Hospitality ain't what it used to be......

I am a restaurateur. I started out in the hospitality business training to be a chef. I endured the rigors of apprenticeship that many of my generation and before me had to accept as the price to pay for classical training. Angry and tyrannical chefs were an accepted price to pay for top notch training. I remember days of ridicule and belittlement during my training, that often left me questioning my choice of vocation. When I worked as a stage in Paris, even my mentors' wife would scream at me and tell me my mis en place was pure shit.
Thankfully, I worked my way up through the ranks, and was enlightened by some compassionate chefs at New England Culinary Institute like Executive Chef Robert Barral and Benjamin Cevelo. I learned to control my temper, and realized that passion and anger do not have to go hand in hand. Working with my beautiful wife Colleen, I am reminded of this fact whenever I revert back to my old ways. She knows how to talk me down from these episodes, and calm the savage beast within me.
When I moved up from chef to owner, and became a restaurateur, my quest for role models expanded to those who see the big picture of running a restaurant - not just a kitchen. Dealing with my customers has required me to become more refined. Anyone who has read Anthony Bourdains' memoir Kitchen Confidential, can understand that there is a big difference between dealing with like minded (and often deranged) cooks, and dealing with the tapestry of customers who come in the front door. My heroes now include front of the house champions like Danny Meyer of Union Square Hospitality Group and Ron Miller of Solera in NYC. I have a quote from Mr. Meyer that was printed in the NY Times a few years back posted right over my desk. It is entitled "A Dialogue of Respect". It reads: " I enjoyed reading Joe Drape's article "Out in Front but Often Overlooked" (Sept.26). In this era of celebrity chefs, it was refreshing to see so many leaders of the hospitality movement recognized for the essential role they play in making guests feel welcome while they're eating all of that great food. (We were especially delighted to see your acknowledgement of one of our Grammercy Tavern alumni, Phil Grieco). Alluding to my own  approach, Mr. Drape was correct in describing that hospitality is a dialogue, and service a monologue. But it was not accurate to suggest that I believe "the customer is always right." I was certainly taught that before becoming a restaurateur, but over the years, I have learned that no one is always right. In fact, for most guests, it's far more important to feel heard, than to be right. The trick to delivering optimum guest satisfaction is first to require that staff members express warm hospitality toward one another, without which no amount of hospitality to our guests will feel genuine." Amen.
I would like to add one more sentence of my own to Mr. Meyer's letter. "I feel that for guest satisfaction to be optimum, the customer should recognize that any good dialogue, requires respect on both parties behalf."

 I went to the doctor yesterday to have them treat my eye that was irritated. The office was quite busy, and the staff was handling the workload the best that they could. As I waited for my turn in the waiting area, a couple came in, and the first words out of the woman's mouth were " how long is the wait going to be?" I couldn't help but wonder what sort of ailment they were both (as she stated) suffering from, that would allow them the luxury of deciding between treatment and not waiting. I would have waited all day if necessary to have my eye treated. I can't work if I can't see.
I remarked to the girl who weighed me and took my vitals, that the question reminded my of my own experiences during a busy Saturday night in the restaurant. She shared a laugh with me, alluding to the attitude of many customers these days. It seems that people have forgotten to care about anyone but themselves these days. Or perhaps they were never taught manners as children.
I am compelled to write this post, because my experience has led me to believe that as a society, our "me" attitude is at odds with the inevitable population increase our planet is experiencing. Electronic devices that cause people to never look beyond the palm of their hand, could be a big part of this trend. When we become so self absorbed in our own world, it is difficult to see the world around us. Many residents of the Adirondacks, live here because we appreciate the beauty and wonder of the natural world. I can't tell you how many of my local customers do not even own a television or computer. I think that they just value the interaction with nature, and their neighbors too much to allow themselves to become distracted by these modern devices. I find that conversations with my neighbors often lead to my own self assessment of my intolerance of others point of view. It is usually the visitor from urban areas that cause me to become frustrated with society and bad manners. Maybe as we try to figure out ways to attract more visitors to our area, in order to achieve economic growth, we should consider that the most important asset we have here is our willingness to engage one another respectfully, and to recognize that that quality may be our greatest core competence.

Restaurant and foodservice operators:you can use local to increase profits!

I got a call from Amy Ivy the other day. Amy is Executive Director/Horticulture Educator at cooperative extension in Clinton and Essex counties. She asked me if I would attend a meeting of chefs and farmers in Plattsburgh on February 13, 2013. I tried to locate the time and location of this meeting for this essay, but could not find it. Please contact Laurie Davis at Adirondack Harvest if you are interested in attending. She will be glad to give you the correct information. The purpose of the meeting is to introduce local chefs/operators of food service operations, to local farmers who would like to grow agricultural products and sell them locally. These products include produce, meats, maple, dairy, and eggs. I would like to tell you why you should consider buying these local products. 
 I run a restaurant in Saranac Lake called The Eat 'n Meet Grill and larder. I have used local agriculture in my restaurant and my career as a chef from day one. Since I have been in this business for over 25 years, I have many reasons for this choice. But profits and increased gross revenues have always been the foremost reason for this policy. This is exactly the same reason why many operators feel that they can not use local products. Many of the farmers that I do business with, say to me that operators most often will not do business with them, because they can not match the price of the major food service distributors that they buy from. Many operators also like the convenience of purchasing 100% of their products from one supplier. To me, this is a dangerous practice, because of the increasing risk of product shortages and recalls in the national food supply. How often have we heard about tainted lettuce or ground beef coming down through the supply chain? When this product is served in your operation, your customers lose trust in your choice of suppliers. 
   Can we afford to lose customers in this economy? Not hardly. In fact, I have to gain customers on a regular basis, to keep up with rising fixed costs like property taxes and fuel. I would bet that the operator that quibbles over a dollar or two more for a bag of local potatoes, keeps their ovens and grills burning all day, often with no product being prepared.
 My customers trust me because they know that I seek out relationships with my suppliers and do the homework that they would like to do themselves if they weren't so busy earning a living. They know that I only purchase from suppliers who have the best interest of their customers in mind. I do not purchase from someone just because they are local. There are unscrupulous people in every part of this country, but because of my proximity to the suppliers I use, I can form relationships with the best and most conscionable.
A bad reputation is much harder to overcome in a local environment.  
  And now back to the reason that I use local suppliers to increase gross revenue and profits. You see, the hospitality industry relies more on word of mouth advertising than just about any other. When you purchase products from local sources, you are much more likely to gain customers based on the increased exposure to local ties that those very suppliers have. For example, when I buy potatoes from Steve Tucker in Gabriels, or Ken Campbell in Saranac, I am reaching, via word of mouth the friends, family, and customer base of those suppliers. The people who trust those farmers to produce the food that they eat, are much more likely to trust them when they recommend my restaurant as well. Many local farmers like Michelle at Harmony Hills Farmstead and Rhonda at Asgaard Farm and Dairy maintain a presence at the local farmers market every Saturday in Saranac Lake, and Sunday in Keene Valley. I know that they are reaching my core customer base - folks who care about where their food comes from, much more often than I ever could, from my uptown location. People who don't mind paying a bit more for that peace of mind.
 If you spend 5% of your operating budget on advertising, and then scrimping on the quality of the product that you use, why not take a look at how you can reevaluate how you do business, and spend a little more on building local relationships with your suppliers, and a little less on those advertising costs. I bet that if you look around your operation, you could also economize on other costs as well. The benefit of spending those dollars locally, would probably surprise you. Best of luck to you all in the coming year, and I hope this letter has reminded you of why we got into this business in the first place, to serve our customers the best we can.

Tupper love

In an effort to expand the scope of New 'Dacks beyond Saranac Lake, I would like to address the ongoing debate about what to do with the now empty Oval Wood Dish factory in Tupper Lake. Since this is essentially a sales site (I am selling ideas to potential investors), I want to approach the challenge as such.
 The best sales pitches, those that result in action, are the ones that solve a problem or address a void in the market. I feel that my idea will do both. Tupper has a problem, in that they need good paying jobs, and they suffer from the loss of a once vibrant employer in Oval. Farmers have a problem, in that they are capable of producing (collectively) large quantities of product, but have a limited market for those products, and a limited ability to process and store their products.
 My idea is to develop the OWD factory into a regional cooperative processing plant for meat and vegetables. I envision a plant that can process all of the beef, pork, chicken and lamb in one section, and also process vegetables into frozen product that can extend the local availability to schools, hospitals, restaurants and markets throughout our region.
 Just imagine what it would do for Tupper Lake's economy to have great manufacturing jobs again. They would not be so vulnerable to the effect that the imminent loss of state jobs at Sunmount will cause. They would not be so desperate for controversial projects like the Adirondack Club and Resort project. Heck, they might even see real estate values rise, which would create equity for homeowners to reinvest in additional business ventures more suited to their needs.
 The entrepreneurs who create this facility, could create a Blue Line brand of products that are distributed throughout the world. A brand name like that would raise the awareness of the Adirondack Mountains in consumers minds. Agriculture could provide a new generation of college graduates with gainful employment, and self reliance. The American dream would be alive and well in the New'Dacks!

Winter brings out the best

Happy New Year! In light of the fact that my first two blog posts were fairly specific to Saranac Lake, I wanted to write a post that could be useful to friends outside of the Blue Line as well. So I figured that a quick recipe would suffice. By the way, I am glad to give anyone who would like it, recipe help and tips for success in your meal preparation. So feel free to send me your requests, and we will address them here.
  Since it is the middle of winter here in the 'Dacks, I figured that a recipe for a crock pot stew would be perfect. For those of you who want to get an early start to enjoying the great outdoors, this recipe will let you come home to a hearty satisfying meal at the end of the day. Pick up a crusty bread on the way home, and you are all set.
  I enjoy lamb or goat meat in this recipe, but you can substitute venison or beef if you wish.
                                                          Hearty meat stew
Serves 6

Ingredients:
2 lbs cubed stew meat of choice
1/2 stick butter
6 small onions
6-8 carrots
1 rutabega
3 stalks celery
1 medium can whole tomatoes in juice
4 cloves garlic
8 small potatoes
1 gallon water
1 cup flour
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Preparation:

• In a cast iron skillet or thick bottom fry pan, brown the meat cubes on medium heat in the butter.
• When browned on all  sides, put the meat into a large crock pot or stock pot.
• Peel the vegetables and cut into large pieces.
• Put the vegetables in the crock pot, with the garlic(minced) and tomatoes.
• Pour the water into the pan that you browned the meat in, and bring to a simmer, scraping the browned bits loose that are stuck to the bottom of the pan.
• Pour the liquid into the crock pot and cover. Turn on the crock pot to the lowest setting.
• Go out and have a great day, knowing that in about 6-8 hours your stew will be done.
• When you get home, you will be greeted with a house that smells incredible!
• To finish, mix a slurry of the flour and cold water to the consistency of smooth heavy cream.
• Pour this slurry into the hot stew and stir to thicken. Let the stew cook an additional 15 minutes and serve in a bowl with crusty bread. Don't forget to season with salt and pepper to taste before serving!

Enjoy this hearty stew with a nice glass of Burgundy - Pinot Noir.