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Situated within the coronary heart of Portland, Maine, Sur Lie is a James Beard Award-nominated tapas restaurant with a menu spearheaded by chef Mimi Weissenborn, a just lately introduced contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef.
Whereas Weissenborn takes the helm within the kitchen, proprietor and James Beard Award semifinalist Krista Cole works behind the scenes to make sure a easy service evening after evening. She first opened the restaurant out of her love for tapas and wine pairings, filling a spot she could not discover in Portland. Then, Weissenborn got here alongside and altered the sport. Now, their distinctive dynamic is a key element to their success at Sur Lie.
“[We’re] this unimaginable dynamic duo,” Cole says. “I am very data-oriented, organized and environment friendly, and he or she’s the sensible, inventive mind that comes up with the menu, which is why individuals come into Sur Lie as effectively. Now we have a very good relationship that means. As ladies within the trade making an attempt to interrupt down boundaries, we concentrate on what we’re each actually good at and how you can complement one another.”
Collectively, the pair has crafted modern menus and an much more spectacular tapas service. One buyer, Mike C., visited the restaurant on a post-holiday journey and nonetheless remembers his server’s title at present.
“Service makes the meal, and it could break the meal,” Mike says. “Meg — as a result of I do bear in mind her title — she was actually nice, tremendous pleasant, good and informal however skilled. The service that we obtained was attentive however not overbearing. I am not on the lookout for them to come back up and test on me each second, however I additionally do not wish to have to go searching once I want them. That is service: studying that data, that have, that know-when-to and when-not-to.”
Cole says she is not certain if the sixth sense for exceptional service may be taught, however she encourages her workforce to develop pleasure of their work. She notices a transparent enchancment in service when servers deal with their work as a craft and really feel empowered so as to add their very own private contact.
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It additionally helps to have a passionate chef working the present. “I believe an important factor, too, is [Mimi is] a tremendous chief, and that, to me, speaks greater than being a tremendous chef as a result of when you’ll be able to lead a workforce of individuals and actually encourage in our trade, then that interprets into the visitor expertise,” Cole says.
Constructing a dream workforce does not occur by mistake. Cole makes use of two hiring tactics to seek out staff who present promise. First, she opinions the applicant’s resumé and researches their earlier workplaces to grasp their previous work cultures and see if they’d be a pure match at Sur Lie. Second, she asks in regards to the applicant’s favourite office and why, gaining perception into their values and cultural contributions.
From hiring to stock, Cole does all of it, emphasizing the significance of group to remain on prime of every part. Earlier than turning into a restaurateur, Cole labored as a healthcare supervisor and studied entrepreneurship, gaining experience in workforce and organizational construction that also serves her at present.
“Having methods and processes in place is tremendous necessary to offering high quality and consistency,” she says. “[That translates into] having your workforce actually engaged within the work they’re doing and having the ability to maintain individuals accountable. It must be a well-oiled machine, and there must be very clear expectations and a technique of doing issues.”
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With such methods and expectations in place, Cole is ready to shield her restricted time. She owns and runs two different eateries in Maine along with Sur Lie. One thing so simple as creating an Amazon order request type or making ready a gathering agenda saves her valuable time and ensures she addresses each difficulty together with her workforce.
Studying customer reviews is all the time an merchandise on Cole’s to-do checklist and a vital part of Sur Lie’s well-oiled machine. She appreciates anybody who takes the time to supply suggestions, however she actually takes it to coronary heart when it comes from a neighborhood resident.
When she first took over the restaurant Gather, she invested within the model by hiring specialists and sourcing native elements, leading to greater menu prices. “[We were] listening to from the neighborhood that it was getting too costly,” Cole says. “We undoubtedly took that suggestions critically since you’re not a vacation spot restaurant in a small city. Normally, you are supported by your neighborhood and the locals. In order that was one thing that we shifted and tried to make slightly extra approachable for individuals, particularly in a family-oriented neighborhood.”
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From beginning in healthcare to proudly owning three eating places, Cole continues to steer her entrepreneurial journey with these key classes:
- Choose up transferable abilities alongside the way in which. The entrepreneurial journey is usually a winding highway, however abilities from different industries can show invaluable in the long term.
- Take heed to locals. Group is the driving pressure behind all native companies. Be certain that to take heed to locals and worth their opinions to foster long-term loyalty.
- Get a very good learn in the marketplace. Decide if there is a gap available in the market your small business can fill and assess how one can differentiate yourself from opponents.
- Service is a craft. Service leaves a long-lasting impression, good or dangerous. Encourage your team to convey their very own aptitude to customer support and take pleasure of their craft.
- Defend your time. Set clear expectations along with your workforce on when and the way you are obtainable. Whether or not it is a type for stock requests or an agenda merchandise for the all-hands assembly, having a system in place will allow you to work smarter, not tougher.
- Rent to reinforce your tradition. When you do not put money into your workers’s careers, they will not put money into the client expertise. Acknowledge their worth and the way it aligns along with your firm tradition.
Take heed to the episode beneath to listen to instantly from Cole and Mike C., and subscribe to Behind the Review for extra from new enterprise house owners and reviewers each Thursday.
Editorial contributions by Erin Palmero and Kristi Lindahl
