Wong : Great! There are a lot of changes this year, how do you handle them? For example, with COVID and Black Lives Matter going on, how do you cope with all these different challenges? Sutherland : It’s difficult for sure. I think it’s trying to stay innovative, positive, being able to pivot as we can’t really predict the future. Everything we do right now is very much a risk, but just trying to stay ahead of it all. I think a lot of the restaurants that are kind of falling off were afraid to make changes when they needed to be made, you know? We’ll get through this pandemic but I think the dining scene has been forever changed. So, it’s really just trying to stay with that. Wong : How did you change and how do you see that COVID impacted the restaurant industry? Sutherland : It’s obviously affected the restaurant industry globally and locally. I think close to fifty-percent of the restaurants that are closed now will never reopen. A lot of the changes we made were on fine dining food. A lot of chefs have just been afraid of the takeout. You never know how it’s going to be delivered; you never know what the end product, when it arrives to that house, what that food is going to look like. So, adapting to the takeout model and learning how to put as much effort as you would with somebody dining in your restaurant as you would for takeout because this is how a lot of people are eating now. Getting creative with packaging, testing to make sure that food travels well, making menus that are conducive to take out, and doing cook-at-home meals. I’ve done a lot of box food, or box programs with raw products that can either have recipes or links to online videos where I can cook it alongside you. Other things include embracing outdoor dining, getting creative with outdoor dining spaces, and rearranging dining rooms so that
people feel comfortable in indoor spaces. Especially here in the Midwest, we dropped down to fifty-something degrees today and it’s going to continue to plummet. Soon we’ll be in the middle of winter, which is another sWong bridge that we’re gonna have to cross. Wong : You were running nine restaurants before and now down to five. Are there any particular food directions that you are switching towards or is it a continuation of what you have done before? Sutherland : It’s definitely changing with models and mindsets for restaurants. I’m doing a lot more with quick service and counter service. Still trying to do the same high- quality food, just not necessarily in a fine dining setting. I think people are moving away from fine dining. They don’t want to sit in an enclosed space for three hours along with the personal contact or tableside touches that come along with it. We are getting to a point where there’s less human interaction, unfortunately. Wong : Now you’re involved heavily in management. Obviously, there are a lot of hiring and personnel decisions you have to make. A lot of the line cooks and staff members are from the Black or Latino communities or minorities in general and they work in quite stressful conditions. What do you think that the industry as a whole can do to provide them with better healthcare, well-being, and salary? What can be done to elevate and empower them through promotions or other ways? Sutherland : I think first it’s just awareness. Somebody has to be aware that it’s an issue then some sort of change needs to happen. Then from there, broadening the pool when you’re searching for employees. If you’re always fishing in the same pond, you’re always going to catch the same thing. From a broader community standpoint, it’s letting other groups of people know that these jobs are out there and
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