recognize talents in others, train
kitchen staff, develop recipes
and “you must be able to read
a menu like a conductor reads
a musical score,” says Nicholas
Petti, chef/owner of Mendo
Bistro in Fort Bragg, Calif.
Lentchner, chef and general
manager at Marsha Brown
Creole Kitchen and Lounge
in New Hope, Pa., agrees. “I
love to emphasize that this is a
blue-collar industry,” Lentchner
says. “People have this idea that
being in bars and restaurants is
fun. That’s true, from the guests’
perspective. But for those in the
industry, it’s a hard job. That
doesn’t mean it isn’t fun some
of the time, but you have to be
geared up for long hours and
lots of pressure.”
Creativity and imagination are
traits needed to run all aspects
of a restaurant, including the
kitchen. Although, when it
comes to menu planning,
imagination is generally more
valuable. “There’s a lot of
pressure for restaurants to be
creative, but the truth is, most
diners don’t want creativity. They
want good food and service,”
says Petti.
Chefs who own restaurants don’t
necessarily have to run their
own kitchens. The food buck
stops with them, but they have a
kitchen manager overseeing the
day-to-day operation.
top: The Lazy Goat’s Lazy
Paella: calamari, prawns,
mussels, chorizo “Bomba” rice,
haricot verts and sofrito broth.
Bottom: At Bayou Bakery, Coffee
Bar and Eatery, guests enjoy a
variety of Southern sweets.
opposite: To run a successful
restaurant, owners must be flexible.
At Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar and
Eatery, David Guas does everything
from cleaning to sandwich prep.
culinary
concerns
A good restaurant starts, of
course, with good cooking. But
cooking skills aren’t the only
culinary talent needed to run a
restaurant. You need to be able to
That’s what Elizabeth Wiley
has done at The Meadowlark in
Dayton, Ohio. After 10 years as
one of three partners in another
restaurant, she opened her own
place six and a half years ago.
One of the first things she did
was hire someone to handle the
kitchen. She still runs the brunch
line, but Dave Rawson, co-chef/
kitchen manager, handles the rest
and does the kitchen scheduling.
Wiley runs the front of the house
with the help of a head server.
