OUR HOSPITALITY DIVISION IS THIS…

“We aim to do with RAW BAR, Marine Cuisine & DelicaSEAS what Nobu did with Sushi.” - Kevin Joseph

We will NEVER IMITATE Nobu or be a Sushi concept because the sushi space is crowded and has been dumbed down to “Grocery Store Packaged Product to Go”. Instead, we will ALWAYS INNOVATE a fusion of service styles and cuisines for an elite dining experience that there will always be a market for.

There are 5 pillars to this model and one desired result:

5 PILLARS:

1. Feature Best in class product

2. Showcase bleeding edge best practices in aquaculture, sustainability and responsibility

3. Tell the stories of the PEOPLE, PLACES & PROCESSES that create the PRODUCTS we use

4. Deliver Discovery & Inspiration though intimate spaces and approachable preparations & presentations where guests can be more participant to the experience

5. Offer the most informed and fun forms of Edu-Tainment and Service via hospitality.

1 RESULT:

Consistently deliver a bona fide next generation luxury product, service and experience of immense value for all stakeholders. Offer a rewarding alternative to traditional fine dining that appeals to new values in dining and experiences and do so in the most engaging,  enchanting and viral ways possible. 

Nobu Hospitality Group now owns and operates roughly 60 restaurants, 46 hotels and 20 residential projects. Nobu Matsuhisa is personally worth $200,000,000. We can do better than this in the long run. 

HOLIDAY OYSTORE

Soon you will be able to buy MANY of the things you have asked for!

E-commerce is one of the many business channels we need to develop. Slowly, we are getting there. Look for more details soon on Instagram @Raw.Lab.CHS & @Ltle.Fish.Chs. In the meantime, you can take the following products home after a night with us or pop in to grab them, Thurs - Sat 2-4pm.

MERCH

Hats, tees and more…coming soon. Load up for Christmas. More info soon on Instagram @Raw.Lab.Chs & @Ltle.Fish.Chs

IDAHO SPRINGS CAVIAR

We are now accepting orders for pick up, take away or (in some cases) delivery in the CHS area. Soon we hope to offer other kinds of caviar as well.

2oz of this premium American White Sturgeon Caviar from the Snake River in Idaho is a glorious way spend an evening on the boat, beach or porch with loved ones. They don’t ship it directly but, retail, this product would run you from $250 - $280. In a restaurant it might be a bit more. We’ll be offering 2 oz glass jars for it for $200. 250 g would be good for a large dinner party or holiday dinner and would run about $500.

Call or text for advise on quantities and prices. 843 284 2597.

WHY THIS CAVIAR? Because: 1.) Value / Quality 2.) American & 100% Traceable 3.) Absolutely no additives, preservatives or toxins like Borax 4.) We buy direct from producer, not a re-packing facility. 5.) The 4 P’s - People + Place + Process = PRODUCT

LEARN ABOUT IDAHO SPRINGS CAVIAR HERE!

MUSHROOM SOY SAUCE

AKA, The Dank! If you’ve been to RAW LAB or LTLE FISH you know. Shitake, Oyster and Mitake Mushrooms slow boiled for hours in low sodium soy sauce. What you get is a liquid that has MORE than Umami, it has an “Ohhhhhh Mommy” effect. So dank light does not pass through it. So strong, all you need is a drop and a pint will probably last you a year or more. $20 per bottle

SEA SALT COMPLEX

SEA SALT is the greatest gift I can give ANYONE! All SEA SALT contains ALL 84 ESSENTIAL MINERALS! Ancient Sea Salts (do not contain ANY heavy metals or microplastics). Let that sink in!

Sea Salts are a cornerstone to vitality in a host of ways. Sea Salts are cheap, easy and effective way to get ALL of your essential minerals and electrolytes, naturally and in a way your body was designed to use them. It's the ultimate health hack as all cellular functions rely on minerals. LEARN ABOUT AND BUY SEA SALTS HERE

As you may know, in the past year we have become obsessed with SEA SALTS. We’ve event traveled as far as Dominican Republic to source one - the rarest on Earth, which we have for sale to RAW LAB GUESTS ONLY. Learn all about THE RAREST SEA SALT IN THE WORLD here.

OUR MIGNONETTES

Our 3 mignonettes (French, Japanese & American) have changed lives and hundreds of you have said “You should sell those!”. And so, now we are, plus an old favorite I have recently brought back and perfected: Ginionette (Gin, Orange Blossom Vinegar, Celery, Coriander, White Peppercorn & Pink Peppercorn). Get some in time for the best time of the year for oysters and oyster roasts….FALL & WINTER! $30 per bottle.

WASABI RHIZOME & OROSHIKI

Deliverable after 12.15. Pre-orders coming in now. Expect $100 per rhizome and $300 per Oroshiki. See IG from the details.

ANTARCTIC SALMON

Available in 5 pound portions (2 Skin on Filets). Pricing TBD but expect $22 per pound.

SABBATICAL PLANS

I have a lot of plans for the 10 months or so that I’ll be transitioning from Charleston to Jupiter.

MASTER CLASSES: Oysters + Caviar + Wine + Music

We have done a handful of these as “one-offs” in Charleston. And, truthfully, we do it as the start of every RAW LAB service. Now packaged as a stand alone “seminar or master class” these are about 2 hour sessions. It’s a deep dive

WHY?

TO LEARN HOW TO TRULY TASTE OYSTERS & CAVIAR!

You’ll have the tools, understanding and technique to find your preferences for these extremely delicate and expensive products.

When restaurants serve you oysters & caviar, they “Give you a fish”. We TEACH YOU HOW TO FISH in this deep dive that is unpretentious, fun and, for many, really liberating. If you want to know what you do and don’t like, understand where you find the best value, inform your ordering in restaurants or sourcing for home cooking & entertaining or elevate your understanding of the history, culture, cuisine, economy and ecology of oysters & caviar…this is for you.

EPICUREANISM

Same basic concept as above (but expanded) and delivered for larger groups at hotels, resorts, communities, clubs or homes, ANYWHERE. This is a series of 4 modules (supported with wine pairings) delivered separately or together over about 4 hours.

1. OYSTER FLIGHT

2. CAVIAR TRIP

3. MARINE CUISINE

4. SEA SALT SOCIAL

   * All supported with wine pairings

LEARN MORE HERE

TRAVEL

JAN & FEB: I’ll be packing up everything in Charleston and getting ready to travel.

MARCH - MAY: Caviar Trip! This may be a dream but we love big, audacious goals. The plan is to spend 90 days making one lap around the world documenting the People, Places & Processes where LEGIT Caviar comes from. No toxic, unsustainable or irresponsibly produced Chinese, Russian or Iranian bullshit will be featured. The plan is to create content for a You Tube Channel, collect data for the definitive book on caviar and earn a leadership role in the space from which we can create a community, launch an app and develop e-commerce to serve the wants and needs of caviar lovers in the US. We plan on visiting producers in Idaho, California, Vietnam, Japan, Madagascar, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Israel, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, England, Uruguay, Florida & North Carolina.

POP UPS & ADVENTURE

JUNE: Cape Cod, Nantucket & Martha’s Vineyard || JULY: Newport, RI || AUGUST: The Hamptons || SEPTEMBER: West Virginia & North Carolina - Whitewater / Stand Up Paddle Adventures || OCTOBER: Relocate to Jupiter and putting finishing touches on RAW LAB @ The Old Lighthouse Diner || NOVEMBER: Open RAW LAB @ Jupiter

IN SEARCH OF…

MENTORS, ADVISORS, INVESTORS & VISIONARIES

I KNOW I cannot build this empire alone. Im sure the same is true of Nobu, Ramsay, Oliver or Andres. I am looking to build a board of directors. The opportunity here is 1000x more than “restaurants & hospitality” and I need a diversified global team to realize the $1B in valuation I KNOW we can achieve in the next 10-20 years. I have ZERO founder’s syndrome and I will NOT be the CEO of the future corp. Well, maybe, Chief Evangelizing Officer.

SPACES

For future operations, world-wide, we could just tweak or footprint but vastly improve all parts of the operations. Our needs are unique (in a good and bad way). We DON’T need (or want) a 3000sf space like a restaurant does. But they’ve never really built restaurant spaces like this. We currently operate with a 250sf dining room. Ideally, a 300 sf dining room would give us the opportunity to have a chef and a sous chef behind the bar for service but keep it intimate. If we had a small prep area (that wasn’t also the dining room, like we’ve had) we could do lunch service. Add our own a dish room, mop sink walk in and restroom and we’d only need another 300 - 400sf. That’s 800sf, max, total. If we had all of our amenities adjacent to our dining room and a 800sf footprint it would be glorious. Finally, what if we could do what Starbucks did with Grocery and Book Stores…occupy a small portion or a distressed space and become an amenity to the host? That has worked and looks like it will keep working.

PARTNERSHIPS

Hoteliers, Resort Operators, Restaurant Groups…etc. These will be the folks that might help us scale, globally. Hotels & Resorts will benefit from hosting our Master Class Programs as interesting activities for their guests as well. Restaurant groups or hotels with distressed space can possibly benefit from bringing our concept into their underutilized spaces. We are working on a few of these deals already.

LICENSEES

Looking for talented Bartenders (that we can teach how to shuck oysters) and Convivial Chefs comfortable with being Front of House and, in some ways, being an entertainer, conversationalist, educator & performer. They’ll own their own business and our new company will provide a host of services, processes, recipes and Intellectual Property. Licensees will pay a monthly fee for these. Perhaps we can even find someone to re-open a Charleston operation.

PARTING WORDS

Of course, from day one, there was always a chance that RAW LAB would not survive…that we would fail sooner rather than later…for reasons beyond our control or some other factor. We’ll, we not only survived, but thrived and we are forever grateful. But the time has come to move on from Charleston and expand our revenue streams in ways we don’t think Charleston is best suited for.

I can celebrate it all like a GRADUATION, not a FUNERAL because, long ago, I achieved much more than I ever expected to in Charleston. And I’ve learned, laughed, enjoyed and grown so much in the process. And now it has led to so much more. So THANK YOU, again!

All The Best,

Kevin