As someone who can relate to the intense environment of a professional kitchen, The Bear can be a little hard to watch. While I didn’t experience nearly as much yelling, the stress of meeting ever higher expectations, burning out working crazy hours and wearing way too many hats are all very real.
I lasted just a few years working in the back of places like Gramercy Tavern and Café Boulud, but I took lessons forward that have defined Revel today. These are some The Bear nails.
1. Embrace Change. The trajectory of a startup, or a restaurant, is not linear. Revel started as a moped company. The Bear was serving watered down spaghetti. Neither was right for the long-run, even if sentimental.
2. Get a Co-Founder: The best decision I ever made with Revel was the first one — pitching Paul Suhey to do it with me. Like Carmy making Sydney his partner, having someone at your side, who actually knows how difficult it can be, is invaluable not just for the success of the business but for your personal mental health too.
3. Maintain Excellence. The honest truth is that entrepreneurship is a long road, most startups take 10+ years to exit. Just as in restaurants, you can never be comfortable with the status quo because keeping the star can be more difficult than earning it in the first place. I’ve had to learn the hard way that startup excellence isn’t only about expansion or capital raised, but improving on your fundamentals and pushing the bar higher every day. Otherwise your competitors will.
I did skip The Bear season 3 premiere last night, not quite the relaxing TV I’m looking for right now. Certainly doesn’t make me regret my career choices. And no, nobody calls me chef in the office.
