Co-owner GM, Marti’s at Midday, Atlanta
By Nancy Woods
During the COVID pandemic in 2020, Jay Kloepfer was faced with an unexpected life change. After completing a business degree at the University of North Georgia, the Athens native had forged a career as a SCUBA and sailing instructor for 12 years. However, while on a boat in Antigua in 2020, he learned of the untimely death of his eldest sister, Marti Schimmel, founder of Marti’s at Midday restaurant in Athens.
Born into a ‘family of foodies’ as he calls them, Jay didn’t hesitate to come back to Athens to run the restaurant after his father pitched the idea to him. Jay and Marti were part of a family of six kids, who had all helped at Marti’s at Midday since it’s official opening in 2002, especially with delivery and catering. Marti’s one wish was to keep the restaurant going. Today, Jay is doing just that – sales have tripled, and business is booming.
Jay faced several daunting challenges when he returned to run the restaurant in 2020. Not only had COVID changed the restaurant world, but “not a single recipe was written down, and I had no operating manuals,” he recalls. Add to that the financial challenges the restaurant was facing, and the culture shift that occurs when someone new takes the helm, and Jay clearly had a lot on his plate.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Jay threw himself into the task of keeping his sister’s legacy alive. Fortunately, a longtime chef worked with Jay to record the beloved recipes for items like chicken salad and pimento cheese. Jay launched an online ordering system, then used a PPP loan to upgrade the restaurant’s outdated equipment and infrastructure. At each step, Jay worked to earn the trust of a dedicated staff – some more than 20 years older than he. As Jay puts it, “When I get involved in something, I throw my full self at it.”
Jay also worked to keep another important aspect of Marti’s legacy alive: her involvement with the Athens community. “People will tell you she was the most generous person they’ve ever met,” he says. “That’s something that just runs in my family. We have a very giving spirit. I don’t think I’ve said no to a donation in five years.”
While he readily admits that running a restaurant is “the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” he adds, “I definitely think it’s taught me more about myself than I’ve learned in most of my life.”
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Thank you to our presenting sponsor, Performance Foodservice, and table sponsors, Society Insurance and Savannah Distributing, for making this event possible:
Presenting Sponsor
Table Sponsors
Savannah Distributing and Society Insurance
