Restaurant Punk

As a young, up-and-coming chef, how can you respect the line cook who has been slinging orders at the same establishment for 20 years while implementing new ideas and proper techniques? As he prepares to open his first restaurant, Chef Chinito is joining Yianni and Nikos to discuss the dynamics that come into play when you put two people in a room: one with greater authority and one with greater seniority. Questions on this week’s episode include:

•  Do you need to go to college to become a restaurant owner?
• How can you show your elders respect when your skillset is greater than theirs?
• What is the best way to create harmony between long-time employees and new hires who are experts?
• Are most chefs narcissists?
• What are your thoughts on kitchen-focused movies and TV shows like The Meal, The Bear, or Burnt?

When you decide to open a business, there is an endless chain of decisions to be made, from interior design to staffing and everything in between. One of the most public-facing decisions you’ll make is what name to put on the front of the building. So, how do you decide what to name your business? Yianni and Peter are joined by Guest Host Joey Gallo, a bartender and bar manager at Whalburger’s in Atlantic City, to discuss questions including:

• What are the pros and cons of managing a restaurant?
• How does scheduling work in a restaurant, and why is it so difficult?
• What goes into the decision behind what to name a restaurant?
• Should you put your name on your restaurant?
• What happens if you change the name of your restaurant after opening?

Some say that if work were supposed to be fun, it would call it a hobby. When you’re pursuing your dream of owning your own business, it can be even harder than usual to make time for the activities that you love most - particularly if there is an overlap between your extra-curricular activity and your entrepreneurial endeavors. Peter, Noelle, and George are discussing questions, including:

• Do you prioritize your hustle or your hobby?
• Does your hobby provide an outlet for your pent-up stress as an entrepreneur?
• How do you prevent burnout when your hobby is also your business?
• Are you ‘doing it wrong’ if you don’t have time for your hobby daily?

When you’re looking to fill vacant positions or expand your team, how do you approach hiring? Some lean into reviewing resumes and skillsets, while others interview to get a feel for each potential hire’s personality. Guest Host Rick Weber, owner of South Jersey Marina, is back on the Restaurant Punk set with George and Peter to discuss team building, with questions, including:

• Do you hire for skill or personality?
• Can you teach culture?
• How can you maximize your employees’ potential when you realize they’re in the wrong role?
• What thought process do you go through when deciding whether to grant a guest’s special request?

Whether you own one restaurant or a few, you know you’re always working to refine your menu. From seasonal menu refreshes to weekend specials, it’s a constant exercise in expressing your creativity and accepting constructive feedback from colleagues and customers. So, when a dish isn’t selling well or is consistently getting negative feedback, what do you do? Nikos, Peter, and Yianni are discussing:

• What do you do when a dish on your menu gets consistently negative feedback?
• Should you add a special that is successful to your regular menu?
• Do you revise your menu if a few items don’t sell often?
• Are you more likely to order a restaurant special if the server describes it well?
• Does Restaurant Punk have any viewers/listeners left in Kentucky, Texas, or Maryland anymore?

If you live or work in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, or Maryland, you’ve likely seen or heard of Kast Distributors, the family-owned broad line food service distributor based in Carney’s Point, New Jersey. In this week’s episode of Restaurant Punk, Manos joins Peter and Yianni as a guest host to discuss what it means to be the Director of Sales in a food distribution business. Questions of discussion include:

• What roles and responsibilities fall under the title of Director of Sales?
• Are there any misconceptions in the way restauranteurs view distributors?
• What are the differences between independent food distributors and Sysco & U.S. Foods?
• What’s the starting salary for a salesperson in food distribution?
• Would you rather hire Yianni or Peter as a salesperson?

If you’ve eaten or worked at a restaurant or strolled the aisles of a grocery store within the past decade, you’re bound to be familiar with the phenomenon identified most frequently by its two-letter acronym: GF. No, not girlfriend, and not go f*ck yourself, either. Gluten-Free. While Nikos has adapted his life to live with a Celiac Disease diagnosis, Yianni questions whether avoiding wheat, barley, and rye is really a necessity or more of a trend. Noelle moderates the debate with questions, including:

• What is celiac, and is it a disease or a trend?
• How can you tell when a customer has a legitimate allergy at a restaurant?
• What are the impacts of cross-contamination on someone who has a true allergy?
• Do you ever eat at a new friend’s house when visiting for the first time?
• What advice would you give someone who recently became aware that they’re allergic to gluten?

From being a 15-year-old skater kid working as a busser at The YB to a recently engaged entrepreneur running his own coffee shop, CoHo Café, in Cape May Court House, NJ, Joe Monzo has been in the Kara Restaurant Group orbit for over a decade. This week, he joins Noelle and Yianni on the Restaurant Punk set to explore what made him want to open his own business and whether you should. Discussion questions include:

• When did you know that you wanted to open a restaurant?
• What would you do differently if you were to reopen your business?
• What did you find most surprising as a new business owner?
• Do you manage your business accounting?
• Would you rather have your own legacy or work to make someone else’s dreams come true?

When working in the restaurant business, there is one universal truth – everyone who walks through your door wants to eat, whether they’re customers or employees. So, when deciding whether you’ll provide a free shift meal or if you should discount a meal for employees who dine at your establishment when they aren’t on the clock, how can you set a standard? Nikos, Liz, and Peter are answering questions, including:

• Should a restaurant give their employees a free meal every shift?
• Do you give employees a discount when they dine at your restaurant while off the clock?
• How are shift meals different than letting every employee order whatever they want?
• Who do you give free or discounted meals to at your restaurant?
• Are shift meals a good way to ensure employees try everything on the menu?

Louie from Riptide Paddles and Pedals, aka The O.G. Graphic Designer, is back on the Restaurant Punk set with Yianni and Noelle to debate one of the internet era’s greatest business marketing debates: is it better to manage your social media platforms yourself or should you hire an expert to do it for you? While maintaining personal control can help you save funds and keep you in control, outsourcing the task can lead to more consistency and higher engagement. This week’s questions or interest include:

• Have you ever paid someone to manage your social media?
• Were you an early adopter of social media for business marketing, or did it take some convincing?
• Do you use Meta’s Business Manager to schedule your social media content?
• What percentage of independent businesses nationwide have a social media presence?
• Does age make a difference in whether a business owner values social media?