The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast - How To Develop Real Life Skills & Read People Ft. Craig Susser - Founder Of Craig's LA

Episode Date: June 29, 2023

#584: Today we're sitting down with Craig Susser, founder of Craig's LA. For 23 years Craig Susser worked at LA institution and celeb magnet Dan Tana's, moving up the ranks as server, bartender, maître d’, and GM before finally venturing on his own and opening Craig's LA in 2011. Craig sits down with us today to discuss how he worked his way up from a server to becoming the owner of one of Los Angeles's most popular restaurants. He gets into the intangible life-skills that the service industry can teach people, what skills he learned that led him to the top, and gives tips on how to read people & effectively communicate with every type of person. He also gives us the scoop on the celebrities that visit his restaurant & his experience working with some of the most famous people in Hollywood.   To connect with Craig's LA click HERE To connect with Lauryn Evarts click HERE To connect with Michael Bosstick click HERE Read More on The Skinny Confidential HERE For Detailed Show Notes visit TSCPODCAST.COM To Call the Him & Her Hotline call: 1-833-SKINNYS (754-6697) This episode is brought to you by The Skinny Confidential This episode is brought to you by Vitaclean Vitaclean is a triple-filter, Vitamin-C infused aromatherapy shower head that removes toxins from your shower, prevents product buildup in your hair, and calms skin irritation. Go to vitaclean.co and use code SKINNY at checkout for 20% off shower heads and starter kits.This episode is brought to you by Vitaclean This episode is brought to you by Squarespace From websites and online stores to marketing tools and analytics, Squarespace is the all-in-one platform to build a beautiful online presence and run your business. Go to squarespace.com/skinny for a free trial & use code SKINNY for 10% off your first purchase of a website domain.   This episode is brought to you by the Clean Simple Eats Clean Simple Eats protein powder is non-GMO, gluten-free, 3rd party tested, always grass-fed and made with zero artificial ingredients. You can get 20% off your first order by using code SKINNY at checkout at cleansimpleeats.com . This episode is brought to you Sephora Check out Sephora's wide variety of clean beauty products at sephora.com/clean This episode is brought to you by Vegamour With Vegamour, you're able to have visibly thicker, fuller, shinier, longer hair, all without the harsh ingredients. Vegamour's products are 100% cruelty free and not formulated with any harsh chemicals. Visit vegamour.com/skinny and use code SKINNY at checkout to get 20% off your first order. Produced by Dear Media.

The following podcast is a Dear Media production. She's a lifestyle blogger extraordinaire. Fantastic. And he's a serial entrepreneur. A very smart cookie. And now Lauren Everts and Michael Bostic are bringing you along for the ride. Get ready for some major realness. Welcome to The Skinny Confidential, him and her.

There's so many things that go wrong in the restaurant business. A pipe broke, a refrigerator broke, electrical went out, three people called off. All those things happen on a day-to-day basis. And our job, when you walk in the door at 7 or 7.30, is to just, like, everything's perfect. And that moment is what makes it all worthwhile for me. That's what turns me on. That's the reason we put up with all the things that we put up with. No person in their right mind would open up a restaurant. It's insane. Welcome back, everybody. Welcome back to the Skinny Confidential, him and her show. Today, we're sitting down with our friend Craig

Susser. Many of you may be familiar with Craig from the wildly popular restaurant in West Hollywood, Craig's. It's an absolute staple and iconic place. Lauren and I absolutely go almost every time we're in LA. Not only that, I had the warm garlic bread postmated to the hospital when I gave birth to Zaza. I told Michael, if you don't get me that bread, things are going to be rough. I was drinking my mom juice and I had my bread. I was happy as a clam. I think many people are going to find this episode interesting because we have a legendary restaurateur on the show. He's had a vast career in the service industry. And for anyone that's interested in building businesses in that lane or working in those industries, this is a goldmine. I also think this episode is just cool. He tells stories that were jaw-dropping. He opens up about what it's like to work in a restaurant at every single level. And like Michael said, he tells you the ins and outs of building a business.

So there's a lot of takeaways in this episode. I have to tell you, this was one of my favorites because he's so easy to talk to on a mic. It was refreshing, which isn't surprising because he sits at one of the most popular restaurants in Hollywood at the front of it and people just flock to him. Yeah. This is not just about restaurants. I mean, this has something for everybody. Like I said, if you're looking to develop real life skills, the truth about owning restaurants, how to go from a server to owner, how to read people, restaurant etiquette, the importance of different perspectives, and experiences, obviously, with many celebrities that go in there.

So there's something for everyone in this episode. Craig, we could talk to him all day long. He's an interesting character, has a lot to offer to the audience. And with that, Craig, welcome to the Skinny Confidential Him and Her Show. This is the Skinny Confidential Him and Her. You don't look like you've got two kids. You got it all. Look at you. There you go. Your hair looks great. This is the Skinny Confidential, him and her. not easy i was just how many kids do you have we have 10 year old twins where am i going 10 year old twins do you like having twins love having twins but we don't know any better so you don't know any other difference taylor's porn alert just went on sorry that's fine yeah

i'm just alerting him he needs to get on and jack off it alerts him every hour that's so good yeah by the way can you do that every hour i I'm impressed. Oh, Taylor? Yeah, every hour. That's amazing. I mean. That's a gift. He had to, because he had to practice edging. Because he didn't want to come too fast. So what he did is he would watch. We've known him since he was 12 and we probably know too much about him.

Okay. Okay. So. No, no, no. I'm fascinated. I, every, you know, everybody's got their own. Everybody's got their own. So you have two twins, one twin, one I'm fascinated. Everybody's got their own. Everybody's got their own.

So you have two twins. One twin. One set of twins. Yeah. We have twins. They're 10. Okay. And they are a boy and a girl.

Okay. And they're great. They're amazing. How hard was it when they were little? My wife handled the load because that is a magic trick. You got to remember, remember right when you first have babies you know they wake up they get fed i didn't know it took 45 minutes you know most kids take a while to eat i didn't know that like i thought it was like oh you give them a bottle 10 minutes

nope it's 45 minutes and then there's usually some sort of a bathroom event and then there's a diaper and then there's clothing and then they probably have another bathroom event. Right. And so they ruined their clothes and they have to change them again. And then they take like a nap for 30 minutes and then it's feeding time every three hours. And you're doing that for two of them. Do you do it at the same time or you do like one than the other? Well, no.

So we got, we had some really good advice. Not only did we have a night nurse, we had a night nurse that was specialized in twins. So we got them on the same schedule, but even still, my wife was just like, it was Herculean. Yeah. I mean,

listen, we, we have help and we're fortunate to have, to have help, but Lauren and I work at the same time. So we, we need it. Right.

Right. But even with all the help, it's still fucking hard. Yeah. It's hard. I mean, I'm not saying that it's not hard without that. It's harder without the help,

but it's all hard. But they're amazing. We just took them to, um, I mean, talk about living a good life because we didn't go anywhere during COVID, right? So we're kind of saving it up now. And so we went to Paris and London. We went to London for three days. We took the channel to Paris for three days and just to watch them take it in through their eyes was magical.

I think that's one of the best things about having kids is you get to like Watch them take it in through their eyes was magical. I think that's one of the best things about having kids is you get to like experience things again for the first time through someone else's eyes in a fresh way. My wife would spend summers there, her mother's English and she would spend summers there. So she got to take them and do all the things that she remembers doing when she was a little kid. And so she got to take them and get an 99 flake and get a,

like a shrimp sandwich from, you know, so it was just all those little things that she wanted to do. And we, we did every single one of them. And then just the idea of like the baguettes and the fruit and the coffee in Paris was just, you can't explain it.

Well, you can't explain the bread from your restaurant, so I can understand what you're saying. Yeah, well, that's the goal. I mean, I have to tell you, when I gave birth to Zaza, you've heard this so many times from people, I made this motherfucker Postmate your garlic bread. You're not the only one.

No, I was like, get that in my mouth right now. I know there's a lot of people that have done that. No, but it's like the sweetest compliment in the whole wide world, right? So there are a number of different reasons to open a restaurant, right? There are some people that want to teach you how to eat. There are some people that want to push the envelope. They want to show you what they can do with food. They want to take you places that you may never have experienced.

And then there's other places like Craig's where I want it to be home. I want it to be comfort. I want, you've had a really hard day. Life is tough. I'm going to Craig's and I'm getting my favorite thing and it's going to be the exact same thing every time. That's what we set out to do. Right.

So, but that doesn't make those other restaurants good or bad. And a lot of those people were really good friends. And it's just, we all understand the restaurant business is like no other business in the world. And I just, I just wish it was a required course that everybody had to do a year in some sort of service industry? Personally, I, a lot of people will say, oh yeah, you have to go out and work for a bunch of different people to see

what you like. I flip that on its head and say, go work in a restaurant at night, do a service industry job, and then during the day work on what you're passionate about. So then when you're done with the restaurant industry, if you decide to go somewhere else, at least you've built what you want to build as opposed to working for someone else and not getting the experience that you get from a restaurant because it really is so multifaceted.

You learn to multitask. You learn charisma. You learn body language. You learn people's moods. You learn how to work with other people, a team. I mean, there's so many things that are so valuable about it. There are so many moving parts that you need to rely on other people and other systems, and you don't even realize it. And then as you do it and you get a little bit better at it, I was,

who's the guy that wrote The Tipping Point? Malcolm Gladwell. In one of his books, they go through this experience where the ability to read people, they were doing an experiment on whether married couples would stay married. And it took a really long time when they first started. And then as they got better at it and reading the stimuli, understanding the dynamics, reading the body language, they got to the point where the people running the study could tell you in just not that long whether or not they were going to make it. Wow. And we in the restaurant business, if you've been a waiter or a bartender or a maitre d', you instinctively size people up very quickly.

You know, they're great. They're easy. Watch out for them. They could be dramatic. Like, you know, it's like right away you start doing it. And then also you've got to work with the maitre d', the busboys, the waiter, the bartenders, and the kitchen. So it requires so much going on at once and nothing happens in your time it happens when everybody else wants it to happen and you've got to learn how to adapt

you know i think like one of the biggest things i observe and maybe observe this as well as an employer is it's really challenging to find great communicators that have empathy and EQ. You can find somebody that's got a great, they went to a great school, they're very educated, they test well. It's hard to find people with great people skills. And I feel like working in a service industry environment helps you develop those people skills, helps you develop communication skills. Think about the world we live in. We don't have to have people skills. Yep. You've got everything you want in your phone.

Everything happens when you want it to happen now, especially during COVID. I mean, you wanted a certain playlist, you wanted a certain song, you wanted a certain whatever you wanted. Did you want food at a certain time? You got whatever you wanted and you really didn't have to deal with that many other people. But it's also one of the things that we miss the most, right? We miss that social aspect. In fact, I would say, you know, before COVID, the business was moving more towards fast casual, which is good food service, not so worried about, and we'll kind of create our own social experience somewhere else.

COVID kind of brought back the experience of having dinner together in a big social environment. Yeah, because it was taken away. Right? So it's really kind of interesting, but give me a person that is willing, smart, and fast. I'll take them any day of the week. Yeah, over maybe a fancy education. smart and fast, I'll take them any day of the week. Yeah. Over maybe a fancy education. I'm not worried about where you, I'm not worried about any of that.

What I'm, what I need are people that are willing to learn and that are willing to buy in to the system. And what I think our business really lacks is the true spirit of hospitality. Anybody can get you a vodka on the rocks. How magical is it when somebody gets you in the vodka on the rocks and it feels personal. It feels special. That's the gift. It's almost like disarming, but like a finessed energy like that the guest feels.

It's an exchange of energy. No, but it makes you happy. It's like you have to an, it's an exchange of energy. No, it's a, but it's a bit, it makes you happy. It's like it, you have to want that moment. Right. In other words, there's so many things that go wrong in the restaurant business. A pipe broke, a refrigerator broke, electrical went out, three people called off. The fish didn't come in. They didn't get a delivery of whatever.

All those things happen on a day-to-day basis. And our job, when you walk in the door at seven or 7.30, is to just, like, everything's perfect. Right. And I'm happy to see you. And that moment is what makes it all worthwhile for me. That's what turns me on. And so every night, and I don't know if I've ever this. So, but I'm about to tell a lot of people. At some point during the night, for about 10 seconds, I close my eyes and I listen to the noise of the restaurant.

Because there's no other way to mimic that noise. So when it's hustling, it's about 8.30 at night, there's a ton of people in the restaurant. Waiters are whizzing by. You can hear plates, glasses, dishes. You can hear that conversation. I just closed my eyes and I make sure that I never take it for granted. And what, what do you get from that feeling? That's, that's the reason we do what we do, right? That's the reason we put up with all the things that we put up with. No person in their right mind would open up a restaurant. It's insane. You're dealing with perishable items that are going to go bad in a hot environment with sharp objects, dealing with people who think they know everything about the business and have an opinion. Oh my God. You sound like my father.

That's exactly it. It's like almost crazy. crazy but by the way for some reason i love it right nobody forced me into it i love it well you're almost romantic about it like it's almost like a girlfriend yeah it's like the romance of it is like it's it's it's romancing people it's it's the idea of four people can come in and having, having a really bad day and they can leave really happy. And then I've, I've done my job. I always say to people, like, if you're celebrating something at Craig's, that's amazing. But if you're commiserating about something at Craig's, that's equally as amazing.

And that's what I love about the restaurant is the fact that it, it functions on multiple different levels. I am a very avid reader of old Hollywood biographies and in every single one of them, what pops up? Chasen's. Yeah. Whenever I read about Chasen's, Craig's is the only restaurant that evokes that same feeling for me.

Oh, sweet. That's a great compliment. I mean, it's like, it's like, it's an iconic landmark and it was an iconic landmark and Craig's is the same vibe. When you were wanting to open a restaurant and I want to go back to your story was Chasen's inspiration for you. Yes. It was.

Yeah. I think the whole thing started with Wolfgang Puck, right? Wolfgang Puck was the first celebrity chef. He was the first person, usually in the 40s, 50s, and 60s, it was restaurant guys like me, restauranteurs, that had a 360-degree view of the business. And that's not saying that Wolfgang doesn't. Wolfgang's amazing. He's built an empire. But there was no such thing as celebrity chefs up

until then. It was all about creating that environment, that homey environment that people went to, to enjoy themselves. Right. Then it became about celebrity chefs, about the food, about the experience of how you were going to stretch into eating like black squid and pasta or uni or something that you probably wouldn't eat on a regular basis. Restaurants generally didn't do that a lot back in the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Then the other thing that really has changed, I think our business a lot is the food network. Yeah.

People are so much more knowledgeable about food. And by the way, it's fantastic. It keeps us on our game and we have to kind of raise it to the point where we're not only creating comfort food, but we're creating comfort food that meets the standards and meets their expectations. But they now know the difference between

eight different tomatoes and they know the difference between certain vegetables. And, and I don't think people had that awareness up until the Food Network. So when you were bartending at Dan Tana's, talk to us about first time. And is that where it first started? That's your first restaurant job?

Yeah, tell us how you got the job. No, no, no. I was working, I forget the name. It was a chain of Mexican restaurants out in the Valley. I was going to college and like everybody wanted to make quick money. So I learned how to be a waiter. And so your intent, when you were growing up, was the intention always to go in the restaurant business or this wasn't?

No, no. So we moved out here when I was 15, basically spent two years by myself in high school. Like I'm the new kid from the East coast. I'm literally, it's 1978. I'm wearing jeans and a Springsteen t-shirt and they're wearing puffy jackets and corduroy shorts. And they're like, who's that? And what's Springsteen.

And I'm like, okay, where am I? And then, you know, it's a tough age to move. You're 14 or 15. You're just got your first girl. Maybe, you know, you're maybe having a first drink and now you're the stranger and you're not included in any of that stuff. Spent a couple of years doing that and then went to Cal State Northridge, communications degree, business minor, need to make some money. My first job actually was Burger King.

I have a soft spot for. My first job was McDonald's. Let me tell you something. I can make a Whopper in eight seconds. And, but my favorite, my favorite part was working the drive-thru. Cause if you work the drive-thru on Fridays and Saturdays late.

Best. Oh my God. There was like. People fight over the drive-thru position. There, there, you'd be surprised. I used to go through the drive-thru. You'd be surprised what a, some people would do for a free burger.

That can be a lot of different things, Craig. Let's just say we, we, we, we had fun. Taylor's getting inspired. Yeah. There you go. Oh, it's almost the hour. I almost heard the alarm. Anyway.

But yeah, so, so it's cause I, you know, I say that to my kids, I tell them that was my first job and they kind of look at me like, huh? I'm like, you see this restaurant? It didn't exist. 12 years ago, it was on a piece of paper. Like it just didn't exist. And, and their brains can't compete that. And, and I love that, but I also want to make sure that they understand the work ethic that,

that we have and that my wife has. I wasn't born with any of this, you know, and, and that's why I think I'm so grateful for it as well. But yeah, Burger King was first job. I delivered drugs for a pharmacy in Woodland Hills. Um, I'm glad you had a pharmacy that you were just saying I delivered. Yeah, no.

And that was, but I was, Michael have a similar, no, but by the way, I was so naive. I didn't even understand what was in the bags. So I never went snooping. I don't know. I don't know if I was working now I'd be like, but by the way, I was so naive. I didn't even understand what was in the bags. So I never went snooping. I don't know. I don't know if I was working. Now I'd be like, what's in that bag? Like I didn't, I didn't do any of that.

I was so straight laced back then. The only thing for me is I don't know if there was a pharmacy involved, but we can glaze over that and keep going. It's all good. Now all those street drugs are legal pretty much. But anyway, so did that. And then, you know, I was in college just trying to make some money and it was literally, it wasn't El Torito, but it was something like that.

And it was literally one of those places where you put chips and sauce on the table and then you just, the menu had pictures. I mean, like I, it wasn't high end. And then I started, I got involved in an acting class here in town on like Robertson and Pico, all these like famous working actors and stuff like that. And I was 19 and I was just like, wow, where am I? I'm in this little black, I mean, it was probably the size of this room. And it was just all these people whose faces I knew and

they were doing incredible work. It was like the place they worked out at. Like, who are we seeing? People like Tom Selleck were in there. Like, you know, Anthony LaPaglia was a classmate. Like there were people that were involved in that place. And it was just a lot of character actors and a lot of familiar faces. And this is where they, they worked out.

Right. Cause the TV work that they were doing probably wasn't as rigorous. And I don't know how. So then I got a, I knew I needed to get another job and I got, I got a waiter's job at a place called Antonio's, which was like the only high-end Mexican restaurant on Melrose, like Melrose and Gardner. I remember meeting Antonio and I remember his wife saying something like, why? Meaning why hire him? Like he clearly doesn't know anything. And I just remember Antonio saying, he's going to be fine. And there was a waiter there named Rudy, who was like the first professional

waiter that I had ever met in my life. Like he had that charisma, the flair, he read people, he knew what they wanted. And that's where I, he started to kind of teach me what to look for before I even got to the table. What are some of those things that you. Like, well, well, well, here's, here's a perfect example. Nowadays, if I come to your table to say hello and ask how everything is, I pretty much already know, because I've already been watching the table.

So I know if you're having a good experience, I know if you're having a bad experience and if you're having good experience, which is thankfully 99% of the time, then we're great. We're having a different conversation, but every once in a while, I'll be like, Michael, what's wrong? And you'll be like, nothing. And I'll be like, what's wrong? Kind of wasn't what I was in the mood for.

It doesn't quite test. Don't worry about it. Give it to me. What do you want? Like, I know there's a problem with your dish before I even came to the table. That all gets traced back to people like Rudy that taught me that you can read people if you're just paying attention. You just have to have the desire and you have to be paying attention. There's so much information that we get that's nonverbal. Also, I feel like universally, I don't know if it's still like this, but it used to be

people want their drink. That's like the first thing they want. Like the second they sit down, I'm like, well, and then halfway when their drinks up, what you want another one? You want another one? How about it's the greatest, the oldest trick in the business, a big stiff cocktail and hot bread. You're 50% of the way home.

A hundred percent. But sometimes you sit down at a restaurant. Welcome to Craig's. I know. But sometimes you're at a restaurant, not Craig's. You do have big stiff drinks. And you sit down and you're waiting for 30 minutes for a drink. And I'm like, get me my drink, please. No, no, no.

How many times did you turn around as a bartender, right? You're attractive. You turn around, three guys walk in the door and you automatically know which one's going to be trouble. Yeah. You got to feel energy, right? You know it after, if you've done it for six months, maybe a year, year and a half, all of a sudden those, those things start to come alive and, and you know, I mean, as soon as four people walk in the door, you kind of get a, you, you kind of get a feeling as to, as to which way it's going to go. So Rudy taught you a lot of the finesse with the clients.

Yeah. Kind of understanding, you know, don't, don't bring the ketchup after you bring the French fries, you know? So true. Right. You got to anticipate like, oh my God, dinner's coming. Do they all have silverware? You know? Oh, that one's getting soup. Do they have a soup spoon? Like you've just, you've just got to keep playing offense. And it's like, Oh, I better go.

I better go give that table silverware. And then, cause they're going to need drinks. And then they're, that table's going to be clear. They need to do dessert. So I need to one, two,

three. So you learn to how to prioritize, which is so important if you're building a business. Well, when you say it, it makes so much sense, but you, but you, everyone's thinking thinking right now like all those times and all those restaurants you go to and that stuff's just not thought about and you know you have a bad

experience and how about the fact that the fact that if i position myself correctly i can see you i can see you and i can see them now i may be waiting on this table but i can see you and i know you need something and you've already caught my eye. So now you're relaxed. If I'm standing away from you and I'm talking to this table and you can't get my attention, your stress level starts to go up. So I, it's not even a matter that I got you what you needed yet. It's just that you know, that I know that you need something. It's acknowledgement. It's the little things, right? It's like a bartender. When you were a bartender, you'd be busy pouring 15 drinks and somebody would be like waving it. You'd be like, I got you. And then they would

calm down. And then the most, you know, infuriating thing is they're waiting five minutes for you to come over. You finally come over and you go, what do you want? And then they go, Hey guys, what do you want? And you're like, seriously? Like I just, it's like the people that pull out their money at the actual window in the drive-thru. You've been waiting 10 minutes in line. Have your money ready. There's so many little things that you could write a book about, like little tiny mannerisms. Yeah. I like, I mean, we were talking briefly before we started this and you were saying, you know, that you believe it's important for everybody to work in this industry, not only to learn people, but also to develop empathy.

Like you would never write a terrible Yelp review. Half the things that people say about waiters to waiters to bartenders about restaurants, I guarantee you 99% of those wouldn't be written if they actually worked in a restaurant. Now that, that being said, some of them are valid and you can actually learn as a, as an owner and as a chef about those comments. And you're looking for like a common thread. I don't think this is not me saying that those things shouldn't exist. I'm just saying, God, you know, good Lord, you know, everybody's very critical of an actor or an actress until you actually do it yourself. And you realize you're doing it in front of 250 people. They spent four hours lighting it. And now you're supposed to have a vulnerable moment and you're across from maybe a major major movie star i mean there's so much stimuli that's coming right and you're

supposed to have this like real moment and you don't realize how difficult it is until you've actually done it what's the most absurd thing you've you've heard on yelp just a little tangent for a second what is something where you're like, I can't even believe it? No, they're, you know, they're oh my God, you've got to go is that reminding him to watch porn? That is reminding Taylor. I'm the only

professional one in the room that has my phone off. All these dopes, Lauren, Taylor, exactly. You know, we've only done 600 of these episodes. You'd think they would have got it by now. No, seriously. But, you know, the roller's working. I'm going to write a Yelp review. The roller's working. By the way, my wife's got one.

I use it. Oh my God. I'm going to give you one. Are you kidding me? I'm 50 whatever. I need all the help I can get. By the way, I had mine off. Have you seen that meme where there's the big fat guy on the couch with like the Coke

and the popcorn and he's watching MMA and he's like, idiot, I would have done a spinning back. Right, right, right. It's like that kind of thing. It's kind of like the same thing. It's like, you know, when we're watching football and you're like, idiot, I would've done a spinning back, it's like that kind of thing. It's kind of like the same thing. It was like, it was like, you know, when we're watching football and you're like, get out of the way, get out of the way. And then you actually talk to some of them because we're fortunate

enough to have them come in. It's like, you realize how big they are. They're huge. And they run like a four, two, like they're 310 pounds and they're six foot eight. You're not getting away from them. And these quarterbacks are like, they're 310 pounds and they're six foot eight you're not getting away from them and these quarterbacks are like they're big guys too and sometimes you're like how could you be so stupid you don't even like it's just fascinating we all don't have the perspective right and i just think we're so quick to criticize and we live in this world where it's just so easy to hide behind some sort of username and say something really snotty about

somebody instead of saying something kind or compassionate or easygoing. And that doesn't mean that you shouldn't be criticized when you don't, when you do something wrong or you don't deliver what you should deliver, but I think it's just become really, really easy. Like, like how many times I forget the comedian that would, that would say, you'll literally call somebody horrible names because they cut you off in traffic, right? They're a moron. They're stupid.

They're this, they're that. And all they did was like, you would never say that if you were walking by them on the street. No. And it's the same thing in the restaurant. Like people say things on Yelp that they would never say to me, because if you're in the restaurant and I can actually fix the problem, that's what I'm going to do. I'm in the people pleasing business.

Yeah, no, I mean, that would be too obvious and boring though. I think, I think some people just are maybe having a bad day and they need an outlet to project. No,

I totally get it. I'm not even, I mean, Yelp's not even what we're talking about. I'm just saying like, it's like, look, if you're not enjoying something, if you didn't like your drink or your bread or your pasta or whatever, like tell me. No one's ever complained about the bread. Got it.

I mean, come on. No, it's a, you be, but okay. The greatest thing I have witnessed, one of the greatest things I have witnessed, a waiter was walking back to the kitchen with a chicken Parmesan. And I said, what's up? And they said, she ordered chicken Parmesan and didn't know there was cheese on top.

I said, okay. Was that someone who's listening? I just, I just, cause you can't, what are you gonna really should have written bad y'all if you've got a chicken that is something i would do

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It's only $18 with our code. CleanSimpleEats.com. So at what moment do you start to hit your stride in this industry? Is it in that restaurant or is it when you start working at Dantana? Yeah. So, well, I think what really was the difference is I, I, you know, I was a bartender and a waiter and I was the youngest guy. I was 22 or 23 and I didn't know what I was doing. And that restaurant was old school, a lot of regulars and they were rough.

They, that was their place and they didn't like the fact that there was some new kid in there and they took it out on me and it was one of those things where they like tear you down and then they build you back up and realize that you you become a really good server and bartender from that abuse and one of the reasons i was hired at the antennas was because i didn't have any bad habits because i didn't have any habits and remind me of the reasons I was hired at Dantanus was because I didn't have any bad habits because I didn't have any habits. And remind me of the history of Dantanus. What was it before you joined? So they opened in 1965 or 66 and it was kind of.

Another iconic place. Yeah. It, you know, he started out at La Scala when La Scala in Beverly Hills was a big deal. Like there was a, there was four or five people that jumped out of there and started their own restaurants. And I, and I don't think it was going it was going okay and then what really ignited the fire was the troubadour kind of kicked kicked into gear in 69 and 70 and it was right next door and and people would perform and then they would go to tana's and say hey can we get something to eat and they'd be like no we were we're closed and tana was smart

enough to say we should stay open for all these people who want to come in after the concert but they didn't realize who they were talking to this is linda ronstadt the eagles like they everybody elton john like they don't realize they're all young kids they're just starting out and that little decision tana's became their home right right? So there's a legendary history. So flash forward to like 19, I don't know, 86, and you're coming into a place that's now 15 years old, 18 years old, and there's all these like heavy hitters that are coming in there.

And they're like, who's this? And he doesn't know anything about me. And he doesn't know that I like this kind of water and that kind of drink. And, you know, so like now. And when you say heavy hitters, is this celebrity clientele or just high net worth individuals? No, it's managers, agents, producers, everybody, actors, musicians. Like it, it's not so much the celebrity clientele. It's the people that support the celebrity clientele that make them.

People that make this city. Yeah. Yeah. So, so, but, but I don't know who they are. I don't know who the power players are and I'm just this idiot from New Jersey who doesn't know anything about anything. And then you slowly start to get, you know, the education of LA and how kind of LA works.

And so I took to it. I was a young actor running around town, getting a little bit of work. And then I just kind of kept, I don't know, failing upwards in the business that I didn't really have intentions for. I went from a back waiter and bartender to a front waiter. And then I worked like what we used to call a hot corner, which was like where all the VIPs sat. And I did that for six or seven years and I was a weekend bartender. And then in 2002, the maitre d' retired. Dan asked me if I wanted to be the maitre d' and that was very nerve wracking. And something happened.

It was literally like a being, a fish being dropped in the water. Like I didn't know how I knew how to do it, but I knew how to do it. And I was really good at it. What do you think it takes to be good at that position? I think it's an understanding of all the different elements. So being a bartender helped my perspective, being a waiter helped my perspective. And then reading people and understanding who to sit where and when. This is a small place too.

Yeah. How many, how many seats is that? That was only 17 tables. Yeah. Small. So It's a small place too. Yeah. How many, how many seats is that? That was only 17 tables. Yeah. Small. So it's really, really tight. And it was built back before all the handicap ADA rules. So, I mean, it was like, it was tight and it's red.

And so like you get two cocktails in you and it's red. Like it just, it's nuts. Yeah. I've gotten, I've gotten loose in there for sure. Yeah. So, you know, and it just was a different world. But you, you learn quickly what works and what doesn't work and who you better be taking care of and, and how LA works. And so in 2010, I was going to buy it.

I was going to buy a piece of it. I was going to buy the whole thing and that didn't work out. And that's a long, dramatic story. But a lot of people said, you should just go open your own place. And so I did. And with the help of, you know, half of the money was me and my family and half of it was investors. And we started out, we opened January 12th, 2011. It was a huge rush for the first two or three months, which is kind of normal for a restaurant

because everybody wants to rush in and give you their opinion, right? It's, it's, it's going to be fine or it's not going to be fine. And it happens today. I mean, literally people come to me after a restaurant's been open for two weeks and they go, Oh my God, it's so bad. I'm like, seriously, can you give them a minute? It takes like three months, four months, five months to become a well-oiled machine to where you're actually, you know, you've got that choreography going on. And you're saying like when it closed during COVID, then it went open and then closed again.

Yeah, it was just like, relax. So, so I give people a wide berth. I don't like haters. I don't hate on restaurants. I'm a big proponent of, we've all become friends. I've helped other restaurants open around me. Like I don't, Ionent of, we've all become friends. I've helped other restaurants open around me. Like I don't, I don't think it does anybody any good. The investors, did you go to customers or did you, you went to customers? So there was people

that already knew and believed in you from seeing. Yeah. And I wasn't asking, you know, I made the, I made the money for these people probably negligible. And it was just a matter of, you know, a lot of people said to me, I hate the restaurant business. It's the worst investment in the whole wide world, but I'm investing in you. Going back to Dan Tana's, what was your first celebrity power player experience that you can really remember? Like what's a story there that you think about often? I mean, the biggest power players probably were Lou and Edie Wasserman.

He was the chairman of MCA universal, probably, think about often? I mean, the biggest power players probably were Lou and Edie Wasserman. He was the chairman of MCA universal. Probably, probably the most powerful guy in town. Nice. Like elegant, not somebody you wanted to play with, but very nice, but very nice. And then his wife Edie was, was great. And I, I did something, They were entertaining two people. And somebody asked me, this is where just the stupidity is just amazing. So somebody asked me about a dish.

And they said, is it good? I said, no, it's horrible. That's why we have it on the menu. And the entire table froze. And Edie laughed. And then the entire table left. And then I was like, like you have those moments where like a sweat breaks out on your brain. You're like, oh my God, I'm dead.

You know? And I wasn't dead. And then I was their waiter every time they were in the restaurant. And how old were you at this point? Oh God, it was probably 24. Okay. So you're so young. Yeah.

Yeah. And then, you know, I, you know, and so you just, that's where your, your personality and your being kind of comes out and you're just there by the grace of God. Like I literally, this is the other way it could have gone. What did you just say? You're fired. Like it literally, you're talking about 1987 or 88. That's the way it went.

Like people just got fired on the spot. I feel like a lot, especially for a lot of younger people. And we're like on the, we were born in 1987, but we're kind of like on the cusp, right? Like,

are you really? Yeah. We're a little on the cusp where like, I remember, I would say maybe a harsher time a little bit. Right. Like I remember when I was, it was honest. Yeah. I guess that's a, that's Like I remember when I was. It was honest.

Yeah. I guess that's a good way to say it. They didn't pull any punches. Yeah. And I feel like maybe we've gotten away from being that honest now, which I don't know. I go back and forth. I don't know if it's so helpful.

I remember a table coming. I remember at the end of the day, it's literally coming over. And the guy said to me, what's that? And I said, it's broccoli. He goes, I ordered asparagus. And I go, oh. He goes, are you you a fucking idiot does that look like asparagus and i'm like nope and i just picked it up and got it but that's the way they spoke and that was totally acceptable and i didn't even blink i was just like oh yep i'm an idiot i'll get back and then you just took care of it. See, I go back. I wouldn't fly on TikTok now.

No. I go back and forth at this stuff because. The bartender, literally, I was a waiter. The bartender, Mike, who I adored and taught me so much and unfortunately passed away during COVID, due to COVID. Heartbreaking, but affected so many lives. Like the most magical bartender you've ever met in your life. And the reason you talk about hospitality, like he is the image I have in my head. But I remember I was young and I was like stupid and I was across the thing and I must've ordered something and it wasn't right. And literally

Mike didn't even think about it. He said, Hey, stupid. And literally the entire restaurant turned around. Like they didn't know who he was talking to. He's like, I'm talking to the stupid in the corner. It's like, that's just the way way it was like you couldn't do any of that today i go back and forth with this stuff though because okay that's an extreme example and you couldn't get away but i also think it builds such character right and i like you listen i'll start talking to you like this at home tiktok is gonna stupid but here's the thing i think that there's a and i hate to be generational but lauren mentions t mentions TikTok because I think there's a lot of very young people on there that can't fathom someone speaking to them like that. Well, it also hardens you a little bit.

That's what I'm trying to say. It shapes you because you have two choices. You either sink or swim. What I try to say to my siblings and what I want to do for my children is I would rather have somebody say the thing that they're thinking to my face as opposed to just running around thinking it all the time without me being able to address it. No, they're going to get an assumed username and they're going to say it about you on a forum. Yeah. And like, I just think it's important because, and I was telling, I won't say who, I was telling someone the other day, I'm like, listen, my delivery can sometimes be off. Um, and this is a very personal conversation,

but I was saying, you know, like we've had long conversations. Yeah. A lot of my my delivery can sometimes be off. And this is a very personal conversation. But I was saying, you know, like. We've had long conversations. Yeah. A lot of my thought process is like, sometimes maybe I'm the person that says what a lot of people are already saying. They're just not saying it to you. And I was saying that to the person.

Yeah. And I think it was a helpful conversation because there was like a moment where it clicked in the person. You should go bartend at Dantana. But do you get what I'm saying? Like it was. Go bartender at Craig's. I don't see how people can I'm saying? Like it was- Go bartender, correct.

I don't see how people can address things if they don't, if they're not aware of things. You should have like- Guest bartender? Yes. I'll do it. I'll go first. Oh my, you'd be great because you were a bartender.

I know. No, I can make a drink. I can make a drink. But most importantly- He just, with that, so what he just said without saying anything, was he just called into play your work ethic? No, not my work ethic.

No, no, no. She is an incredible worker. Maybe nobody works harder. My drink making skills. Drink making. Who the fuck cares? Pour some vodka on the rocks, show a tit, a nipple, bend over, give a smile. Here's the thing.

Throw a nap, cocktail napkin under there. She can get away with it. Come on. Tell a joke. Hired, I just can't look. Now as the employer, I'm like, I don't see anything. I was a regular patron at the bar she was in and I can't tell you how many drinks. You kept coming back and you married me, so I did something right, bitch.

I cannot tell you how many drinks I drank with dish soap. You still sit there and eat? Dish soap in the cocktail glass. You do something right. I do do something right. That's for sure. I think you should have guest bartenders. I make the drinks in the house now.

Okay. Let's just. So now Craig's. Yeah. You're open with Craig's. Yeah. I feel. What is this by the way?

That's a vibrator. I'll give you one before you leave for your wife. It's great. During sex. Great. Okay. It's great. He hasn't used it as.

No. You never know. No, I'll give you because so many celebrities and influencers went in and posted naturally and organically which is rare a lot of these people get paid millions of dollars to post i mean you have the kardashians throwing birthday parties and closing down the restaurant. You have Kris Jenner in their pictures. I mean, you have a lot of different influencers and celebs. How did that happen? Was it all organic? Yeah. I mean, I think we kind of all grew up together, right? So I was 22 years old when I started at Vantana's. I was 43 when I opened my own place. And I think the town LA loves people that put it all out on the line. Right.

So they knew that I was leaving a pretty good job and I was going to open up my own restaurant and it's a very, you're all in, right? You've got, you put all your money in, you've got no, you're, there's no safety net and people respond to that. You've got, you put all your money in, you've got no, you're, there's no safety net. And people respond to that. And they, and, and I think that they love to see when people take real risks. And, and, and I've been, I was really lucky. A lot of people supported me and they wanted to see me succeed. And even in the beginning, when the food was a little inconsistent and the service was

a little inconsistent, they were still coming back a lot. And they knew that I was going to get it. Like I wasn't like, I didn't put my foot in the sand and say, well, this is the way it is, whether you like it or not. I go, no, no, no. I you're right. And so it developed a lot and, and, and, and I credit a lot of people like chef Kirsten, he was the second chef took over, I think September of that year.

And thank God he's been a great partner in crime. My wife could not have been more, I mean, supportive. I mean, who looks at a 44 year old person and says, you should go out on your own in the riskiest business in the world. When you've got a lot of people that are that supportive, what happens is those life moments, we talked about birthdays, celebrations, deaths, all those things, those life moments. Think about how many life moments you've celebrated at a restaurant. Yeah.

It's grounds for a celebration, but you're also right. It is a place where you want to commiserate if you have a bad day. Jerry Weintraub died. The one year anniversary, six of us sat at a table his favorite table had the spaghetti clam show which is named after jerry and that's we were celebrating somebody's deaths lauren and i both devoured his book in literally one day what a crazy life right but but so they do they build people like that anymore i don't that's well that's what i'm saying. Like that was, by the way, when Jerry called and I picked up my phone and I saw his name, it was 50-50.

It was like, hey, kid, I love you. Or are you out of your fucking mind? Why? Because it was either he needed something and he loved me and everything was going well, or somebody had come in and had a great experience and he wanted me to tell me about it. And that was a good thing. Or I had done something wrong or had read something wrong and he wanted to let me know about it. Like what, give us an example of what you did that's wrong. Not taking care of somebody that I should have taken care of.

You know, one of the, one of the biggest beatings I ever took was from him when I first opened the restaurant and some things weren't right. And he called me out and just said, you know, he called me to the house, which was frightening. Literally just like went down a list of things that he thought were not great. Wait, wait, wait a minute. He makes you come to his house to go, to, to go through the critique. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I, I, this is, is a lot.

So I, I just recently told this story. So it's Saturday night before Oscars. It's our first Oscars. It's probably not well mapped out in the book. And the bar has now backed all the way up to the, to the first tables. That's how busy it is. You can't walk in the door. We didn't, we didn't book it right. And we didn't realize how busy we would be on the first Oscars. It was, we were six weeks old. It was the first time Jerry came in with his family and they sat, you know, down and had dinner and nothing happened that night. And I wasn't quite sure how it was going or whatever, but they looked fairly happy and

that was it. And then 10 o'clock that morning, Sunday morning, I get a phone call from Susie, his girlfriend, and he says, um, Hey, Jerry wants to see it. And I'm like, cool. When? Now. Like now I'm like, cool. When? Now. Mike, now? She goes, now.

I get really anxious. I call Mike Melbourne, who's a really good friend. And I go, Mike, he goes, already got it. Already got the phone call. Come get me. I go, I'm coming to get you. He goes, come get me. So I come get him and then I pick him up and he's holding a french dip

i go we need a french dip he goes yeah we're gonna need a french dip so i'm literally going out why a french dip because because he loved french dips okay so and and mike's chef made a good french dip so we're going up and i'm like mike what's going on he goes this is probably gonna be this isn't gonna be He goes, but don't worry. Just, just what he, what he's going to say is probably accurate. It's just going to be a little hard to hear. So I'm like, I'm like, okay. So we go up.

I just told this story on, on Mike's son, Will's podcast. So we go up to the house and Jerry gives us a hug. How are you? Good to see you. And we sit down and he literally just right between the eyes, but he didn't like about the entrance, the noise, the, the, the steaks, the pasta, the everything. And to tell you the truth, he wasn't wrong. It was unnecessarily uncomfortable, but the restaurant that he experienced

is not the restaurant you know now. So what you're saying is the criticism that he gave you was incredibly constructive because it evolved into the restaurant. But Jerry was willing to do that. So he's actually sounds like a really good friend. It sounds like Michael, a great friend, but his delivery is off. For the younger listeners, you have to Google Jerry Weintraub and look.

I mean, and if you haven't read his book, the people that are really interested, it's phenomenal, but this is like an iconic character. Right. But a lot of people wouldn't, first of all, they wouldn't bother. Secondly, a lot of people wouldn't take that criticism today. They would, they would say that you're being a bully. You're being this, you're being that. Like they would say all kinds of things and dismiss you instead of actually going, oh

my God, is there validity into what you're actually saying? And he was right. But this is my point though, where I go back and forth. There are critiques that I want to give sometimes to people that I work with that I can't give in this environment because to your point, many can't take it. And then what happens is you kind of end up washing those people out because they just can't handle the feedback. You know, everyone knows what I'm talking about. Don't look at her. I'm saying the things that everybody thinks, but what happens is when you find somebody who's maybe got a soft shell like that, that can't take the feedback,

you have to find somebody that can, and you kind of filter those people out. So I think we're getting to a time where people aren't, they're not able to get real critical feedback and then improve because we're living in an environment now where people's feelings are put ahead of, you know, what's actually needed. Correct. Right. So, so the tagline on that was like, I'm like, what about the bread? And he goes, oh, bread was good. It was just really funny. But hold on though. I just, one last question about this character.

Was, he was not involved in the restaurant outside of just being a patron? Yeah, no, no, no. He was an investor. Okay. He was an investor. Okay. Cause I was wondering like, this guy's just a patron. Yeah.

Well, no, he was, I mean, he was bigger, he was bigger than that. He was, he was a legendary figure in my life. Okay, okay. In a lot of people's lives. And, you know, he was rough and tumble, but he was great. Okay, I figured, I just needed to clarify that he did, because I thought he would, but it wasn't about the money. Like, he didn't mean anything.

With what he does was to edit scenarios and refine. And so it makes sense that he came in and edited and refined what he saw. But he also knew what would work and what wouldn't work. And he also didn't want his friends coming in there and having the same experience. And also it seems like he really cared about you and that's his love language. When that's, but that's what, that's what I don't discount. Right. Right.

So that's what I want to hear. So if like going back to where we started, if you're having dinner and you're not happy, tell me, I'm going to fix it. That's the business I'm in. What mistakes do you think people in the service industry make consistently or restauranteurs make when opening a new establishment? They don't really understand the back end of the restaurant. I don't think they understand how difficult it is.

You've got rent, insurance, air conditioning, water, workers' comp, ELPI, refrigeration. There's so many expenses that people don't realize that are involved in the business. And then I think a lot of people are undercapitalized because they think, well, I'll just get to the point where I get open and then everything will be fine. And it's doesn't really work like that. Right? So I think a lot of people are undercapitalized. I think they have a naive understanding of what's going to work and what doesn't

work. I fortunately, and I don't know even know where I got it from, but I was willing to make sure that you were happy, not me in the dishes that you were eating. Right. And that's still today. We still come up with dishes that I chef and I chef usually comes up with a dish and we chit chat about it and I'm like, that's amazing. And then I let's put it up as a special and see how people respond.

Because I'm not the final arbiter. You, you are right. And so I think people have to, more restaurants have to get to the idea that you're not delivering something that you want. Yeah. It's your perspective and hopefully they're going to enjoy it. But ultimately, if they're not buying it, they're not coming back. When I got pregnant with Townes, I decided to switch basically all my skincare and makeup to clean beauty. So what I did is I went on Sephora and they have such a wide variety of clean makeup brands that it was really easy for me to sort of pick and choose the products that I wanted to use on my face. My go-to brands on their site are Merit. I love the Merit sticks like the bronzer and the highlighter. And then I also really like Lawless. Lawless makes

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Vegamore. What it does is it really targets the scalp. What I like about Vegamore too is everything is cruelty-free. It's never formulated with harmful chemicals. They don't have parabens. They don't have hormones. And the product that I like and the one that targets the scalp health is called Vegamore Grow. They sell this. It's so popular. Every 15 seconds on their website. That's how amazing it is. I've noticed when I put this in my hair, I'll wrap it in a sleek bun. I'll notice the next day my hair already looks healthier. And I really think it's because instead of just working on the hair, this works on your scalp, like I said. Give yourself the hair you never thought you could have with Vegamour for a limited time.

The Skinny Confidential, him and her show, listeners, get 20% off your first order. You're going to go to vegamour.com slash skinny and use code skinny at checkout. That's V-E-G-A-M-O-U-R.com slash skinny code skinny to save 20% off your first order. V-E-G-A-M-O-U-R.com slash skinny code skinny. What do you think makes a great restaurant great? Because I mean, especially in this city, you see a lot of stuff open and close and there's very few that last as long as you or some of the others. What do you think that differentiates? I wish I had, I wish I could bottle it because I've seen great restaurateurs and great chefs in great locations come together and it just doesn't work.

And then I've seen some people that just open up in a corner of a mini mall and it's on fire. So there is no like magic bullet what i do know is that you better love it and it better turn you on and that true hospitality that real warmth that you can impart to people is what i think is probably the differentiator yeah i think about i don't know this makes sense i think about great restaurants the same way I think about great hotels. We're like, you, we all know, like you can go into a very fancy, expensive hotel that lacks warmth and it lacks hospitality. And you're like, yeah, this is, you know, this five-star establishment with all the fixtures and all, and you could tell they threw all the money at it, but it just doesn't feel, I don't know.

It feels sterile. It feels sterile. And then there's those other places where you go and they feel like home every time. And it feels like, you know, like you left just yesterday. Right. How's that? Oh, it's like hitting all five senses. And I think you're, you're right. It's like. Do you go with him?

Yeah. Should I go? Who should I go with? I don't know. I'm just saying, it seems like such a waste. I know, and his delivery while I'm trying to eat. I mean, Jesus Christ. But you've never really thought about like what that, um, like what that essence or what

that thing is? Yeah. So here's a perfect example. So when we were designing the restaurant, we had a great architect, Jay Charles and David Friedman, who built all the woodwork and my friend, Bob Teslimi, who was the contractor. And you're trying to do it, you know, as cheaply as possible, but you're trying to create a vibe, right? So our whole goal was what does a 1940s New York style restaurant look like in LA in 2010

without being a cartoon? So what does that feel like? What is it like if you were to walk down you know those great old restaurants you'd walk down the steps in the middle of manhattan and you'd like you come in and you're like jesus how long has this place been here that's what we were going after and then using materials that wouldn't age it right because we've all done those things where you're in love with a texture or a look or a stone or a tile and you're like four years later you're like what was i thinking this is disgusting it's like it's like my haircut

from a week ago i like like so you know you ever look at yourself like from four or five years ago and you look at your hair and your clothes and you're like i don't understand the same thing about all those materials but we had to make decisions because we had limited budget on what was important. And I was infirm on it and still am that we spent money on the things that you actually touched. Huh? So the booths are really expensive. Smart.

The woodwork is expensive. The bar was expensive. The lighting, so inexpensive, 750 bucks a fixture. And then there's people like, I remember there was a restaurant called Marano. It was down the street from where we are now. And, uh, they spent like $2 million on like Marano glass lights fixtures. And I was just like, it was stunning, stunning, but nobody ate there.

And I remember thinking like, nobody eats the lights. You know, pay attention to the food. Like when you slide into a booth and it feels right, it's like a hug. And then the dishware, the silverware, the glasses, all the things that you touch are really, really important. The people who serve you at your restaurant though do have a sparkle too. Good. Yeah. Everyone that I've ever, and I've eaten there a lot, has a sparkle.

Hopefully what we've done is we've inserted them into a system, but let them be themselves. Yes. Right. So they're not little. They're not repeating a script. Right. Paparazzis are all outside the restaurant. It's absolutely crazy.

No, by the way, there is a private way in and out that I can protect people. So they're not even getting, they're not even getting half of them. And the people that are, they are getting pretty much want to be gotten. Got it. And it's really kind of one of those infuriating experiences because i'm switzerland if you want to go out and get publicity god bless i i don't have anything to do with it and i there's no way to stop it like we've even had conversations with the police in the city they they have every right to be on that sidewalk

they know their rights they know exactly what they're allowed to do and what they're not allowed to do even if they like so they can, I'm assuming they can't block your entrance and stuff like that. They kind of, they can't, but what am I going to do? Call the cops every two minutes. They're blocking the entrance. Yeah. They ain't coming.

I can't. Yeah. Right. So, so I have a private way in, in and out the back that, that, so there's a lot of people that use that. And by the way, I, I'm a huge fan of most of these people and they deserve all the accolades that they're getting. And I never take it for granted that somebody wants to come and eat there. Last time I was there, J-Lo, Larry King, another table has got Randy Gerber, George Clooney.

I mean, there's some major celebrities in there. Good people. How do you train a staff to deal with these huge names in a way where they're not like shaking when they put the plate down? Because it's, it's, it's not that you just don't throw them to the wolves, I assume. Yeah. So, well, I mean, I think a lot of, a lot of our staff has been there for a really long time. We have very little turnover.

In fact, during COVID, we didn't lay anybody off. Wow. Good for you. It's awesome. So, so we had everybody. In fact, everybody's like, how did you get staff after everybody came back from COVID? And I'm like, well, we didn't lay anybody off, but I didn't realize that there was going to be a staffing shortage after COVID. I just did it because I hate when people say, oh, we're like family, you know, until the

shit hits the fan and then no, you're not family. See you later. Like, no, you've got to be family. So that's why we kept everybody. And also I didn't, I didn't know how long this thing was going to last, but I think what happens is you get comfortable with the fact that it's an exciting restaurant. And what you need to understand is that they're just people and they want a good dining experience and how to enable them to have that without getting too caught up in actually who they are.

And so I think the older servers are used to it. Now they've kind of gotten, you know, I don't know if you ever get really used to it. And then the newer ones, sometimes I'll have a word with them or the matron, you'll have a word with them saying, you know, so-and-so is going to be sitting on table six.

Just take it easy. Just go easy. What if they tried to ask for a selfie? That's a no-no, right? No, I would literally murder them and sit in jail happily. Okay. Would you scream, hey, stupid, across the line? You can't.

Yeah, yeah. You can't take a selfie. No, but it's like, it's, you gotta be really careful. It's all in their handbooks, right? There's no social media posts. There's none of, none of that stuff. And it's just like, I don't even take pictures with them. Yeah.

I never post about a celebrity eating in there unless they've posted about it. Right. Probably why you're so successful. Well, I want it, I want it to be a private place. Like whatever happens in Craig's should stay in Craig's. And there was, there was one time where there was a group of celebrities in there and it was really unfortunate because I didn't know

it, but there was, there was a, there was a website, a blog. Oh, Just Jared. Just Jared. Yeah. Right, right. So I think his name is Jingle Jared. I don't know his name.

No, no. Taylor Jingle. Jingle Jared. No, Jingle Jared's the music guy. Just Jared is that. Yeah. No, Jingle Jared's a great guy. He moved to Nashville and I love him. Let's get that straight because I don't really badmouth Jingle Jared. No, Jingle Jared's the music guy. Just Jared is that. Yeah. No, Jingle Jared's a great guy. He moved to Nashville and I love him.

Let's get that straight because I don't want to be a bad mouth on Jingle Jared. We love Jingle Jared on the show. We love Jingle Jared. Just Jared. Just Jared, which I didn't have any personal, like, I didn't care, but I didn't know who he was. And he was in the restaurant and I didn't know that. And so the next day it was all over the papers, who was in the restaurant, who they were talking to, who was table hopping. And everybody thought I was in on it and I wasn't, I had nothing

to do with it. And I, I took the heat for it, but I want what happens in that restaurant to kind of stay in that restaurant. And for, for every one of, for that one bad experience, there's been a thousand others that haven't been impressed. So you're not going to tell Michael about my boyfriend that you've seen me with? Who are you? And you're not going to tell Lauren

about my boyfriend. No, I'm just kidding. Okay. But by the way, that is very important. Culturally sensitive. No, it's important that if you,

I would think for what you do, if you see something, it's Philip. if you, I would think for what you do, if you see something. I am. Well, look, I, you know, I, I, I learned very early on that you can never get in trouble by not opening your mouth. So always stay less than necessary. Yeah. In fact, my wife literally like, you know, she'll see something in the trades the next day. Cause every, you know, she'll say, how was Monday? How was Wednesday? how was wednesday i was right i'm like oh it was good because that's it

like that's good and then like give me the juice and then the next day she'll be like you know like madonna leaving craig she's like really really and i'm like i have to get better at it because i'm not trying to freeze her out i'm just so used to being kind of quiet about what goes on. So I have to be better at, um, at telling her what's going on. Matter of fact, it just came up the other night. I was saying Brian Cox, cause we watched the

session and I was like. It's such a great show. It's such a great show. She won't watch it. I don't know. I will watch it if I get a second to myself. And I'm, she's busy raising your kids. I know.

I watch it on the plane all the way here. I mean, it's unbelievable. Are you fully caught up? I was meditating. Why don't you send her to San Jose Ranch? Yeah, alone. No, no, no. Listen, I catch her doing all sorts of things

on her own time. Okay, I got to watch the session. She goes to the Asian foot spa for like three hours. Yeah, it's bad. It's not the things that Taylor does on his own, but it's... Taylor, no. So we were watching Secession,

and I was really upset that a certain character got killed off. And I just thought like it was really kind of a bummer because I just like the things that come out of his mouth. Hilarious. Because it's just, you just never know what's coming. And I thought the writing was so great. And I just kind of miss that character. But he was in the restaurant, I think with one of the show creators, like four or five months ago. And I go, God, he was, I wonder if that's what they were talking about when they were in.

I go, I don't know, but they were so nice, but I didn't want to bother them. And like, I just said hello and kind of like walked away. And I was like, so Brian Cox was in the restaurant.

You didn't tell me. I'm like, here we go again. Like, I like, I, it was such an unforced error. Like I,

it happened five months ago. And there was another perfect excuse of like, just not chit-chatting about stuff. Before you go, tell us about your ice cream. I'm having so much fun. You don't have to go. You are, I have to tell you, you're great on a mic.

If we didn't have a time cut off, I'd do another hour. Mommy needs a minute. You can come back on the podcast anytime. I feel like we could mine you for story after story after story. No, I think, you know, look, anybody that can advocate for the restaurant business and advocate for the restaurant workers, I'm happy to do that anytime.

Because I think it's such a great, talented group of people that don't get enough credit. And a lot of people take it for granted how hard it is and what chefs go through. And you got to understand something. A broccoli that you order, if you get the right order, not the asparagus, the broccoli that you order at the chef has to order it at 10 o'clock the night before it has to get delivered at seven in the morning. The next day, it has to get received, taken, cleaned, put away. Then it has to get cooked. Then somebody has to come along and take your order correctly amongst 150 other orders and then has to fire it at the right time.

And all those things have to hit the tray at the same time and walk to your table by really great professionals in our business. Then that broccoli hits your table. And all of those things have to happen in order for you to have a successful dinner. And every once in a while, it's not perfect. And somebody will literally call everybody out for it. And I'm like, there's a lot going on. Remember that next time you order broccoli. Yeah. Back to.

You have to tell us about the ice cream. Why you launched it. What's your favorite flavor? What they should buy? And can we do a giveaway? Yes, we can do a giveaway. So the ice cream is a natural extension of the fact that we have a pretty sizable vegan section of the menu. Because I believe that if six people are coming to the restaurant, I want all six to be able to find something to eat.

And if one of them is vegan, I want them to feel comfortable. That was my original modus back like 10, 11 years ago. Now, I just think the plant-based world is getting bigger and bigger. I am not allergic to anything. I'm not gluten, dairy, lactose intolerant, anything. But I don't particularly feel great

when I eat ice cream. I just get tired. So I wanted an ice cream and chef and I worked on an ice cream where can we make a great ice cream that happens to be vegan, not the other way around. And so what we did, it was made it a really rich scoopable, creamy, totally vegan ice cream that's made out of cashews and it's spreading across the country. I mean, we're, we're, we've been working on this long and hard.

We're now at Whole Foods in the Southwest, Bristol, Gelson's, Mother's. We're in markets up in Seattle. We're in central markets in Texas. We're in Publix down in the Southeast. And now we're working on something, hopefully in the Northeast, because a lot of people in New York are.

Can they order online? They order online at craigsvegan.com. I personally would start you guys with the cold brew coffee. It's with Chamberlain Coffee too. It's a little collab. And then I also love the Melrose Mint Chip. It's so good. You can't go wrong. It's important to mention too

that, you know, I obviously, I'm not plant-based and I'm happy to eat plant-based, but a lot of times people don't put the thought you've put into this in the ingredients and so you're like switching over to something that maybe doesn't have dairy, but it doesn't taste good. Your stuff tastes good. Right. So the whole point is this isn't just for the vegan community, right? You may have had a steak for dinner. You may have had, and then, okay, I'll have some vegan ice cream. There's

people that go, we're at Fatburger and Johnny Rockets. So if you go and order a vegan shake, you might've had a regular hamburger, a beef hamburger, but you order a vegan shake because you know what? I'm just, all of us in life are making these decisions about how to balance what we do. And then we're having fun with Emma Chamberlain and we're having fun with Tinks and doing a Sunday. And it's just, it should be joyful and it should be light and bright. And the ice cream's been a passion project of mine. Chef Kirsten came up with the recipe. He's done a great job. Yeah.

Now we're in like 1600 retail outlets across the country. What you're doing is incredible. You are such an icon in LA. I know this ice cream, it's already blown up, but it's going to blow up even bigger. I feel like it's the new age hog and dogs. That's quite a compliment. Now I'm really hungry for your restaurant. Now I'm like thinking about all the food.

This ice cream, you guys, you got to try. My daughter loves it. It's so good. Sweet. And a lot of people have, have, have got their kids on it instead of regular ice cream because it, I mean, look. We're all trying.

It is better. Trying to keep our head above water. There's a lot going on in the world. Can we do a giveaway to do like a big pack to someone yeah okay all you guys have to do is follow at craigsla on instagram or at craigsvegan at craigsvegan and do at craigsla at craigsla and at craigsvegan yeah and then we'll come up with uh what are we gonna do just tell us your favorite takeaway from this episode on my latest post at laurenostick. And we should pick what?

10? Oh, 10. We should pick 10 people. Wow. I don't think anyone's ever picked 10 people. That's so nice. Let's do it. If we're going to do it, let's do it.

10 people get to win a box of Craig's ice cream. All you have to do, like I said, is follow at Craig's LA and at Craig's Vegan. Tell us your favorite takeaway on my latest post. And then I didn't even ask you this off air, but do you want to do some kind of code for the audience to shop oh yeah we should talk about that like a 10 off code let's do a 10 off code on what would be the phrase skinny skinny craig skinny craigs bad delivery uh don't get him involved i Don't get him involved. I won't get him involved. Don't worry. Because that could get.

Things will get sticky. It could get. Oh my God. Oh my God. We're trying to sell some ice cream. All right. How about a bunch of skinny? Skinny.

10% off. Go shop. We'll set it up for you guys. Craig, you can come back anytime. Oh my God. You're so sweet. I truly could have gone so many different directions. Anytime you want to come back on, you're invited.

I love it. Open invite. I love it. What a pleasure. Thank you. Thank you. Wait, don't go. The Skinny Confidential Planners are back in stock, which is so exciting because they were sold out. You guys sold them out. We didn't have them forever. They're back and we're going to give one away. Especially after this episode, everyone needs a plan in the morning to execute their business. This is perfect. All you have to do is tell us your favorite takeaway of this episode with Craig on my latest post. Thank you guys for listening. Make sure you've rated and reviewed

the podcast on Apple Podcasts. And also you can listen or watch us on YouTube.