Transcript: Episode 194: American in Saudi
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[00:00:00] Susan Barry: This is Top Floor episode 194. You can find the show notes at topfloorpodcast.com/episode/194.
[00:00:14] Narrator: Welcome to Top Floor with Susan Barry. This weekly podcast ride up to the top floor features tangible tips and excellent stories from the experts and characters who elevate hospitality. And now your host and elevator operator, Susan Barry.
[00:00:32] Susan Barry: Welcome to the show. Chris Tripoli is a lifelong hospitality entrepreneur and educator with deep experience in restaurant ownership, operations and consulting. Starting his career in the kitchen of a steakhouse in Phoenix, he eventually launched several food service concepts, contributed to trade organizations, and has become a respected voice in the industry. Now Chris is focused on educating and advising through his consultancy and his podcast Corner Booth, where he shares stories and strategies for independent restaurant success. Today we are going to talk about defining modern hospitality, the future of restaurant labor and tipping, and the power of people in the industry. But before we jump in, we need to answer the call button.
Call button rings
The emergency call button is our hotline for hospitality professionals who have burning questions. If you would like to submit a question, you can call or text me at (850) 404-9630. Today's question was submitted by Katie. Katie says, “My restaurant staff is very green. What are the one or two most important things to focus on as I start to get them trained?” This is such a hard, but good question. Chris, what do you think?
[00:02:08] Chris Tripoli: You're right. It is, it's rough. But you know, it's also so current. The first thing I wanna say is that you're not alone. There are so many independent restaurant operators that face the same issue staff that aren't just new, but new to the actual industry. Very green. Um, since you're looking for just the first couple of things I'd wanna say, you wanna show interest in them and support for them. Most people who are new to our industry today aren't really looking just for a job, they're looking for a place to be, they're looking for a place where they might fit in, where they might feel appreciated, where they could be engaged, or maybe they could offer an opinion and it would be heard. And so knowing that this is what they're thinking might help you, reach out to them, show them some comfort, show them that you're there to support them, make sure that you show interest, ask questions. So training isn't just about, I provided you the information. So go do it. It's I'm providing the information, I'm bonding with you, I'm reviewing it with you, I'm showing you, I'm asking for your input and then I'm actually supporting you to, for you to develop feet that you're going to need to support yourself.
[00:03:30] Susan Barry: That's a very kind answer. I don't think mine is quite as kind. When I was thinking about Katie's question, the thing that immediately jumped to mind for me is the thing that I think I see that is the root of service problems when I personally am going out to dinner or whatever, is staff not respecting or not acknowledging the difference between being on stage and backstage. So when you're in a guest-facing position, in the building, in the restaurant, in whatever you're doing, that, that is when your side work takes a second place, your person-to-person conversations take second place, that kind of thing. But maybe that's too mean. Maybe that's like a third or fourth thing instead of like trying to get to know people and be kind. I don't know. Chris, what do you think?
[00:04:27] Chris Tripoli: I don't think it's mean at all, actually. I think it's a very important step. I think owners need to realize that the people that they're hiring that are green may not be coming to them with what you just described as we would think are very common courtesy points. The idea of please, thank you. A customer interaction, eyeball to eyeball. These are things that sometimes we just take for granted that it's common sense.
[00:04:54] Susan Barry: Yeah, absolutely. I had another guest, Glenda Lee on who talked about the idea that we expect people who have never experienced white glove service to provide white glove service. And it's exactly what you said - people just don't know the things that you think are so engrained. I mean, we're old, right? We've been doing this for a long time, but there are a lot of folks who are starting out in the industry who may not have that experience. So speaking of starting out, tell us about your first job in hospitality and how you got hooked.
[00:05:28] Chris Tripoli: Great question. Yeah. I got hooked at an early age. I was 15 and I was a busboy at a really nice formal steak seafood restaurant that had the old fashioned bar and showroom with live entertainment. I'm really aging myself. I'm talking about late sixties, early seventies, and this is the way the nicer restaurants were. It was my first job and I was just so, I was just so engaged by the ceremony of it all, the preparation, the service, the teamwork, the multitasking, the high energy that everybody needed in order to do this type of work. I think I got hooked very quickly that my first manager saw that - I guess he just saw that I was a teenage kid with big eyes and I was absorbing. And so he reached out to me and showed me very at an early age how important mentoring could be. Because he arranged for me to broaden my knowledge. I learned kitchen, pantry, he just scheduled me to come in every day after school. So before I knew it, I was helping in the office.
[00:06:47] Susan Barry: Oh, wow.
[00:06:48] Chris Tripoli: The guy that I know, I still remember his name, Darrell Anthony, who was the bookkeeper, and he took reservations. He showed me how to do that and he had me checking in deliveries and, you know, since I was just an interested kid, they really, helped exploit that and showed me everything. So yeah, I got hooked.
[00:07:05] Susan Barry: They put you through your paces, but it probably is like stuff that you've never forgotten. Your whole restaurant career, we could make probably ten episodes of Top Floor about it, so I'm just gonna tell everyone, listen to Corner Booth. You'll learn all about Chris and all of the amazing things he's done. But you decided ultimately to go from operating restaurants to what you're doing now. How did you make that decision, and what exactly is it that you're doing now?
[00:07:33] Chris Tripoli: I made that transition because while I was doing operations, I saw that my interest and what I seemed to be really good at was the development side. I went to work for a company that moved me from Phoenix to Houston, Texas. They were a new company and they were wanting to expand quickly with a casual family barbecue hamburger concept. So I was the first manager trainee and I went quickly from unit operations to multi-unit to opening new. I really liked the system of developing timeline management, getting open. We did eight locations in five years, and then I left only because I had an opportunity to open my own restaurant company. And so that helped morph me into what I started doing as a restaurant developer and consultant, because I was doing it for myself.
We did three restaurants, we sold them. But then the funny part of it, since your question was, you know, how did it actually occur? Well, part of it was from an interest point of view. I just developed that part of the industry as my interest area. The other part was I was working for an entertainment management company - the only time I think I was working for what I would consider a large group. They brought me in to help them assess their nightclub operations, and we turned some of those locations into restaurants and we created a new restaurant concept. And then after that point, the company reached a, I guess a point on their own, where they were going to split and so there was gonna be no new development for a while and I was laid off. So actually my position as the Vice President of Food Service Development for this company ended. And that's when I thought, “Okay. I guess the time is telling me, I'm supposed to be going and doing development work on my own.” That was 1994 when I started a company called A La Carte: Food Service Consulting Group. And that got me into doing the independent restaurant consulting work.
[00:09:34] Susan Barry: Alright, I'm just gonna continue to load you up with really impossible questions to answer, and the next one is one of them, and that is just distill your entire career down into one thing. What has been the most, maybe one of the most surprising lessons that you've learned over your decades in the business?
[00:09:55] Chris Tripoli: What I have learned time and time again is that too many of the owner operators, too many of the company officers, the people that you're working for that are your clients, think that they are their own customer.
[00:10:13] Susan Barry: Oh, that's good! Say it again.
[00:10:15] Chris Tripoli: You see it. You see it over and over again, and sometimes it's very hard to explain to them that they are the owner or they're the president. But they're not really the boss. The boss is the customer and many times they don't fit the customer profile. So they're wanting to make decisions that they like, and I'm trying to help them make decisions that are profitable.
[00:10:41] Susan Barry: It's that I have sort of a corollary to that, which is a lot of marketing clients think because they have experienced marketing that they are marketing experts because whether or not a particular piece of marketing works on them should tell them the the test, and that's not true. There's a difference between personal taste and strategy. Just like what you said, there's a difference between being the president of the company and making money, friend.
[00:11:12] Chris Tripoli: I know it's sometimes I actually draw like a dartboard. And I tell 'em, we're working together and in order for you to really be successful, I'm trying to direct you to the bullseye. That's the core customer. It isn't good enough anymore just to hit the dartboard. That doesn't win. Winning is hitting the bullseye. So can we define the core customer and make sure that we're gonna be making our decisions, we're focusing our strategies for product for people, for marketing, are to the core customer. Now, I'm sorry if you're not the core customer, but you know, you're just the owner.
[00:11:53] Susan Barry: But also just because you try to hit the bullseye, it doesn't mean you get rid of the rest of the board. Plenty of people who are not the core customer may still come in and eat a burger. They just aren't the center of the project.
[00:12:08] Chris Tripoli: It's like a funnel that creates in a sink, you know? If you're hitting it right, all the periphery winds up going down the sink too.
[00:12:17] Susan Barry: Yes.
[00:12:18] Chris Tripoli: If you're really speaking to your core customer, yes. The periphery, the people that might be the larger group or slightly different income demographic or different gender or a different age group, but they're still gonna be there too, but if you have a shotgun approach, or you're trying to hit 'em all, then you're gonna be missing the core customer. And that's what I see a lot.
[00:12:42] Susan Barry: How do you see restaurants making that happen and sort of balancing the tension between convenience, you know, having everything out say on the counter so you can help yourself, for example, and personal service where you're only being given, I don't know, the sauces that you asked for? I may have muddied the waters by giving those examples, but hopefully that made sense.
[00:13:08] Chris Tripoli: No, I think that's a great example. You're right on target because that seems to be what happened to the customer dynamic in their shift post-COVID because convenience now is extremely important. It isn't just out of necessity. It also isn't for food service, what it used to be. It was sort of a default. Convenience was that pizza guy down the street or my favorite Chinese restaurant that'll deliver. Okay, that's not it. Now, I mean, convenience is we want everything but we want it now. And we've got online and we've got curbside and we've got third party delivery, so we can have it now. So, you know, that's a big change and we obviously need to modify to meet that change.
But I love the way you positioned the question because I think hospitality now has to balance the two. How do we deliver the convenience our customer's demanding and yet still give them the personalized service that they're deserving? Now the winners are the ones that find ways to do that. 'Cause that means the customer's bonded and they've become loyal. They might love third party from your restaurant rather than another. And it might be just the small thing like the follow up that you did. I don't understand why more restaurants don't do that. You have their phone number, so a little text follow up to compliment their order, thank them, and maybe provide them with a little interest in what your next week's specials might be, that's a nice little reach out. I also like sometimes when the car side pickup is where you drive up, you get your favorite dinner or whatever, and you open it up and here's a small personalized note.
[00:14:47] Susan Barry: Yes.
[00:14:48] Chris Tripoli: Yeah, and the note is a thank you note and it's signed by the manager or it's signed by the chef thanking you. Hope you enjoy your dinner for two or whatever. And then of course, it can work for you. On the other side can be the stamp of the little reminder of whatever your specials are, maybe next week. So it can be a promotional tool as well. But we're challenged now to make sure that we find ways that we just can't expect people to come in and see the counter, grab the bag and leave and then what we just wave and say thank you and call that service?
[00:15:20] Susan Barry: And hope they'll come back.
[00:15:22] Chris Tripoli: It doesn't. So that challenges our quick casual concepts to make sure that we are doing what some people are calling five star in five seconds. How can I use five seconds of your time to make sure that I still greeted you, I introduced you to some product, I described something, I did a little suggestive selling, I thanked you or opened the door - something, because I've only got five seconds. But if I don't create some type of an impact on you walking in and walking out and I lost, and somebody down the street who's doing that will win.
[00:16:00] Susan Barry: What does the industry get wrong when talking about guest expectations?
[00:16:06] Chris Tripoli: I think a couple things. I think first off, right now we're getting wrong. A definition of value. I think some people are still stuck, that when customers are searching for value, that means cheap. And that's probably our fault. We introduced value to the general public in terms of lower price. Remember that? It was like, “Value travel. Look how low the hotel rates might be if you stay on a Tuesday or a Wednesday night,” or something like that. Or value meals, 'cause you go to the drive-through and you don't order the meal, you order the number. Number four, number five, we package it and it's a little cheaper. Restaurants were doing that for years. The lunch special wasn't really a chef special. It was really what we called, “the business meal” and we packaged things up and it was cheaper. So we used the word “value” in terms of “cheap.”
Well, I think most people are realizing, and a lot of this came after COVID too, that the customers are smart enough to know that value means worth. Was this worth my time? So we're challenged now by delivering a total experience. We're being judged not just by the price we charge, but by the quality, by the ambiance, the friendliness, the cleanliness. People are looking at, “Was this worth my time?” If so, they valued that experience and you might have a chance of them coming back. Price isn't value. Cheap is cheap, value is worth, and I think we get that wrong when we're talking about what the customer's expecting of us.
[00:17:40] Susan Barry: That absolutely rings true in my personal experience for sure. What about a hill that you're willing to die on - or maybe just sprain your leg on - when it comes to restaurant management?
[00:17:54] Chris Tripoli: It's gotta be all about the guest service. That's the hill I guess I would die on. I love it when people say, "The best way to approach restaurant management is enter the issue by saying yes is the answer - now, what the heck was the question?” Somebody wants some kind of special seating. We don't say, no, we don't do that here. Well, actually we find a way to do that here. If there is something that someone remembered as their menu favorite, but due to your seasonal updates, it's not on your menu. Okay, well, the rule should be if the product is still in the house, go ahead and make it. You tell 'em it's not on our menu, it might rotate back on our fall menu, but you know what, I'm gonna go ask the chef 'cause I think we can still pull it together. Bingo. Find a way to say yes. Now, of course that there are, sometimes you just aren't gonna be able to do that. I mean, if you used to sell pork ribs and now you don't even inventory pork ribs, I'm not saying run down the street and go get some from a barbecue competitor.
[00:19:00] Susan Barry: We like to make sure that our listeners come away from every single episode of Top Floor with a couple of really specific, practical tips to try either in their businesses, their restaurants, or in their personal lives. So Chris, what advice would you give to a first time restaurant owner starting out today?
[00:19:21] Chris Tripoli: It's very important, I think, for a first time operator to approach their initial startup with a little bit more patience, and to make sure that they are seeking expert advisement. Because our industry's more competitive than ever. It's also pretty risky. I don't wanna scare people. I always like to tell that first time operator that opening your first restaurant's not about being scared, it's all about being prepared. So the number one thing is please be prepared. There are associations out there, there are information websites, there are podcasts to listen to. There are industry experts to meet with. This is a very specialized industry, so utilize specialists. When you think that it's time for you to start looking for a real estate site, don't call the number that's on the window. Yeah, that person doesn't work for you. That person works for the landlord. You wanna search and find a realtor that represents restaurants, that understands restaurants.
And trust me, they're in every major market. So use trades associations to find specialists that understand finance, operations, real estate. Surround yourself with people, because you're probably coming to this industry from another one. You've probably worked in some other industry. You know that there's specialists that understand whatever, warehousing, manufacturing, distribution. So don't look at your restaurant any differently. You know, don't hurry. Don't get a restaurant location just 'cause it's close to your site. Don't be in a rush to open just because your friends say your pizza's the best, your mother-in-law has the best marinara recipe. That's why I wanna open an Italian restaurant. Now that's a true comment I was told, years ago.
[00:21:19] Susan Barry: oh, I'm sure.
[00:21:21] Chris Tripoli: Well, of course that's a reason.
[00:21:23] Susan Barry: You're a great cook. You should open a restaurant. Maybe, maybe not. What do you think that independent operators underestimate most consistently? Is it that kind of stuff? Like that great marinara translates into a great business or something else?
[00:21:41] Chris Tripoli: Well, no, I think you hit it on the head there that a lot of times one item alone is gonna be the silver bullet. I have really good food. I've been told I'm a really good chef, so I'm gonna hurry and open my restaurant. Okay. Well that just means you've got one block checked. Now it's a very big block. But it does not mean that because you're really good with food, you're gonna have a successful business. You have to surround yourself with the people that specialize in the areas that you don't, again, much like other industries. So doesn't it baffle you a little bit about how interested people, who are very successful in other businesses, can't wait to get out of 'em, to then risk everything they've saved to go open up a bakery or a pizza place, or you know, their favorite family Mexican restaurant?
Now, I mean, I love it. I love the fact that our industry is really run by a lot of hardworking, food-knowledgeable, hands-on entrepreneurs. That's wonderful. But it still does amaze me. The people underestimate the time it takes, the costs involved, and they quit their job and they risked everything without really, you know, checking it out further.
[00:22:58] Susan Barry: Mm-hmm. And they think it's gonna be fun. Which it is, but there's a lot more to it than the fun part.
[00:23:06] Chris Tripoli: You know, a good way to approach that is have them work a little bit first. I've done that. I've had people actually be introduced to clients and say, here's a person who loves your restaurant. They eat here, he's gonna open something similar, doesn't have a lot of experience, maybe hasn't worked in a restaurant since high school. And so they'll say, well sure just come on in. I'm gonna show you how we work the books during the day. I'm gonna have you see what goes on. And they have to see that behind the, behind that facade of fun - 'cause it is fun. Walking the floor, customers are happy, people eating and drinking. Servers are smiling 'cause they're getting tipped well. You know, when all that kind of stuff is going on, the customers think, “What a fun business. I go to work, I sit in the cubicle, I'm not having any fun. These people are having fun!” So they can't wait to quit. So we have to show them the other side. So they see that these are 12-hour shifts and you're on your feet and you've got issues, and you've got leaky ice machines and deliveries that are late, and things that the customers never see.
[00:24:13] Susan Barry: And the margins don't allow for an absentee owner or you know, you can't just hire somebody to quote, “run it for you” or else you'll never make any money. The industry, I think, does a great job of promoting itself to those folks: the people who are sitting in an office bored out of their minds and wanna bake muffins or whatever. Where I think we may have a little bit of a gap is on the frontline staff side. I think that our industry, especially in relation to gig work, like driving or delivering packages or things like that where you have a lot more freedom and you can wear what you want, you can pick up hours and shifts and all that stuff, what you want. I promise I'm getting to a point. I'll land this plane. From that perspective, I think our industry, as you said, is known for 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, relentless labor for not a lot of money. On the other side of that, this is the only industry where you can start as a busboy and end up as a vice president. Right? I don't know of any other business where that not only happens, but is what is supposed to happen. So how do you think hospitality as a whole can do a better job of promoting itself as a career path, and who should be in charge of that? Who should be leading that charge?
[00:25:46] Chris Tripoli: We have to be able to better promote just what a successful career hospitality is. You know, very few people know some of the things that you mentioned. I think very few people know that food service as a whole is the second largest employer. In our nation, there are more people serving people today than building a house, drilling for oil, making a car. So we are not a small, what you do when you're a kid until you get a job type of job. We are a massive employment base. That's point number one. And point number two is we don't do a good enough job of promoting for career. I think what most people see is that we're just reaching out, saying, we’re now accepting applications, come work here. So it's pretty easy for, I think our customers and maybe the world at large to get that opinion that people just go there to work. They're young, they get an hourly wage, and they move on.When in fact some of the best business owners, were they themselves sandwich makers. The largest franchisee multimillionaires started as a summer job on the fryer. I mean, so yeah, I agree with you. I don't know of any other industry where you might be able to go from worker to owner as often or as quickly as you can in our business.
Now to the second part of that, how do we get that word out? That is kind of difficult because I don't know if our associations — you know, we have state associations, we've got really good lobbying efforts, we've got national associations for hospitality, for restaurants, et cetera. But I'm not so sure that we're getting our message out that this is a place to come to to develop a career. We're starting. We're starting. Not many people I think really know, but over the last 10 or 20 years in high schools, a tremendous educational program called ProStart has really connected and juniors and seniors are able to learn for credit, basic business components of the restaurant business, as well as the culinary side. So the idea is for them to see it as a career, not a part-time, summer job. It’s starting, but I think we have a lot of work to do there to make sure that people see this as a, what can be a very lucrative industry.
[00:28:27] Susan Barry: And rewarding! Fun and beautiful and amazing people. Absolutely. This puts me in mind of something that I've noticed, which is that a lot of my hotel executive guests of a certain age refer to having watched the show Hotel as the thing that inspired them to go into the hotel business. My question related to that for you is, do you think that all of the, like, Food Network competition shows and things like that are a help or a hindrance when it comes to the restaurant business?
[00:29:05] Chris Tripoli: I'm glad you brought that up. I love it. I think they're becoming a help. I think they started by being a hindrance. I think they started too much on how we can sell commercials and be entertaining. So let's show yelling and screaming and let's go in there, this restaurant impossible, and throw these mushrooms in the dumpster because you're silly enough to order bad food, and you know, that kind of stuff made for commercial success, but sort of made our industry a little bit more buffony than it you know, ever was. However, I don't think that's working anymore. I am loving what goes on on Top Chef and Bravo and Food Network and they're really personalizing and interviewing these people that went from line cook to chef-partner to multi-unit concept developer. And so we're seeing that, wow, I might be able to be interested in that industry, not because of these long hours, or this lower pay, or yelling and cussing in the kitchen, but this is a pretty professional industry — look at so-and-so. So we've got a lot of good examples out there now.
[00:30:16] Susan Barry: Hopefully White Lotus will do that again for the hotel business - unless people are afraid they're gonna get murdered at work. We'll have to see. We have reached the fortune telling portion of our show, so now's the time that you have to predict the future, and then we will come back and see if you got it right. What is a prediction that you have about the future of restaurant wages and tipping?
[00:30:43] Chris Tripoli: Okay, I tell you what — I think we will, my prediction is I think tipping will remain. I think the guest likes tipping. I know from time to time there is, why can't we be like these other countries? And everyone gets a salary and it rolls into the cost. And I know I've traveled, I've seen how other countries do it, and that's okay for them. But my prediction would be they'll always be tipping. I think that the guest enjoys leaving a tip. I would hope that the industry slows down a little bit because I think what we're doing indirectly is creating sort of a tip fatigue because of our counter service and our drive-through service and our point of sales that immediately flip over.
So you can tap, you can swipe, and the big question is, “Do you wanna leave 18, 20, or 25%?” Instead of the big question being, “Have a good, nice day. I hope you enjoy the, the drink I just made. Please come back soon.” No, no, no, no, no. The message is, “Please leave me a tip.” So some of what we're doing is stubbing our toe because everybody but the dry cleaner now I think is asking for a tip on their POS machine.
[00:32:01] Susan Barry: If you could wave a magic wand and change one thing about how US restaurants approach staffing, what would that be?
[00:32:09] Chris Tripoli: Temporary help. I think looking at somebody who might be here today and might be gone tomorrow, I would like to rebrace that thought from anyone's forehead. I would like everyone to look at their staffing needs as making sort of a decision that is adding a member to the family. It should be that important to you. So if I did have a magic wand, I would immediately go, sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle. And every restaurant manager who's sitting down today interviewing would be looking at somebody not from the standpoint as, I just need somebody 'cause I'm one person short in the kitchen. But looking at somebody as, who is this person? How can I help this person help me do a better job serving my customer? Think permanency. And temporary. That would be my magic wand.
[00:32:59] Susan Barry: That's a good one. Okay folks, before we tell Chris goodbye, we are going to head down to the loading dock where all of the best stories get told.
Elevator voice announces, “Going down.”
[00:33:14] Susan Barry: Chris, what is a story you would only tell on the loading dock?
[00:33:18] Chris Tripoli: Okay. Okay. Susan, I've got a story for you. I think you might enjoy. It's about a project that I didn't think I was ever going to get, a client that I didn't think I probably should have gotten. So this kind of comes from the be careful what you wish for chapter in a book. Or maybe don't put your toe in the water unless you're really prepared to swim. Because I had worked international projects, but quite frankly, when you're working, say, projects in the Caribbean, Mexico, central America, Canada. We might consider 'em international, but it isn't a big stretch, you know, for an American-based small consultancy. So when I received an invitation to provide a quote to develop a restaurant for a real estate developer in Jetta, Saudi Arabia, it piqued my interest. I was a member, still am a member of the International Consultant Society, there's one called Food Service Consultant Society International. I knew that's how we found me. And I sat down with my team and I said, we don't understand anything over there. We don't understand the culture. We have no purveyor relationships. We don't understand the working environment, government regulations. I don't know really why we received this invitation, but because we did, let's just go through the process. Let's see what we can learn. Oh boy. Be careful.
Formal projects seem to be — I mean, foreign projects seem to be a lot more formal. So we received this government packet that explains the application process. I went through all of that. Going through that process. I learned of not one, but two other consultants that were invited and I thought, okay, they're based there. One is in Egypt, one specializes in Middle East. I'm probably doing this more as a learning tool.
[00:35:23] Susan Barry: You're the pace horse.
[00:35:25] Chris Tripoli: Exactly, maybe I'm just supposed to be used for comparison, keep them honest. I don't know. So I finished the scope, did all the quoting, sent it in. Couple weeks later, I get the notification that I was awarded the project. My timeline is accepted, my fee's approved, and they set an appointment up to go to the Saudi consulate so I can apply for my work permit, get my visa. Fast forward to our first trip and I meet a most interesting man that had before I'd only seen on a Skype - that was popular back then. And Darwish El Cadra, who was a successful Saudi businessman and real estate developer, met me at the airport, met my associate. We talked a lot and it didn't take long for it to come up as to why were we selected, why bring somebody from America over here to help you with this when you know that we're gonna be learning as we go? I've got as many questions for you on how we're gonna do what we're going to do as you probably have for me. And so I learned right from the start that I was the one to be selected. The other two were basically there just to be my pace horse. He didn't care that we were new to the culture. He didn't care that we didn't know anything about government permitting, whatnot, because like he said, he does.
He wanted American professionals that are gonna help him create a concept from scratch that are gonna outcompete his competitors, which were all nationally American based casual chains. He said, that's why you're selected. Do you know everything about these guys? And he's pointing to Chili's. He's pointing to Red Robins, and he's pointing to Ruby Tuesdays. But I learned very quickly that American brands are incredibly stupidly over the top successful in foreign countries. People line up at the door when the first Cheesecake Factory opened in Saudi Arabia, I was there, the line wrapped around the building. People go nuts for American brands. So it was becoming a little bit more clear why. And then the second reason, and this is the stunner, the other reason I selected is you guys know how to successfully work with women. Because your client isn't me. Your client is my wife, and as unpopular as that might be in my country, you're gonna be working for my wife.
[00:37:58] Susan Barry: Okay?
[00:37:58] Chris Tripoli: I thought what a forward thinking guy. Now to meet my soon wonderful woman, Lebanese woman. French schooled. I have no idea how many languages she spoke, but her English was impeccable and he wanted to do this restaurant for her. She's a designer. She loved everything Alford Hitchcock, she took the circular space and we called it Cafe Vertigo with a spiral staircase and black and white TVs with Alford Hitchcock. And we did this American casual theme restaurant. And, you know, she was in charge. And we developed a really good friendship out of a job that A: I never thought I should have gotten, and B: did not know a thing about.
[00:38:40] Susan Barry: That is amazing. What a good story. How long did the project last?
[00:38:48] Chris Tripoli: It took about 10 months to go from initial meeting to opening. Very interesting working with purveyors there, trying to get things, you know, understood. We were just doing it what you might consider a very basic casual theme restaurant, you know, with flatbreads and sandwiches and burgers. But of course we had to work in some of the culture points, like non-alcoholic drinks. That's really big. The non-alcoholic drink menu was really big, and this was a new learning experience for me. And that was making hookah. We actually shredded and dried the tobacco mixed with fruit juices to make the hockey little hookah pucks because the hookah bar was big time.
[00:39:36] Susan Barry: That's so interesting.
[00:39:38] Chris Tripoli: A lot of language. Hired 62 people to open the restaurant. Not one woman, even though. Although the practice was women can work, it's not necessarily that accepted. We learned a lot about the customs on how businesses work around the various prayer times because daily prayer is set by the tides, and five times a day the siren will go and the message of the day will be blasted. And business needs to slowly cease. So food is not delivered to the table. Checks are not presented, and then the lights are brightened, the prayer is over, you move on. So, it was a tremendous learning experience for me. I loved it. And I obviously they did too because through references we wound up working with 1, 2, 3, 4 other projects that took me through Saudi to Qatar to Kuwait City, Mascot, the capital of Oman, Abu Dhabi. So we worked Middle East projects for a while, and it was all because of this job that I thought I never should have had.
[00:40:43] Susan Barry: Oh wow. That's amazing. Chris Tripoli, thank you so much for being here. I know our listeners loved hearing your stories and ideas, and I really appreciate you riding to the top floor with us.
[00:40:57] Chris Tripoli: Well, it's been a fun flight. Thank you.
[00:41:00] Susan Barry: Thanks for listening. You can find the show notes at topfloorpodcast.com/episode/194. Jonathan Albano is our editor, producer, and all around Genius. He even wrote and performed our theme song with vocals by Cameron Albano. You can subscribe to Top Floor on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen and your rating or review will go a long way in helping us give you more of what you like.
[00:41:36] Narrator: Thanks for listening to the Top Floor podcast@www.top floor podcast.com. Have a hospitality marketing question. Reach us at 8 5 0 4 0 4 96 30 to be featured in a future episode.