Case Studies
Ali Amundson
Company: Uncorked—The Unpretentious Wine Bar
Position: Owner/Managing Member Operator
Address: 16427 N. Scottsdale Rd.
Ste.130
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
Phone: 480-699-9230
Fax: 480-699-9239
Background
Ali Amundson has been in the restaurant industry for 20 years and in restaurant management for 7 years. She worked in many other restaurants before the restaurant she owns, Uncorked—The Unpretentious Wine Bar. Her first job in the hospitality industry was as a salad bar stocker and cashier at a Sizzler Steak House when she was a junior in high school. She decided to become a restaurant manager because of her personal and professional drive to move up in companies. Uncorked opened in October 2005, a year after she married her husband Tim.
Although opening a restaurant in your first year of marriage is not recommended, it helps to have an understanding husband like Tim!
Career
Ali now owns her own restaurant, Uncorked—The Unpretentious Wine Bar where she manages seven employees. Her ideal employee possesses the ability to be on time, has an outstanding work ethic, and a pride in what they do. She believes being able to multitask and delegate responsibilities is what it takes to be a good manager. Her qualities that help in her management career are being very hands on and setting a good example by doing everything that she asks of her employees. Her specific management style is to watch and observe and then make suggestions that will help correct situations. Something unique she does when managing is to work with her employees instead of them only working for her.
The toughest lesson Ali has learned so far in her management career is that when you are on salary rather than hourly pay, you end up working way over 45 hours every week. When she first started in management, she wishes someone had told her not to be a pushover or let her employees walk all over her. She wasn’t really given any advice when she started in management.
Ali is very proud of her wine bar which she managed to open at the age of 38 after six years of planning. Her estimated sales from 2006 were $320,000. Her goal for the next five or ten years is to have her wine bar be successful financially as well as being able to expand or sell her business.
Restaurant Information
Uncorked—The Unpretentious Wine Bar serves bistro type food that goes well with wine. The restaurant is open Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 10 a.m., Thursday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight, and closed on Sunday. Their busiest hour varies everyday and every week. Reservations are accepted but they do not have valet parking available. They serve wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages (soda, coffee, tea, and bottled water to name a few). They also offer the full menu to go and catering.
According to Ali, the cozy atmosphere and great service are what set the restaurant apart to draw in clientele. She says it is like being in your own living room. They also offer one television in the restaurant. The age group that seems to recommend the restaurant is 25 to 55.
All of the restaurant’s food arrives fresh on a daily basis and Ali hand picks the produce from local groceries. Pricing has never had to be adjusted due to competition and their customer checks do not include a gratuity. She has found the best way to keep costs down is by weekly inventory control and keeping food and wine spoil and waste sheets.
When it comes to her staff, the most important trait Ali looks for is a superstar work ethic. She has had to step in for her staff before. Being a small establishment she does it all. There is not an official host or hostess on staff, but everyone who is working greets each person who walks through the door. Bouncers are not needed for the restaurant. The staff is required to follow a dress code of black tops and black pants or jeans. Men are not required to wear ties.
Outside companies are hired to do accounting and payroll for the restaurant. They use a P.O.S. (Point of Sale) system to print the reports of daily records. Dishes are cleaned with a high temperature under-counter dishwasher.
Although they do not reward frequent diners, they will sometimes give their regular customers a percent off their bill. Coupons are offered in advertising (the Savvy Shopper).
Ali says that Uncorked—The Unpretentious Wine Bar has fulfilled her dream of what it should be, even though she would like it to be twice as busy! When asked if she would do it all over again if she had the chance, Ali said yes, but only if she had more money in the beginning to work with.
Advice Tidbits
I don’t know about managers, but for potential restaurant owners, I would say don’t even entertain the fact of opening your own place unless you do years of research and know a lot about the business, preferably working in it for several years! It is so much more than investing a lot of money, hiring employees, and opening the doors. It is also best to concentrate a large part of your efforts on constantly coming up with new ways to build your business and keep increasing sales. It is very important to keep your “regulars” coming back-they are what will “make or break” your business.
Jay Johnson
Company: Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon
Position: Owner
Address: 2121 SW Pine Island Road
Cape Coral, FL 33991
E-mail: bubbasroadhouse@excite.com
Phone: 239-282-5520
Fax: 239-282-5523
Background
Jay Johnson has been in the restaurant industry for 27 years and in management for 20 of those years. Besides Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon, Jay has also worked at Brown Derby, McDonalds, and Sheraton Hotels. His first job in the hospitality field was as a dishwasher at Brown Derby in Cleveland, Ohio. He decided to become a restaurant manager because it was a family tradition. He graduated the University of Denver with a major in Hotel and Restaurant Management. He worked for ITT Sheraton in Hawaii, Seattle, Miami, Orlando, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Tucson. He left being the hotel manager at Sheraton to move to Florida and start his own business.
Career
Jay now owns his own restaurant, Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon, where he manages 50 employees. He says the qualities his ideal employee possesses are a willingness to please the customer, quick thinking, a willingness to work hard, and a nice personality.
He believes it takes many things to be a good manager including: a firmness while being fair, an ability to adjust to any situation, an understanding of accounting and how every area of business interacts with each other (marketing, human resources, and finance), and being able to treat people as individuals knowing that what works with one person may not work with another.
Understanding and the ability to adapt to each situation are the qualities he possesses that help him in his management career. His specific management style is to be very open and honest. He treats his employees as he would like to be treated himself.
The toughest lesson Jay has learned in management has been to approach each situation with an open mind. When he first started in management he wishes he had been told to treat his employees right because they would take care of him and to take time for himself. His best piece of advice he was given when first starting was to listen to his employees.
Jay’s goal for the next few years is to continue to build the business. His estimated 2006 sales were $2 million. Something he is very proud of is that Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon hosted President Carter and his family for dinner in 2005.
Restaurant Information
Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon is a steakhouse that serves hand-cut steaks, barbeque ribs, chicken, and seafood. The restaurant is open from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and their busiest hour is 5 p.m. They do accept reservations but do not offer valet parking. Alcohol is served and is considered an important aspect to the business. They also do catering. Jay says being a local roadhouse with fresh food and drink sets them apart to draw in their clientele. They also have live music on Friday and Saturday nights. They are a member of their local Chamber of Commerce.
The age group that seems to prefer Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon is the 40 and up group. Customer checks do not include the gratuity. They do not reward their frequent diners nor do they offer coupons in their advertising.
About 5 percent of the foods arriving at Bubba’s are frozen and 95 percent arrives fresh. They do not buy their fresh foods locally. Jay says they have never had to adjust their pricing due to their competition and that the best way to keep costs down is to order smart and keep waste to a minimum.
The most important traits Jay looks for in his wait staff are a good smile and friendliness. He has had to step in for members of his staff before. They do have a host/ hostess, but they do not have managerial duties over the other staff members. They do not require bouncers. The staff does have to follow a dress code of a Bubba’s Roadhouse & Saloon shirt, jeans, and black non-slip shoes but the men are not required to wear ties. He does use flex scheduling. He evaluates his wait staff by their demeanor with the guests and fellow co-workers, knowledge of the menu, and sales ability.
Outside companies are hired to wash the towels and sharpen the knives for the restaurant. A computer is used to keep the daily records. The kitchen has all the equipment needed and no make-do is required. A machine is used to wash the dishes. To reduce accidents in the restaurant, all staff members are required to wear non-slip shoes.
When asked if he had to do it all over again, Jay responded he would in a heartbeat.
Roy B. Assad
Company: Leila Restaurant
Position: Managing Partner (Owner)
Address: 120 S. Dixie Highway
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
E-Mail: roy@leilawpb.com
Web: www.leilawpb.com
Phone: 561-659-7373
Fax: 561-833-9417
Background
Roy B. Assad has been in management for 15 years, in the restaurant industry for three years, and in restaurant management for all three years. Besides Leila, Roy also owned and operated L’Opera Brasserie. He decided to become a restaurant manager because he owned the restaurant.
Roy is a professional advisor, motivational speaker, and executive coach. With nearly 30 years experience in an award-winning sales career, he has mastered the arts of networking, negotiation, and bridge-building. These skills have enhanced his effectiveness in the coaching of executives and entrepreneurs.
In 1990, Roy formed Rainmaker Strategies, a motivational speaking firm. Today he is a partner in the Human Capital Group, a four member executive coaching and consulting firm, and a managing partner/ owner in Leila Restaurant, both of which are located in West Palm Beach, Florida. He also participates in numerous boards and committees and holds positions in some of them. These include: Board Chairman, Downtown Development Authority of West Palm Beach; Board of Directors, Conventions & Visitors Bureau; and Board Member, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
His areas of expertise are personal development, leadership training, effective networking, art of negotiation, emotional intelligence, communication skills, financial coaching, sales training, keynote addresses, and strategic thinking.
Career
At Leila Restaurant, Roy manages 20 employees. His ideal employee possesses awareness and presence. He believes a good manager should possess leadership qualities. His experience in motivating people and helping them see the value of the role they play are what make him a good manager. His specific management style includes inspiring and continually educating his staff. Something unique he does is consider his employees his most valuable asset.
The toughest lesson Roy learned was that it is just not that easy. The one thing he wished he had been told when he started in management was to have plenty of cash on the side. The best piece of advice that he was given was to find quality people and then hold on to them.
Leila’s won many awards its first year in business and turned a profit the second year. In the next five to ten years, Roy wants to make sure they grow their people to the next level and to create a restaurant that can be duplicated.
Roy was named one of 55 Most Fascinating People in Palm Beach County by Palm Beach Illustrated and was also named one of the most powerful people by South Florida CEO.
A change that they implemented at Leila’s was changing the management and it coming out successful. They are currently in the process of changing their head chef.
Leila’s 2006 estimated sales were $1.4 million.
Restaurant Information
Leila Restaurant serves Middle Eastern cuisine. They are members of their local Chamber of Commerce as well as many of local organizations. They are open for lunch from 11:30 p.m. till 2:30 p.m. and dinner from 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. every day. Their busiest hour starts at 7 p.m. and they do accept reservations. The do not require bouncers nor do they have valet parking. They serve beer and wine, but Roy doesn’t believe alcohol is an important aspect to the business.
The ambiance, cuisine, and culture are what set Leila’s apart to draw in its clientele. In the evenings they have a belly dancer performance. They occasionally will cater.
All of the food at the restaurant arrives fresh and they do purchase some of it from local vendors. Roy describes the cuisine as fresh and healthy. His markup is 3 times. He says he has never had to adjust prices because of competition, but has found the best way to keep costs down is to be present often.
When a customer is unsatisfied with the service, food, or atmosphere of Leila Restaurant, Roy will comp their meal with no questions asked. There is not really a specific age group that prefers the restaurant. Frequent diners are recognized, but they do not offer any coupons in their advertising. Customer checks do not include a gratuity.
When it comes to his wait staff, the most important trait Roy looks for is cleanliness and a great attitude. Roy has had to help his wait staff before, but has never had to step in for a chef. They do have a host/ hostess and to some degree that staff member does have certain managerial duties over other employees. The staff is required to follow a dress code but they do not require the men to wear ties. Roy does not use flex scheduling. To handle staff arguments Roy works on preventing them from even happening. The chef is responsible for evaluating the kitchen staff and the wait staff is evaluated through a system that measures attendance, timeliness, and results.
Roy uses a computer to keep up with the daily records of the Leila Restaurant. He contracts many outside professional services. The kitchen has all the equipment needed and dishes are cleaned by machine. To reduce accidents they have instituted many maintenance measures.
Roy believes Leila Restaurant has reached his goal of what he wanted it to be and when asked if he would do this all over again if he had the chance he said for sure, over and over.
Advice Tidbits
Everyone in the organization must be respected and appreciated from the dishwasher to the executive chef; if that is the culture people stay.
Stephanie Morley
Company: Ninety-Nine Restaurant
Position: Assistant Manager
Address: 20 MacArthur Blvd.
Coventry, RI 02816
E-mail: Smorin11@cox.net
Phone: 401-615-1673
Background
Stephanie Morley has been in the restaurant industry for 12 years. She has been in management for nine of those years. Currently, she is assistant manager for Ninety-Nine Restaurant. She’s been the assistant manager there for two years. Besides the Ninety-Nine, she has also work at Appetite’s Family Restaurant and TGI Fridays. Her first job in the hospitality field was at Appetite’s Family Restaurant as a cashier and waitress. The reason she got into management is that she loved the pace of the restaurant and dealing with customers and knew there was a great potential for advancement.
Career
Stephanie does not own her own restaurant, but as assistant manager at the Ninety-Nine, she manages around 65 employees. Her ideal employee is hardworking and energetic and cares about the guests. She believes patience, understanding, consistency, and accountability are what it takes to be a good manager. Stephanie says she is a very hard worker who cares about her guests and employees. She enjoys working around food and loves teaching others new things. She says all these things are what make her a good manager.
I am tough and expect a lot from my employees but as long as they are doing the right thing, I like to have fun too.
Something unique Stephanie does when it comes to managing her employees is playing games and having contests on a daily basis. The toughest lesson she has learned while in management has been that everyone is different.
You have to handle each person in a different way while still being consistent across the board.
Something Stephanie has done in her management career so far that she is proud of is the long way she has come in dealing with employee relations and how she has learned through doing. She recently implemented some new policies involving the handling of guest complaints. She also has helped in many changes with the organization of the management staff.
In the next five to ten years Stephanie would like to become a general manager of a Ninety-Nine Restaurant (there are currently 122 locations). She would eventually like to be a training general manager and run a successful store.
Restaurant Information
Ninety-Nine Restaurant serves American food—mainly steaks and seafood—and they are famous for their boneless buffalo wings. Their estimated 2006 sales are about $1,600,000. There are currently 122 locations of the Ninety-Nine Restaurant throughout New England, New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. Stephanie’s store is open on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday they are open from 11:30 a.m. to midnight. On Sundays, they are open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 pm. Their busiest hour is from 5:30 to 6:30.
They do serve alcohol and it is important to their business as it is currently 19 percent of sales. Their goal is to bring it up to 22 percent of their sales. Stephanie says that their family atmosphere and the huge variety of their great food is what sets their restaurant apart and draws clients in. Although they do not cater, they do offer platters for takeout. They do not take reservations, but do accept call-ahead seating. The age group that seems to prefer the restaurant is 30 to 45 year olds.
Stephanie describes the Ninety-Nine Restaurant cuisine as American steaks, seafood, chicken, pasta dishes—just a little bit of everything. Most of the food arrives frozen; the ribeye and haddock arrive fresh. Not much of the fresh food is bought locally, most come from the Ninety-Nine Commissary. Their markup is 66 percent on most of their food items.
They have not really adjusted prices because of competition. This is because the prices are done on the corporate level. They do some price tiers based on different regions. Stephanie says the best way for them to keep their costs down is by following a declining balance budget.
Customers of the Ninety-Nine Restaurant sometimes receive coupons in advertising. The advertising is mailed to homes in area twice a year. They do not reward frequent diners. When it comes to customers being dissatisfied with their service, food, or atmosphere, Stephanie says they do the following to satisfy them.
Get them what they want as far as food and if they cannot be satisfied then we don’t let them pay for their meal. As far as service, ensure that you apologize and make it a point to give them a gift card or free appetizer card to return on a future visit and have them ask for you (or another manager) when they come back in—and be sure they have a wonderful visit. As far as atmosphere, change the television station or the air conditioning to make them happy unless it is not feasible.
When it comes to her employees, Stephanie the most important trait she looks for in her wait staff is friendliness, a nice smile, and a good attitude. The managers in her store are required to cook at least one shift every two weeks to keep them up on the specs and help keep a good relationship with the kitchen staff. They do have a host/hostess, but they do not have any managerial duties over the other staff. Stephanie says they are the most inexperienced in the restaurant. The employees are required to wear a uniform shirt and black or khaki pants. They do not require the men to wear ties.
To evaluate the kitchen staff, they have semi-annual reviews that allow the managers to choose a specific measurement of specific categories of performance (for example, needs improvement, meets expectations, or exceeds expectation). The wait staff is also reviewed in the same manner, but with daily and weekly audits done as well.
To reduce accidents, they follow the safety procedures as well as they have a safety committee. When there are staff arguments or troubles, management will mediate between the parties involved and make decisions, trying to squash the problem before it goes too far.
They do hire outside help for things like laundry, cleaning, baking, and accounting. They do use a computer to keep their records. The system polls automatically overnight. The kitchen does have 99 percent of all the equipment it needs, unless something happens to break. They wash dishes using a machine with industrial strength sanitizers.
Stephanie says Ninety-Nine is getting there as far as fulfilling the dream of where it should be. If she had to do it all over again, she said she would.
Jaime Miller
Company: Remember That Chef, In Home Dining & Personal Chef Services
Position: Chef/Owner
Address: 40 Grandville Ave. Ste, 1510
Hamilton Ontario L8E 1J7
E-mail: Jaime@rememberthatchef.ca
Phone: 905-560-6924
Fax: 905-560-9795
Background
Jaime Miller is the chef and owner of Remember That Chef in Canada. It is an in-home dining and personal chef service (catering). He has been in the restaurant industry for over 20 years and in management for six years so far. Besides his current restaurant, he has also worked at Bo Chins, Royal York Hotel, Holiday Inn, Liuna Gardens Banquet Center, Kelsey’s Road House, Good Sheppard, Stinson House Bistro, La Boheme Bistro, and Emma’s Back Porch Bar and Grill. His first job in the hospitality field was at Bo Chins Chinese as a prep cook where he says he learned how not to cut his fingers with a cleaver! He decided to become a manager because of the ability to take charge and to be able to do food the way he felt it should be done.
Many places I’ve watched them just plate food with no consistency or it looks unappealing when it goes out. People pay good money for their food. I’d take the extra five minutes and plate it right. Also I want them to remember us and come again.
Career
Jaime manages 10 to 15 employees at Remember That Chef. The qualities his ideal employee possesses are honesty, being on time and dressed in uniform when arriving to work, being approachable, and having a willingness to learn.
He believes a sense of humor, willingness to teach, patience,
understanding, and respect are what it takes to be a good manager. He says the qualities he has that help him in his management career are: understanding, listening, teaching, respect, and the ability to admit he is wrong. His management style is being straightforward. Something he does that is unique in his management is having fun and working as a team.
The toughest lesson Jaime has had to learn while in management is taking orders from people who really didn’t know what they were talking about. When he first started in management the advice he wishes he was given was to not talk back even if he was right.
When I was the chef at the Good Sheppard after a year and a half it felt like the more I did the more they wanted. When told that one person didn’t like liver, I was told to take it off the menu. The other 30 tenants still ate the liver. Three months later my boss asked me why there was no liver. I told her that she had requested not to serve it again. Her response was NO I never said that, but start serving it again. So I put it back on the menu and had to serve another meat for the ones that didn’t like liver. After three years there they let me go. Why? Because I wasn’t putting up with their politics and they said I had a bad attitude toward some tenants.
His best piece of advice he was given when he first started was to treat the tenants like they were normal people. The place he worked in, The Good Sheppard, was for people who had disabilities. These people were almost to the point they could go live out on their own, but still needed consulting which they provided 24 hours a day.
While Jaime was at The Good Sheppard, he was acknowledged for his clean kitchen always passing inspection and for the food. So far at Remember That Chef, the clients are raving about the food. He has testimonials from his clients acknowledging the food (you can see some of these on his Web site). Something he has accomplished so far in his career and that is he proud of has been opening his own business while other people laughed at him and told him he was wasting his money and time. He did it anyway.
Slowly I’m building my business and learning from my mistakes.
Jaime’s goal for the coming years is to expand his Remember That Chef business so that it becomes a household word.
Restaurant Information
Remember That Chef’s hours are based on when their client’s events take place. They are usually busiest during 3 and 7 p.m. The menus are tailored to their customer’s likes and dislikes. They go their clients home and prepare their meal. Alcohol is served if the client provides it, and any activity such as musicians or clowns are provided if the client would like. Most of their clients are 30 years old and over. Remember That Chef is a member of the Burlington Chamber of Commerce and are members of the Canadian Personal Chef Alliance.
Jaime describes the cuisine they serve as bistro to fine dining. All of the foods used to prepare the dishes are bought fresh the day of the event. They have local suppliers.
Our fruit and vegetables are purchased from organic and local farms in the area. (Farm Fresh) Meats are from Nardni’s Specialty and the seafood is from Dave’s Fish Market.
To keep costs down, Jaime shops at the Bulk Barn and purchases food from local suppliers. He has reduced his prices to compete with competition before.
I’m very flexible with prices. I try and work with the customer.
Although he has not had any customers unhappy with their service or food, Jaime says if they did, he would offer them a dinner for free. He rewards a client after five bookings with him by giving them a free dinner for two. They do not yet offer coupons in advertising.
The most important traits Jaime looks for in his wait staff is being able to work independently, friendliness, and dependability. His servers and bartenders are required to wear white dress shirt, black dress pants, and a bow tie or black tie. The chefs are required to wear a chef jacket and black or design-patterned pants. Jaime has had to step in for an employee before.
One time I was doing a wedding for 25 people in their home. I arrived at 1 p.m. to start the preparation of the food. My server was to be there at 3 p.m. to start with the hor’dourves. At 3:30 I called her thinking she might have gotten lost or was running behind. Her boyfriend said he would pass the message on and have her call me. No reply! She never showed up so I also become the host. Thankfully, some of the guests that attended their wedding helped out in the kitchen and helped clean up! I received an unbelievable testimonial from them. To view their testimonials visit my Web site www.rememberthatchef.ca under testimonial from Diane.
Jaime evaluates his kitchen staff by their knowledge of the food, how well they work and clean (an example is whether they wipe food from the table onto the floor instead of into the trash), and by any comments he receives from clients on their performance. For his wait staff he evaluates their cleaning and from the comments received from clients on their performance. To handle staff squabbles, he will ask the parties involved to go get a cup of coffee and then meet him in his office so they can sit down and talk.
There are always three sides to a story. I’ll listen to both sides of their story and then give my opinion. Most of the time we all end up laughing at the problem.
To wash the dishes most times he uses the dishwasher of the client, unless they do not have one. As for his equipment, he says most of the time the clients have the pots and pans on hand to use. Occasionally he has had to bring along a cuisiart.
I always bring my bag of herbs and spices, knives, vinegars and oils, meat terminator, and other kitchen gadgets. My bag weighs about 25 to 30 pounds. You never know what to expect going into someone’s home.
When asked if his business had fulfilled everything he felt it should be, Jaime said since he is everything from the bookkeeper to the chef, he doesn’t believe so because there is still a lot of learning for him to do. Finally, when Jaime was asked if he had to do it all over again would he, he replied yes.
Owning your own business is the way to go. Mind you I would have learned not to make so many mistakes in the beginning.
Advice Tidbits
Do not yell at someone in public. If there’s a problem take them back into the office. Many times I have been myself and seen others being yelled at in the restaurant or in the kitchen in front of the public or staff. Never do it in the restaurant! What are your customers going to think? In the kitchen why embarrass them? If the manager has something to say do it behind doors. No one likes being yelled at especially in view of customers or staff.
