Legacy restaurant ownership

My family's first restaurant opened in 1911. I don't say that to brag — I had nothing to do with the origin story — I say it because it informs the way I see every restaurant I walk into. When you grow up in a family that's been in the business for over 100 years, you learn something that no MBA teaches: A restaurant isn't a spreadsheet. It's a living thing. It's the owner who still shows up at 6am even though she doesn't have to. The server who's been there since the Clinton administration. The regulars who've celebrated every birthday, anniversary, and Tuesday night at the same table. I started my own career in college, slinging cheap beer to classmates. Worked my way through some of the best restaurants in Philadelphia and New York. Somewhere along the way, I realized I could see restaurants through two lenses — as an operator who knows what it takes to run one, and as an advisor who can help owners and investors make better decisions about them. That combination has become the foundation of everything I do today. Not every restaurant person understands finance. Not every finance person understands restaurants. I've spent 25 years trying to be fluent in both. Still working on it.