Seeing Squirrels

I ask Jim, who is a quality control manager for Legal Seafoods out of Boston, what's the best quality in a restaurant manager.

My top people don't “see squirrels” he says.

“What?” I say.

He explains it this way. Say your trying to get the attention of a dog, make him look at you, and off in his peripheral vision he “sees a squirrel,” if he chases it or not will determine how focused he really is.

He goes on. “I need a guy that can 'see everything', but knows how to prioritize, act quietly, w/o being overbearing nor throwing the power of his position around. He should know when to step in to solve a situation and more importantly...when not to. Micro-managers are the worst, they ruin their subordinates enthusiasm. I need my waiters, cooks and all the others under him to be invested, not looking at when they can get the hell out of there.”

I liked that phrase, seeing squirrels.

He tells me he started as a dishwasher, bus boy, prep cook, cook, head cook, manager and finally ended up in the Boston office managing and trouble-shooting the chain's restaurants. That's one hell of a career path starting out from sleepy Westerly, RI.

I decide to pick Jim's brain. He's on the forefront of making a living off of people's disposable income. He might have a nice reading on the temperature of the economy from his vantage point. He tells me total sales are going up since the crash. Legal is planning five new openings in the coming year, and that's from profits saved, not borrowing.

Jim adds. “We're happy as a clam if we're making at least seven cents on the dollar. That's what most people don't know, they think restaurants are money mills, they aren't as profitable as some would think. Sure, we'd like to be doing around seventeen cents per dollar but if we're above seven, we're still doing well.”

He tells me they're getting more corporate reservations. “Bribery parties,” I called them. It's where a business will hire Legal to host a party, and they invite all the other business types, politicians and what not for a free lunch.

“We get $20,000 easily for a corporate lunch.” “Our average weekly take on all sites is about $200,000.” Jim proudly tells me.

If what Jim is telling me is true about the uptick in sales, then good, this economy should get off it's ass after the beating it took.

*****