Restaurant Owners Uncorked - By Schedulefly

Dave Query started Big Red F Restaurant Group in 1993 and has turned it into a highly successful business with five concepts and soon-to-be thirteen total locations. In the five years I've been interviewing restaurant owners, Dave has always been one of my favorites. He's transparent, honest, wise, and able to articulate his beliefs and philosophies as well as anybody I've come across in the business. In this interview, Dave and I discussed everything from choosing the right types of investors, to growth, to humility, to competition. Enjoy...

Rayme Rossello is a very positive and inspiring person, who first co-owned a restaurant in 1999. That restaurant was very successful and grew to 5 locations, but Rayme sold her share of the business to her partner to try something different. After an unsuccessful partnership in a french bistro, she questioned herself and what was next, even considering going back to waiting tables. Tune in to hear her inspiring story of starting Comida with her pink taco truck in Boulder in 2010 and growing that to two successful restaurant locations and a third on the way.

Van Nolintha began applying for jobs at the height of the recession after finishing both undergraduate school and graduate school. After being turned down nearly 300 times, he and his younger sister, Vanvisa, returned to his home country, Laos, to reconnect with their roots. Much of his early life centered around food, so when he returned to the U.S. to Raleigh, N.C., he decided to start a restaurant. He bought a copy of "How to Open a Restaurant for Dummies" and sent heartfelt emails to several of the most highly regarded restaurant owners in Raleigh, asking for advice and mentoring. They all agreed to help. In 2012, with little capital and lots of sweat, donations, and help from friends, Van and Vanvisa opened Bida Manda, and today it's one of the most loved restaurants in Raleigh. Of all of the stories I've heard from 5 years of interviewing restaurant owners, this is the most memorable...

Brent Bushong and his partners recently opened The Velveteen Habit, a quaint farmhouse on four acres of land, tucked into a small clearing in the woods two miles from the Maine coastline. This is not your typical restaurant. The group has a Head Gardener, and plans to source most of its produce from the one-acre garden. They may eventually have their own livestock. They have a bee hive. They are very committed to providing the freshest, local food prepare simply, with a modern interpretation of the food you'd have eaten in the same farm house in 1765. Added to that, after his time as a Marine, Brent has spent the majority of his working career in restaurants, working nearly every position and learning tons of wisdom along the way. We talked about the need to marry both passion and a strong work ethic, summoning significant self confidence in the face of obstacles and doubters, the value of humility, and the importance of taking the time to make all of the mistakes you can make before you are ready to truly su

Aaron Siegel opened the first Fiery Ron's Home Team BBQ in Charleston, SC in 2006. He opened the second location in 2009. Now, six years later, Aaron and his team are opening their third location. Aaron and I talked about everything from the national exposure Fiery Ron's has received (Esquire, The Food Network, etc.) from effective use of Instagram and other social media tools, to being forced out of his comfort zone when he went from chef to owner, to the romanticization of the restaurant business, to bridging the divide between FOH and BOH, to using mistakes made by staff as training moments. Aaron is a humble guy who has built a highly popular and successful business over the last six years, and he's worth paying attention to if you plan to start your own restaurant one day...

Seth Gross has been in the restaurant business for 27 years. He currently owns Bull City Burgers & Brewery as well as Pompieri Pizza, both in Durham, NC. One thing that's clear when you speak to Seth: he believes in standing for something. For instance, he only uses grass-fed beef for his burgers, and has vowed that if he ever has to resort to corn-fed beef, he will close his restaurant. He also won't use tomatoes on his burgers or pizzas during the winter months, because he can't get fresh, local tomatoes then. More examples abound in this really fun, inspiring conversation. And you'll also learn how he's been able to get customers to tattoo themselves with his logo. Enjoy....

Daniel Holzman co-owns The Meatball Shop in New York. Five years in, he and partner Michael Chernow have built a wildly successful 6-location business. Daniel has been featured on ountless broadcast segments including ABC’s Good Morning America, NBC’s TODAY Show, Chelsea Lately, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and VH1’s Big Morning Buzz. Additionally, he has been featured in an array of widely reaching local and national publications such as The New York Times, Food & Wine, Saveur, People, Food Network Magazine and GQ. But after all of that, one of the issues Daniel wanted to discuss was the difference between getting a customer to walk in your door because they have heard about you, and keeping that customer for life. We talked about all sorts of topics, but I focused a lot on the challenges of growth, remaining authentic as you expand, and why Daniel and Michael recently decided to devote 80% of their time to operations. Growth is great, but you have to solidify your foundation along the way to make that

Sean Degnan co-owns the very popular restaurant bu•ku in Raleigh, N.C. Five years into it, and Sean and his team are still paying close attention to their customers and flexibly making changes as they go. We discussed a wide variety of topics from finding the right business partner to finding the right landlord, but what really sticks out is Sean's humility and focus on learning from others. He has the right mindset to succeed long term in the tough restaurant business, and while he's only been an owner for five years, the wisdom he conveys is similar to what I often hear from owners who've been at it for decades. Enjoy...

Kristian Cosentino is opening Dirty Water, a highly anticipated restaurant in San Francisco. For the first time in the Restaurant Owners Uncorked podcast series, we spoke to an owner who hasn't opened his doors yet. But if you are interested in what it takes to start a restaurant, don't miss this conversation. Kristian has been planning Dirty Water for two years, and we discussed everything from overcoming doubters (and self-doubt), to why he decided to stop fulfilling other people's dreams and focus on fulfilling his own dreams, to finding the right type of landlord, to finding the right type of investors, to refining your business plan, to why it's always important to listen to your gut. This is a highly educational, fun conversation...

What do a rock band member, a bar owner, a music venue owner, and a restaurant owner have in common? Cheetie Kumar, that's what. Cheetie balances all of those things, and somehow does a great job all the way around. We spoke specifically about Garland, her restaurant, and also her newest venture. She's learned a ton in a little over a year since it opened, and we talked about everything from the difference between being a food lover (and cook) to being a restaurant owner, to the importance of good lease negotiation, to why it's crucial to be observant and anticipate problems before the arise. Cheetie is a very inspiring person, and you can't help but be inspired by her. Enjoy...

Paul Wise's father left his construction business in 1996 to start Christianos Pizza, and nearly twenty years later Paul and his siblings have grown and run the successful three-location business. Paul talks about always wanting to learn about the restaurant business, even though he's been involved with it since he was eleven years old. He offers great advice on learning not to grow too fast, how to ensure you have the right systems and processes in place before you grow, why it's so critical to invest into hiring the right kind of people, owing your building vs. leasing, great books for people interested in the restaurant business, and more. Paul is both a student of the game and a successful player, and this interview is chock full of good advice. Enjoy...

Woody Lockwood and his partners run three successful restaurants in Raleigh, N.C. and they are working on a second location for one of the three concepts. They value trusting each other and their team members, humbly working hard towards their goals, and only doing things they are passionate about. This is a refreshing, enjoyable interview with a guy who has had a tremendous amount of success, but finds a way to redirect attention and never shines the spotlight onto himself. He's easy-going, yet has a deep passion for his restaurants. You can't help but soak up wisdom and perspective when listening to Woody. Enjoy...

Sean Scott owns Subculture Coffee, with locations in West Palm Beach and Delray Beach in Florida. Sean and I spoke about everything from the trust and relationships formed between coffee buyers and the farmers they source their beans from, to the risks of bad weather harming coffee bean crops, to the trial and error of the craft of roasting great coffee, to the importance of having six or more months of working capital when you open your doors, to how everything takes longer than you plan and costs more than you plan when you are starting your first location. This is a very wide-ranging conversation, and Sean offers tons of wisdom and advice for anybody interested not just in coffee, but in the mentality it takes to succeed in the restaurant business. Enjoy...

Bret Oliverio took over Sup Dogs in Greenville, NC in 2011 after his brother, who started the restaurant, tragically passed away. Bret had no restaurant experience and had to learn everything from how to tap a keg, how to manage his staff, how to implement portion controls, how to generate consistent profits, how to ... well, how to do EVERYTHING it takes to run a successful restaurant. Four years later, SUP Dogs is doing extremely well, and opened it's second location two hours away in Chapel Hill, NC nine months ago. Bret shares his story and the lessons he's learned along the way, as well as discusses how he only has four years of experience and still has a lot to learn. This is an absolutely fantastic interview with a guy who has overcome a lot of hurdles. Bret is a hard-working, sharp guy who expects a lot of himself, but has no ego about his success. Enjoy...

Kenneth Cribb is one of the owners of Willy Taco in Spartanburg, S.C. and he's one of the hardest working owners I've ever come across. I had the honor filming him for our video series, and he worked his tail off all day, from bussing tables to filling water glasses to running food to coaching his team members to a dozen other things, and he did it with genuine passion and enthusiasm. In this interview, we talk about his leadership style, working in the business and on the business, why being closed on Mondays is important to Willy Taco's success, the market research he and his four partners did, the balance of veteran wisdom and youthful energy he and his partners share, and why he views snow days as a win for his restaurant. Enjoy...

Keith Santangelo moved to NYC when he was 18 years old and started waiting tables. He had worked his way up to being a very successful GM at Bourbon Street Bar & Grill starting in 2009, and last year his owners called to see if he'd like to buy the restaurant. His dream came true, and now he and a partner are doing a phenomenal job with a New Orleans-themed restaurant near near the theater district and Times Square in NYC. Keith talks about that phone call, the transition from GM to owner and how that changes things, why he hires on character vs. on technical skills, why restaurants have to spend time finding their identity, the "cornerstones of success" in the restaurant business, and more. Keith is a great guy and a successful restaurateur. Enjoy...

Scott Maitland has owned Top of the Hill Restaurant & Brewery in Chapel Hill, NC for nearly twenty years. He's an incredibly sharp businessman and entrepreneur, and this interview turned into what amounted to a full-on class session on the mindset you need to have when opening a restaurant and how to raise money for it. 95% of the advice would apply to any entrepreneur, and you simply don't want to miss this conversation if you have any interest in raising money and starting a successful restaurant.

Julien and his wife Lisa started the wildly successful Riverside Market & Cafe without a business plan and bucked conventional wisdom from day one. It's one of the most memorable restaurants I've ever visited, from the honor system for bottled beers, to the couches and wing back chairs located in the middle of the restaurant, to their absolute trust in organic, word-of-mouth growth and relying on team members from all walks of life. On any given day, you'll run into anybody from a billionaire to a misguided skateboarder to a life guard to an out of work poet, all hanging out and enjoying the relaxed, inviting atmosphere and the delicious food. Don't miss this episode - you'll most likely never hear any other owner share the same philosophies as Julien.

Jake and his wife Shannon own Capital Club 16, one of the best and most respected restaurants in Raleigh, N.C. Jake talks about his restaurant being an extension of his home, leading by example, transitioning from being a chef to being an owner, treating his staff like family, and other ways he and Shannon have built an impressive following of loyal customers and long-term, happy staff. You can find them at www.capitalclub16.com.

Tad discusses why he and his partners set out to create institutions in their communities where the single unit economics work on their own, why Joe's Real BBQ gives away 6,000 free meals one day each year, why they offer aggressive employee benefits, and more.