In my last kitchen turn-over post Clark had left Austin Cantina to take over kitchen management duties at the Balmar on Market Street. So far he is doing a good job but it sounds like he misses the environmental/sustainable mindset that we have here, with composting, recycling, grass fed beef, and cooking from scratch.
We had some great good fortune with Jay, who worked at Dandelion before we took over this space, he knows the kitchen and has a great work ethic, plus he has lots of energy. Unfortunately he had a skateboard accident and has been unable to use a knife due to a wrist/soft tissue injury.
Once Blake came back from Spring Training in Arizona he has really picked up a lot of the slack, worked very hard (and smart) did 6 days last week, including a bunch of OT, and recruited one of his friends from back home to join us in the kitchen.
We hired 2 other guys and now I think we're back up to speed, just waiting for everyone to learn their way around so that everyone knows where stock is kept and instinctively knows the recipes and service requirements. We'll get there. Change is eternal, managing that change, and working with it is one of the joys of doing business.
I'm glad to have a team of smart, skilled people who have ideas of their own about how to do food, and plate presentations etc. I could sure train non-thinking automatons, but I'd rather spend my day with people who have experience and opinions, they will continue to help me do better, all the time.
Coming soon....
Weekday lunch at Austin Cantina, featuring one of my favorite Texas meals, the meatloaf sandwich.
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March 2008
March 26, 2008
March 15, 2008
Jerry Jeff's birthday party
Although the official annual parties in Austin will be at the end of March (Saturday acoustic & storytelling at the Paramount, Sunday rockin' blow-out at Gruene Hall) Ronald Clyde Crosby was born 3/16/1942 in Oneonta, New York. He took the name Jerry Jeff Walker during his folkie days in Greenwich Village.
In celebration of the 66th birthday of the man who's performance of Tom Russell's Navajo Rug was one of the inspirations for this restaurant we'll be playing an abundance of Jerry Jeff performances, as well as songs that Jerry Jeff has covered (listen for Tom's performance of Navajo Rug, as well as Guy Clark's LA Freeway, Ray Wylie Hubbard's Up Against The Wall, Redneck Mother, and more) on the stereo in the restaurant all evening on Sunday 3/16, from 5 to 9.
March 13, 2008
Live Music
Great turn-out last night to hear Dylon Mack Tubb play his 6 to 9 set, we had a table outside and a waiting list for seats, on a Wednesday night!
Come see Dylon every Wednesday in March, from 6 to 9 pm, if we keep seeing crowds like last week, we'll have to keep him around in April, if he's willing to stay. He's sort of "low-key" about it, but he does keep a tip basket and he's pleased to have folks contribute.
Flowers
Our little garden plot in front of the restaurant has been mostly spared the ravages of dogs, drunks, and random flower pickers wandering the street.
I did get a little testy when our very first daffodil last week was plucked by a passer-by who then apologized and asked if I wanted her to pay me for it. DUH, if I wanted the money, I wouldn't have planted flowers, if I wanted to sell flowers, I'd run a flower shop, not a restaurant.
Anyway, for folks who can't stop by and see the spring foliage, or for anyone who does not get here before the buds get plucked, AND for my mom in Florida who helped plant some of the bulbs with my kids, here are a few quick snaps ;
Flurry of Posts...
Been very busy lately, a LOT going on, and not a lot of time to post.
Last week was the 2nd busiest week since we've been open, thanks in large part to a mention in Nancy Leson's column.
Check out the tiny Ballard cafe, Austin Cantina (5809 24th Ave. N.W., Seattle, 206-789-1277, www.austincantina.org).
At Weekend Gospel Brunch the classic and contemporary hits (courtesy of
recording artists like the Soul Stirrers and CeCe Winans) praise the
Lord at modest decibels.
Amazingly, despite the column being brunch-centric, we experienced a MUCH bigger impact on our dinner business. There we people waiting for tables last night! The night before was the second best Tuesday of 2008 to-date, and about 50% better than most Tuesdays have been. I'm a little frightened about the weekend, with Clark having moved to the Bal-Mar and Blake in Arizona for Spring Training.
Blake was a hero here on Tuesday, we had a small fire at about 8:45, with a few guests in the dining room. Our vent fan, in the changing room failed, sparked, and dropped a hot vent cover onto a broom. It wa sunder control in less than 20 minutes, no one had to evacuate, we just opened the doors to let the smoke dissipate. We're VERY fortunate that it happened when someone with a cool head was here to grab a fire-extinguisher.
This is what the aftermath looks like;
