FSN lauds
THE BIGWIGS
Ten of the best heads in the business
By Jacob Bunge and Mike Mitchelson
To be a successful restaurateur, it takes more than just an eye for dollars and cents. That skill must be balanced with an opportunistic eye, creative vision, a passion for an often unforgiving industry and—believe it or not—a bit of ego. Minnesota’s culinary reputation has expanded beyond its borders, and Foodservice News honors those innovators that have pushed those boundaries. All of those selected shared certain viewpoints, most notably referring to their concepts as children needing various degrees of care. And all were gracious with their compliments toward everyone making a living as an independent restaurateur.
We determined our list with suggestions from industry professionals, local and national media, and our own careful observations. There are, of course, other restaurant owners who are innovative that we couldn’t fit on this list. Our criteria were that our restaurateurs be innovative, and have a minimum of three concepts with some variation between them. Our list is not a ranking—heck, it’s not even in alphabetical order. If you feel we’ve missed someone, e-mail us your suggestions for our next listing. We thank this year’s innovators for taking some time to speak with us, and we congratulate them.
Charlie Burrows
Charlie Rae, Inc
Burrows and his partner, Linda Young, opened Axel’s in Mendota about nine years ago. Since that time, they’ve added three more, with one under construction in Woodbury at the Prestwick Golf Club. They also started the Bonfire Woodfire Grill concept, and the Rudy’s Redeye Grill franchise, with four and three units, respectively. “With Axel’s and Rudy’s, we’re trying to capture the old-style supper club atmosphere and quality,” Burrows said. They’re also working on a new concept called Ernie’s American Pub. “That’s going to be a bar with roasted peanuts, big sandwiches, grilled steaks, that kind of stuff,” he said. “More of an old-fashioned, cozy bar.”
What Type of Research do you conduct?
Most of the restaurants we’ve done have been in an existing building. We look at an area and decide what we feel the area needs rather than try to force something. We also look at what the area is lacking, what kind of price point the area can handle, the age of the area. If it’s an old supper club and needs to be rejuvenated, that’s what we’ll do. We’re also always getting feedback; we’re very hands-on operators. We’ll go into our restaurants and talk to our employees and general managers to hear what the guests are saying.
Are there Ideas that haven’t worked out?
Knock on wood, we’ve never not had a successful restaurant at this point. Ideas sometimes go awry; I think the best thing we can ever do is pay attention to what goes on within our four walls and not worry about the rest of the world.
Restaurant philosophy:
We always say our employees are No. 1, because they are the ones that represent us and go to our guests. We want them to be happy and well do everything we can to make sure they’re happy.
Who do you admire in the industry?
My partner, Linda. She’s got a second nature to this business.
Favorite restaurant you don’t own?
I have so many friends in the restaurant business. We hang out more on the St. Paul side of town, and there’s a lot of really good restaurants.
How does media attention affect what you do?
People answer my questions when they come into our restaurants, not the reviewers. That’s the most important thing to us. We’re just here to make our guests happy. I just want to open my doors and make people happy and let my customers decide whether they want to come back.
How do you balance control of the concepts?
The next project is always the one that gets the most attention. It’s like being a parent. It all evens out, and as soon as you can, you get back to the other kids. We try to give our GMs a sense of ownership of the restaurants so they can run them right.
If you weren’t a restaurant owner?
I’d have to find something really easy like being a lawyer or something. Where I could charge a lot.
What other interests do have?
I’ve got three younger kids, so my family is my No. 1 thing.
David Burley, Stephanie Shimp,
Luke Shimp
Blue Plate Restaurant Company
Australian-born chef David Burley teamed with Minnesota native Stephanie Shimp in 1992 to open St. Paul’s Highland Grill, an “urban diner” putting a modern twist on favorite dishes. In 1999, the company expanded with the opening of the Groveland Tap and the Edina Grill, and in 2001 the partnership grew as Stephanie’s brother, Luke Shimp, came on board. This year, Blue Plate took its crowd-pleasing menu into another neighborhood with the opening of the Longfellow Grill in Minneapolis.
Who in the industry do you admire?
David Burley: Wayne Kostroski and Cuisine Concepts—I love how they diversify. As far as food, Tim McKee (Solera) does some pretty amazing things. And both of the Luci restaurants, Luci Ancora and Ristorante Luci. Lucille Smith is great, her whole family’s talented.
What are some of your favorite restaurants?
DB: Murray’s is one of my favorite joints. Tim Murray just does a tremendous job, doing what they’ve been doing there for 60 years. I eat at It’s Greek to Me every month, and Tandoori, a little Indian joint in Bloomington.
Luke Shimp: All the Twin City Originals places. My wife and I make a list and try to go out every Saturday night, and try not to go to the same place twice. Khyber Pass is also one of my favorites.
How do you research and find new ideas?
DB: Travel. New York, San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego, Mexico. I go to Australia annually. When we take a trip, we get on the Internet and plan it all out. The only thing is, when you go to New York or Chicago, you run the risk of showing up to find the hottest restaurant is closed, because sometimes they only last six months. In Chicago I ate at a place called Moto, and the things they do there made me feel like I was an auto mechanic, while they’re doing rocket science. We had carbonated oysters that were fizzy, kind of like ice cream, but actually very good.
Do you have a restaurant philosophy?
DB: Approachable. Approachable food with good service. I don’t care how much you’re paying, if you have a four-dollar plate of food in front of you, the service has to be on. I hate to look out into the dining room and see someone looking around who needs something. It makes me feel like I’ve failed.
What do you make of restaurant reviews?
DB: I don’t take them to heart. If a critic comes in and it’s the first week a restaurant is up and running, I don’t care how good an operator you are, there are going to be kinks that need to be worked out. If a restaurant writer comes in and criticizes at that point, it lacks credibility.
LS: They should give a new restaurant at least a week to get up and running.
DB: But we’ve made adjustments on the basis of reviews, absolutely. We pay attention.
How do you maintain balance with multiple businesses?
DB: Good managers. At Longfellow we have Amy Lynn, who’s been with us for five years and was manager of the Highland Grill for the past five months. Then we all have our specialties—I’m at the Edina Grill, Luke is at the Highland Grill, we have Mark Landy, who’s the GM at the Groveland Tap, and Stephanie is on the financial side.
LS: For the first five weeks, one of us will be at Longfellow. But we don’t anticipate being here at all hours or anything.
What would you be doing if you weren’t a restaurant owner?
DB: Probably something in the motorcycle industry.
LS: I’d be involved in auto racing. I was a crew member on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit for seven years, and was car chief on (NASCAR racer) Bobby Lebonte’s crew.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside the business?
DB: Of course we have hobbies and outside interests, we have tons of them—that’s why we work.
LS: I like skiing, boating, hiking, anything outdoors really. My sister Stephanie sails and skis, as well.
DB: Motorcycling and boating. Until recently I had six cycles—now I’m down to two, although I’ll probably end up with another one before the end of the year. Last summer my brother came up from Australia and we rode out to Montana and Idaho for 10 days, and rented an old Frank Lloyd Wright house in the mountains.
Phil Roberts
Parasole Restaurant Holdings/idein, LLC
A “midlife crisis” and a love of restaurants created the perfect storm that drove Phil Roberts into the restaurant industry in 1977, when he and partner Pete Mihajlov opened Muffuletta in St. Paul. Since then Roberts’ company, Parasole Restaurant Holdings, has created chains like The Oceanaire Seafood Room, Buca di Beppo, as well as local favorites Manny’s Steakhouse, figlio and Chino Latino. They also own The Good Earth restaurant chain. Parasole recently merged with idein, a restaurant and retail consultancy Roberts co-founded in 2001.
What do you do for research, to get new ideas and inspiration?
I have favorite cities for food—all the usuals, Paris, Los Angeles, New York, Bangkok, Buenos Aries. Any of the big, first-tier cities of the world I love. Those cities tend to attract a large and diverse ethnic population and tend to be magnets for other kinds of cuisine.
But it’s not even just eating, it’s also the things you see around you. Last fall we did a thing called “too cool for school” at figlio, which was a cafeteria-style dinner of turkey, mashed potatoes, herb stuffing, gravy and vegetables, served on lunch trays with a little carton of milk and a dessert. It was a hoot.
Or I was in a Pottery Barn, in the candle holder department—I saw a candle holder with three separate compartments, and I thought why not get something similar and serve three tartares in it? Seasonal things too—last fall we did the heirloom tomatoes, and we just got done with porcini mushrooms. Now we’re doing fondue, because it’s cold outside.
Ever have an idea that didn’t work out?
When we opened Oceanaire, we wanted to do shad roe. It’s a big, big dish out East in the spring, you sauté the roe with bacon and it’s wonderful. But the first year at Oceanaire, we did it and sold maybe one a week, and that one came back. Now we have it on the menu, but it was a five- or six-year education process. You want to push the envelope, but your mission is not solely to educate. That’s why we do a lot of small plates at figlio and Chino. Now we’re looking to do foie gras, and we’re going to do it on a small plate at Chino. That’s something Minnesotans maybe aren’t used to, and small plates are a good way of introducing something like that.
Do you have a restaurant philosophy?
Standards. Whether it’s Manny’s with a $75 check average or the Good Earth with a $12 check average, the servers need to be equally knowledgeable about the food and the managers must be equally knowledgeable about appearance and cleanliness. Honesty, integrity, all that stuff. People are going to put that love and knowledge into the food.
What do you make of restaurant reviews?
In the Twin Cities, you have Kathy Jenkins with the Pioneer Press, Dara Moskowitz at the City Pages, Jeremy Iggers and Rick Nelson at the Star Tribune, Ann Bauer at the Minnesota Monthly, and Andrew Zimmern at Mpls-St Paul Magazine. All those people are very smart, they know food and have a great deal of respect for the knowledge that goes into this business. They’re not evil people, they’re out to write a fair review. If, say, the coffee is cold in one of my restaurants, I need to know that. I respect reviews.
With multiple businesses, how do you balance control between them?
A lot of restaurants go through that sort of thing as they grow… we decided at some point you have to have your managers be company presidents, so that they can make the same kind of decisions that you would make. They need to have the same standards in foodservice, standards that are consistent, as far as quality, integrity and honesty. It’s a matter of getting good, strong people in there, and that’s what we have.
Who else in the industry do you admire?
Wayne Kostroski, Larry and Richard D’Amico, Dean Vlahos at Redstone, John Rimarcik. All of them have done great for the Twin Cities.
Do you have a favorite restaurant?
I travel so much and dine out in different restaurants almost every night, in so many cities, when I come home I feel like I just want tuna casserole, something simple.
As far as the best restaurant, that all depends on what the word “best” means. I judge by the personal joy I get from the experience. The Gordon Ramsey in London is up there with the finest dining experiences I’ve had in my entire life—they iron the tablecloths between each serving. But then I enjoy Stroud’s in Kansas City, where I can get a bucket of fried chicken with mashed potatoes and iced tea, and it’s probably a $12 check average. And I enjoy both equally. In Los Angeles two weeks ago, I stood in line for an hour and a half for a hot dog at Pink’s, smothered in sauerkraut and onions. It was delicious.
What would you do if you weren’t a restaurant owner?
If I could live another life and somehow got the restaurant thing out of my system, I’d like to be a movie director. In a way, it’s the same thing as the restaurant business—the script is the menu and the plating, the presentation and décor is the set. It’s the same set of muscles. What I wouldn’t want to do is be a banker or a lawyer or anything where you’re chained to a desk.
What about interests outside of the business?
Watching TV. I like it all, everything from WWE Smackdown to Curb Your Enthusiasm, CNN, the Food Network or old movies. It’s relaxing, and it helps me with pop culture. I also read a lot—the New York Times, USA Today, the Star Tribune and the Wall Street Journal, I read those religiously. By 8:15 in the morning I’ve read four or five newspapers.
Does it ever annoy you when a newspaper or magazine capitalizes “figlio”?
No. After years and years of people pronouncing it fig-leo, it doesn’t bother me. I’m not that anal retentive—I wonder whether or not there’s a hyphen in anal retentive, and that’s about as anal retentive as I get.
Bob Carlson
Premier Management
Bob Carlson and his business partner Korey Bannerman founded Premier Management and Spectator’s Bar & Grill in 2001 to fill a need they found in the sports bar scene. “We thought there was a market that was available and not being satisfied where people wanted good food but were still able to watch the sporting events of the day,” Carlson said. They also created the Major’s Sports Café chain, which now stands at five restaurants, and Spectator’s has grown to three restaurants. The company also went beyond sports bars to open the Minneapolis bar and restaurant, Tonic. It was an extremely popular venue with a notable rooftop patio, but a clash with a city council member prompted some changes. Initially renamed Prime and scheduled to open as a steak, fish and chop house, that too has been shelved. “We’re co-developing a new concept with Parasole for the Tonic location,” Carlson said.
How do you research ideas?
For the sports bars, we just traveled around the upper Midwest and saw what other restaurateurs were doing. With Tonic we traveled literally throughout the northern hemisphere looking at places.
Ideas that haven’t worked out?
(Laughing) Well, in (Minneapolis City Council Member Dan) Niziolek’s eyes, it would be that the Tonic wasn’t right. But the store has always financially done very well. It’s just unfortunate we have an individual council member who’s opposed to dancing in the Uptown area. So, we have not had a failure yet.
Have you developed a Restaurant philosophy?
We believe in basic restaurant fundamentals: Treat the guest well, and serve as great a food as you possibly can. I think it doesn’t need to be anymore complicated than that.
How do you balance control of the concepts?
We surround ourselves with great people. Our two regional vice presidents who run basically all our restaurants are second to none.
What’s your Favorite restaurant you don’t own?
Chino Latino. I love Chino. And that’s kind of where we started doing the Tonic deal together (with Parasole).
How does the press affect what you do in the restaurant?
The Tonic situation was a completely separate animal; we had a challenge with a council member. It really doesn’t affect what we do. With reviews, we certainly welcome any press we may get, but I don’t think it affects us. That old rule—there’s no such thing as bad publicity—before Tonic I would have 100 percent agreed with that. Post Tonic, I’m not sure that’s necessarily always right.
If you weren’t a restaurant owner...
We’re really real estate developers.
When you’re not on the job…
I play with my kids—I have three little girls—and I golf. Those are probably my two biggest things.
Gus Khwice
Dangerfield’s Restaurant Incorporated
Gus Khwice is the owner of Dangerfield’s Restaurant Incorporated, which operates Dangerfield’s restaurant, Panzanella Bread Company and Fajita Republic, all located in Shakopee, Minn. They’re located right next to each other, actually. “It was done by accident, and turned out to be a wonderful idea,” Khwice said. “I envisioned an urban food court.” Dangerfield’s has been a popular Twin Cities restaurant since it opened in 1991. In 2001, Khwice purchased a neighboring supper club, and converted it into the Panzanella Bread Company, serving fresh baked-bread and pastries, soup, sandwiches, pizza and pasta. Khwice said there’s been “a lot of inquiry” into franchising the concept. Next door is Fajita Republic, a Mexican food concept. “Between the three, we have covered most of the food spectrum that our guests desire,” Khwice said. “We share the same parking lot. If someone wants different foods, they can drive to one destination and eat together.”
How do you research?
I am a marketing consultant, but the restaurant industry is my passion, so we have an understanding of what markets are desirable. We were very fortunate that the three studies we have done in our immediate market have turned out to be the right idea.
Did you have an Idea that didn’t work out?
Before Panzanella we did The Market by Dangerfield’s. It was an upscale deli, fish and meat market, bakery and coffee shop. In the special occasion season, like Thanksgiving and Christmas, that was a wonderful concept. But for a year ‘round concept, it’s not. Weekends were busy, but not during the week. After four months, we decided it wasn’t the right concept for the market and we converted it to Panzanella.
How do you interpret Media attention?
Some critics have dined with us and written reviews over the years placing (Dangerfield’s) in the top dozen restaurants in the Twin Cities. What does that mean? Everyone has a different idea of what they like in a restaurant. To the critics’ standards, this is where we fit. Does that apply to every guest that walks in here? I hope so. We see the same faces at least two times a week. We have wonderful chefs, we have fairly good exposure in the Twin Cities, we do a good job marketing the product, food is wonderful, and the atmosphere is unique. This is where our reputation comes about.
Are you considering expanding?
Yes. We are dealing with Welsh Companies in Naples, Fla., to establish a Dangerfield’s in the Naples/Ft. Myers market, and we are looking at a couple of sites. D’Amico is doing very well down there and we are proud of them. You are proud that people that you know are following their dream and doing well down there. Parasole is another one; they have wonderful concepts. I have the ultimate respect and admiration for them and hopefully we can be in the levels of people that we admire.
How do you balance control of your concepts?
The biggest task in the restaurant business is human resources. In this regard, we are very fortunate. We have wonderful management and they respond to all daily challenges. In Dangerfield’s, the management has been on board for 14 years, so that makes it easy.
I like to think as an independent we have a better edge. We are honored to have Panera Bread in Shakopee (which competes with Panzanella), but if you check the guest space, Panzanella has a major edge—better quality, better atmosphere, better service, better guest recognition. This is a credit to the management. They are special people with major dedication to it day in, day out.
If you weren’t a restaurant owner, you would…
Probably be teaching marketing and business at a university.
When you are away from the job…
I have two boys of an age where they need a lot of attention. I am fortunate to have both worlds and be able to manage it well.
Rick Webb
Zelo, Ciao Bella, Bacio
Rick Webb owns Zelo, Bacio and Ciao Bella. Each restaurant is known for their distinct style and menus. “What we really try to do is not have a surprise for the customer when they walk in,” Webb said. “Here’s what it looks like, I know what kind of food I’m going to get, and what kind of service I’m going to get. We always constantly balance the service and the food to that.”
How do you Research ideas?
We travel a lot, and we have a great design team, Duffy and Partners, we’ve used for all three restaurants, and we have Wayne Susage who picks the colors and fabrics. They understand us and what we’re trying to do. They brand our product very well. And that goes down the list to everything. We really feel that with the design and the name of the restaurant—the brand, the product—goes all the way through to the menu. Our items that we choose for the menu should match that décor and theme. And our servers should match both of those, too.
Are there ideas that haven’t worked?
I think it really helps that we live here, we really are in tune to customers and what they’re saying, and the staff with what they’re hearing. Each restaurant we’ve kind of tweaked—when you turn on the lights it’s different than what it is on a piece of paper. You want to make sure it’s working functionally for the customer so it’s comfortable. We’ve changed each one to make it a little more comfortable, easier from all sides.
Your Restaurant philosophy…
We’ve been on-focus right from the beginning. We knew we wanted to do three restaurants in the Twin Cities. Living here, I knew which three areas we had to be in from a volume standpoint. Our philosophy is to create an atmosphere that matches the food and the service. Once we’ve done that, then the surprise to the customer is, hopefully, they get the check and come back three or four times a week. They can come in wearing jeans or a suit. We just want a comfortable atmosphere. We spend a lot of money for some of our products. But, because we’re not a large company, we don’t have to make a certain percentage, we just still have to pass on that pricing philosophy and make sure it fits with the restaurant and the service.
How do you balance control of them?
You always want to make sure that it feels good and that the service and food match that décor. Those are always our benchmarks. Sometimes one needs a little more attention, but they’re pretty well balanced, and we have a director of operations, Bob Tinsley, who does an awesome job.
Is there someone in the industry you admire?
I respect anybody that has success in this business. This is a tough business. The attention to detail is pretty high on the chart, and I really respect all of what they do, because I know what kind of work it takes to get it done.
Do you pay attention to reviews?
You have to pay attention to all of it. I think reviewers know what they’re talking about and if it’s a negative review, I think you have to look at it and re-evaluate. You can’t take it defensively. If it’s a positive review, to keep yourself there is just as hard work as getting there. The business is one of momentum. People talk positive about a place and it becomes positive momentum. If a place is known for poor service, it seems to feed on itself. You never want to start that negative momentum. Listen to the customers, they’ll tell you what you need.
If you weren’t a restaurant owner…
I’d probably be a teacher. No particular subject. I like teaching. I coach football, and I love that side of it.
Other interests or hobbies…
I golf and ski, and spend a lot of time with my 8-year-old daughter. It’s a fun age.
Wayne Kostroski
Cuisine Concepts
Wayne Kostroski, John Dayton and Mark Haugen are principals of Cuisine Concepts. The company, Kostroski described, “is the umbrella restaurant company that either manages or owns Goodfellow’s, Tejas, Bar Abilene, Tejas Express at the State Fair, and related to Franklin Street Bakery.”
How do you conduct research for your restaurants?
My business partner Mark Haugen is the executive chef, and he is the prime innovator of food ideas. He works closely and trains the chefs of the different locations, with the exception of Goodfellow’s, where Jason Robinson is the executive chef. But Haugen is a voracious reader, has all cooking styles and background in his 25-plus year career.
Any Ideas that haven’t worked out?
(Laughing) We don’t like to talk about the ones that didn’t work out, so I just say we’ve always been right, never wrong. I think you start making wrong decisions when you stop listening to your guests. That might sound like a pat answer, but that really is it. I think there always needs to be a balance between what a restaurateur or chef, or both, believe is the next great idea and listening very closely to what your guests tell you—particularly your more loyal guests. There is a very delicate balance between always trying to come up with the next great idea at the expense of getting what got you there.
How do you collect your guests’ comments?
We do have comment sheets as part of our e-mail marketing that people can fill out. We also try very hard to empower our service staff in their reading of the table. That’s critical to us. A guest might want the server hanging around, another might not want to be bothered. One table might be getting engaged and deeply in love, another might be working out the terms of a divorce. You have to read the table and understand when to jump in or not. We try our best to train our service staff to learn how to listen, and then give pertinent information back.
What’s your Restaurant philosophy?
Any restaurateur will say, the guest is the most important and you need to make sure they keep coming back. That’s 101. To me it’s like any idea—everybody’s got one, but can you execute it? So from the philosophy, that’s where you start, but you’ve got to make sure that everything you do in the execution of getting to that point works in the favor of the guest.
We basically say to our servers, this person at your table is the same as if they just arrived at the front door of your house. Would you ask to take their coat? Would you make sure they are comfortable? Would you offer them the drink that they most wanted, hot or cold? When they leave, would you let them just walk out? No, you want to thank them, you want to make sure they had a good time and you would invite them back.
How do you balance control of the restaurants?
It’s about the team you put in place. There are different skill sets. Goodfellow’s requires a different level of skill sets. The wine list is larger, the ingredients more meticulous. If I had a steak house, and the chef and people in the kitchen, you teach them prepare a great steak and a few things around it. That’s far different than Jason Robinson’s team.
On running the restaurants, it doesn’t require more or less from my end; I just stay out of the way. The smart guys run the places. As a company looking over 12 months of business, each restaurant has different cycles of ups and downs. Summer is booming at Bar Abilene, July-August are slower times for Goodfellow’s. Holiday seasons mean different things to each restaurant. We’ll never have everything figured out, but as far as spending time, planning and executing from a company standpoint, requires understanding cycles.
How do you respond to media attention and reviews?
You want everybody to say nice things about what you do. When positive statements come out, it certainly is a plus. But in all my years, I’ve never seen a positive review really produce a significant blip in business. I’d always have those good, positive little upswings.
A negative review, though, does set you back from a sales standpoint, because there’s a certain population that says ‘Well, it’s not a very good restaurant, maybe it’s not that we’ll never go there, but we’re going to put it further down the list.’ But I think the bottom line for me is that you can never take any of it personally. You have to consider the source that’s making the comment, you hope it doesn’t have too much of a negative effect and that too many people don’t take that as the sole source. At the same time, if you don’t take it personally, you also can grab a point or two off anybody’s negative comment and take a look.
The final point is the press doesn’t decide if you’re successful or not, your guests do. You’ve got to be good.
Favorite restaurant?
It really depends. I don’t get out as often as I would like. I will go to independent restaurants—I won’t go to chains, unless I have kids tagging along of some age. I want to see what a local operator has to offer. Whether that’s Broder’s Pasta Bar or Jax Café, I want to go where the independent operator has something at stake in the community and is trying to do their best to please that community, rather than coming out of a corporate office somewhere.
I think the dining public is bombarded by companies that have great budgets to say, ‘Here’s what you should be doing—Olive Garden is the standard of Italian dining.’ Are you kidding me?
Who do you admire in the industry?
My former partners (with figlio) Phil Roberts and Pete Mihajlov. Guys like that have great vision. They have really been the ones to push the envelope, and figlio was one of those things. It was a brand new idea in an area that was expected to be popular and growing, but had to start somewhere and those guys saw it.
If you weren’t in the restaurant business…
I’d be playing rock-n-roll music. But I’ve chosen instead to make a living for myself and my family.
And in your free time…
I like to go to dinner with my wife. I do like to spend any kind of time with my kids. They’re older now, I think in an interview 15 years ago I would probably come up with the same answer for the question. Whatever time I can find with the kids—pretty soon they’re going to be off with their own lives, and now I’ve got to work myself into their schedule. That’s what I like to do. Otherwise it’s college basketball. Because I’m old and slow, I don’t get to play many sports anymore, but I like to watch them.
Jennifer Jackson-King
Pomodoro Inc.
Jennifer Jackson-King and her husband, Eliot King, are the owners and operators of Prima, three fish and the Big Buck Roadhouse. For all three concepts, it was a combination of personal taste and opportunity that led to their openings.
They opened Prima seven years ago in South Minneapolis. “We lived three blocks away,” Jackson-King said. “We were so devoid of restaurants at that time in that area. With three fish, there was no reasonably priced fish concept in the metro area. It was either Oceanaire or nothing else. For Big Buck Roadhouse, it’s supply and demand. We live in Waconia, we drove by this intersection (highways 101 and 7) everyday and wished there was a better restaurant closer. It’s a great spot for a roadhouse.”
How do you research your ideas?
Mostly from life experiences that we appreciate or have a passion for and we just try to apply that conceptually to what we want to do in business.
Three fish we developed because my husband (and co-owner Eliot King) is from New York City, and there’s some great little Greek restaurants in Astoria and Queens. Big Buck we developed from living in San Francisco, and one of our favorite restaurants was in Marin called the Buckeye Roadhouse. And Prima, the same—it like our little neighborhood Italian restaurant in San Francisco.
Are there ideas that haven’t worked?
Absolutely. One was when we opened three fish, we had a section on the menu called Little Fish. It was meant to be a smaller portion reasonably priced, for those who wanted a small 4-5 ounce portion of prociutto-wrapped monkfish with all the accompaniments for $11.95. We had so many complaints, letters and phone calls, and I ended up going up to so many tables of people who were mad that they weren’t being served the right amount of food. We meant it to be more a lighter-style entrée, even put a heading underneath it saying “a smaller portion” and people still didn’t get it. We tried to stick it out, but we got tired of the complaint letters that we just ditched it.
Your Restaurant philosophy:
I think at the end of the day, my husband and I try to run our businesses the way we feel we would like to be treated if we went out to eat. We try to adhere to that. We try to teach our employees to be friendly and accommodating, we try to put out a quality product at a fair price and for the most part we really try to live by that. Just stick to it, and that’s hard to do sometimes, when you’re wondering why the Cheesecake Factory is doing 800 dinners and we’re not. Try to stay independent in your thinking, and not comply because that’s what all the chains are doing. The customer does appreciate that.
How do you balance control of your concepts?
The infant always demands more time. Big Buck is the infant at this point and time. You always give the newer stores more attention. With our third venture, we decided to hire another level of management. We have a director of operations who has worked with my husband and me in the past. If I wasn’t a mother, I might be able to eke by. A 3-year-old baby at home changes things. And we live on a farm now. So we dabble in farming on the side, we’re just busy all the time.
Do reviews or general press attention affect what you do?
We’ve been pretty lucky in the past to have received pretty good press. You have to stick to what you believe in. Everyone’s entitled to an opinion, but it’s what the consumers say when they come in the door, guest feedback, comments on comment cards, it’s what the staff tells me that guests are saying that I hold myself most accountable to. One review is one person’s opinion. Three hundred guests are going to eat here tonight, and what those 60 comment cards say at the end of the night are what I’m really concerned about. What a critic says, I take it with a grain of salt. It is just one person.
What’s a favorite restaurant that you don’t own?
We really like Christo’s in Minneapolis. It just has great customer service, and it’s an independent restaurant. Our cabin is in the Brainerd Lakes area, and we really like to go Prairie Bay, and the old stand-by up there is the Classic at Madden’s.
Who do you admire in the industry?
I have a lot of respect for Rick Webb’s customer service skills and his ability to teach those to his subordinate staff members.
What would you do if you weren’t a restaurant owner?
I would be a horse breeder and I would ride rodeo. Our biggest hobby is our horses, we spend a lot of time riding and training. My husband and I are avid skiers, and we like to boat. We have the horses, we have chickens, and raise our own eggs, and my husband grows herbs and ornamental things in the summer.
Brian Dougherty, president,
Grandma’s Restaurant Company
Brian Dougherty has worked at Grandma’s Restaurant Company since it was founded in 1976 by Michael Paulucci and CEO Andy Borg. Dougherty started as a dishwasher. “My desire to enjoy my job was, I think, confused for leadership,” he said, laughing. “I just loved it, I had a blast doing it. People thought, ‘Wow, look at him, he stays after work and preps sandwiches and stocks bar ends. He must be a leader.’ I said, ‘No, I just want to have a good time while I’m on the clock.’ So I was elevated, and I decided to stick around.” Sticking around certainly paid dividends; he was named president of the company in January.
How does the company conduct research?
We have a brilliant executive chef, Steve Zacher. He’s continually going different places and attending seminars, and working under different chefs to understand what trends are happening in the industry. His priority is creating new dishes and fitting them into the appropriate brand. We have a culture here in the company, there is multi-lateral lines of communication, we encourage experimentation, pushing each other is the norm. Mick (Michael) Paulucci is out constantly tasting, looking and sending back information. So is Andy Borg. I see and try different things, and I take a camera with me everywhere.
A Favorite restaurant outside the Grandma’s concepts…
I do go to a lot of restaurants, but when it comes to the end of the day, I prefer our food. We’re multi-concept, so there’s all different food types. But when in St. Paul, you’ll see me at the St. Paul Grill. And when in Minneapolis, I try lots of different restaurants there.
Who do you admire in the industry?
Scott Graden used to be a chef for us, and he now owns a North Shore restaurant called the New Scenic Café. I admire his Renaissance skills in the kitchen and concepting restaurants.
Any ideas that haven’t worked out?
Yes. Our first attempt at fine dining was resurrecting the famous Flame Restaurant on Duluth’s waterfront in the ’90s. It was every bit as elegant and posh as the original Flame Restaurant in the 1930s, also on the waterfront, and we aimed too high. Our second shot at fine dining, Bellisios Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar, we took a more casual approach, and the success has been wonderful.
How does the company balance the concepts?
Your restaurants are your kids. At different cycles, they need different things. You try to be proportional, but the new concept needs all your attention—the baby needs all the attention the first year.
Grandma’s Restaurant philosophy…
Turn the company upside down, and that’s where your information comes from. That happens after you flesh out a brand of course. Start with the brand, you open it, then you listen to the customers, and make sure you include that data in every decision you make.
Does media attention influence what you do?
Absolutely. It’s a customer who’s just had a meal. And I’ll sit down and listen and respond.
What would you do if you weren’t in the industry.
Make movies. I was accepted to a film school in California when I was 18 and I was going to take the summer off. That’s what I thought I was going to do. And that’s when I started working at Grandma’s and took a liking to what it was. I went from art courses to business courses at University of Minnesota-Duluth.
When you’re not on the job…
I travel. Anywhere. Countries with history. I love to just soak in the history of the world.
D’Amico & Partners
Anyone who lives in the Twin Cities metro area has most likely heard the name D’Amico. There’s D’Amico Cucina, their first restaurant, standard bearer for high-end Italian food. There’s D’Amico & Sons, the immensely popular Italian, cafeteria-style dining chain that recently spawned units in Naples and Ft. Myers, Fla.; Café & Bar Lurcat, D’Amico Catering and The Metropolitan banquet facility. And, don’t forget Campiello, which also sprouted in Naples, Fla.
Brothers Richard and Larry have inspired others to achieve similar success. Gus Khwice, owner and operator of Dangerfield’s Restaurant Company Inc. is working on following the D’Amico’s example right down to Florida. “Richard and I have done consulting work for mutual clients,” he said. “They have Campiello and D’Amico & Sons down there (in Naples) and they are doing wonderful. And most of the market down there (during the winter) is from Minneapolis. If you have a D’Amico—or Dangerfield’s—you have a live audience.”
Even if they didn’t have a presence in two states and operate multiple concepts successfully, many here at Foodservice News felt that the bottomless glass of house wine at D’Amico & Sons restaurants was the best idea in…well, ever, and earned the company a spot on our innovator’s list.
While Richard D’Amico did return our request for an interview, and said he was most pleased the company made the list, both trans-Atlantic travel and unavoidable conflicts conspired to prevent it from happening. Such is the life of a restaurateur.
