Latest / The Inspired Stories Podcast / Craig Bernstein's Journey: From Courtside at Madison Square Garden to Founding Doc B's Restaurants

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Craig Bernstein's Journey: From Courtside at Madison Square Garden to Founding Doc B's Restaurants · The Inspired Stories Podcast

0:04
Welcome to another edition of the Inspired Stories podcast
0:08
where leaders share their experiences so we can learn from
0:11
their successes and be inspired by how they've overcome
0:14
adversity. My name is Anthony Codaspodi and
0:17
today's guest is Craig Bernstein, founder and president
0:20
of Dock BS Restaurant. They are a fresh, casual dining
0:23
concept that started in 2013 and focuses on house made, mindfully
0:29
sourced dishes like salads, burgers and seasonal entrees.
0:33
They also offer an extensive selection of craft beer, wine
0:37
and spirits. Their mission is to provide an
0:40
exceptional guest experience from daily made menu items to a
0:45
welcoming atmosphere that becomes the go to place in every
0:48
community. Craig has expanded Dock Bees to
0:51
multiple locations across several states, reflecting his
0:55
vision for slow and steady growth.
0:57
He was inspired to enter the restaurant industry after
1:00
meeting Alan Bernstein, no relation a legendary figure from
1:04
Morton's Steakhouse, and learning the importance of
1:07
genuine hospitality now. Before founding Dockbie's, Craig
1:11
developed his skills through various leadership roles in well
1:14
known restaurant groups. He credits his success to
1:17
staying true to his father's ethos and focusing on delivering
1:21
the best possible dining experience.
1:24
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2:04
All right, back to our guest today, the founder and president
2:06
of Zac B's Restaurant, Craig Bernstein.
2:09
Thanks for making the time to Share your story today.
2:11
Anthony, thanks for having me. It should be fun.
2:14
It's going to be a good time, so tell us about meeting Alan
2:18
Bernstein at a Knicks game when you're just 10 years old and how
2:22
it inspired your early ambitions in the restaurant world.
2:25
It's crazy, you know, I, I sometimes think, what if I
2:29
didn't go to that game? What would life turn out to be?
2:33
But Long story short, my father who was a doctor and sort of
2:40
will get into all of that, but he received tickets to the to a
2:46
Knicks game and we had to pick straws out of a hat of who got
2:51
to go with dad that game after school.
2:55
And I had a little sister. I had an older brother and I was
2:58
a middle child and somehow I won.
3:00
I picked the smallest straw out of a hat.
3:03
Dad picked me up. We lived in Long Island and we
3:06
drove to Madison Square Garden in the city and it turns out the
3:10
seats were the highest row at the Garden.
3:14
And, you know, although way to the top and although I was still
3:20
excited to be there, I should have brought my binoculars.
3:23
And at during halftime, he points down to what used to be
3:28
referred to maybe still is as Celebrity Row.
3:32
And, you know, Spike Lee and Bill Murray and some of these,
3:37
you know, New York legendary people, that's where they would
3:41
sit. And he points down and he says,
3:44
Craig, you see that guy down there?
3:46
That's my friend. He has tickets on the floor.
3:49
And as a precocious 10 year old, I said, I want to go meet him.
3:54
And so we trekked all the way down from the highest row down
3:58
to Celebrity row. And there was a velvet rope you
4:01
couldn't get through. My dad's yelling Allen Allen.
4:04
And Allen lets us through or tells the security guy to let us
4:08
through. And I'm standing on the court
4:10
of, of, of the Knicks arena. And I'm just, I'm flaw I'm I'm,
4:14
I'm floored at what I'm what I'm seeing.
4:19
We end up going back to our seats.
4:21
I'm talking about that experience.
4:25
I'm in the 6th grade and almost the very next day I have to do a
4:28
career report. What do you want to be when you
4:33
grow up? And actually, I, I, I skipped
4:37
one part of the story. Let me, let me go back.
4:40
The next day, Alan calls my dad and he gives my dad the tickets
4:45
to take us to a game. His tickets, his his seats on
4:49
the floor. Seats on the floor, so the whole
4:52
family goes. We sit on the floor.
4:55
We have a full experience now. I'm in the 6th grade.
4:58
What do you want to do when you grow up?
5:00
I come home, we're having dinner as a family.
5:04
I say to my dad, you don't have to do a career report.
5:07
What do I want to be when I grow up?
5:08
And he says, do you want to be a doctor like me?
5:12
And I said, no, I want to be like the guy who has the tickets
5:17
at the Knicks game. What does that guy do?
5:20
And he said, well, remember the restaurant we went to before the
5:24
game? And I said, yeah, He said, well,
5:27
he owns that restaurant. And so my career report was
5:32
titled Restaurant Entrepreneur. Somehow I still have it.
5:36
It's on the company's website, which is crazy how for some
5:39
reason I saved this. And from 10 years old all the
5:43
way through kind of life, I always just would say, I'm going
5:48
to own restaurants when I get older.
5:49
And I guess that's what happened.
5:51
Because for you, it was so impressive that this guy had
5:55
these seats on, you know, the floor at Madison Square Garden.
5:59
Like it was, it was impressive. It was a status thing.
6:03
You're like, whatever he's doing.
6:04
Like I I want some of that. Yeah.
6:06
I think as a 10 year old, I was just like, I want to be like
6:08
him. And then when we would go to the
6:11
restaurant and this, this individual, Alan, sort of became
6:16
a mentor of mine as I got older. And I did really start to
6:20
establish myself in the restaurant business, whether
6:24
that was, you know, 16 years old, working at a bakery or
6:27
working on business plans when I thought that I was going to
6:30
start my own restaurant right out of college.
6:33
But I think it was the experience that I would get when
6:37
I dined in a restaurant with Alan over the top, every dessert
6:43
coming to the table, every appetizer, them welcoming you by
6:47
name, just sort of the whole experience.
6:50
Certainly at the time I didn't realize what went into it behind
6:53
the scenes sort of wishy kind of told me about that.
6:58
But but all the front facing customer experience components
7:04
of the restaurant business and on top of that, the four
7:07
courtside Nick tickets, I was like, it's a great job, I'm
7:11
going to do this. You love being on the receiving
7:14
end of all of that glory. You're like, hey, I want to be
7:18
in the business of delivering that for other people.
7:20
Yeah. And I think being in the
7:22
restaurant with Alan and we would dine together and he would
7:26
take us. And I was a kid, the way in
7:28
which he was treated in the restaurant and the way that he
7:35
was able to enjoy kind of what he called work, I think maybe
7:41
put something into my mind and thought, wow, this is a really
7:46
incredible job. In addition to maybe some of the
7:51
perks and the benefits that being successful in this
7:54
business could offer. It didn't really seem like he
7:57
was working very hard when we would go into the restaurant.
8:01
So I guess I again, you know, just didn't realize what let let
8:05
led to to all of that. Sometimes that ignorance can be
8:08
blessed, yeah. I mean, otherwise you might not
8:12
walk through. That door.
8:13
Yeah, yeah, exactly. So, yeah.
8:17
So I think meeting Alan, you know, certainly is a cute story
8:22
as a 10 year old and sitting on the courtside of a New York
8:24
Knicks game and then having the experiences with him.
8:27
And then, you know, he he he's no longer with us.
8:30
He passed away before I started Doc DS.
8:33
But, you know, he would take my call, you know, if I would call
8:37
him and ask him questions as I was going through my career.
8:39
And, you know, he really impacted my entire life.
8:43
I mean, even, you know, maybe we'll get into it today.
8:45
But when I went to go work for, you know, Houston's restaurants
8:49
as a, you know, 22 year old, you know, that was because of Alan
8:54
sort of pointed me in that direction.
8:56
And without those little, you know, guidances, you know, I, I
9:01
think life is very different for me.
9:03
So is Houston's. Is that stop before or after the
9:08
stop where there was the you're doing the name dropping of the
9:12
famous executive? Yeah, it feels like I'm name
9:14
dropping all these people. We're we're you know, we're like
9:16
2 for two already. But I was in college and I must
9:21
have been a junior or senior because I hadn't yet figured out
9:25
what I was going to do after I graduated.
9:27
And I was working on a business plan to start my own restaurant
9:32
right out of college. And I went to Emory University
9:35
in Atlanta and I was studying business and, you know, a couple
9:40
of like extracurricular entrepreneurial style classes
9:45
or, or groups. And there was a, the college
9:49
town was called Emory Village and there was a 1500 square foot
9:54
space there. I would meet with contractors.
9:57
I would, you know, dine out, like take notes of, you know,
10:01
this is what we would do differently.
10:03
So I came up with this business idea called Bernie's New York
10:06
Deli. So Bernstein, Bernie was my
10:09
nickname growing up, Bernie's New York Deli.
10:12
And it wasn't going to be a Jewish deli.
10:14
That's where people always refer to it as I'm like, this would be
10:17
a bodega, New York style. Bacon, egg and cheese in the
10:21
morning, Boar's head, Turkey sandwiches for lunch, chicken
10:25
cutlets, the whole thing. By the way, thank somebody that
10:30
this didn't happen. So I'm, so I'm at Emory.
10:35
I'm working on this business plan.
10:37
I think that's going to be my job right out of college.
10:40
And Howard Schultz of Starbucks comes to do a talk to the entire
10:45
Business School at Emory University.
10:48
And I get selected after that talk to go meet with him in a
10:54
small, intimate group of maybe 8 to 10 people.
10:57
And I think I got selected maybe because of the entrepreneurial
11:00
groups that I was in. And he's, we, we're having
11:03
coffee. And he sort of points to me.
11:05
He says, oh, what are you going to do when you graduate?
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And I said, oh, and I got into like pitch mode.
11:11
You know I like you like pitch, Howard.
11:13
Schultz on This is a good. Opportunity looks like New York,
11:16
Del. I'm like, well, actually I'm
11:19
going to everything I just told you.
11:22
I tell Howard Schultz and he's like, Oh yeah, sounds like a
11:26
great idea, but maybe you should get some experience in
11:31
management and restaurants and just be a little bit more
11:34
prepared before you go out on your own.
11:37
We at the time, I think it was maybe called Maverin Capital,
11:40
which was his investment vehicle had invested in Potbelly
11:44
Sandwich Works and they had like 30 or 40 restaurants at the
11:49
time. And he said we just invested in
11:51
pot bellies. And you know, that would be a
11:53
great place. You should go apply with them
11:55
and maybe go get some experience.
11:58
And I, you know, I think that would be a great first step for
12:00
you. So I had never heard of pot
12:03
bellies. OK.
12:05
So I know at. That point, like you said, just
12:06
a few dozen locations. Few dozen locations and they
12:09
were building. They were mostly in Chicago and
12:11
then they started to build in like the Virginia, Maryland, DC
12:13
area. So not to date myself.
12:16
It's not like this is 1975, but this is like 2000 and three
12:21
2004, you know, websites, Google was just, you know, kind of
12:26
coming out, but. It's there, yeah.
12:28
So I, so I go to my, I think probably my fraternity house, to
12:31
be honest. I write this generic e-mail to
12:33
potbelly.com. My name is Craig Bernstein.
12:36
I just met Howard Schultz and he told me that when I graduate, I
12:41
should come work for you. Thanks.
12:43
Give me a call, Craig, something like that, 'cause I'm like, I'm
12:46
opening my deli. I'm just doing this just in
12:49
case. So the next morning, Brian Kyle,
12:54
founder, chairman, CEO of Potbelly calls my phone.
12:59
It's like 7:00 in the morning. I, you know, this is before we
13:04
sort of checked the, the caller ID and see who it was.
13:07
I answered the phone and he introduces himself.
13:09
He's like, I got your e-mail. I need to hear this story and
13:14
what is this about Howard Schultz and tell me what's going
13:18
on. So I tell him the story.
13:22
And I went on an interview and I went to go visit Pot Bellies.
13:27
It was amazing. It was incredible.
13:29
I loved it. And so ultimately, Pot Bellies
13:32
as a result of Howard Schultz became my first job out of
13:38
college. And that steered you away from
13:40
opening that New York style bodega?
13:43
Yeah, I mean, thank, you know, thank God because of all the
13:47
hurdles that I probably didn't know we're going to come my way.
13:54
You know, thank God I didn't do it.
13:55
And Potbelly was an amazing experience.
13:58
Worked for them for, you know, really short period of time
14:00
because I kind of took the bait on a different opportunity and I
14:05
probably left pot bellies a little bit prematurely.
14:09
But the time that I was there, very, very impactful, very
14:13
memorable and inexperienced that I have so many incredible, you
14:18
know, stories that have shaped me today.
14:21
What's the biggest thing that you learned there that you still
14:23
carry with you today, Craig? Yeah, I mean, you know, back
14:27
then, I mean, their attention to detail and the proudness of the
14:33
employees and the team members was, was really incredible.
14:38
And I just remember the enthusiasm that the GM of mine
14:45
had for his job was really so infectious.
14:49
And yeah, I still remember those days like it was yesterday.
14:53
And it was an acronym that they used.
14:55
I, I, I'm sure it's still in the handbook, but it, I don't know
14:58
how it's called sideways and I still remember the acronym.
15:01
I mean, this is like 20 years ago.
15:03
I don't have any material in front of me.
15:05
Like I literally, I could recite it to you right now.
15:10
And I just think the company culture really was very
15:15
impactful and the enthusiasm and the genuineness, even though it
15:20
was sandwiches really was, it was, it was, it was amazing.
15:25
I think for me, the most fun part about that story is you
15:28
name dropping Howard Schultz in that e-mail and just sort of
15:31
firing it off like, like, I don't really expect to hear
15:34
anything, but the next morning, like hours later, you get a call
15:39
from the founder. Yeah.
15:40
I mean, looking back now, I mean even like in my position, we
15:43
have 10, they had 40. If somebody wrote an e-mail and
15:47
I saw that name of the equivalency to this business, I
15:52
mean, I'd be calling that person too.
15:55
So an effective strategy? Yeah, it's very effective.
15:58
So how did the idea to start Doc Bees come about?
16:01
Yeah, so, so after Potbelly, I was sort of in a little bit of a
16:06
rut because I left in what I ultimately left to do, which was
16:11
still in the restaurant business, didn't pan out the way
16:14
that it was supposed to. And I was pretty.
16:17
I want, I don't, I don't think I was fully depressed, but I was
16:20
like, Oh my goodness, what just happened?
16:22
Potbelly was incredible. I could have been a rising star
16:25
there. I was a believer in the
16:27
business. And so I I found my way into
16:33
Houston's restaurants, which you know, also is referred to
16:36
sometimes as Hillstone Restaurant Group, sort of work
16:40
my way through that program, which is kind of a whole nother
16:43
story. But to answer your question
16:45
about Doc, should we? Should we?
16:47
Sidetrack on that like. What?
16:49
No, I mean, yeah. I mean, it's kind of a cool.
16:50
I mean, yeah. Let's hear.
16:51
Listen, I, I think you know what Houston's taught me.
16:54
First of all, just going back to the Alan Bernstein reference.
16:57
And This is why I think the mentorship is so important.
17:02
I was in this rut. I was thriving at pot bellies.
17:05
I left for an opportunity and I said to Alan, what the heck am I
17:10
going to do? I mean, this is really bad.
17:13
And he said the the number one restaurant group.
17:17
And this is even when he was the chairman of Morton's.
17:21
So the number one restaurant group in America is Houston's.
17:26
And if you can go work for them, it'll be like going to Harvard
17:32
and getting your above and beyond MBA and restaurant
17:37
management and operations. And so I just became maniacally
17:42
focused on going to work for Houston's and I didn't get
17:48
accepted. So I, so I applied at Houston's
17:53
to become a manager in training. They deny me.
17:57
They basically say, you know, you have a limited full service
18:00
restaurant experience, go get some more experience and
18:04
reapply. And I kind of, you know,
18:07
probably wasn't as refined, although I, I probably still
18:10
have not refined, but just, I should be.
18:13
But I wasn't as refined as I think they expected me to be for
18:18
the position which I was applying for.
18:21
So I, I said to them, well, what if I get experience as a server
18:26
working for you and I try to work my way up versus going to
18:30
get experience somewhere else and then reapplying.
18:35
And they said, you know, it's always better to work your way
18:37
through. And this goes to sort of the way
18:39
that we build our business now, but it's always better to get
18:43
experience from within and and work your way up than it is to
18:47
try from the outside and come back.
18:48
So that's exactly what I did. So I applied to become a server,
18:54
got accepted to be a server. They ultimately told me I was
18:58
like the worst server. They're like, you're a great
19:00
guy, love your personality, terrible server.
19:03
So they like started to create like a position for me.
19:05
Long story short, let me let me kind of jump too.
19:08
I worked my way through the Houston's manager and training
19:12
program. I finally got accepted.
19:15
I became a general manager with them, which was a huge, I was so
19:19
humbled and it's the one of the greatest accomplishments of of
19:23
my life and in my business career above and beyond so much,
19:28
so much else. And while I was doing that
19:32
position, I started to see that guest wanted Houston's food, but
19:40
in A to go away. So they would come in and try to
19:42
place their orders to go. And at the time, the answer was
19:46
no. So they would sit at the bar,
19:49
order the food to go, order the food for there, they'd get the
19:53
food. Then they asked for a box,
19:56
they'd box it up, and then they'd leave.
19:58
And I started to just brainstorm.
20:00
And I was like, there has to be a more efficient way to sort of
20:04
serve this level of food in A to go environment.
20:08
And so at the time, Pei Wei, which was started by PF Chang's.
20:14
Was starting to pop up and so I started to really study like the
20:18
Pei Wei model, the digital menu boards and the order at the
20:21
counter and then go sit down and it's a little bit more.
20:24
It wasn't in like a basket or to, you know, disposable
20:30
plateware. It's real plateware with a
20:32
dishwasher in the back. So my idea was basically for Doc
20:36
BS. How do you create a Pei Wei
20:38
version of American themed higher end dining restaurants,
20:47
which at the time I knew of as Houston's, but anything fill in
20:50
the blank? And that's really where the the
20:52
idea originally came for Dockbies.
20:55
So. Long answer.
20:57
But it was great. And there's one part I want to 0
20:59
back in on is how you applied to Houston's and you were denied.
21:05
And like a lot of people at that point, they throw in the towel.
21:09
They're like, like, I don't know, I'm going to go somewhere
21:11
else. But you had gotten advice from
21:14
Alan Bernstein, you know, the the founder of Morton's your
21:18
your your mentor who said, you know, this would be a great like
21:22
above and beyond an MB AAPHD in restaurant.
21:24
And so you're like, I am focused on this.
21:26
So you ask them for advice and they're like, yeah, better to
21:29
kind of work your way up within. And So what you did, you humbled
21:33
yourself. And you're like, I'm going to
21:35
apply for a server position, which happened to feel like a
21:37
step down from, you know, the trajectory that you were on
21:40
before, right? Totally.
21:42
It did, but it also felt necessary.
21:46
You know, I think in the moment, you know, maybe you don't
21:50
realize all these things. And I was never disgruntled.
21:54
You know, I never felt like I was so excited.
21:56
I was just so enthusiastic and I was, so I kept sort of seeing
22:02
the future as I was going through the present.
22:05
And I'm like, all right, this is all for a step and I believe in
22:08
myself and I'm going to make it happen.
22:09
And it turns out that again, the general manager, which goes back
22:14
to hopefully how we run our Business Today, whether it was
22:18
the general manager of Potbelly's, the general manager
22:22
of Houston's, these are really the people who shaped my entire
22:27
life and the trajectory, if it was a different general manager
22:31
at Houston's, I don't think the journey plays itself out the way
22:38
they. Learned so much from that GM at
22:40
that time that. Changed my life, changed my
22:43
life. And some of it is opportunistic.
22:47
You have to be able to to take it as it comes.
22:50
For example, I remember after I sort of wasn't a great server,
22:55
they created this, not created, but they moved me into a
22:58
position of like salad expediter.
23:01
And but the GM saw that opportunity for me, which led me
23:07
to become a salad expediter. And then he moved me to become a
23:10
hot expediter. And then after the hot
23:14
expediter, he was like, all right, maybe now you're ready to
23:17
go work the floor in sort of a shift lead position.
23:20
And so maybe it was an opportunity because they needed
23:23
a salad expediter. I sort of raised my hand.
23:26
I said, you know, choose me. But a lot of it also was because
23:30
the GM chose me, right? So there was an opportunity to
23:34
salad expediter. That particular GM chooses me.
23:39
Now, hopefully some of my own abilities helps me to succeed
23:45
and now I go through the process, but I never felt like I
23:49
took a step back. I was really excited and I think
23:53
the GMs and the the leaders in the store ultimately play the
23:59
the most crucial role in, in, in the team members than probably
24:05
anybody else in the organization.
24:09
So I was, I was privileged that so far in that career I had two
24:13
great GMs. So I've never had the opportunity to go into a doc BS
24:19
paint a picture for us. What is the customer experience
24:22
like? You know, it's funny, you know,
24:26
the first thing that many of the the, the greeters do is they
24:29
open the door for the guest. And that's not even in the
24:35
handbook, by the way. It's not like open the door for
24:38
the guest. And when I watch this, I'm sort
24:41
of amazed that what's in the handbook is this term genuine
24:48
hospitality. And I think the word hospitality
24:53
is well known and the word genuine is well known.
24:57
And you put them together and I think it creates something very
25:00
special. And so I watched the greeters
25:03
open the door. It's not part of the steps of
25:05
service. And I think that is really the
25:09
epitome of maybe what Doc DS is from a, from a guest first
25:17
impression. There's a bartender and they're
25:19
sort of facing the front door and they're kind of waving to
25:22
you. So you got this reader opening
25:24
the door, you got this bartender.
25:25
Hi, how are you? And everybody's just genuinely
25:28
friendly. I mean, that is the cornerstone
25:31
of what the business is really built on and the foundation and,
25:37
you know, over time, as we've now expanded into, you know, 5
25:42
States and we have 10 restaurants and we have, you
25:45
know, big ambitions for more. I think it's trying to be this
25:49
neighborhood restaurant where you're welcomed by name and not
25:54
in this hyperbole sort of way like the cheers, you know, like,
26:01
hey, norm, but genuine. That's how we say hi to people.
26:04
But this neighborhood feel with sort of chain like systems so
26:11
that the experiences are consistent from time to time and
26:17
place to place. But first and foremost, it's
26:19
genuine hospitality and hopefully a neighborhood feel of
26:24
a restaurant where you feel comfortable to use that
26:29
experience, however you choose necessary.
26:32
So real quick, you kind of go into a restaurant, you're a
26:36
single diner, you're like, I'll just sit at the bar in my
26:40
restaurant. In our restaurant, we want you
26:42
to feel just as comfortable to go sit at a four top, you know,
26:47
and I think whatever you want to use Doc DS for is how we want
26:53
you to feel comfortable to to use it.
26:55
Tell us about the food. And the food's when the food is
27:00
right, the food is the best, the best of that item you've ever
27:03
tasted. You know, the, the, the
27:06
cornerstone of the menu is familiarity where you can relate
27:11
to what you order, but hopefully it stands out as the best of
27:16
that item you've ever tasted. So the number one salad on our
27:21
menu is the knife and four cop salad.
27:23
Everybody's had a cop salad. We serve ours on a plate with
27:28
beautifully crisped chicken that's cooked to order, you
27:32
know, when the order comes in plated with house made Dijon
27:36
honey sauce that's perfectly drizzled over the top with a
27:39
side of salad with, you know, bacon that's cooked fresh
27:45
throughout the day with homemade cornbread croutons and steamed
27:49
eggs to order. And you know, just this like
27:53
freshness that goes with. So everybody's had a Cobb salad,
27:57
but the way in which we present our Cobb salad and the care and
28:00
the pride that it takes for that Cobb salad, the goal is that
28:03
people look at it and they go, this is the best Cobb salad I've
28:06
ever had. And then we try to take that
28:08
over the course of 75 menu items.
28:12
And you have to repeat that day in and day out every single
28:18
time. That's, I think where maybe the
28:20
challenges lie. But but the food is is should be
28:25
delicious and should be craveable every single time.
28:29
So I want to how do I want to go about this?
28:33
Tell us about the coaster. Oh, the coaster, yeah, yeah.
28:37
So, you know, so many people think that the, the business Doc
28:43
Bees is owned and sort of operated by this doctor and for
28:49
many years and maybe even still to this day, I think sometimes
28:54
people assume it's a healthy quinoa bowl and kale salads
29:02
style restaurant. I think our fried chicken, by
29:04
the way, is delicious. And so we we don't have many
29:09
opportunities to kind of tell the story about where the name
29:14
Doc Bees comes from. And it's not in fact, a Doctor
29:18
Who created this healthful restaurant.
29:21
In fact, just a quick sidebar on that.
29:23
We kind of started the business around like True Food Kitchen
29:26
when they started and Sweet Green was really coming up.
29:30
So Doctor Weil with True Food and then we have Doc D's Fresh
29:34
Kitchen and Sweet Green. So I really wanted to try to
29:38
figure out how to message that. The business is named after my
29:42
father, who was an incredible doctor.
29:45
A lot of the ethos and foundation of our business is is
29:49
around his bedside manner and how he took care of his patients
29:53
and things like that. But we created this coaster and
29:57
on the back of it, I sort of write this note to all of our
30:01
guests in all the restaurants and it just sort of tells the
30:06
story. Thank you for choosing Doc BS.
30:08
Since opening our first restaurant in 2013 and naming it
30:11
after my late father, I have loved to hear from our guests.
30:15
And it's sort of I sign it and I give them my e-mail address so
30:20
that we can correspond because one of the things I miss is the
30:24
interaction with all of our guests.
30:26
And so this was a double way to tell our story and also tell
30:33
guests. I'd love to hear from you.
30:36
What is that e-mail address for folks that want to reach out?
30:38
Yeah, well, so it's founder at docdees.com and I check it, it's
30:45
on my phone and I've responded. We're the one who actually
30:48
checks this e-mail address. You see what comes through in
30:50
that. And I and I've responded to
30:52
every single one. In fact, I wrote to 1:00 this
30:54
morning and I wrote to him, I said, I hope dinner was great.
30:58
And he started off by saying his response back it wasn't.
31:01
And I had it open to yet. And I said, Oh my goodness.
31:04
And he writes, it was amazing. And you know, I said, all right,
31:09
I'll prepare now to talk to Anthony now in a positive way.
31:13
I. Love that.
31:15
So the restaurant's actually named for your late father,
31:18
Doctor Bernstein, Doc B. And how did it actually work
31:23
that you were able to open that first location?
31:25
How did you pull that off? Yes, so you know, so the the
31:29
idea for the first restaurant was much more along the lines of
31:34
this fast casual order at the counter restaurant.
31:39
So that restaurant was around 3000 square feet.
31:43
I had worked my way through the restaurant business, the GM
31:47
position with Houston's. And I did one more stop before I
31:50
ultimately started the, the company.
31:54
And, you know, I, you know, went out and raised money and brought
32:00
on, you know, great partners of, of the business.
32:04
And we, you know, we, we started the first restaurant on Walton
32:09
St. in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago.
32:14
And almost simultaneously, we kind of committed to store 2
32:18
before Store 1 was opened. And but yeah, but but sometimes.
32:24
Fatal mistake for restaurants Absolutely growing too soon
32:28
before you've got the the platform figured out.
32:30
Totally. And I think at the time, you
32:32
know, it was this like fast casual and we wanted to kind of
32:35
get the name out there and it was 7 blocks apart.
32:38
So we felt like maybe it was, you know, something that we
32:41
could manage and operate. And thank God it was so close.
32:45
And, you know, thank goodness that we saw a little bit in the
32:48
future even as we were building the business.
32:52
But but yeah, but we, you know, went out there and told the
32:57
story of what I envisioned building and ultimately was able
33:00
to to create that partnership. How hard was it for you to raise
33:04
money? Did you have a network of folks
33:06
that were kind of in that space? Yeah, well, you have to remember
33:09
I've been pitching this story since I was 10, so I wouldn't
33:17
say a. Few business cards along the
33:18
way, yeah. Yeah, I wouldn't say it was
33:20
easy, but I but I was. But I genuinely had been working
33:26
on this since I was 20 years old in college.
33:30
And some of, you know, some of my partners even today were,
33:36
were with me back when I was 20 and they were saying to me, I'll
33:42
give you this today just to kind of roll the dice and see what
33:45
happens. But imagine what the
33:49
comfortability might be to give to you in an investment in 10
33:54
years if we, you know, if we go get all that experience over the
33:58
next decade and it turns out that that statement was correct.
34:02
And so, you know, I think the, the learning opportunity is, you
34:07
know, sometimes you don't want you got to always follow your
34:10
gut. You know, my gut told me this
34:11
isn't the right time to do this. And I'm, I'm really, you know,
34:15
I'm, I'm really happy that, that I didn't.
34:17
It you know, that's an interesting point.
34:19
Your gut told you, 'cause I think listening to your gut is
34:22
so powerful. It's so important, but sometimes
34:26
I feel like my gut's lying to me.
34:27
I don't know if my gut is being honest or if that's just fear
34:32
bubbling up, like, oh, maybe I shouldn't do this because the
34:35
time's not right or I don't. In your case, I didn't have the
34:37
right experience. Or am I just being afraid and I
34:41
need to push through? Yeah.
34:42
And I think there's A, and I think there's a, a big
34:45
separator, right? 20 years old, no real
34:49
experience, you know, other than kind of selling muffins and iced
34:53
coffees as a 17 year old. And it's like, ha ha.
34:57
My gut tells me Howard Schultz is probably right.
35:02
And then there's gut instinct that says maybe I shouldn't go
35:09
open the third restaurant in Florida because I'm nervous or
35:14
because what if it doesn't work out?
35:17
But then I think you have to kind of see through those
35:19
challenges and you know, do a decision tree in the pros and
35:23
the cons and really kind of over shadow what might be what your
35:29
gut tells you. I think those are those are two
35:33
different scenarios. So, you know, I've always been
35:38
able to to follow the guidelines of instinct maybe over gut
35:43
reaction and I think that's probably a a differentiator.
35:48
I like that. So how far into the venture were
35:53
you before? You were like, OK, this is going
35:55
to work, This this is working. I mean, I don't think I'm there
35:59
yet. But I don't think restaurants
36:02
later still not there. No, no.
36:05
And I, I, I mean, that's genuine answer.
36:08
You know, I think we're doing well.
36:12
You know, there's no doubt we can certainly always be doing
36:17
better. And you know, I think we make a
36:20
lot of sports analogies in the, in the business at least I do,
36:23
you know, and we talk about quarterback goes 15 for 27 and
36:28
you know, we talk about the 12 they missed versus the 15 they
36:32
caught. You know, and I think so we're,
36:35
we're doing well, but the the business plan is multiple
36:42
decades sort of outlined and it it when I'm looking out into the
36:50
future, I think that's the part that sometimes scares me.
36:54
So that's when I have to come and be a little bit more present
36:57
and that's those are probably the the best reactions to have.
37:02
But I think to sort of answer the question more realistically,
37:09
you know, after after we transitioned the business from
37:14
order at the counter to full service at stores one and two in
37:21
Chicago and we saw the sales lift that that transition did
37:26
and then ultimately turn the future stores into, you know,
37:30
larger footprints, bigger bars, catering more to a dinner
37:36
customer base. That's when I started to realize
37:39
that this business has a lot more potential than what maybe
37:44
the business plan was initially, which was, you know, four or
37:49
five or $6000 a day in sales. Once we went to full service and
37:55
I saw what sales could be, that really validated that the new
38:00
idea off of the foundation of the first idea is probably what
38:06
what should drive the the business forward.
38:08
So that was probably the biggest evolution from the initial
38:11
concept to where you are now. And was it hard to dip your toe
38:16
in the water and start going that direction?
38:18
Because, you know, you're kind of anchored to this original
38:21
concept over here? Yeah, it's amazing how
38:24
everything really does happen for a reason.
38:27
And there's so many things that in the moment you don't realize
38:32
how that's going to play an impact in the future.
38:36
So when we were opening store number one, one of our original
38:42
partners in the business said to me, you know, I really think we
38:46
should have a bar in the in the restaurant.
38:49
You know, it's downtown Chicago office buildings, hotels.
38:54
I think there needs to be a bar. But if you think about the
38:57
vision, Pei Wei, Panera Bread, Chipotle, at the time it was a
39:04
bar component was not part of their business model.
39:08
And so I took a piece of real estate with an already a small
39:12
footprint of 3000 square feet and we carved out a bar, full
39:16
service liquor license, beer, wine, cocktail list.
39:21
And so we had a nine seat bar in the corner where you can place
39:25
your order with a bartender and be given a traditional menu.
39:31
And the remaining guests, 90% of our guests, you order on this
39:35
digital menu board a la Pei Wei or a fast casual experience.
39:41
And so as guests started to see the bar experience and saw the
39:47
the menus, they sort of pointed to the menus.
39:51
And you know, I was the manager and I was on the the floor
39:53
working. They would say, a young man, go
39:57
get me one of those menus. I'm going to go sit at that
39:59
table and come take my order. And maybe they said please and
40:03
thank you at the end. And so we did that and all of a
40:07
sudden the model started to become 5050.
40:10
Some people would want that. Some people were really, and it
40:13
started to become very confusing.
40:15
And so without that bar component, which was never in
40:20
the business model and it was just an idea.
40:23
That this individual suggested and I agreed with it, or maybe
40:29
did or didn't but went with it. Without that bar component, I
40:34
don't think we would have ever been able to transition to a
40:37
full service restaurant inside of that fast casual environment.
40:41
And I'm not sure if we would have been able to adapt as
40:44
quickly as we did, which ultimately turned into much
40:48
greater success than we were having at a strictly order at
40:51
the counter restaurant concept. So as entrepreneurs, we are
40:58
always distracted by shiny objects, right?
41:00
Like, oh, like there's an idea, let's go do that, let's do that.
41:04
And so, you know, I'm going to guess you probably heard the
41:07
same. A lot of the coaching advice
41:09
that we get is, you know, you, you need to stay focused.
41:11
You it's better to say no than say yes.
41:14
But this is an example of the complete opposite where it's
41:17
like you had a plan, you had a vision in place and this idea to
41:22
add a bar component that didn't fit into that plan.
41:25
How do you sort of think about that?
41:27
Like when to say no to the shiny object versus when to be
41:30
flexible and open to change. Yeah, I mean, I think you do
41:34
have to be a good listener. And I and I love business, you
41:37
know, and I love the restaurant business and I love
41:39
brainstorming and writing down ideas and looking at different
41:45
concepts and just sort of filling my brain with ideas.
41:49
And so as you talk through this idea, the idea itself does make
41:55
sense. Hey Craig, we have this piece of
41:57
real estate on the corner of Michigan Ave. in Walton,
42:00
surrounded by all these offices, hotels and residential
42:06
buildings. It's probably a good idea to
42:09
have a bar and. And I think knowing that my past
42:15
experience knew about a bar, in other words, let's say my only
42:20
experience was pot bellies and I didn't know about a bar, and
42:23
maybe I would shy away from that idea, but the idea fit within
42:27
the realm of my knowledge and experience and it didn't really
42:31
scare me. So I think being a good
42:33
listener, trusting that people's intentions, especially in this
42:38
example, he was a partner in our business.
42:40
He only wanted to see it be successful.
42:43
So understanding where and who it's coming from and then also
42:47
having just the skill sets to adapt to that, I think, I think
42:55
sort of opened my mind up to say yes and then to transition to a
43:00
full service restaurant. The foundation never changed.
43:04
It's not like we went from serving American themed food and
43:07
then all of a sudden we were listening to our guests because
43:09
they said change to Italian. It was the foundation was serve
43:15
the best food you possibly can give, the best service
43:19
experience around, create an environment that people can't
43:24
wait to return to. Whether or not we gave them a
43:27
buzzer for the food or we rang in their order at the table.
43:33
I don't think that that was a big adaptation.
43:35
I think that was just being open minded and going.
43:40
It's not working now. So this idea can only benefit
43:45
us. Let's be open minded and see
43:48
what happens. And ultimately it it worked.
43:50
And I think sort of to land the plane on that thought being
43:56
present, you know, being an absentee owner or an absentee
44:02
entrepreneur. I mean, a, it was never in the
44:05
cards, but certainly if I was, I wouldn't have seen first hand
44:10
how guests were using our business.
44:14
And because I was there every day and saw and listened and
44:19
heard, it gave me also the confidence that this was the
44:22
right decision versus coming to me through, you know, store
44:26
level managers or something along those lines.
44:29
So I've mentioned before I've never been to one of your
44:33
locations before, but I have to zero and I have to ask about a
44:36
particular menu item. Tell me about the number six.
44:40
Oh man, that's funny. Well, the, the, so again, going
44:45
back when we started the business, it was, it was a, a
44:49
more casual themed restaurant. Sandwiches, burgers, salads and
44:55
pizza basically. Maybe one or two entrees.
44:58
And growing up my favorite fast food restaurant was Wendy's.
45:03
And if when I would go to Wendy's, I would get the spicy
45:06
chicken sandwich and the spicy chicken sandwich, which I, which
45:10
I is, is still today, is the number six on the value menu.
45:15
So #1 is a burger #2 is a double burger and the number six spicy
45:21
chicken sandwich. So I thought it would be cute
45:23
and fun to sort of call the spicy chicken sandwich at Doc BS
45:29
the number six. Like we spell out the number six
45:34
and it was kind of like one of those things where if you know,
45:36
you know, and people to this day, it's the number one chicken
45:40
sandwich, which going back even to my last comment, the Cobb
45:43
salad, number one salad. So crispy chicken is is very
45:47
much in these days, But but the number six is based off of the
45:51
value menu at Wendy's as the number six on their value menu.
45:58
Were you at all concerned that Wendy's was going to sort of get
46:02
whiff of this and come after you with some sort of a cease and
46:05
desist letter? Hilarious story around that
46:08
because the answer is yes. And I always was like, I wonder
46:12
if that's a trademark number relative to a chicken sandwich.
46:18
So crazy story for you. Again, I'm going to name drop
46:21
again, but I promise, you know, these are all just by chance
46:27
stories. I'm at a restaurant in Chicago.
46:30
I'm dining out with a buddy of mine.
46:33
There's a large table next to me of two women and sort of
46:39
younger, what look like children to them, you know, mid twenty
46:45
30s. And they point to our table,
46:48
'cause we had just gotten this dessert and they started making
46:51
conversations. How's the dessert and have you
46:54
guys dined here before? So my friend starts talking to
46:57
this table and responding and something comes up about Doc
47:02
Bees and the women at the table say we love Doc Bees.
47:07
Every time we visit from Ohio, we always go to Doc Bees.
47:13
And my friend says something along the lines of you have to
47:17
get their chicken sandwich. And turns out the daughter of
47:21
this woman says she's more of a Wendy's girl.
47:26
And we were like, what is what does that mean?
47:30
And they must have been having, you know, maybe some drinks that
47:33
night because it comes out that the woman we're talking to is
47:37
Wendy of Wendy's. The daughter of Dave Thomas, the
47:41
founder of Wendy's, in from Columbus, OH.
47:44
The the Wendy, yes. And so it turns out she's
47:49
becomes my friend. She sent me a text a few months
47:53
ago that she was in one of the restaurants and had such a great
47:56
experience, which was such a humbling, you know, message to
47:59
receive. And I said to her, I said, you
48:02
know, we have this menu and it's called the number six.
48:06
You guys are going to sue me for that.
48:07
She goes, Craig, you are so far below our radar of where we're
48:13
focused. Don't worry, you're safe to
48:16
continue to call it the number six.
48:18
And so it was a cute story. It's amazing.
48:22
You never know who you're going to meet.
48:24
And, you know, meeting Wendy Thomas was, you know, one of the
48:29
greatest meetings of, of this life so far.
48:33
And how does she feel about the sandwich today?
48:36
She said it was delicious. She said she still likes the
48:38
Wendy's version just a little better.
48:41
But our spicy chicken sandwich is definitely a close second.
48:46
I love. That Yeah.
48:50
Oh, boy, So many fun ways to take this.
48:53
You know, you've been supported by a lot of notable people,
48:57
entrepreneurs, general managers, you know, dropped names let you
49:02
know. Alan Bernstein.
49:04
I see this spirit of helping others in you.
49:10
Can you hold up the comic book there that you have on your
49:14
desk? So for listeners, this is a
49:19
comic book written by my now 9 year old at the time, 8 year old
49:23
son Valentino And Craig and I have gotten a chance to know
49:28
each other a bit before we recorded this interview today,
49:30
and I shared the story with him that my son had drawn these
49:34
comics and sold a whole bunch of them at a local yard sale.
49:37
And Craig was so excited about it that he insisted that he'd be
49:42
able to buy one and support him. And I think we were only
49:45
charging 2 bucks for them at the yard sale.
49:48
And Craig sent over $20. Lit my son up, thinks he's
49:53
famous. Couldn't like $20 is like
49:55
$1,000,000 to him. And he just wanted to support
50:00
the mission, support my son and you know, where his
50:04
entrepreneurial spirit may take him.
50:06
And so I just wanted to kind of tip my hat there 'cause that was
50:09
a, that was a cool thing that you did for him.
50:12
And I mean, well, you're welcome.
50:14
And it is a great read. So look for it in a bookstore
50:18
near you. But you know, I think the reason
50:21
that was exciting to do it is, you know, I just kind of reflect
50:25
back on all these interactions and people that I've met.
50:30
Obviously I've, you know, I've mentioned a few of them, but so
50:32
many of them have just been by happenstance.
50:35
And you just never know what will sort of shape somebody's
50:40
mind or life or their future. And so I thought it would just
50:43
be cool. Like, you know, maybe Val
50:46
becomes this amazing comic book author one day because he sold
50:51
his first one at 8. And that's just the memory he
50:54
keeps with him forever. So I thought it was.
50:58
I thought it was $20 well spent. Much appreciated on our side.
51:04
I think that spirit, you know, like it carries over into, you
51:07
know, developing your own team there at Doc BS.
51:09
You guys have a 16 week training program that you take folks
51:14
through. Talk to me about why you feel
51:16
like that kind of really robust investment in employee growth is
51:20
so important. Yeah, I mean, you know,
51:24
definitely, you know, promoted from within individuals on our
51:30
team many times become the most successful.
51:36
So servers who turn into general managers.
51:41
And we look back, the company's only 12 years old.
51:44
We look back 10 years and they're thriving and still on
51:48
the teams. And it brings me chills just to
51:50
tell the story now. And so I think the 16 week
51:53
training program are so it is so important because we're bringing
51:59
people from the outside, the more foundational insights
52:04
without having to rush the experience, the more those
52:09
people can become almost like promoted from within
52:13
individuals. It's not obviously identical,
52:18
but I think it at least puts us in a position where that
52:23
cultural foundation is set at the at the very onset of the
52:31
orientation that outlines what the next four months are going
52:35
to look like. And not only do you learn the
52:39
cultural components, almost as if you're starting from whatever
52:45
hourly position, working your way up, but it also includes
52:49
learning the tangible skill sets of everything that you will have
52:56
to do or oversee. And I think it set you up for
53:00
success, obviously, to do the job if you need to, but also be
53:03
able to manage more truthfully and honestly because you
53:07
yourself have, you know, gone through those those steps of
53:11
service, both in the front as well as in the back of house.
53:15
So I think it's just important. It creates a foundation for the
53:18
culture and then also develops the tangible skill sets that
53:24
hopefully your your long term tenure will in and out have to
53:29
have to portray. So it's like kind of zoom out
53:33
and look at what you guys have been doing.
53:35
It seems like you've taken kind of a slow and steady growth
53:40
mindset here. Let's look for the right places,
53:43
the right opportunities to expand rather than, hey, we've
53:47
got something that's working, let's just throw gasoline on the
53:50
fire and open as many spots as we can as quickly as possible.
53:54
What is this growth trajectory look like going forward for you
53:59
guys? Yeah, I think I, I mentioned it
54:02
earlier, you know, I'm, I'm definitely decades long in the
54:09
future and there is no exit strategy and there's no sort of
54:17
number that I look to that says this is when it all ends and
54:24
let's just get there as fast as possible.
54:27
I think when I have this idea of this long term great mindset for
54:35
myself as you know, somebody who's continuing to try to get
54:40
better in their job, but also for the business as a whole.
54:44
And so when you have a long term approach, I think being
54:51
opportunistic when the time is right, but also being thoughtful
54:55
with those decisions for is this the right long term decision
55:01
helps to make the right one. So the business is, you know,
55:06
one restaurant a year, maybe in outside years, 8 years from now
55:10
it's 2 restaurants a year. But there is no goal for store
55:17
count in some period of time. It's really how do you find the
55:23
best real estate so that it can be there for a very long time,
55:27
it can be successful on its own and that it also, you know, can
55:33
grow with the neighborhood that it goes into as everybody grows
55:38
together versus sort of being being late to it.
55:42
We sort of want to be in the middle little bit up and coming
55:46
little bit, you know, future oriented.
55:49
But we don't want to, we don't want to, you know, sign a lease
55:54
just because the the restaurant count needs to be there.
56:00
Any recent locations that have opened or new ones coming you
56:05
want to give voice to? You know, this past year, so
56:08
about six months ago, we opened a restaurant in Cary, NC.
56:12
It's just outside of Raleigh, gorgeous, beautiful city and
56:17
area of the country opening a lifestyle center called Fenton
56:24
and it's it's amazing. I love going I love going down
56:27
there. In fact, I'm going to go there
56:29
after I speak with you, go, go spend some time with the team.
56:33
And it's, it's, it's really nice.
56:35
And it, it's almost, how do you capture that 10 more times?
56:42
And I think as excited as I am about our business, there's also
56:46
a humbleness part where the real estate plays such a major impact
56:53
on the success, at least the immediate success of the
56:56
business that I don't think you you, you don't want to rush it.
57:00
And the more restaurants you open, the more you realize
57:03
what's right and what maybe you would have done different.
57:07
So the more leases you sign and the quicker you do it, you can't
57:11
pull those decisions back as you continue to kind of learn more.
57:16
And so that's another reason why, you know, kind of slow and
57:19
steady growth allows you to digest new openings, take a
57:23
little bit of a, you know, peripheral view into it and now
57:26
make, you know, better decisions for the future, which which, you
57:30
know, it's taken me a couple of years to learn also.
57:34
Craig, as you look back, what's a serious challenge in your life
57:37
that you've had to overcome? But I mean, probably, probably
57:44
many. I think you know, certainly you
57:47
know, the business is obviously named after my father.
57:50
You know, my, my father passed away.
57:54
He was, you know, young. He passed away of a
57:56
glioblastoma, great for malignant brain tumor, which
58:01
really came out of the blue when he was diagnosed.
58:05
So woke up one day, went for his morning run, which usually
58:11
consisted of eight to 10 miles, came back from his run and out
58:17
of the blue started slurring his words.
58:20
And ultimately it turned out to, you know, be a devastating
58:23
diagnosis. And very quickly his life sort
58:29
of started to really unravel and he got very, very sick.
58:32
And as somebody who was sort of in the midst of their, you know,
58:39
the start of their career at the time, I was a general manager
58:41
with, with Houston's, you know, I could have probably taken 2
58:46
paths. I guess I could have stopped
58:50
working and go spent, you know, more individual time with my dad
58:57
and been there alongside him. But instead I sort of honestly
59:03
chose both. I kept my career path in motion.
59:09
I lived my life. I still live my life.
59:11
What would my dad expect of me? And, you know, certainly he
59:15
unfortunately wasn't able to communicate after he got sick.
59:19
But if he was, he would have told me, Craig, this is my life
59:23
and this is your life. And you better not let my life
59:28
now negatively impact your life. So continue on the path you're
59:32
on. But what I did was I kind of
59:34
kept a lot of this to myself, not in a, in a, you know, tough
59:39
way, but I would go to work, work a full shift at the time,
59:44
you know, it could be 12 hours. And then I would go see my dad
59:47
at the hospital after a shift. Then I would do it all over
59:53
again. And so I got to see my father
59:56
and have those experiences with him, which were really
1:00:00
important. And I'm really happy that I was
1:00:02
able to be there with him. But I also was able to know what
1:00:08
he would expect of me and that, you know, probably.
1:00:13
You know, was the hardest time of my life both personally and
1:00:18
professionally, but I think it taught me so much more.
1:00:22
Certainly I wish my dad was here, of course, every day, but
1:00:26
he's not. And there's so many lessons that
1:00:30
have now come as a result of him not being here, that my life has
1:00:34
become what it is because of, you know, the, the tragedy that,
1:00:38
you know, my family and I went through and the, and the type of
1:00:42
sickness that he had. Who did you lean on for support
1:00:46
during that time? What was your support system
1:00:48
like? Well, you know, I, I, I got to
1:00:51
give credit to my mom. You know, my mom was such a
1:00:54
strong woman and, you know, just goes back to, you know, the way
1:00:59
in which you're raised in the support system that you have.
1:01:05
Even my grandparents, you know, were played a role.
1:01:08
I think, I think honestly, the support system of my family and
1:01:15
we all sort of banded together, You know, what would we still
1:01:20
call him Daddy? What would, what would daddy
1:01:22
expect? I think, I think it's sort of
1:01:27
it, it made everybody stay on course.
1:01:29
And so I think it was my family from my mom to my grandparents,
1:01:34
my brother and my sister, aunts and uncles, you know, we, we
1:01:39
just sort of all lived our lives as expected and everybody stayed
1:01:45
on course. And I think that kept everybody
1:01:48
sort of next to each other on course at the same time, almost
1:01:52
as if there was a band wrapped around us that nobody can kind
1:01:55
of pull in either direction too far.
1:01:58
We all sort of, you know, we're following on the same trail.
1:02:04
Anything you would have done differently looking back?
1:02:08
You know what, it's amazing, you know life.
1:02:13
I mean, the older you get, and we still have hopefully a long
1:02:16
time to still go, but the older you get, you know, there's so
1:02:20
there's so many lessons that you learn and things just fall into
1:02:27
place the way they're supposed to.
1:02:30
I was a general manager with Houston's in Atlanta.
1:02:34
A week before my dad got sick. They sat me down and asked if I
1:02:40
would be willing to go to the Houston's in Long Island, which
1:02:46
was where I started as a server. And they sort of wanted to kind
1:02:51
of talk through what that transition looks like when you
1:02:53
go back to a restaurant where you sort of started at an hourly
1:02:57
level in the capacity of of leadership.
1:03:01
Chills, Crazy. A week later, my dad got sick.
1:03:07
He was in New York and I never even had to sort of ask for a
1:03:13
transfer, take a demotion down as a result of going back home
1:03:18
or better, worse or worse, stay in Atlanta and not have those
1:03:23
experiences. And then I think this
1:03:25
conversation is probably different.
1:03:29
So, you know, I don't know what whatever what you believe in,
1:03:34
but it's amazing how life just continues to you just have to
1:03:39
trust the process and the process, you know, always sort
1:03:44
of seems to yield right, even when it, you know, seems feels
1:03:49
wrong. I mean, you know, every time
1:03:52
there's a there's a problem, you just take a step back, absorb it
1:03:58
and keep moving forward. I've just got one more question
1:04:02
for you today, Craig. But before I ask it, I want to
1:04:04
do a few things. First of all, for everybody
1:04:07
listening, best way to get in touch we touched on earlier
1:04:11
actually founder at docbees.com. So that's DO cbs.com.
1:04:17
You can e-mail Craig directly. He reads and responds to all the
1:04:21
emails. And then if you wanna find the
1:04:24
brand online, Dock bsrestaurant.com, Dock B's
1:04:28
restaurant on Instagram and probably other social handles as
1:04:31
well, I'm guessing. Yeah, perfect.
1:04:33
Yeah. And as folks listening, as a
1:04:36
reminder, if you want to get your employees access to
1:04:38
benefits that don't hurt them or the company financially and
1:04:41
actually carries a financial upside for the employer, reach
1:04:44
out to add back benefits.com. And finally, if you take just a
1:04:48
moment to leave us a comment or review on your favorite podcast
1:04:51
app, we will be forever grateful.
1:04:54
So last question for you, Craig, putting all humility aside, how
1:04:59
would you characterize your superpower?
1:05:04
I think it's perseverance, you know, I think, I think the
1:05:07
superpower is perseverance. There's only, there's only one,
1:05:17
One Direction and that's go forward.
1:05:21
And so far that's sort of been the the guiding light is just
1:05:25
continue to take one step in front of the other and keep the
1:05:29
progress moving. Were you born with that kind of
1:05:33
instinct and drive? Was that drilled into you by
1:05:36
parents? Something obtained through lots
1:05:40
of experiences? Yeah, you know, that there's,
1:05:44
this is definitely a, a new act for me.
1:05:47
You know what, growing up, I don't remember being this
1:05:50
focused and disciplined. Certainly I, I, I, you know, I
1:05:54
didn't stray too far, but whether it was in school or
1:05:58
athletics, only until I really reach the, the, the business
1:06:04
world have I been, you know, so mission driven for, you know,
1:06:11
what, what the, the future could be.
1:06:15
And I think that's really, you know, what continues to, to
1:06:19
drive me forward. So I don't know, maybe it was
1:06:22
all the foundational lessons in the past that got me to today.
1:06:27
But if I had this discipline in high school, I don't know, my
1:06:30
grades might have been a little bit better.
1:06:34
I can't think of a better way to end Craig Bernstein from Doc DS.
1:06:37
I want to be the first to thank you for sharing both your time
1:06:40
and your story with us today. I really appreciate it.
1:06:42
Anthony, this was great. Really appreciate you having me
1:06:44
and thank you very much. Folks, that's a wrap on another
1:06:47
episode of the Inspired Stories podcast.
1:06:49
Thanks for learning with us today.