11/29/2023
This is life now! I accepted an offer from IPIC in Fort Lee, NJ. To finally have direction again means more than you can imagine. Closing the restaurant was hard enough. At the onset of covid and the restrictions that came with it, Lou and I did everything we could think of to keep the restaurant going. We did weekly family meals, deliveries, jarred sauce like a factory. Knowing it wasn't going to be enough, we relocated to Magazine street right after Father's Day, just a few months shy of being on Camp street for 10 years. The move put us 60K in debt, but we believed it would only take a couple of years to put it back. We reopened in September, with an almost entirely new staff. The space was bigger, the kitchen was smaller, and always 125 degrees. We went from doing brunch daily in the CBD to doing dinner with live entertainment in the Garden District. We were successful right off the bat. We spent the next year getting used to our new surroundings, new regulars, new neighbors. We even adopted the cat that lives under the restaurant, Meatball. We bought him a house, fed him twice a day, and got him to trust us. We were convinced that things were back on track. Then came Hurricane Ida. The building, which I didn't own, sustained some damage. The roof was leaking, the walls were sagging and soggy, the courtyard was destroyed, and the walkin, which is in the yard, was on the fritz, again. When we were on Camp St, I had purchased all the equipment, up front. I maintained it perfectly. 10 years in, everything worked wonderfully. Going into Magazine St., the space came with ovens, a walk in, a freezer, an ice machine,a 3 door reach in and bar coolers. We sold everything we had, for a song. I discovered, shortly after moving onto Magazine that most of the equipment wasn't working properly and was in need of repair. During the time we were there, we repaired the ovens twice, the reach in 6 times, the bar cooler 3 times. We bought a new freezer, 2 in fact., we bought a new ice machine, we bought 2 new coolers, we repaired the walk in 4 times. After Ida, it was clear that the walk in would need to be replaced. I was not in a position to do that. After Ida, the kitchen reach in was going to need to be replaced. That's when it was clear that we were in an untenable situation. Two key members BOH, both who had worked with us for 7 and 9 years moved on to other positions. I am an advocate for upward mobility. It's how I got my own start. I'm not a fan of lying and dodging, however. There remained a core of staff members that knew what we were facing. Our bartender, 3 servers, our utility, all knew what we were seeing. We sat down one afternoon and explained that the end of May would be the end of the restaurant. I was exhausted from training new cooks, people who talk a talk, but can't walk a walk. My bartender was trying to train some relief, same story. It was brutal to watch, but they were like family to me. We all cried on the last day. The landlord insisted I leave all the equipment I had replaced plus all my furniture to make it easier for him to rent to a new tenant. I left a brand new ice machine, 2 brand new freezers, a new cooler, a state of the art sound system, a flat screen tv, courtyard furniture, indoor furniture, bar stools, storage racks, a furnished office, outdoor lighting, outdoor heating and cooling. The space was rented within a month, and then remained closed for a year. Major renovations were done...something that was necessary to make that kitchen actually effective, yet we were never in a financial position to do. I wish the new occupant much success.
I took a position with a local pizza/brewery place. They came to me, after word of our imminent closing was out. Initially, I thought they wanted to buy some of my small wares. Turns out they wanted a gm to 'steer the ship, be the adult in the room' for a staff that had long gone unmanaged. They wanted a new kitchen, a new catering menu. They wanted to pass their health inspections. We agreed on a salary and I began in June. What they didn't do was prepare the staff for a new manager. They didn't prepare the staff in any way at all. They tasked me with making changes, righting the wrongs, and getting the staff back to following policy and procedure. I came to work in street clothes because it was made clear that I was a manager, not a pizza cook. The second day of work, I was called into HR because I told the kitchen staff that music that repeated the 'n word' over and over was inappropriate. The staff was okay listening to the music, but the minute I actually said the word, and why it was wrong, they were all offended. It continued like this for 3 months. I enforced a policy, someone complained to HR. They actually had people coming in to work high as kites, and HR asked me..do you think they can do their work? In the meantime, I created the new kitchen, made the catering menu, and was teaching some of the staff how to actually take pride in their work. On days off, my phone rang constantly. Upper management was unsupportive and unavailable. I was miserable.
I was also optimistic because a recruiter had a position that looked marvelous and I was excited to accept the offer. As a gm overseeing a market, bar and small dining room, I felt like this was a great fit. I expected to work with the cooks, the foh staff, and the guests/customers, as well. The cooks didn't want any direction from me. They would rather go to the corporate chef, who was always on campus, than go to me, who was their immediate supervisor. The FOH staff ignored any direction. The bartenders only wanted me when they walked away from their station for a break. No one would take any suggestions for improving the market. If I cooked something for the market place, the supervisor got angry because I wasn't in the front to ring up customers. If I stayed in the front to greet guests, the corporate chef got angry because the market wasn't stocked with enough food. It was a repeat of being brought on to manage a group that upper management said was too long unmanaged. Again, no support from upper management when my reports complained about following policy. Eventually, my position eliminated. Frankly, I never knew why they needed me in the first place. The corporate chef took the reigns of any issues the cooks had. A family member held the reigns of the market. All they needed was an hourly supervisor.
And now I'm facing rotator cuff surgery for an injury sustained at that job. Before and after the surgery I continued to search for a restaurant that Lou and I could run again. We wanted something that was back to our original plan - breakfast and lunch, no liquor, grab and go, salads, sandwiches, soups, pastries, great coffee, etc. Something we could do with a small staff. And we wanted to do it soon, while we still have the means to start it again. There were a few places that fit the bill, but we didn't get the pick. There werre some places that needed too much work, or were too big, or were too far. We even tried doing take out from a commissary style kitchen. Too much money, not enough return.
All along, I'm sending resumes out, but the sense of urgency was only felt by me. There were companies that would take 10 days to respond. There were some that I'd get to the third interview, after a month, only to not get the pick. There were positions I applied for that I held 15 years ago, and didn't get the pick. That's when I started thinking it might be my age. That hit me like a ton of bricks. I still don't think of myself as old... I started sending resumes out to NJ. I was getting lots of interest and lots of first interviews. When it came to where I was still living, it always ended the same way...call us when you get settled in NJ. 2 months of that, and it was finally obvious. It was time to go back...well, that, and spending a month on an interview with a company that would have kept us local, with a job I could have done with my eyes closed, that went to someone younger with less experience.
So, how do you find an apartment in NJ when you don't have proof of income....yet can't get a job in NJ because you don't live local? A phenomenal recruiter from Gecko Hospitality finally got the stars to align for me. Up in NJ looking at apartments , I got a face to face interview with the Exec Chef at IPIC in Fort Lee. Then a grueling video call with the Culinary Director (by the way...this was the most professional interview I've ever done. This man knows how to interview people). When they made an offer, I cried. My recruiter cried.
So, if you read all this, it's because you've watched it play out in real time. New Orleans stopped feeling right to us during covid. The 3 years since covid have been dreadful. Sure, there are lots of great memories, but it's hard watching the city pick itself up, and me not being able to find solid ground. We haven't been on vacation, other than a brief honeymoon, in 4 years. There hasn't been $$ to do any of the things we have grown accustomed to. I feel more angry than happy, and our health is starting to show the effects of being adrift.
Lou and I have made some wonderful friends here, we've been part of some beautiful events. I came here to follow my dream, which is more than most can say. I did exactly what I set out to do, and I did it well. My life is forever richer for what I experienced here. There will never be a way to properly thank everyone who was along for the ride, to mention all the people who held my hand when the world was crumbling around me. The love and support and encouragement that you all gave so freely to Lou and I will be cherished, always.
There's a line from the movie, Fried Green Tomatoes, that has always rung true, to me. Miss Ruth was a lady, and a lady always knows when it's time to leave.
Lou and I, and the 3 stooges will be in Hackensack, NJ in an area I've known my whole life. I'm close to my kids, again, my first husband, and the 4 seasons, the beautiful jersey shore, and 15 minutes from NYC. We are beginning a new chapter. Wish us luck!
Peace, Out.
