On today's episode, I am excited to share the audio recording of a live event I recently emceed for HRN. Lessons Learned: Tales from Small Business Owners features captivating stories from four storytellers who opened up about their trials and tribulations in the restaurant business. Sponsored by TD Bank, the event took place at the Tilit NYC Showroom. In addition to introducing our fabulous guests, I sprinkled some of my own stories throughout the night.

The first small business storyteller was Eric Huang of Pecking House, Brooklyn. An Eleven Madison Park alum, the pandemic caused Eric to reexamine his career and business. He found that fried chicken made him rethink everything.

Johnny Spero of Bar Spero in Washington D.C. told the story of finding success with his Georgetown restaurant, Reverie, but then being met with catastrophe when it burned down. He emphasized not giving up on your passion and being sure to stop and feel your feelings.

Yajaira Gonzalez of Pop and Pour in Washington Heights spoke about her business surviving the pandemic. Yajaira said her strength came from her ability to find positives even in the face of challenges. She advised that people should do their research before making decisions, be flexible, understand sacrifices, and use professionals when needed.

Buddy the Bar's Claire Sprouse, owner of the now-closed Hunky Dory in Crown Heights, Brooklyn closed out the evening. She told the crowd that believed that her location and community kept her going while she was in business. The timing of the pandemic and the need to prioritize her personal life helped her make the decision to permanently close the restaurant, however. She said she thinks anyone considering the restaurant industry should take a deep look at what they really want before jumping in.

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On today’s episode, I'm joined by Steven Satterfield, the executive chef and co-owner of Miller Union, a celebrated ingredient-driven restaurant located in Atlanta's West Side neighborhood. The restaurant, which opened in 2009, has become an institution and has been recognized as a top restaurant in America by Eater, Bon Appetit, Food and Wine, and Esquire. Together we talk about opening his restaurant and how he has kept it running smoothly after all these years of operation; growing up in Savannah; seasonal Georgia cooking; and the many local ingredients he works with, including peanuts and okra.

Photo Courtesy of Heidi Geldhauser.

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On today’s episode I welcome Jeff Byrd and his daughter-in-law Lauren to discuss their restaurant Two Birds Taphouse in Marietta Georgia. The restaurant is truly a family labor of love. Jeff, his wife, his son and Lauren joined forces to open Two Birds in 2016.  Jeff was a recently retired attorney and had no previous experience in restaurants or hospitality and from the start took on the massive role of being the day to day operator on site, a job which he continues to this day. Lauren, who now lives in Brooklyn, had extensive hospitality experience coming into the project but had never opened her own restaurant. She is now the Director of Customer Success at BentoBox where she spends all day dealing with helping other people promote their own restaurants. On today’s episode we discuss the pros and cons of working with your family, what it's like to own a restaurant when you have never worked in one before and what it's like to own a restaurant from afar.  We also talk about COVID and how it affected Two Birds and its staff, and the decisions they made that helped the restaurant make it through.  

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On today's episode of theLINE, I have the pleasure of presenting an episode of Dyed Green, a podcast about food and culture in Ireland. Hosted by my brother, Max Sussman, and his wife, Kate McCabe, each episode features dynamic conversations with chefs, farmers, scholars, and more - exploring Ireland’s rich culinary history, its dynamic creative culture, and challenging outdated stereotypes. 

In this episode I got the chance to join Max in interviewing Jess Murphy. Jess is a celebrated chef, restaurant owner, writer, and activist. Originally from New Zealand, she moved to Ireland and opened the Michelin Green Star Kai restaurant in Galway’s West End. We talk to her about why we should all think about today’s Irish food on the same level as other internationally acclaimed cuisines. 

If you enjoy this conversation, make sure to subscribe to Dyed Green to get the episodes as they launch! (Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify | RSS).

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On today’s episode, I welcome Chef Jae Jung, the chef and owner of KJUN, a Korean-Cajun pop-up currently operating in New York City. 

A graduate of the CIA, she moved to New Orleans where she became enamored by Cajun cuisine. Since moving to NYC in 2014 she has worked at Oceana, Le Bernardin, the NoMad Restaurant, and most recently as the sous chef of Café Boulud.   In 2021, she launched KJUN as a pop-up operating out of a ghost kitchen, introducing New Yorkers to the exciting blend of Korean and Cajun flavors. 

She has been featured in the New York Times, Eater, FOOD & WINE Magazine, Bon Appétit Magazine, the New Yorker, and Bloomberg Pursuits, which recently named KJUN one of the Best New Restaurants in New York. And she is appearing on this season of Top Chef 19. 

On this episode, we spoke about growing up in Korea and moving alone to the US, the cuisine of New Orleans, and finding your own culinary style while working in some of the best kitchens in the world. Now, onto the episode.  

Are you a business owner? Become an HRN business member! For $500 HRN will shine a light on your work AND you will help sustain our mission to expand the way people think about food. As a thank you for this tax-deductible donation, your business will receive on-air mentions, social media posts, listings on our website, and more. Go to heritageradionetwork.org/biz to become a business member today.

Photo Courtesy of Bravo and Emily Shur.

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On today’s episode of theLINE, I welcome Ben Van Leeuwen, the co-founder and CEO of Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, where he leads product development and commercialization. Van Leeuwen has come a long way since the first yellow truck hit the streets of NY in 2008. The company has grown from ice cream trucks to national distribution and brick and mortar locations in New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, with Colorado and Connecticut soon to open. They recently secured an additional round of fundraising which will allow the company to expand even more over the coming years. 

On this episode, we chat about supply chain issues, rising costs of goods, wholesale vs. scoop shops (and you’ll hear which is better for the business). And for entrepreneurs looking to launch or grow your own business, you’ll hear from Ben on building and scaling a brand, and what securing financing can help a founder achieve.

Photo Courtesy of Caitlin Ochs.

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On Today’s episode of the Line, I welcome the co-owners of the Austin, Texas restaurant Birdie’s. Tracy and Arjav moved from NYC to Austin with the hope of building an equitable neighborhood restaurant. Birdie’s is a casual order-at-the-counter spot that serves elevated plates. Tracy, a Texas native, handles chef duties, and Arjav, who was born in New Delhi and grew up in Portland, handles the front-of-house and the wine list. 

Together they wanted to create a restaurant for the long term both for themselves and their employees, so they built in things like healthcare, an equitable pay and tip model, and a winter and summer break when they shut down the restaurant for two weeks each season to provide a paid vacation for the entire team to recharge. 

Among its accolades, Birdie’s has been named a best restaurant in Austin by Eater, and was chosen by the NYTimes in 2021 as one of the 50 most exciting restaurants in America. 

On this episode of the Line, recorded in late 2021, we talk about how to build efficiency and maintain momentum while running a busy restaurant, creating a style and a vibe of a casual restaurant while coming from a higher-end background, keeping staff happy while maintaining your sanity as owners, and of course so much more. 

Photo Courtesy of Mackenzie Smith Kelley.

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On today’s episode, Eli welcomes Lauren and Peter Lemos, owners of Wax Paper in LA. With over 30 years of hospitality experience between them, they launched their restaurant in 2015 on a shoestring budget in a shoebox-sized space. Now with two locations of Wax Paper Co., a growing team, and a new restaurant concept called Lingua Franca on the way, Lauren and Peter sat down to share their story of opening a restaurant and truly figuring it all out along the way. If you are an industry veteran looking to start your own thing, this episode is definitely for you. Get ready for a wide-ranging and expansive conversation that touches on build-outs, the health department, trying to get a bank loan, cooking with constraints, how to build a better business for the long term, and of course, navigating a restaurant during Covid.

Photo Courtesy of Marielle V. Chua.

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On today’s episode, Eli is joined by Tara Hankinson and LeAnn Darland, the founders of Talea Beer Co. After several years of planning, fundraising, and overcoming the many roadblocks it takes to get a physical location up and running, they opened the Talea Brewery and Taproom in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in March of 2021. 

Talea is the only exclusively woman and veteran-owned and founded production brewery (and taproom) in NYC. We discuss balancing work and family, ABV, opening during the pandemic, and their future expansion plans.

Photo Courtesy of Talea Beer.

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Chef Todd Richards is an award-winning chef known for his contemporary cooking style rooted in Soul & Southern cuisines. Todd is the founder of The Soulful Company Restaurant Group in Atlanta which includes Lake & Oak Neighborhood BBQ, Soul: Food & Culture, and the upcoming Kuro. He is also the author of SOUL: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes and the host of the HRN podcast Soul By Chef Todd Richards.

We recorded this episode live at Samesa while Todd was in New York doing research for his next cookbook. We discuss how he started his career, the mentors that have shaped his work, and his own approach to mentoring and management. Particularly in light of the current labor shortage in the hospitality industry, Todd shares his insight on pricing food and taking care of his employees with fair wages, retirement funds, and opportunities for ownership. Plus, we talk about catering to dietary restrictions and food allergies - including Todd’s own - and why they present an opportunity to keep challenging yourself and expanding the menu.

Subscribe to Todd’s HRN podcast Soul by Chef Todd Richards. (Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify | RSS).

This episode was sponsored by JUST Egg.

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