Kat Cole, COO, Cinnabon, Inc., was honored at the 2010 Georgia Restaurant Association’s Crystal of Excellence Awards (GRACE) with the Distinguished Service Award.

Kat Cole has spent a career building an international brand and mentoring countless women, and now she is on a new adventure as COO for Cinnabon, the market leader among cinnamon roll bakeries that operates more than 770 franchised locations worldwide.

Prior to her role with FOCUS Brands at Cinnabon, Inc., was Vice President of Training and Development for Hooters of America, Inc., the international company that operates and franchises restaurants and manages the Hooters Brand Entities and generated approximately $1 billion in annual revenue.

It’s where she got her start in the restaurant industry. She was first hired as a hostess at a Hooters in Jacksonville because she wasn’t yet old enough to be a Hooters Girl and serve alcohol in the state. As soon as she turned 18, however, she went through her first day of training to become a Hooters Girl.

She has built on that first day of training with more than a decade of multi-disciplined experience, Kat is widely known in and outside of her industry for mentorship and development, and is a sought-after speaker and consultant in the field of leadership development, strategic communications, personal branding, and leveraging social media and technology to enhance brands, professional networks and philanthropic initiatives.

Her own philanthropic involvement includes serving on the board of directors of the Women’s Foodservice Forum and the Certification Governing Board for the NRAEF. She is also chair of the board of directors for the GRA and is president of the GRA-PAC. She is an avid volunteer with organizations that support women and children in need and fighting hunger and homelessness. On top of all that, she is currently pursing her MBA at Georgia State University, and is set to graduate this December.

What restaurant industry means to Georgia: It is a foundation upon which this state’s culture and economy is built. Whether it’s the actual “business” of this industry and the many chains that have grown here, or the mere act of gathering at a great Georgia eatery with friends and family, dining in Georgia is a foundation of all of our families, our business lives and our economy. It is comfort, not only in what it provides by way of sustenance, but also by way of being a workplace with arms open wide to all those who have the “want to” to serve others.

Major trends: Innovations that lead to capturing market share and providing cost savings will be top priority. Surviving by acquiring or being acquired, running lean or changing your business model. Also, customer service and volunteerism will increase. Now more than ever, our guests need an escape from reality, and our industry is always the go-to place in tough times. Those operators who master service inside their four walls and out will no doubt be more successful long term, even through tough times.  And lastly, green initiatives will continue to grow and be a focus of consumers – not only to reduce the carbon footprint of our operations, but to support local industry that is so vulnerable to market fluctuations.

Industry’s most pressing challenges: Customers having the disposable income to spend in our restaurants, regulatory changes (food safety, healthcare, employment law, banking), and exterior expenses as an employer (taxes, healthcare, wages) that may cause local restaurants to go out of business.

Advice to those just starting out: Take care of the employee first, then the customer; treat it like it’s your own business; and SAVE MONEY! If you’re not sure what to do, always ask these three questions: Is it good for my guests? Is it good for my employees? Is it good for my business?  If the answer is yes to all three, then do it!

Greatest accomplishment: My greatest accomplishments are the people I have mentored and developed. They have taught me so much about myself and life and are the very reasons I am able to do all the volunteer work that I do. I am also proud of my work with food banks across the country and in places like Rwanda to elevate and educate women. This industry has been very good to me, and it’s the least I can do to give back every chance I get.

Bob Campbell, CEO of Tappan Street Restaurant Group, Inc., was honored at the 2010 Georgia Restaurant Association’s Crystal of Excellence Awards (GRACE) with the Restaurateur of the Year Award.

Campbell has spent most of his restaurant career building Taco Mac from just one location into a regional concept. Born in Tallahassee but raised in Germantown, Tenn., outside of Memphis, Bob received his business degree from Auburn University. He got his first job in the restaurant industry while in Auburn, working the counter at “Momma Goldberg’s Deli.”

While in school, Campbell started traveling to Atlanta on weekends and breaks to serve and bartend at Taco Mac. After graduation, he was appointed manager of Taco Mac and promoted to general manager in 1992.

Over the next five years, Campbell helped open and manage multiple Taco Mac locations, and in 1999 co-founded Tappan Street Restaurant Group, Inc. and assumed rights to the Taco Mac name. Today, he currently manages 25 Taco Mac restaurants in three states, and there are plans for continued regional growth. A new concept in Atlanta, Deckard’s Kitchen & Kegs, also launched in September 2010.

Campbell is a board member of the GRA, chair of its marketing committee, and board member of its political action committee as well as a board member for Camp Twin Lakes.

What restaurant industry means to Georgia: Jobs, jobs and more jobs. Where else can someone with a Ph.D. work next to someone with barely a high school education? In good economic times and bad, people look to restaurants to fulfill or supplement his or her income through some form of service job within a restaurant.

Industry’s most pressing challenges: Besides weathering the economy, legislative action at the local, state and federal level becomes the most daunting issue of the future. First, as tax revenues fall in a souring economy, government will continue to find new ways to tax businesses. With the restaurant industry being one of the largest industries in Georgia, we are certain to draw the attention from taxing authorities. Secondly, with the current trend towards combating America’s growing waistline, the restaurant industry as a whole will be the focus of much legislative attention.

Advice to those just starting out: Stick it out. There are a great number of opportunities in this industry if someone is willing to work. It is also an industry that very much allows someone to create his or her own opportunities. There are countless stories of restaurateurs who have worked his or her way up from the bottom. Anyone from any walk of life can be a success in the restaurant business. In a sense the restaurant business gives many people the chance at the American dream.

Key to success: Taco Mac caters to such a variety of people with diverse backgrounds. Someone in a suit can be sitting next to someone in shorts and a T-shirt and still feel comfortable in our restaurants. With our price point and product quality, customers also feel they are getting good value for his or her dollar. The sports we show on TV also create a sometimes much-needed diversion from the stresses of a troubled economy.

Nancy and Mark Oswald, Co-Owners – Franchisees, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, were honored at the 2010 Georgia Restaurant Association’s Crystal of Excellence Awards (GRACE) with the Lifetime Achievement Award.  Here we look back at their careers in hospitality along with their viewpoints about the industry and their work.

Nancy got started in the restaurant industry more than 30 years ago, when she worked directly with New Orleans’ Grande Dame of Service and Hospitality, Ella Brennan. Ella took her under her wing and taught Nancy all aspects of running a restaurant, from scheduling servers and restructuring the banquet sales department, to running the in-house advertising agency and working with Chef Paul Prudhomme to get his recipes out of his head and down on paper.

“Undoubtedly, one of the most important things Ella, and later Ruth Fertel [the “Ruth” in Ruth’s Chris Steak House], taught me was to diversity my experience and skills, to know every department in the organization and cross-train wherever and whenever I could,” Nancy says.

For Mark, his first introduction to the industry was a summer job in the bakery of a state hospital, but it wasn’t until his college years at Tulane University, when he began running his fraternity kitchen and making money with it, that he realized he was a good fit for the field. His first full-time, permanent job post-college? Commander’s Palace, where he met Nancy.

Since then, the two moved to Atlanta and after a stint working for the Liberty House Restaurant Corporation launched Sizzling Steak Concepts. The franchise group successfully opened eight Ruth’s Chris Steakhouses and operates nine locations.

In April 2010, Mark and Nancy formed Steak House Concepts, LLC for the purpose of opening additional Ruth’s Chris restaurants. In May of this year, they purchased the Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and has also purchased development rights for a Ruth’s Chris restaurant in Charleston, S.C.

“We have been incredibly fortunate to have Ruth Fertel and Ella Brennan as role models and mentors. What they both taught us above all else is to be collaborative and to not let egos get in the way of progress,” Mark says. “Both Ella and Ruth demonstrated by example that if you put the success of the team first, personal success will most certainly follow. They also showed by example that it was critical to be passionate about whatever you were doing (or do something else!).”

The pair have received numerous awards, including the 2008 Ruth U. Fertel Award by Ruth’s Hospitality Group, the highest accolade the company bestows. Their franchise is also the only one to have won the Franchise Leadership Team of the Year Award twice, in 2006 for its Atlanta/Centennial Park location and in 2008 for its Birmingham spot. Nancy was also named the 2005 Volunteer of the Year by the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACVB).

The two are active in their community, with Nancy serving on the committee for the Luckie-Marietta District and on the executive board of the ACVB.

Industry’s most pressing challenges: The state of the economy and the pressure on consumers’ pocketbooks continue to be challenges for every industry. More specifically, heightened issues of concern for the hospitality industry are governmental mandates legislating how we conduct business day-to-day and the on-going need to recruit new generations of leaders.

How they’d like their contribution to the Georgia restaurant industry to be remembered: We hope we have helped demonstrate that owning a restaurant—for any of us—is a POSSIBLE dream. Our industry provides many opportunities for advancement and a welcome point of entry to business ownership. It rewards hard work and determination as long as you are willing to take a few calculated risks along the way.

Greatest accomplishment: Professionally, watching the people within our franchise develop, mature and accept new challenges. We have witnessed the development of numerous careers—team members who have blossomed from side cooks to chefs, grown from bartenders to general managers. It doesn’t get much better than that!

This profile article excerpted from: From Classic to Casual
Restaurant Forum, September 2010
By Jaymi Curley

GOING GASTRO WITH GUSTO
Gastropubs have lit up the scene in the past few years, offering diners upscale fare in a casual atmosphere without breaking the bank. But in 2005, the concept of fancier food in a bar setting was virtually unheard of in Georgia. P’cheen International Bistro & Pub in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood of Atlanta was one of the first of its kind in the city, and it’s still going strong five years later.

Chef Alex Friedman, co-owner and chef at P’cheen, does not see a fine dining background and a casual restaurant as mutually exclusive. “To use the term ‘upscale’ versus ‘casual’ is to miscommunicate what we are doing here. Because the main difference between [fine dining] cuisine and mine is that their portions are smaller. Their plates may be more expensive, their wine glasses may be made of fine crystal, or they may have an army of servers circling around you at all times, but the quality of food at P’cheen is just as good and maybe even better than some fine-dining restaurants in Atlanta. Because I doubt most of them are making as much of their food from scratch as we are here.”

Friedman, a graduate of Johnson and Wales University, began his path in the industry at just 14 years old, starting as a busboy and running the gamut of the kitchen hierarchy, until at 19, he was taken aside by the chef at the Petroleum Club, a CCA-networked private club in Evanston, Illinois. “I had worked my way all the way up to sous chef,” says Friedman, “and Chef said I had natural gift for it, but basically had two choices: I could stay there and work for him as a sous chef or I could go to culinary school. So I started applying.”

Upon graduating and working three years as a sous chef at the Biltmore Estates, Friedman moved to Atlanta, where he worked under Arnaud Michel and Jean-Frederic Perfettini at Pastis. He later transferred to the pair’s Anis Bistro in Buckhead, where he became executive chef. It was there that he met his business partner Kieran Neely, who is now co-owner of P’cheen.

In the creation of P’cheen, Friedman says he was not turning his back on his fine-dining roots, but rather creating a fusion of the quality diners expect to see in fine dining with an atmosphere that’s a more relaxing experience.

“We were trying to accomplish something at P’cheen that no one else had done,” Friedman recalls. “Although we did not realize it at the time, we were creating Atlanta’s first gastropub. We wanted to try to create an environment where there is high-quality food, but you are also breaking bread with spirits and enjoying yourself, because great food and spirits always go together.”

The move to casual dining really only came about over the past decade, following a period when the high-end, 12-course chef tastings had exploded.

“But the average person—who can’t afford to spend $300 or $400 dollars on a meal that, frankly, you walk away and you are still hungry—wanted to be able to eat high-quality food in an environment they can enjoy and relate to,” Friedman says. “Kieran and I wanted to create a place where we’d be comfortable. Where anyone—white, black, Asian, Hispanic, gay, straight—could sit down, look at the menu, and find something on the menu that they can understand and enjoy.”

STAYING LOCAL AND AFFORDABLE
As a recent study reports, 70 percent of consumers say they are more likely to visit a restaurant that sources local and/or organic food for its menus. Therefore, it makes sense that the principles of local and sustainable ingredients would filter from the fine-dining arena into the casual concept restaurant. And although the trend toward local and organic food has upped the price per person for many restaurants, Friedman makes it a point to use local ingredients while also keeping the menu affordable.

“As much as we are all in this to make a living, I am also here to provide service. And where some chefs are going to say, ‘Well I can charge more for local and organic,’ I work along the lines that because we make just about everything here from scratch, I can charge the customer a little less than if I were buying things already made. I pass it on to my customers,” Friedman says, adding that keeping prices reasonable is the best way to protect the overall bottom line at P’cheen over the long term. Most items on the menu hover around the $10 mark, and nothing is over $18.

“I have had to raise my prices a little bit just like everyone else in this economy, but I want to make sure that my clientele can still afford to come in here to eat. And you are seeing a lot places shut down left and right, all over Atlanta and all over the country, because people can’t afford the prices.”

Chef Friedman uses local ingredients primarily sourced from Lazy S Ranch outside Athens, and he also has an herb garden beside the restaurant that he uses frequently as well. Everything on the menu is made from scratch, including the Potato Gnocchi Primavera, Bistro Steak a la Plancha con Chimichurri, and its Jar of Pickled Farm Fresh Veg – a mix of pickled green beans, garlic, red peppers, celery, carrots and jalapeno along with fried house pickles.

A CLASSIC EDUCATION IS STILL KEY
For whatever kind of restaurant is the ultimate goal, Chef Friedman maintains that a classic education is invaluable. “The beauty of culinary school is that it refines the skills that you learn from working in kitchens. Unless you are working under the highest caliber of fine dining chefs, you are never going to learn the real traditional way to make a stock, or what a proper brunoise or bouquet garni is,” he says. “There are the properties of a sauce, or all these great, old-school classical dishes that you may not see on menus anymore, but that are the cornerstone for the techniques you need in order to be able to cook in today’s restaurants. And you can learn the majority of it in restaurants, but you don’t learn the refined techniques like you do in culinary school.”

“Culinary school is one of those things where you get out of it what you put into it. You go through the program and really learn the techniques, get A’s across the board, graduate magna cum laude, and you’ll find yourself being chased after by the big fine dining establishments and top organizations,” Friedman says. “And I think that is the proper way to go for someone who is interested in being a chef-owner someday.”

STAFFING MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE
Even in a casual environment, both Friedman feels that the team members can make all the difference to both the customer and the chef-owner. Friedman’s approach to staffing is to look for people who are “committed” and willing to contribute to the success of the restaurant. “I don’t have some college kid who is thinking, I’m just here to earn a few bucks between classes and I’ll be out of here in six months when I graduate.”

Friedman helps foster a sense of unity among his employees with staff meetings where they contribute ideas to help the growth of P’Cheen. In addition, Friedman is adamant about modeling the kind of hard work and dedication he expects from his employees. “I would never presume to ask anyone who works for me to do something I am not willing to do myself. This place takes everyone to run it. If the grease trap is backed up and it needs to be emptied before a plumber can get out here, I am the first one to pull on a pair of gloves and get disgusting.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Haigwood Studios

July/August 2010

By Jaymi Curley

With a host of popular metro-area restaurants under its belt, local restaurant corporation Metrotainment Cafes is poised for growth in an economic environment when many are just trying to hold their ground.

Metrotainment Cafes was founded in 1991 by CEO Jeffrey Landau as a natural expansion of his career in the hospitality business. “I had worked in restaurants prior to that, learning just about every aspect of the business,” says Landau, “and I wanted to open up my own restaurant.” That first restaurant was to become Einstein’s, a restaurant in Midtown that has since become a fixture in the Midtown dining scene. “I didn’t have very much money at all. It was definitely a low budget endeavor. We found an old restaurant in the heart of Midtown that had recently closed down, and I thought it was a great opportunity.” At first occupying a single 1920’s bungalow, the Einstein’s concept, which Landau describes as a “casual neighborhood favorite with an innovative menu,” has grown to encompass three houses on prime corner real estate in the heart of Midtown.

Though his early focus was on growing Einstein’s, Landau still kept an eye out for chances to take his company forward.  “Midtown was starting to take off in the early- to mid-90s, so we saw a lot of opportunity there,” says Landau. “I don’t think in 1991 we had a vision as to where we were going to go with the company. But we saw potential for growth. Einstein’s was doing really well, and Midtown was really becoming a vibrant community.”

Another opportunity for Metrotainment opened up in 1993, as they added a “casual steakhouse in a honky-tonk atmosphere” called Cowtippers. Its location on Piedmont road in Atlanta made it highly accessible to several popular neighborhoods in the Midtown area. “It was a recently closed-down restaurant as Einstein’s was, so we saw a lot of opportunity there.”

As Metrotainment Cafes has added concepts in its expansion, including sports bars Hudson Grille and Joe’s and a wholesale bakery operation, all of its themes have been connected by the company’s central philosophy that puts the guests squarely in the center of its focus. Landau says that the key is “to offer guests great value in an entertaining environment. We are always focused on offering guests true value in fun, entertaining and interesting environments.”

Landau believes that added value is the difference between success and failure, particularly in an economy that has not been kind to the restaurant business as a whole. “We believe that in difficult economic times—and I don’t think a return to a robust economy is going to be happening anytime soon—focusing on value, rewarding our loyal guests, and providing an entertainment component is really important.”

“Our guests are looking for more than a good meal when they dine out,” says Landau. “We are providing extra value in entertainment, such as sports in our sports bars. Hudson Grille and Joe’s on Juniper all have dozens of plasma TVs, and we purchase all the sports packages from the networks. It is expensive, but we certainly offer more than just a great dining experience.”

Metrotainment Cafes manages the main portfolio of its business with a laser focus on strategy, but still maintains touch with the human factor that helps it to succeed. With a soon-to-expire lease under consideration, the group sold off its popular Buckhead sports bar Cheyenne Grille in favor of opening a Hudson Grille location in Midtown Atlanta. “Hudson Grille is the concept we are attempting to expand really, and Cheyenne Grille was a one-off. We hadn’t had any plans to open any more branches of that one anyway.”

But rather than import a whole new staff as some restaurants might, Metrotainment kept the staff intact, essentially just moving the well-oiled machine that had been providing great service for years. “We relocated the entire team from the Cheyenne Grille after the sale to the new Hudson Grille in Midtown, and it was an existing, built-out restaurant that did not require a large investment.”

Indeed, keeping an eye out for already finished locations has been a key move for improving Metrotainment Cafes’ bottom line. Landau says, “Typically we have expanded into existing locations, which dramatically cuts the initial investments. I would say this cuts the investment by 50 percent plus.”

In a tight economy, this kind of cost saving measure can be crucial. “We would not have gone out and opened up a raw space, especially since it is difficult right now to achieve much financing. I look at the new Hudson Grille as more of a move, rather than a cold opening.”

Moving in to spaces where other restaurants have already been thwarted might seem a risky undertaking since location is a key factor in success in the restaurant business. But Landau maintains that keeping the focus on the people in the equation—guests and staff alike—gives Metrotainment Cafes a solid basis for overcoming any lingering ghosts of restaurants past. “We commit to employee training, we offer a concept the neighborhood finds more unique and we constantly look for ways to provide the guest with an experience at a reasonable price point,” says Landau. “Hudson Grille has a great feel, but the burgers are still $7.95. We’re not doing a ten-dollar hamburger at the Hudson Grille.

When guests walk out the door, they are going to think ‘Hey, we got our money’s worth and then some.’ We are always trying to exceed their expectations.”

Landau believes strongly in providing the best training for every member of his staff, seeing that as a prime investment in Metrotainment Cafes’ success. “It is paramount to achieving that goal. The dining experience is driven more by service than any other component. If the staff is not well-trained and well prepared, we will not be able to offer our guests an enjoyable dining experience.”

Currently Metrotainment is focusing all of it plans for growth inside the perimeter of metro Atlanta. “There are exceptions of course, but we feel more strongly about the potential for growth inside rather than outside the perimeter right now.” With consumer spending pulling back across the board, the city centers appear to be the areas where money is still comparatively fluid.

“I am not an economist,” says Landau, “but I feel strongly there is far more disposable income ITP than OTP right now. We have experienced both, and I think a lot my peers and our vendors share this opinion. If you are getting a lot of singles and young couples without a lot of dependents, you can still do well and excel in this environment. If your clientele is more family oriented—lot of dependents, big home, big mortgages, college tuition, private school tuition—you are relatively going to get creamed in this economy. Young people are still going to go out to eat, drink, socialize and meet people of the opposite sex. Families don’t have to.”

Landau fully embraces technology and social media as a way of connecting with Metrotainment’s client base.  “We are trying to create online community by communicating with our guests on a weekly, even daily basis.” Harnessing opt-in email blasts, Facebook, Twitter and other avenues keeps his customers informed while building a sense of loyalty to the local restaurants. “We let them know about specials, who’s working tonight, what events are happening. We are even sharing recipes. We’re trying to create what we have done within the restaurant—creating a community—and move it to the online world.”

This connection with customers has resulted in getting the kind of feedback that marketing teams salivate over. And in return, Landau notes that guests of Metrotainment’s establishments feel like they are making an impact. “We pride ourselves on responding in a timely fashion to all our customer feedback. It is invaluable for helping to ensure the best customer service. If we see a trend, we can respond quickly. And you’ll find that a number of changes we’ve made, from menu items to the events we host are based on customer feedback we get on Facebook, Twitter and by searching comments on the web.”

Metrotainment’s new concept, a retail bake and beverage shop called Sugar Shack, which at press time was due to open at the end of June was a direct result of customer feedback. “We have the Metrotainment Bakery, which is primarily wholesale baked goods, though we did sell some limited retail goods there. And we kept getting feedback that what the people wanted was to have those bakery items available in a retail space, someplace where they could actually have a seat, slow down and enjoy their pastry there. And then an opportunity came up where we could get a space in Brookhaven, about 500 feet away from a Hudson Grille location that was already there. We decided it was absolutely the right time for it.”

Sugar Shack will be featuring Metrotainment Cafes baked goods along with a limited assortment of sandwiches and coffee, and the location in Brookhaven Station at a crossroads of several metro neighborhoods combined with a buzz created by social media chatter presages a successful opening.

Restaurant Forum asked Jeffrey Landau, president of Metrotainment Cafes, what three things he’s done in the last three weeks that have improved or impacted his business:

1) We’ve made a concerted effort to hire from within the company. In the last three weeks, we’ve taken three individuals who worked for the company on an hourly basis for a long time and promoted them to manager positions. All three of them are off to a tremendous start, and I have the utmost confidence in them. I think we’ve improved the restaurant by rewarding their loyalty, and in turn we have hired people who understand the culture of the company and I think are going to be even more committed at the outset more than an outside individual.

2) We’ve made some enhancements to our loyalty card program. We’ve been working with our loyalty/gift card provider and been making that program more user-friendly for our guests. It is becoming a little easier to earn those rewards.

3) At Joe’s on Sullivan, our restaurant in College Park, and at Cowtippers, we have made changes to the menus at both those establishments. Both menus have gotten major overhauls, and we are getting a lot of positive feedback on both.

Insights from Nancy Oswald

Every Ruth’s Chris Steak House, whether in a large metropolitan city or smaller town, takes pride in being not only a restaurant, but also a part of the local community.   Decisions to invest in a community are the driving force of any new business decision we make.  We follow general business principles when selecting cities to open new restaurants, examining population and income demographics, executing detailed analyses of exact restaurant locations and consulting our experienced legal counsel Charles Hoff.  Our Ruth’s Chris Steak Houses in Huntsville, Ala., and Columbia, S.C., are located adjacent to convention centers, enabling us to appeal to traveling groups, convention audiences and locals alike.  We have partnered with premium hotels including Embassy Suites, Hilton and Crowne Plaza in Birmingham, Ala., Huntsville, Columbia, Greenville, S.C., and Kennesaw, Ga., providing strong and synergistic relationships.  The overall economic aspects of a potential city and opportunities within the local dining community are always very important, but we examine closely a variety of situations and facets to help ensure the success of Ruth’s Chris in that particular market.

We have found Ruth’s Chris is successful in smaller cities predominately because the areas open our restaurants have embraced the Ruth’s Chris brand and greatly welcomed us. The towns’ pride in having a Ruth’s Chris Steak House has elicited an endearing degree of support.  When we opened in Huntsville, in October 2006, then-Mayor Loretta Spencer attended every opening event, leading our signature jazz procession for the Ruth’s “Chris”-ening with parasol in tow.  A Ruth’s Chris “raving fan,” she was such a visible fixture during our first few weeks open that we designated her favorite table as “The Mayor’s Table.”  Her kindness in honoring the restaurant and visiting Ruth’s Chris corporate executives with keys to the city remains a highlight of the restaurant’s history. The Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County’s executive team invited us to their offices and educated our local team on the area’s economic background, position and goals to ensure we were well-informed about the Huntsville business scene, enabling us to make strategic decisions with that knowledge.

We experienced similar Southern hospitality in Columbia. The city’s Mayor Bob Coble, affectionately known to citizens as “Mayor Bob,” declared our opening day of August 20, 2007 as “Ruth’s Chris Steak House Day” in the City of Columbia.  In addition to the mayor, our Columbia opening was attended by many local dignitaries, including University of South Carolina football Coach Steve Spurrier, the governor and lieutenant governor. The city embraced our arrival and afforded us rare opportunities for high-profile media coverage that might not have been available in more intensely news-laden metropolitan areas.

Further, our success in areas less populated than Atlanta is the way Ruth’s Chris immerses ourselves in new communities.  In Columbia, we dedicated our pre-opening charity events to South Carolina’s Harvest Hope Food Bank following their devastating loss from a cooler’s sprinkler malfunction. The pre-opening events raised more than $16,000 for the food bank, immediately creating a corps of dedicated supporters who understood that Ruth’s Chris is a civic-minded business and awakening the food bank’s desire help us succeed.
Our restaurants have thrived in part because of our direct involvement with key community organizations.  We make a point of establishing caring partnerships and have been fortunate to engage in instantly reciprocal processes – processes that must continue long past opening festivities.

One of Ruth’s Chris Steak House’s four core values is that we are good civic citizens, continuing to honor the legacy of our founder, Ruth Fertel, who was passionate in her belief that commitment to community involvement is our part in developing society.   Much like Fertel, my Sizzling Steak Concepts, LLC franchise partners, Jim Brooks, Phil Brooks and Mark Oswald and I are dedicated to community and caring for guests by serving the highest quality food with exceptional service in warm and inviting atmospheres.

Nancy Oswald is a Sizzling Steak Concepts, LLC partner, owner of 8 Ruth’s Chris Steak Houses and a former Chairperson for the Georgia Restaurant Association’s Board of Directors.

May/June 2010

by Jaymi Curley
Small towns persist in the American imagination as sleepy wayside places, consisting of one stop light and few options for a good meal beyond the country kitchen, barbeque shack or the ever proliferating fast-food chain.  But in light of a recent trend toward the revitalization of rural, historic downtown areas, the restaurant industry in many small towns is getting a major upgrade, and in turn is doing a lot to boost the fortunes of the surrounding community.

Across the nation, rural communities are committing local funds and using federal grants to accomplish large-scale downtown revitalization projects. These improvements are being targeted to expand shopping and socializing opportunities in small town centers, while also adding jobs to the community and restoring and making use of historic buildings that have often been boarded up and standing empty for years. Attracting new and interesting players in the local restaurant scene is a large part of being able to sustain the progress created by the downtown projects.

Emmitt Nolan, Main Street Manager for the City of Brunswick, has noted the positive changes that are happening as a result of his city’s Main Street revitalization. “People finally have started returning to the area.  We started programs like First Fridays where the retail shops, art galleries antique stores stay open a little later. We have kind of made it a destination, a shopping area, and so the restaurants are following.”

Some counties are experiencing population booms and are looking for restaurants to serve the appetites of the community.  John A. Henry J.D., CEO of Effingham County IDA, says “Effingham County has been working to attract restaurants to the Savannah bedroom community in the wake of a population boom. The community has grown nearly 43% in the past decade alone.”

Many Georgia chefs are seeing new opportunities by choosing to open up outside of the major metropolitan areas, and setting down roots in smaller communities around the state.  When Chef Jayson Ridinger, owner of Cargo’s Portside Grill in Brunswick, bought out the restaurant in early 2009, he saw the same charm and potential of the community that Cargo’s original owner had.
“There’s a family-oriented feel to this place,” he says of the city of Brunswick. “There is a micro-community here where all the businesses and the vendors, we all take care of each other. I’ve lived in Phoenix, Wyoming, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh. I’ve traveled all over, and you just don’t find this kind of atmosphere anywhere else. I love it.”

Chef Scott Dixon, owner of Scott’s On The Square in Gainesville, spent six years away from the restaurant business, but when he decided to open his own fine-dining establishment, it wasn’t Atlanta or one of the surrounding metros that attracted him.

“We had moved up to the Gainesville area about four or five years prior, and we loved the area,” says Dixon, “but thought it kind of lacked the variety of high-end restaurants that we had had in Alpharetta or Buckhead. And we always said if we were going to open a restaurant, this would be a great place to do it.”

Dixon says that opening his restaurant in a smaller community like Gainesville afforded him the opportunity to stand out and do something different. “What I didn’t want,” says Dixon, “is to be a kind of ‘me-too’ to the chains and casual type places that there are a lot of here. And in Atlanta, you have so many high-end places to eat, you just fade into the crowd.” With the market for high-end dining being relatively untapped in more rural communities, Dixon was able to make a niche for himself. “I think there is a very strong market open for [fine dining]. So many people who have moved up the lake and around that area were still going down to Atlanta to eat, or would want something of that quality and caliber.”

The fact that the fine-dining experience is offered by a locally owned business is definitely an advantage in a community that, while growing, still prides itself on having a hometown feel and an unyielding support for its homegrown businesses. “Most of our fine-dining restaurants downtown are mom-and-pop places. We know who is in the kitchen. We see them around town. But they are just updating our image. They are just an upgraded experience from the diners and such,” says Nolan.
Dixon agrees. “I have had a wonderful reception here in Gainesville, and I’m getting great feedback and encouragement from the people here.”

“Honestly, if I closed my doors tomorrow,” says Ridinger, “I may pick a new concept, I might pick a new business, but I’d still pick a small downtown to open up again, and that’s a fact.”
A chef’s creativity in terms of menus doesn’t suffer at all in the rural areas; the demand for high-quality and interesting ingredients prepared in diverse ways is just as strong in the small town square as it is in the heart of Buckhead in Atlanta. And the current trend toward locally sourced, fresh ingredients takes on an even greater significance.

“On some levels, the localization aspect of the ingredients is even more important here,” Dixon says. “A lot of our clientele aren’t that far removed from the farm. There are a lot of people that work in agriculture, and Gainesville is the chicken capital of the world. So much of what goes on here is centered around all things poultry. And there is so much great produce grown on farms, a stone’s throw away. We definitely try to embrace that.”

With the proliferation of celebrity chef, food-centered programming and the internet, there are not many food trends that escape the notice of even the smallest corners of the state.

“I think we have just as savvy a consumer here as any larger city,” says Dixon. “Many people who consider themselves ‘foodies’ and are looking for something – I won’t say cutting edge, but something out of the ordinary in terms of preparation. We may not have as many of them here as we do in Atlanta, but the people in the community respond well to our menus. For example, I did an espresso-and-cocoa-rubbed rack of lamb, and we ended up serving it with a semi-sweet chocolate sauce, which is something kind of different and out there. But I told people who were skeptical, ‘Hey, you don’t like it, I’ll make you one without all the stuff on there.’  I change my menus about every four months, and we had the dish on there the whole four-month period, and it became one of the most popular dishes.”

“Good food is good food, and with me, flavor comes first,” says Ridinger. “My goal is always to win the trust of my customer. Once I have done that, I can be comfortable maybe pushing the envelope a little, because I can count on them to go with me. One of the specials we had done recently was a rabbit alphabet soup, a really delicious rabbit soup with pasta letters and it was served with a rabbit leg tucked on the side. We also have had a blue cheese ice cream. It was a risk, but I can take a risk, because I am sure my customers are with me.  People want to be excited about what they are eating. If you are not doing all you can to prop that up, you are not doing yourself justice.”
By balancing his menu with traditional southern favorites, like Fried Green Tomatoes and Striped Bass, with more exotic elements like Thai Style Calamari and high-end comfort food mashups, like Lobster Mac-and Cheese, Ridinger aims to have a menu on which any customer can find a dish that will keep them coming back.

One of the major advantages of choosing small town life is the cost savings that can be recognized in some areas of overhead. The often high property values and rents in the Atlanta area can make opening a new restaurant there extremely difficult. Lower property costs in small cities can pave the way for a chef-owner to open a larger venue than might be possible in urban metro areas.
“If I had opened my restaurant is Atlanta,” says Ridinger, “it would have cost $1 million plus. I actually opened my first restaurant in downtown Brunswick for just a little over $120,000. It was the same equipment, the same everything, it’s just that everything costs so much more in Atlanta.”
“My profit margins are fairly close to the same,” Dixon agrees. “Our rent costs are definitely less than in Atlanta, and with the labor pool we have a slightly lower payroll cost than we would have otherwise.”

In addition, the presence of historic buildings with space to let or purchase can mean that architectural details an owner might pay a premium for to have built into a space in a large city can be available for much less.

“A lot of these old building historic have the high ceilings, the exposed brick, and even the large glass storefronts,” says Nolan, “They make excellent restaurant spaces. There are some good deals to be had as far as spaces for sale or rent. Also, there are grant monies out there at the state level that a lot of people aren’t using. It is just a matter of spending the time to fill out all that paperwork, but there are ways to get help with costs.”

“Downtown is gorgeous,” says Ridinger. “There is a story that comes with every building. It just makes the whole experience richer.”

While lower costs can make opening in smaller communities attractive, there are a number of challenges that come along with that decision. Dixon notes, for example, that since the entire pool of customers can be much smaller, it can be difficult to draw in the stable base of regular repeat customers that is the bedrock of a restaurant’s success.

“We are trying to be seen as something more than just a special occasion type place,” he says. “There are definitely some challenges in that area.”

Nolan also sees that economic impact in Brunswick. “The economy being what it is now, and with the number of restaurants we have now, the challenge is going to be that the piece of the pie they are getting is smaller.”

Chef Ridinger says that his difficulty is in luring the well-heeled “island people,” inhabitants and visitors to nearby St. Simons and other Georgia sea islands who are reluctant to cross the bridge to spend their dining dollars in Brunswick.

One way in which Chef Dixon faces down this challenge is by identifying his restaurant as fine-dining but with a comfortable twist. “We call ourselves ‘casual fine-dining.’ It tends to make us more approachable,” says Dixon. “We want to designate ourselves as fine dining, because we want them to think of us more as chef-crafted food with higher quality raw materials across the board. But we still want them to feel comfortable to walk in the front door with jeans on and have a meal or a drink. We could go the coat-and-tie route if we wanted to, but that’s not what I think people want now.”

Ridigner relies on his offers of special wine dinners combined with excellent service to translate into word-of-mouth raves from his discerning customer base. “Everything we do, we have to always be on our game.  Outstanding food and outstanding service — this is what I tell my staff all the time. We have to always be competing at a big-city level. Our food, our quality, our service has to always be at the highest standards.”

The type and strength of the industry in the surrounding community can also make a big impact on the bottom line.

“We still cater to the business customers, particularly the medical community, which we have a lot of up here. We have the top heart center here, and with the size of the medical community, it is a big help,” says Dixon.

In turn, the presence of a fine-dining option can be a big help to local business, particularly ones trying to lure top talent from larger, more cosmopolitan areas. “A doctor who was being recruited by one of the hospitals told me that my restaurant was one of the deciding factors that helped sway him to relocate here from New York,” says Dixon. “He’d come in for lunch with the doctors who were trying to get him to join the hospital. Then he came by to visit after he had made the move. He told me that he’d felt good about the fact that there’d be at least one place to eat where things reminded him a little bit of New York, in a very different atmosphere.”

There are also any number of quirks in small communities that an owner in a large city would never have to consider, but that can impact the business heavily. “We’d been open a few weeks,” recalls Chef Dixon, “and on every other Wednesday night we had been packed, but on this one, we were empty. So I asked my bartender—a local guy—where was everybody? He just looked at me funny and said, “Well, people go to church on Wednesday.”  There are those kinds of dynamics you never think about. You really have to be plugged in to the community.”

Strong community involvement can be a make or break proposition in a small town, especially for a chef who comes from outside the community. Ridinger says his restaurant donates numerous gift certificates to local charities and does appearances at local events to cement his brand firmly in the Brunswick area.

Dixon finds his business interests supported by his deep involvement with a number of local committees.

“The most important thing for us here was really immersing myself in the community and getting involved.  My involvement with the Chamber of Commerce and really getting into the local business community was invaluable to gaining acceptance here. Now I am on the board for the Chamber of Commerce, and I serve as the associate director for the downtown association.”

Above all, a chef who takes a chance on a fine-dining establishment in a small town gives something back to an entire area. “The fine-dining options add culture to our community,” says Nolan. “You’re in a small place like Gainesville, but you feel like you could be in Atlanta, maybe New York.”

Tipping the Glass – Georgia’s Restaurateurs on Trend with Wine and Beer

March 2010

by Shannon Wilder

When it comes to beverage trends, the clear expectation is that flavor is going to carry the day. But what comes to the fore in this economic environment is that, across the board, savvy restaurateurs are focusing as much on the experience surrounding the drinker as what’s in the glass, whether it’s wine, beer or non-alcoholic beverages.

According to data from the Beverage Information Group, people in the United States consumed nearly 3 gallons of wine per person in 2008. Many are the first round of Millennials—those born roughly between 1980 and 2000— who are now of legal drinking age and who are more savvy about wine at an earlier age than previous generations.

Many diners, including Millennials, will continue to be cost-conscious through 2010 as the economy slowly rebounds, and that means bottles of wine between $25 and $50 will continue to be frequent sellers.

Unique Experiences Reign
Diners have been cautious regarding who they spend their money with, and that won’t change in 2010. Restaurants who can provide these cost-conscious patrons a unique experience without them spending a bundle will be rewarded with repeat and loyal customers.

For Joël Brasserie in Atlanta, that unique experience translates to wine tastings and dinners, educational wine seminars, and its French-born sommelier, Perrine Prieur.

Prieur, who grew up on her family’s vineyard in Burgundy, has an extensive knowledge of wines from around the world. Diners often seek out Joël—recognized in both 2007 and 2008 with Wine Spectator’s Award of Excellence—and Prieur because of her deep understanding of French wines.

Prieur helps educate diners and attract people to the restaurant with monthly wine seminars. The budget-friendly events are $35 for an hour and a half session, complete with hors d’oeuvres, and focus on wines of a particular nation or region, such as France, Italy, Spain or South America.  She also uses the seminars to focus on new and upcoming trends such as organic and biodynamic wines.

And while the more pricy wine dinners are nothing new, they still do attract diners looking for that unique experience and will continue to be popular in the coming year.

Prieur says she enjoys planning wine dinners for her restaurant’s clientele. “Every month, sometimes twice a month, I try to get winemakers here,” she says. “I try to do wine parings but it’s boring to do always the same wines. Each dinner needs to try something different.” So far, she’s hosted vintners from Chile, Argentina, Napa Valley, Oregon, Bordeaux and Champagne. A recent wine dinner focused on a vineyard in Burgundy that uses organic practices.

As far as the wines themselves, more clear fruit flavors are starting to overtake the woodsy notes, and brighter flavors are gaining popularity.

Staying Green and Close to Home
It’s no surprise that the organic and local movement is starting to infiltrate the beverage world given its popularity in chefs’ kitchens, and organic and local wines will continue to pick up steam in the coming year.

While there are several Georgia wineries gaining recognition, Prieur has noticed that it’s been difficult to carry Georgia wines in the restaurant, but sees that changing in the coming years as the local movement continues to gather steam.

She currently offers an ice wine from Clayton-based Persimmion Creek, noting that it pairs well with dishes as diverse as foie gras and a Fuji baked apple with caramel sauce.

“I’d like to pour some more and represent a little bit more,” she says of Georgia-based wineries, “but it’s not that big a demand yet.”

Although interest in “green” beverages is growing, restaurant diners may still be confused about some of the terminology. Part of the issue is that these sustainable labels don’t always have teeth. While food and beverages can be certified organic, there is still some confusion regarding other green terms slapped onto labels. More regulations within the wine industry are on the horizon to help customers navigate these increasingly popular terms, and with it an increase in diners’ requests for these more earth-friendly options.

Tech-Savvy Equals Wine Savvy

The wine world has not been immune to the influence of the Internet, and Millennials are leading the charge.

From the social networking site Wine 2.0 to more than 700 wine blogs and iPhone apps, technology and the Millennials who use it will continue to influence how restaurant patrons learn about and purchase their wines while dining out. It’s a trend that shows no sign of stopping, and could influence how restaurants market their wine lists in the future.

Getting Crafty
Just as the local and organic movement is touching the wine world, so too are there an increasing number of organic and locally brewed beers being requested by diners.

According to the National Restaurant Association, the top trend for beer and wine is locally produced wine and beer, with organic wine and beer coming in fourth and craft beer ranked at No. 6.

A few decades ago, says Nick Kaye, managing editor of Atlanta-based Beer Connoisseur, a newly launched magazine that aims to be the brew crew’s version of Food & Wine, there were just a handful of big breweries producing beer in America.

Now, however, the craft brew movement is in full force. Much like family-owned wineries, craft breweries – defined by the Brewers Association, a trade group for craft brewers, as producing no more than 2 million barrels of beer a year – are cropping up all over the country producing innovative reinterpretations of historic beer styles made from a mix of traditional and nontraditional ingredients.

You’d be hard pressed to find a drinking establishment in the state these days that doesn’t have at least one local Georgia brewery represented in some form.

That wasn’t always the case. Alan LeBlanc, co-owner of Atlanta’s Max Lager’s, the state’s oldest independent brewery restaurant, encountered a sort of bias against craft beers and microbrews when he started up 12 years ago. “They’d say, ‘No, I don’t like microbrews’ because they had one they didn’t like. I think a few years back we reached the tipping point where people realized they might not like all the microbrewed beers, but that doesn’t mean its bad beer. It’s no different than preferring Merlots over Cabernets.”

The craft beer movement, Kaye says, “is a mission to spread the word of good beer and get it into more people’s mouths and restaurants. Beer is being treated these days, and appreciated these days, the way wine always has. It’s a whole new level.”

And like wine, several restaurants in Georgia are starting to offer beer-cheese pairings and beer dinners. In fact, Kaye says when it comes to one time-honored pairing – wine and cheese – beer may be ready to give the grapes a run for their money. “At its base level, the effervescence of beer, the carbonation really cuts through some of your more heavy, fatty buttery cheeses like a goat cheese.”

Knowledgeable Staff
Many in the state’s rapidly expanding restaurant market rely heavily on well-prepared servers who function as de facto cicerones, the beer world’s version of the sommelier, to help educate diners on the increasing array of beer choices.

Kaye singles out Taco Mac’s extremely knowledgeable Beverage Director Fred Crudder, who has a sort of club room named after him at the Sandy Springs location. It’s open to members of Taco Mac’s Brewniversity, a combination beer education and customer rewards program that helps patrons navigate the chain’s formidable beer offerings.

Based on Taco Mac’s former Passport Club program, the Brewniversity encourages patrons to try new beers. Diners get credit for each different brew they select, and an “ID card” keeps track of progress. Those in the program start to receive rewards starting with the 13th unique beer consumed.

Trend Setters
Down in Savannah, the Nichols brothers, John and Phillip, who recently reopened one of the city’s oldest dining establishments, the c. 1933 Crystal Beer Parlor, offer a page-plus menu advising the perfect beer to go with dishes such as chili cheese dogs, gumbo, steaks, shrimp, and even a Greek salad.

Crystal Beer Parlor has close to 100 beers in bottles and 15 on tap. The Nichols also keep a book out in which patrons are encouraged to make suggestions. Most of what’s currently in stock, Nichols says, is craft brews, including beer from Savannah’s own Moon River Brewing Co.

Max Lager’s, which, like Moon River, is one of the nation’s 990 brewpubs, now offers beer parings, beer dinners and beer flights with six glasses.

“It’s very social,” says Alan of the beer flights. “It’s very interactive, and you’re developing a nice knowledge.”

The restaurant has also launched an entirely new event, Beer Judging 101. LeBlanc says patrons are presented with an official beer-judging sheet and compare one of Max Lager’s house brewed beers with similar bottled varieties. The idea is to learn to assess the characteristics of each.

“We conduct a beer judging seminar to teach people about the different varieties,” he says. “I’ll bring our beer and several bottles of a similar style together and lay out the official beer judging guide sheets and have some appetizers beforehand. Then we’ll come in and sit down and do a beer judging seminar so people can see varieties, … what the differences are in character. That’s something I find to be a lot of fun.

“It’s about different, unique flavors and experiences,” he adds. “Not seeking the same old same old but trying to discover something interesting, something that you like, something that’s different.”

Unlike many of the state’s dining establishments with hundreds of beers available, Max Lager’s carefully culls its offering to some 30 bottled beers in addition to the handful of house brews. While some offerings—usually a dark lager, a pilsner and Vienna-style red beer—stay on tap year-round, LeBlanc says brewer John Roberts reserves one or two of the restaurant’s taps for a seasonal brew such as a barleywine beer that will be ready to pour this spring and an Imperial Oatmeal Stout, which is earmarked for St. Patrick’s Day.

Before the new Crystal Beer Parlor owners relaunched the restaurant, they sat down with a local beer expert and planned out the offerings. Among them is a selection of retro beers called “Beers of Our Fathers,” which includes such familiar names as Pabst Blue Ribbon, Schlitz, Stroh’s, Dixie and Genesee Cream Ale.

Nichols also keeps an eye out for vintage beers – he happened upon some vintage 2006 and 2007 Stone Double Bastard, a California ale. “I got the only two cases in Savannah and sold them in 24 hours,” Nichols says. The higher the alcohol content, the longer the beer keeps, he adds. But don’t expect any 100-year-old vintages; beers last about five to six years.

He also plans to start carrying gluten-free beer in the near future. He’s had a few requests for this type of beer, which is made from sorghum, and also has a family member with celiac disease—such people can’t tolerate gluten, which normally comes from grain, especially wheat.

The industry is also seeing an upswing is canned beers, but not like the ones your father used to drink. Canned beers have had a bad rap for so long, but with new lining technology, more breweries are finding that the cans keep the beer fresh longer and give a truer taste with some types of beer. Dale’s Pale Ale, a craft beer out of Lyons, Colo., is just one example of a high-end beer that’s sold in a can and has started to have a wider distribution in Georgia.

It’s this mix of quality and perceived value that will continue to drive the beverage industry into 2010.

“Conspicuous consumption is not cool anymore,” LeBlanc says. “For somebody like us who’s always offered a high-quality product, we’re not the cheapest but we’re not the most expensive—we’re being successful in this environment.”

November/December 2009

On November 15, the restaurant industry gathered at the third annual Georgia Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence Awards Gala to recognize and pay tribute to the leaders who have made outstanding contributions to Georgia’s restaurant industry. This year’s GRACE Awards featured keynote speaker Virginia Willis.

The GRACE Awards, crystal works of art created by renowned local artist Hans-Godo Frabel, stand for excellence in the following five categories: Restaurateur of the Year, Industry Partner of the Year, Distinguished Service Award, Innovator Award and Lifetime Achievement Award. These awards show appreciation for our stars, the people devoted to our industry. On behalf of the Georgia Restaurant Association, congratulations to both the winners and the finalists.

Karen Bremer Wins GRACE Lifetime Achievement Award

Restaurateur of the Year: Hank Clark, Marlow ‘s Tavern

Distinguished Service Award: Patrick Cuccaro, Affairs to Remember Caterers

Innovator Award: Holly Elmore, Green Food service Alliance

Industry Partner of the Year: Jason Howell, Royal Cup Coffee

Winner: Jason Howell , Atlanta District Manager, Royal Cup Coffee

Since the 1890s, when founder Henry T. Batterton’s fresh, flavorful coffee became known as the “Royal Cup of Coffee,” the Birmingham, AL-based company has been serving up hot coffee to people around the state.

Since 1958, the importer, roaster and distributor of premium coffees and teas has been distributing more than 30 varieties of coffee to hotels and restaurants.

As Atlanta District Manager, Jason Howell works with restaurants to develop customized packages of equipment and coffee servers, depending on a restaurant’s needs and what they’re trying to accomplish. Having been a part of the restaurant industry himself, he understands each individual restaurant’s unique needs, and works with local Royal Cup Coffee representatives to ensure restaurants are satisfied with the company’s service and product.

The company purchases large quantities of coffee beans, which allows the company to pass on the value and bulk purchasing to its customers, helping the company keep prices down and be more profitable as well.

For Royal Cup Coffee, however, it’s not just about getting the best bean at the lowest cost. The coffee and tea company works with the Rainforest Alliance to purchase certified-sustainable coffees from farms where workers are provided fair wages, decent housing, schools and access to health care.

Aside from his work managing Royal Cup Coffee operations in the metro Atlanta, Augusta and Athens areas, Howell is also active within the restaurant industry and the community, supporting several nonprofits. He is also involved with the American Culinary Federation Atlanta and Athens chapters, as well as on the GRA’s board of directors. He was named the 2008 and 2009 Manager of the Year Southeast Region for Royal Cup Coffee.

His first job in the restaurant industry was when he was 14 years old as an oyster shucker and busboy at Palmer’s Seafood in Savannah. He has been with Royal Cup Coffee since 2004.

Advice to those just starting out: “Number one: Work hard – very hard. Number two: Be a business partner, whether you’re a chef, restaurateur, salesperson or otherwise, not just a vendor selling a product, or an operator trying to source goods and services. We can all learn from each other and help each other be successful. Number three: Give back to the industry and people that support you financially,” he advises.

Best job he ever held: “My current position with Royal Cup Coffee. Royal Cup Coffee is a family-owned and-operated company with a commitment to producing the finest coffee and tea products available anywhere, plus sensational customer service. The Smith family, [which owns] Royal Cup Coffee, also maintains a commitment to [its] employees and their families, numerous charitable and industry organizations (including the GRA), as well as their treasured customers, and that commitment is cultural within Royal Cup Coffee,” he says.

Industry Partner of the Year Finalists

• Chris Coan, General Manager, Business and Government Markets, Gas South
• Barbara Waters Wilson, Marketing Project Manager of Georgia Power