Chris Shepherd gives thanks for Houston's hard working hospitality industry

This week is Thanksgiving and a true kickoff to the holiday season. All the holiday events, the luncheons, the catered house parties, the large to go orders and all the festive holiday bar pop ups (I know this because I got the CultureMap email this morning telling me about the bars and I thank you for that) for us to enjoy. I would like to take a moment to thank all of the people that make the next six weeks with family and friends amazing.

We as Houstonians have had a challenging year with things like the derecho storm that came through in May and then less than eight weeks later, Hurricane Beryl. Although these disasters put a lot of strain on residents, they really showed the true grit of this beautiful city. Neighbors and friends banded together to help each other cut down trees, share food and water, clean up yards, and help get things back together. Many of the people that live in our city went without power for days on end, which is catastrophically hard to manage especially if you are in the food and beverage industry. I can only speak to that because I have firsthand knowledge of what that feels and looks like.

This year, restaurant owners and workers have really faced more than they should have to endure with these storms. You can plan for slower summers but lack of power for days, if not weeks, on end is devastating. Working paycheck to paycheck or payroll to payroll is hard enough without these major disasters. Without a lot of back up savings, it can be almost impossible.

This year, restaurant owners really learned what is and isn’t covered by that large insurance premium they have been paying, and what they found out was generally not good news. This industry is very hard even for the very successful people. Many owners are telling me that their revenue is down 15-25 percent, and I bet after this is published, I will get texts saying it’s higher than that for some.

I will say that the average consumer believes that restaurants are just making money hand over fist, but this is absolutely not true because after you factor in food, labor, rent, utilities, insurance (remember what I said before), and all the general operating expenses. There just isn’t that much left. If you are doing really well, you might break out of the single digit percentage on that huge investment and all that hard work. So let’s break down what this holiday season represents and the work that will go into it.

Let’s talk about what goes into Thanksgiving for just a minute. I know that a lot of you spend days and days prepping and getting ready for the family to show up, and I hope you have a fantastic timeline written out to make sure that everything hits the table at once. I know you will do great! Then there are those (like myself) that have thought way in advance to make that reservation to one of your favorite places because that is a delicious idea, and it’s a whole lot easier.

Prepping forThanksgiving at Brennan’s

Here’s what it takes to really pull off Thanksgiving service in a restaurant and why we should be thankful for those working. I lived that lifestyle for many years so I can give you a firsthand account of how it works. I worked for Brennan’s of Houston for nine years, and Thanksgiving is a one of the biggest days there along with Christmas Eve, Easter, and Mother’s Day. By big I mean well over 1,000 people coming in for service.

Planning starts months in advance because reservations start months in advance. For the back of the house (kitchen), menu planning generally needs to be finished by early-to-mid September for everything to run smoothly because everything — ordering, prep list, and what station is making each item — needs to be thought through. For the front of the house (dining room/bar), holiday cocktails need to be tested, sommeliers need to taste and purchase the perfect wines, seating charts need to be drawn, reservation times need to be adjusted (10 tops take more time than 4 tops) so that wait times aren’t long, decorations need to be sorted and put up. All of this planning has to happen with meeting after meeting to make sure that when you and your family arrive for your 12:30 pm reservation, everything is perfect.

Alex Brennan-Martin used to say to me, “We need to be like ducks in water. On the top we are smooth and elegant but underneath the water where people can’t see, we’re paddling as fast as we can.” This is one of the truest statements I’ve ever heard. That is how restaurants run, it’s really a beautiful thing.

Once the prep list is written, orders are properly received, and everything is mapped out, then the real work begins. I can remember some of my favorite days were standing in the walk-in boning out turkeys for hours. There is a special skill and technique to removing all the bones from the turkey without separating the meat into pieces so that you could brine, roll, and roast the bird in one piece. It didn’t go fast but that was the beauty of it in the end.

The production of the gravy, the sides, appetizers, the desserts, and all the items on the menu becomes a guessing game really. You need to have strong data from the previous years to what people will order. How many turkey dinners? How many people will order snapper? How many ducks or steaks and so on? What will people drink? What will their moods be? Will they all be on time?

It’s all a domino effect. If you are 15 minutes late, that sends the “map” that was written weeks prior into a spiral and the chess match begins on where to put the table that is scheduled to come in after you. It’s an amazing process that should be celebrated. Every second and every decision that is made from the moment the front doors open and the first guests are seated matters. These are the things I miss the most, because they’re the biggest challenges a cook could face.

If you’re cooking at home and have 10-12 people coming over, I already know that you are probably stressed, and you set the menu. Imagine having 400 to 1,000 people coming over to your house and having no idea on what they are going to order. That is some stress, and it’s beautiful!

Why am I telling you all this? Because in this holiday season, you probably won’t ever know what is going on behind the scenes and that is ok. What I really want to emphasize is that it’s been a hard year, and the reality is that some restaurants just won’t make it. Many this year already have not, and this is sad to me. One of the hardest things a restaurant owner will ever do is have that conversation with their staff.

Show a Little Grace

This season, let’s show a little grace with our favorite restaurants and places that you are trying for the first time. These food and beverage workers are working day and night to make sure that you have the best possible time at that luncheon or holiday party, and they do this with gratitude. It’s the joy in making sure your steak is cooked the way that you like it, the wine that they help you order is exactly what you were looking for, and to make sure that you only see the duck above the water.

In my eyes, it’s the greatest industry in the world, because it brings joy to us when we walk in that restaurant. It’s where we celebrate special occasions, where we console ourselves when we have had a tough day, and where many of us find a place to relax and unwind. We are able to do this because people have chosen to make the food and beverage industry their life and career. People sometimes think that their waiter or that cook are just doing this until something better comes along. The truth is that this is a viable career, and people are choosing to spend their lives in this industry.

I owe almost everything to this industry and will never not be a part of it in one way or another. Remember, when you have to wait a few minutes for your table, don’t get upset. It’s generally not the restaurant’s fault. More likely, the people at the table before you had to wait a few minutes for their babysitter to show up or a meeting ran late or maybe traffic was bad. A little empathy and understanding goes a long, long way in this business and in life.

I hope that this one statement will stick in your mind as you travel the time you are here on this earth. As my friend Ashley Christensen always says, Don’t Forget Kindness.

I love you guys, have a great holiday season. We will talk wine next time.