[UPDATE] Restaurant Owner/Chef Seeking Advice for MBA

How's it hanging Monkeys - I made a post in July about my chances at being admitted to a top MBA program (original thread) and received some feedback requesting that I elaborate on my background, how I started a restaurant in Brooklyn for just $40k, and my future goals. I hope someone can follow my story as this follow up is way long overdue.

I am a first generation immigrant (Korean) and my parents are very working class so I did not come from money and frankly had very little knowledge when I was younger about what high-skilled professionals do, forget the world of finance.

I took an AP class in economics in hs and loved it so that was my major at NYU, received a minor in math, and was only a few credits shy of a minor in philosophy. I graduated with a 3.2 GPA which I know is low, but I had to balance school with work and keeping up with living expenses in NYC. Frankly I was living in poverty with no heat in a commercial warehouse, so needless to say college was an extremely difficult time for me. I actually regret going to NYU for this reason but when I was in hs I had very little guidance on how to pick a college for me so I just went to NYU because that was the best school I got into.

Fortunately, after applying to over 200 positions, borrowing suits from friends, I accepted an offer at a boutique executive consulting firm where I was paid about $100k/yr in compensation. Sadly my good fortune lasted only 2 years as I was let go without cause when my biggest client (an European bank) consolidated their businesses and largely left the American market (this was 2012 so banks were largely still struggling).

However, during that time I managed to pay off my student loans and saved up around $30k. Soon after I got a job as a bookkeeper at a very well known bakery and was inspired to start my own business. This is important as I started out wanting to be an entrepreneur NOT a chef. My mother worked in restaurants when I was growing up so I knew how difficult and unprofitable food businesses are, but I was passionate about many SJW issues related to food (food deserts & sustainability). I spent the next couple years working as a chef at some of the best restaurants in NYC, and became very involved in a local nonprofit in my neighborhood where I started a community garden and taught healthy cooking classes. This ultimately ended up being very important for my business as when I opened up I got a lot of good will from the community.

I naively thought $30k could get me started especially as I was planning to open in a working class are of Crown Heights vs all the hipster areas in Brooklyn where new restaurants all fight over the same young, professional market. In 2017 I won some startup money through a business plan competition and managed to raise some capital through two friends and a chef I used to work with. This brought my starting capital to $60k.

In the fall of 2017 after years of searching I found a space with an interesting situation where someone had already invested close to $200k to start a bagel cafe but gave up on it as costs were mounting too high (and honestly the business manager had no restaurant experience and did not know what he was doing). I made a deal with the landlord to pay $4800/mo rent, which is about $1400/mo over market value to account for all the construction that had been done already. In return I got a 36 seat space (could be 40 after we renovate at some point) and a beautiful basement prep kitchen where I would have the capacity to go into consumer goods (prepackaged sauces, curries, mac) down the line. I put another $40k into the space to get it ready to open, saving money by doing most of the construction myself with my sous chef. The restaurant opened January 2018 with no debt.

That's how it all began. 2018 has been a blur as I have spent pretty much every waking hour at the restaurant, only recently getting to a situation where I could get 1-2 days off. That being said, we are steadily growing at a pace where I can see myself only spending 2-3 days here a year from now. I have learned so much from this experience but one thing I realized is that I do not want to be a chef or manage restaurants for the rest of my life. What had started out as a business venture has ended up in me getting way too deep into the belly of restaurant kitchens.

Which is why I am debating applying for a MBA. My top choices are NYU and Columbia so I can stay in the area. Wharton is my stretch school which is still close enough I can commute back to Brooklyn if I'm needed at the restaurant. My thought process is that a MBA will give me access to a network of people who can help grow my restaurant business, and/or help me raise capital for a bigger venture. Because of my knowledge in food businesses, I will probably do something related in this space. I would love to get into the food delivery, artificially grown meats, or growing edibles market.

I am 29 now, I plan on applying Fall of 2019 and taking my GMAT in the spring. I think my lowest GPA will be the biggest hurdle, but I know I have a unique background and can offer a lot to classroom discussions, especially regarding managing labor intensive businesses where you do not have the luxury of retaining employees with money or stock.

So my question to you is - how good are my chances at a top MBA? Am I even on the right path or am I overestimating the value of a MBA?

This is a long post so I seriously appreciate your feedback and advise!