The Miami Herald from Miami, Florida • 326

SUNNY ISLES BEACH CUISINE WITH A CLICK A RUSSIAN ENTREPRENEUR HOPES TO TAKE OVER THE LUXURY FOOD DELIVERY MARKET ORDERING ONLINE Where: wwwdeliv ery4tip com Hours: Monday-Friday 11 am-lO pm Saturday and Sunday 530-1030 Service area: Aventura Sunny Isles Beach and surrounding cities Expansion is planned Cost: 18 percent of the order credit cards only For Information: Call 954-920-6187 READY TO EAT: Deliver4tipcom vice president Alex Tegov on the table for a party at the La Perla condos in Sunny sets the packaged food Isles Beach BY ANDRES AFRIKANER aamerikanertaMiamiHerald com Former banking mogul Alex Konanykhin fled his native Russia in 1992 hounded by the KGB and wanted on embezzlement charges that were dropped three years ago Once caught in a legal tug of war between the Russian and US governments worthy of a spy novel which he eventually wrote and published himself Konanykhin moved to Sunny Isles Beach in August exchanging international intrigue for the culinary world have time to go to the kitchen and cook something he said savoring some lamb Chalahach from a local Russian restaurant on the balcony of his penthouse at the Trump Palace New York I just punch speed dial and say I believe places were not delivering new venture is focused on getting condo-dwellers their caviar sturgeon or coconut shrimp with the click of a computer key Delivery4tipcom which began operating in late November brings food from eight restaurants to homes in Sunny Isles Beach Aventura and surrounding areas The delivery cost: 18 percent of the order total or about the amount of an average tip Now Konanykhin is seeking to expand the service from Fort Lauderdale to South Beach Though he owns only one van this month he plans to unleash a dozen more plastered with the logo to make his business more visible He also plans to add more photos and detailed nutritional information to his website wwwdelivery4tipjoom With luxury buildings stacked closely together Sunny Isles Beach has proven to be the perfect testing ground he said Like many of the residents he said prefer to have a nice dinner here during sunset instead of being in a restaurant in a strip Current offerings on the site include Italian Chinese Argentine and of course Russian cuisine Even though business been particularly brisk during the first month about 20 orders a day on average Konanykhin sees multimillion dollar potential He takes in 30 percent on every order: 18 percent from the customer and 12 percent from the restaurant Similar efforts to start up food delivery companies in South Florida have not been overwhelmingly successful They tend to focus on a limited area say South Beach only or cater mostly to corporate clients Some startups failed because their delivery charges were high or their initial investment was too large Konanykhin said have to risk much money because we here they can very well afford Shifrin said believe in this idea restaurant is normally packed around dinnertime Through deliveries he can reach a wider audience he said He sends out his meals steaming beef kebabs with roasted potatoes ornate salads coconut-crusted shrimp in Styrofoam containers tastefully presented as if they were on a plate The delivery service started small Right now the company is headquartered in Dania Beach and looking to move to Sunny Isles Beach or Aventura Alex Tegov a young Bulgarian who is one of the vice presidents occasionally pitches in as a driver during the lunch and dinner rush On Dec 28 he drove the van loaded with bags of food from Italian restaurant La Romanza to the La Perla condos in Sunny Isles Beach The management staff was having lunch and Pablo Santos the employee looking for an alternative to pizza or fast food always call for lunch but we got tired of eating the same Santos said This time they got two T-bone steaks a rib eye steak and some spaghetti hand-delivered by Tegov Despite some brief grumbling about the temperature the steaks were not exactly fresh off the grill by the time they arrived the diners praised the taste and the time they saved To try to spark more business the company is offering free first-time deliveries And Konanykhin is dreaming big Aside from adding restaurants he is in talks with Whole Foods to deliver its products He said he will begin a marketing blitz this year and hopes that his company will become part of a lifestyle in the area Even though this is just another start-up for Konanykhin who said he once owned more than 100 companies in his homeland a cause be holds dear accustomed starting by building he said His website was designed by an Internet company he started in New York City his only real investment so far has been ordering the fleet of vans he said which will have GPS navigators on board so users can track the location of their delivery online all a far cry from former life In his book Defiance he tells of an alleged assassination attempt by the KGB He was wanted by the Russian government accused of stealing money from one of his own banks He fled to the United States and requested political asylum in 1992 but was arrested and put into deportation proceedings It took years of court battles with the Russian government pressuring the United States to send him back before Konanykhin was freed and charges were dropped His new venture is bound to succeed said David Shif-rin owner of Lula Kebab House in Sunny Isles Beach one of the eight restaurants on the site people who live who placed the order a week in advance said he Was to good food difticun to he said.