September 11, 2025 • 30 mins
Bill sits down with Connie MacLeod and Matt Reis of BTB Woodfire Pizza & Grill for a raw, honest, and authentic master class in the hospitality industry. Recorded right inside BTB, this conversation takes you behind the scenes of what it truly takes to run a successful restaurant.
Matt shares his inspiring journey from pizza maker to restaurant owner, while Connie reflects on her studies in hospitality and her passion for creating unforgettable experiences for every guest. Together, they open up about the realities of restaurant life—from hiring and training staff to balancing budgets, managing suppliers, and coaching teams.
You’ll gain insights into the dedication, care, and heart that make BTB thrive, along with a look at the challenges they face both inside and outside the business. Whether you’re in the hospitality industry, considering a career in it, or just curious about what it takes to build a beloved restaurant, this episode will leave you with a deeper appreciation for the work that goes into every meal and every guest experience.
One thing is clear: with Matt and Connie at the helm, it’s no wonder BTB Woodfire Pizza & Grill is a standout success.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/billified-the-bill-moran-podcast--5738193/support.
Matt shares his inspiring journey from pizza maker to restaurant owner, while Connie reflects on her studies in hospitality and her passion for creating unforgettable experiences for every guest. Together, they open up about the realities of restaurant life—from hiring and training staff to balancing budgets, managing suppliers, and coaching teams.
You’ll gain insights into the dedication, care, and heart that make BTB thrive, along with a look at the challenges they face both inside and outside the business. Whether you’re in the hospitality industry, considering a career in it, or just curious about what it takes to build a beloved restaurant, this episode will leave you with a deeper appreciation for the work that goes into every meal and every guest experience.
One thing is clear: with Matt and Connie at the helm, it’s no wonder BTB Woodfire Pizza & Grill is a standout success.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/billified-the-bill-moran-podcast--5738193/support.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
On location and driven by Victor Dot's Chief Brown. It's Billified,
the Bill Moran Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Well, Hello and welcome live from b TV wood Fire,
Pizza and Grill and the mall at Grease Ridge. Where
it when we're taping this, it's eleven thirty five and
he got a nice crowd already.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
It's like I came in here, there all pretty hanging
out of the bar. Yeah, we got you know, we
got a few regulars to come in every morning. Yeah,
and they're retired and they're just enjoying their life a
little bit. Yeah, and then he take some lunch home
and they go home and take a nap.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
I imagine that's that's Uh, that's a pretty nice life.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
It's a pretty.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Nice So I called Madden, asked Matt if he would
be open to me coming out and uh, just kind
of doing a like a one on one type situation
with he and Connie because bTB been sponsoring the podcast
since it started, which is I can't thank you enough
for that. But just the hospitality industry as a whole
(01:14):
has changed dramatically, I feel like absolutely and more because
of customer behavior and stuff.
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Right. But but let's go back, like I know Matt.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Probably since you were a kid was in some form
of hospitality, whether it was being in a hot shot
DJ at all the nightclubs and kick it out the ladies.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
And you to know he was I started. I started
at fifteen in a pizza shop. Yeah. I grew up
in Hamblin, so I grew up in podunks, you know.
But I started Crony's Pizza out there when I was
when I was fifteen, And I'll be honest with you,
I was probably the worst employee for the longest time. Why,
I just like, what fuck things up? Oh yeah? But
(01:52):
oh just because you didn't know? Yeah yeah, And I
you know, I was a dumb kid.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
You know.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
I worked on a farm before that, so you know,
before I worked on a farm, then I worked in
a grocery store. The most disgusting job. I worked in
the meat department. But I was in charge of cleaning
it after it was all done right, and a lot
of that stuff goes on the floor.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Oh yeah, because there's a butcher shop basically in the
meat department.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
But that's where I learned cleanliness because everything had to
be spotless or else you'd have backterios. How old were
you when you were doing this, I was fourteen. Oh yeah,
so yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean that's you know, it
built me to what I am now, So I'm good
with that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
But you so you just decided at that moment this
is kind of my path here.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
Well, no, I just I was kind of a lost
child for a while. Like my twenty one year olds
is basically a mirror image of me. I was kind
of lost for a while. You know. At eighteen, I
was working three jobs. I didn't go to school, so
I was working two full time jobs plus a part
time job. So I was working like ninety hours a week.
But all I cared about was putting money in the bank,
(02:53):
making money, making money, right. I didn't have much of
a life in the early twenties, you know, but I did.
I didn't because the parts of job was working security
or DJing. So I was out and about. I was
making money over use was spending money, right, not quite
the same as you know, you're not partying, but I'm
still out in the atmosphere. Yeah, the DJ, and yes,
the DJ. The DJ. Yeah. I wasn't even a heavy
(03:18):
drinker back then, so it didn't take much, you know,
that's right. The DJ like I, I mean, you heard
stories about guys who were DJ. Yeah, there was nice
that at the time. My best friend Mark, uh, he
would shut the mic off. He'd just be like, you're
not You're not talking no more tonight. That's funny. That's funny.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
And so Connie, what it was your Have you been
in the hospitality?
Speaker 4 (03:44):
I actually went to college for it.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
Yeah, And then I just.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Yeah, how did this kind of union become between you
and and Matt to where BTV is now?
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Right? Because you kind of work hand in hand this
building the building, So this building was Captain Zaddik back
in nineteen ninety four ninety five. Yeah, and uh, like
it's funny because where the door is to the mall
now is what the DJ booth was. And then in
front of that there was a small dance floor like
a I would call it a pergola is what I
(04:16):
would call it, over the top of it. And it
was very small, twelve x twelve maybe, and it was
not the ideal set up for like a club or
with bands because behind that area was a fireplace with
tables and chairs, and these old ass chairs and tables
were so heavy we had to remove them every night.
Wednesday through Saturday, so Wednesday would be the lady you
(04:37):
work at Captain's Adam. Yeah, that's how we met is
working at Captain's addik.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Okay, and then together just decided this is yeah, because it's.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Been funny because her and John have worked for me
in almost every business I've had in some sort of capacity.
John was mowing for me as a landscaper, and she
was doing a lot of the billing and collections for me.
So I, you know, because I had a full time
job running are running this company, so I always had
to rely on some other people to help out, right,
So in some form of capacity, they've always worked I
(05:08):
think in every single business I had, except for maybe
the ceiling business. Yeah wait, you had a ceiling business. Yeah,
I had a driveway sealing business. Oh oh that's I'm
thinking of drivewall. I don't know why, but you know,
the thing with that was like a buddy came to me.
He's like, hey, I got this great idea. He couldn't
keep a job, and he's like, I'm gonna do this.
I did this for two years and I was like okay, great.
(05:28):
He's like, okay, I need the money. I was like,
what what do you, he goes, I want you to
be the investor. Blahlah blah. So we bought a truck.
It was like, I remember we bought the truck. It
was end of August, so the ceiling season for driveways
is over in September. I'm buying this truck, going, why
are we buying this truck right now when the season
doesn't start until you know next bro. Yeah, but anyway,
(05:49):
so I bought the truck. I invested some money throughout
the winner to do it. I learned a business just
by teaching myself online and stuff, and then I would
go out and help. But he lasted like a month
and he just disappeared, just with the truck. Or no,
you had it all. But now I have all these
appointments lined up, so I'm scattering because we only had
one guy working for us with him, So now I'm scattered.
(06:11):
So it threw me into a tizzy at that time, right,
but it was able to It's kind of how we
fix everything around here because you never know somebody's not
going to show up. So but this guy was running
the whole thing. For him not to show up really
kind of screwed me.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
What's the what's the mindset to go, Uh yeah, I'll
just I'll just do this. I'll just make this work,
because it was uh when he left her before that,
just in anything like hey, yeah, this sounds like a
great idea. That's the way you're the entrepreneurial kind of
side of you just goes yeah, yeah, I'd rather do this.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
I mean, you're your own boss, both of you. Right,
It's it sucks though sometimes you know it's it would
be a lot easier sometimes to go to work nine
to five clock that paycheck and go home five o'clock.
I don't care about anything right where. You know, there's
times that her and I are talking at one o'clock
in the morning about things, you know, and really there's
no yesterday I did five thirty in the morning. What
(07:08):
are you doing up? Oh, we don't sleep. You don't sleep.
You sleep in breaks, you know, like.
Speaker 4 (07:13):
Two hours, two hours, two hours.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
I think I had fallen asleep at like midnight, so
by four o'clock I was my mind's racing, so and
then I'm usually for a couple hours and I'll fall
back asleep for like an hour. Again, that's a nice
thing about and I having to come to work at
a certain time, right, I mean I could fall back
asleep till eight thirty and I'm okay. Or most people
had to be up, so yeah, it's it's just in breaks.
It's not healthy for you, that's for sure.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
No, I know.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
I mean, look, I feel like my life, you know radio,
I was up at three and a lot of times
I was sew especially when you know we's left and
it was me and Tommy and you're like everybody's.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
Talking about how you're going to fail and you're to
get down and run over.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
I would work my ass off to find great cash,
right angles, how can we talk about this that nobody
else is? And I would be up to like eleven
twelve and then back up by three thirty or you
know if I could four and sometimes falling asleep at
a traffic light with the kids in the car at
one point.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
I mean, a position basically is like own your own
your own company, because if you don't, you know, if
you don't do well there, you fail. Yeah, you're gonna
get fired. Right, So you had to make it better.
You couldn't rely on a producer. You had to do
things yourself to make sure they got done right.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Okay, so talk to me and I'll ask Connie this first,
because in that mindset, right, I feel like and you guys,
and Matt seems to be pretty good at this, and
he found it in you and you probably found it
in him. Somebody you can rely on and trust that
knows how you wanted things done and knows that. But
outside of that, how much more do you take on
(08:46):
because you just would rather do it yourself than deal
with someone.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
Else everything possible.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
Yeah, and that's like a terrible way to be because
you can't grow because you're doing the small shit that
you am.
Speaker 5 (08:58):
I right, right, but I'll make sure it's maintained so
that we can grow.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
Okay, right, I mean, but are you like that, Like
even with the ceiling business, you're like, I got to
get out there and do it, and then you don't
almost like you'd rather do it yourself.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
I mean, there was a time, and you know, on
Friday nights, I was in the kitchen. You know, it'd
only be for three hours, but I said, rather than
hire somebody else is not going to show up, let
me just do this myself. I know I'm going to
do the right thing by the customer. I know I'm
gonna do the right thing by the employee. I know,
I'm gonna do the right thing by Connie and the
employees that are working here and counting on me. So
why am I going to bring somebody in here that's
just going to not show up and then they're shorthanded
(09:34):
in the kitchen? Yeah? So I just said, screw it
when I hire another person right now? So how do
you keep it? Like?
Speaker 2 (09:39):
So, you guys are here, You're at the Mallick Reese Ridge, right,
there's always changing things around.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
You seem to be sort of an anchor spot. Right,
It's been here how many years now? Almost five five
five years?
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I was thinking, And you've got a reputation that comes
from that. But how do you keep it so much?
Because the atmosphere in here is always like it's it's
different than I would expect for a restaurant at them all.
I mean when I stay different, I mean you walk in,
I feel like I'm in a free standing building. It's fun,
(10:11):
the it's lively. Watching a Bills game here is a
freaking treat, it really is. Like, So, how does what
is that? And how do you bring that when you're
concerned about someone not showing up? Did this delivery happen?
Is that you know, are we getting backed up in
the kitchen? How because you guys are the vibe, but
(10:31):
the vibe in here is always like great.
Speaker 5 (10:33):
You just always have to have a backup plan. Always
in the back of your mind. There's a backup plan
if this person doesn't show up, if this doesn't person
show up, I can switch this, I can switch that
this person's out here. Whenever I wrote a schedule, I
always had a backup plan for every position.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
You should teach a course. Honestly, like, like you know
what I'm saying, I would think we're crazy at the
things that we come up with. Ye why though, because
it's why do you got to worry about that? And
because we've seen every scenario you could possibly through.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Yeah, Like I don't think that there's you can go
to school for anything.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
And and you went to college, right, hospitality. I went
to college communication. You can learn stuff like I was.
I was in.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
I was asked to come back to my college and speak,
and they somebody asked me, if you could do it
over again, would you major in communications? And I said no,
I would major in the history of philosophy because you
have to have something to say into the microphone, you know,
learning how far the distance is from the microphone.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
You need something to learn to say.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
There are certain things that you learn on the job
that they can't teach you, Like everybody, do you know
what I'm saying, Like, they can't teach you.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
And that's where I go.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Sometimes the best teachers are the people who never went
to school, right or.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
Any formal we'll call it formal, and.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Came along and build something successful, and you go, that's
who should be teaching you.
Speaker 4 (11:54):
You know, you learn more on the job than you
do in school.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Yeah, I agree with that.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
You learn everything that you don't learn in school. I
have not taken a week.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
It's how long.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
My honeymoon in two thousand and two.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Holy shit, Connie, that's like the three years. I've only
been with her nine years.
Speaker 4 (12:13):
It's not all my factors that were building up to that.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Okay, is that a good thing?
Speaker 4 (12:19):
No?
Speaker 1 (12:19):
No, but you're happy.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
My husband was an addict.
Speaker 5 (12:23):
Okay, is an addict, but he's recovering.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (12:26):
So there was never any money, gotcha. And if I
was out of town, there was always a problem and
I would have to rush back home. And there was
always something. Yeah, so in the last three years that
he's been you know, Chanying.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Is you're a fucking angel. No, seriously, because most people leave.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
You know, I should have, but you didn't.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
And he's lucky and he's unlucky. You know what I'm
saying like that, that's a lucky dude guy. And he
now knows it, but he didn't know it for the longest.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Of course not you're all up in your head, you
know it says it's tough.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
That's a tough one to go because I told her
probably one hundred times, get the fuck out. Yeah, I'm
sure we're going to take him on a boat.
Speaker 5 (13:08):
Yeah, I do know that he fits in the sixty
gallon garbage bag.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
I didn't test it.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Did That's very funny, but I mean, honestly, like that's
it's so you're you're putting out fire to here.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Your whole life is a fire. It is at times, right,
you don't know what anything's going to pop up. And
for a.
Speaker 5 (13:30):
Few years I took care of my mother and then
my dad got sick and we took care of my dad.
My dad lived with us for a year and a half. Yeah,
we're his main caregiver.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
You just like that stuff.
Speaker 4 (13:41):
I like to fix thing.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
Yeah, I put him getting tired. Yeah, that's the reason
why everybody calls her Ma.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
She said that, She said, everybody calls her. Yeah, because
you fit, you can fix it.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
I tried.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Is there anything that anybody comes to you as an
employee that you haven't seen before?
Speaker 5 (13:58):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Lord, I'm thinking really the things you haven't seen before? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Yeah, because I'm thinking, like most of it, you must
have come across somewhere in there.
Speaker 5 (14:07):
We say all the time we should have a reality
show because people would not believe it.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
We'd make billions.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
Dude, all you need to do nowadays is set up cameras,
have someone edit it and put it on YouTube and
just see what happens.
Speaker 1 (14:18):
You know, put it out there. It could if you
could do it. I don't know what to help your
restaurant or kill it. On the other I'm not going
to deal with those people. It's a great point. I
didn't think of that. You could go on.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
I'm just saying like it would be interesting because I
don't think any I think that young guys often say
I want to own a bar, yes, And I don't
think they know what they're getting themselves into, because beyond that.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Just the state. And they'll give give me a die bar,
give me a die bar all day long. And why
is that? I don't want to say die bars like
b side Yep, very small easy. Not a kitchen. The
kitchen is the headache of the restaurant business. The bar
usually is not, as long as you have good bartenders
who aren't stealing. Right, you could have one bar tender
(15:06):
on and do two thousand dollars in a day, three
thousand dollars and make so much money doing that. Yeah,
where a place like this, where it's got seventy something employees.
Your rents atrocious because it's a huge place. Yeah, your
costs are terrible, your food costs, you know, no matter
what you do. Again, we just raised our our burger,
especially on Wednesdays, was a ridiculous eight dollars for burger
(15:28):
and fries. Now it's ten, which is still ridiculously low.
Nobody else is lower than twelve that has a decent burger.
But beef just went up again this week again. And
when we say go up, it went up ninety cents
a pound. Wow, we go through two well over two pounds.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Me and the grocery store, I would imagine, So, yeah,
the hell's going on.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
I don't know what's going on with beef, but it's crazy.
So your steaks, your burgers, and justin burger alone, we
go through two hundred and forty two hundred fifty pounds
a week, so like, take that, time's ninety cents.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
I'm so glad you're saying all this stuff because I again,
and it's not just BTV will be any restaurant is
like this, and these are the decisions you have to make,
and you know how you're wow, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It's you know, there's certainly I wouldn't sleep either in
a place like this. I wouldn't sleep either. In a
place like this where we're a casual restaurant. We can't
get forty dollars for a rev steake, so we're selling
it for twenty nine thirty dollars and we're not hitting
the margins and we're supposed to. So you've got to
hope that your margin maybe in pizza, recovers that. So
(16:35):
you got it one for the other. Right where if
you're in a dive bar, all your liquor and your
beer are twenty five percent costs, right, you make sure
that and you kill it. So man, Yeah, give me,
give me a little place and continue like it's like
an education though that you guys are like I say
that now the new place is a takeout only place,
(16:55):
which is very small, and I'm already like you know
down the road there's that building that could open up
a little bigger, make it a full restaurant. Yeah, I'm
a glutton for punishment. I put myself through it. But
you like it. And see. The thing is like, do
you think either one of you will ever retire?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
No? No, no, you always own or have a hand
in something, right, Yeah, along the way, and this place
is going great, so why not?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
Yeah, go on a couple of years, you know, hopefully
hopefully in the south. But if even if it's a year,
I'd like to I would like to get back into
it and have my own place again. Yeah, but we'll see. Yeah,
I guess something's a clear up first.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
Yeah, well, everybody has things, but I mean here is
going very well.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
It does go well here, yeah, you know, but then
what do you mean by that? Yeah, it's going great?
I don't know. That's the thing is, like, what what
is well for? You. You don't see like people don't
see you on Monday. Our Monday this week was probably
our worst Monday we've had since we didn't have our
liquor license for a for a short period of time
because of a hiccup on it, and that was when
we first opened. This Monday was just bad. And I
(18:01):
think a lot of it was. The Bills played Monday
or Sunday nights at home, so a lot of people
went to the game. The other people stayed up and
watched it. People were tired, they're hung over, so it
was a very very like alcohol hangover football, and it
put it in perspective, A very slow day here is
better than a Monday I ever had at Beta Billies
really by far. Like I like, we look at the
(18:24):
numbers on Monday, we're like, Jesus, what happened? And I
think back and I go, I would have killed for
that number down the road. It was double whatever.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
My best night was, So Connie, what do you do,
Like does that affect your head? Do you start to
worry about that day or do you just go There
were factors and we got gone.
Speaker 5 (18:40):
Yeah, and you can kind of figure out, you know,
the Bills played late they were, it was up laid
if they stayed and finished to watch the game. But
when it comes a pattern, absolutely absolutely, you stay up
and you think, what do we do? What do I
need to do? What do we need to do for this?
Speaker 1 (18:54):
What are we doing wrong?
Speaker 4 (18:55):
What did we do wrong? Did we screw something up?
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Are we not?
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Are we?
Speaker 5 (19:00):
He is the most creative man I've ever met. Well,
and he has so many ideas and they're all crazy.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
Yeah, they hate me never well.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
See, this is the thing that I have said to Matt.
Like the tweaking of the menu, right, the specials, the stuff,
the food.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
It's amazing.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
And I and she asked me how Laura like the
green fried green tomatoes, and I said, Laura said she
never had them and loved them. And Connie said, I've
never had them either, and they were fantastic. I don't
know where these ideas come from. I don't know what,
but is it always from everywhere?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
That one came from a customer, But she had it
at another restaurant in the South, and they want us
to try it, and I said, I'll give it a shot.
What the hell? And everybody looks at me like you're
fucking crazy. But it used to be a lot worse.
We used to do monthly specials. Yeah, I know, I
remember that that's very taxing, and I realized that, but
it took me a long time to realize how taxing
(19:56):
it was. So I kind of apologize for that. So
I'm glad we got to be even first of all,
to come up with it right. But then you've got
to teach all your cooks. So like, say we have
eight cooks. All eight cooks got to learn how to
do every single dish the exact same way because it
can't go out two different ways. So yeah, you spend
(20:17):
a week making sure everybody's ready, right, and then you
put them out. In four weeks you're done and oh
hey guys, it's time to learn seven new items. Right.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
And I love when you go out and you do
food reviews, sometimes quietly, but you do right on there.
And I always think that that's a great.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know the business. Wow, I just won't, and you know,
people get mad at me, and so I did a
couple of them, and then people got more mad. So
I was like, okay, I'm not gonna so like I'll
be For instance, we went somewhere last night and all
I got was a grilled chicken sandwich.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Right.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
It was the worst grilled chicken sandwich I have ever had.
I tell you, I would rather eat a piece of wood.
I had three bites out of it. We know the
girl who's working there, and she goes, what's wrong. I said,
it's just I can't eat it. What do you want? Said,
I don't want anything else. Don't take it off the bill.
Mistakes happened, and of course she took it off the
bill anyways, because you know she knows this. But I
was like, I just want you to know so that
(21:11):
the next customer is something. Maybe the chickens dried out
because it's been sitting somewhere. I don't know there's a
reason why, or maybe the cook is just overcooking. Just
I just want you to know, you know, And it's
hard if I don't know the people, it's hard for
me to even say something. So I get the people
to want to say something, because what a Karen. You know,
it's not as long as you do it the right way.
No a Karen demands a baseball from a child. Yeah, yes,
(21:35):
it's evenigher. But even with me being in this industry
now for the last time. Eleven years, it's still hard
for me to say to a server, I don't like this,
this is terrible. But I managed to try to squeeze
it out. And I always said, I don't want the
money back for it. Don't you lose money. I just
don't want the next customer to get this. I'm not
the guy who's gonna blast you. The next person could.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
Connie, what's your favorite part of the business?
Speaker 4 (22:01):
The rush?
Speaker 1 (22:02):
The rush?
Speaker 5 (22:02):
What do you mean like we would look like the
dinner rush or the Saturday that I have four caterings
and or Thanksgiving when we serve two.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
Hundred and do you like it when it's like you
got a challenge? Yeah, it's a challenge, right.
Speaker 5 (22:18):
There was there was one Thanksgiving I remember you you're
a masochist. Yeah, And I was in I was in
the back and I was texting him like I can't
do this, and he's like, I shouldn't have gone away.
I'm like, oh, nope, I'm good. That's not the answer
I wanted. I just wanted to say I didn't know
if I.
Speaker 4 (22:34):
Could do this.
Speaker 5 (22:35):
Yeah, but like last year, we fed two hundred and
fifty homeless people for that's amazing.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
That's like, really, who's that through? I don't know what
this Monroe Avenue, Okay, I knew.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
But that's a wonderful thing that you do. And then
people know that, do you take donations for that?
Speaker 4 (22:52):
We didn't this year.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
Now would you ever consider that? Because I will tell
you that a lot of times I have regular customers
that are here that will say, please take this fifty dollars,
please take this twenty, which is inaying. But I feel
absolutely horrible too. Why I don't know you're putting you're doing.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
People like I really do believe and I know that
we'll hear all this shit about the world and stuff,
but I feel like the.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Fringes get highlighted, the bad gets highlighted. Did this?
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I think most people, no matter where they fall politically,
don't want to see someone suffer, period.
Speaker 1 (23:28):
So I'll help, you know.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I mean, I guess the hand is the word would
be hand up, not handout.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (23:35):
I think we all would like to see somebody go, hey,
you're in America. You got an opportunity, you can make
things happen. Let's not be feeling bad for yourself. But
I've been there, so here, you know, and I think
that's a great thing. I think that's amazing. Though, two
hundred and fifty meals on Thanksgiving that's a lot.
Speaker 1 (23:50):
There was a line and I didn't as I did
is plate stuff. They did all the cooking, they did everything.
I just helped plate the stuff. Like whose idea was this? Anything? Bad? Like?
This is my idea? Hard too? So well no. So
we have a friend, Brittany, who's a regular customer of ours,
(24:11):
and she deals with these people and and I'm going
to say this, and and maybe it's going to turn
some people off to the restaurant. We also handle what
they call the queer prom for them. Okay, you know
a thousand kids that are obviously a little different, right,
but we handle their prom every single year. We cater it.
That's awesome and gladly, and we give them a discount
to help them out. But she also brings us other things.
(24:34):
So she was the one that said, hey, I have
this opportunity. I know this is how you guys are.
Do you want to feed these two hundred fifty homeless people?
And she didn't finish your sentence and we were like yes,
and she's like are you sure?
Speaker 5 (24:46):
Yeah, And when we walked away last year when we
were all done, he said, Okay, now I know.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
What we can do for next year to make sure
how were easy? But you like the rush when things
are busy, and I have to ask you this, No
day is it ever? I know you're coming to the
same place. It's mostly the same people, but out here
it's never never, yeah, never the same.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
Wow. Like you see the bar right now, it's full,
right yeah, Tuesday there was two people there are God
blessed about it. And even yesterday, like you know, the
day wasn't terrific, but like last night, they got their
asses handed to them last night and they just no
big deal. They made it work. And you know what,
I didn't get a complaint. No, you're yeah good. So
(25:29):
what's your favorite part of the business? You know what?
My favorite part of the business, honestly is somebody telling
you that they had a great meal, or walking away
from those homeless people last year saying, you know what,
you just gave them a meal. That to me and
you it's like, shit, I'm gonna be so tired and
fat and full after eat this. This person is like,
oh my god, First of all, I screwed up last
(25:50):
year with that because I thought the meals had to go.
They're hot, so we made sure everything was hot. So
we were late getting there, so now I'm already feeling bad.
Turns out they don't care if it's hot, cold everything.
So this year they're like, just bring it cold because
they're going to take it home quote unquote wherever they're
staying and they're going to be able to heat it somehow,
some way. So I still feel like there's some people
(26:11):
will wait to the last second to make it because
I know the ones that are definitely not living anywhere
but under a bridge, and they will I'll make sure
they get the hot one. There's a lot of people
that aren't quote unquote homeless. They're living in a home.
They can't get a job, no one will hire them.
It's not that they don't want.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
You to bring your kids to that too, because I
know your sons. Both your sons work here.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
Yeah, yeah, both of them are here. Jostin's been to
a couple with us. Yeah, yeah, boys have not okay,
but I think I regret. Oh really, I wish I
could take them back. It seemed like great kids.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
I'm interacted with them and they I mean, he made at.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
The whole thing, well not one piece less. I did
because I didn't want to look like people.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Oh I would have eaten it, we had nothing, but
I was like, I don't think I ate for a
day after that.
Speaker 1 (26:58):
But I hate the entire pizza. So I do that
to honor my father because that's the way I was
brought up. So I hope that maybe that when I'm gone,
it could be tomorrow, could be twenty years. If you
guys are unlucky, they'll they'll hold that hold that same
line for somebody and do that for them. You know.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Yeah, I really appreciate you guys both sitting down, and
I know that Matt was a little hesitant.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
But you know, because we do dick jokes far to whatever.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Okay, But I think that that what makes people tick
is the most relatable thing. And I think that hearing
about both kind of your journeys a little bit. But
what goes into the restaurant, the thought behind it, the
concern behind it, the uh, wanting to be the best
(27:45):
is something that people I don't think know or necessarily appreciate.
And I love conversations like this, So I really thank
you guys for thank you for doing that. Because you know,
my schedule has changed a little bit. I've decided to
take on more in life.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
That sound like, that's why, dude, this is why this
is all best. It's the you gotta do it, you
gotta do it, you gotta do it every day.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
We got camp and should and shouldn't do.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
It right exactly.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
But BTV, wood Fire, pizza and girl, I'm already impressed.
It's twelve thirty. There's not a seat at the bar.
There's other tables filling up.
Speaker 4 (28:19):
There's people at the bar outside too.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
It's also it's beautiful. It's a beautiful. That's a lot
of tables out there. Yeah, yeah, look at the TV.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
We'll get out here and try get those fried green tomatoes.
Try the state of the meatball bomber? Is that what
is goled?
Speaker 1 (28:33):
Yeah, because it is a huge. I devoured half that
totally fast. Bill is able to pick it up. Kevin,
he's a pussy. Fourthnight, I cut it in half and
I just picked it up and ate that thing. He
was wearing a white shirt. Ship. Yeah that was good.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Not even a spot, not a spot until I got
home and I sat down.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Was there was that a Monday night game? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Yeah, I sat down just peek at the Monday night
game and decided, hey, chips and so also would be
good because Jamison begged me to eat the other half
of the sub so and yeah, it's also.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
I'm gonna start bringing in food.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
No, you don't have to bring him in food because
he's fine. I will say this, and I'm gonna say
it on the podcast. I never asked. I know who did,
and I was never comfortable with that. I'm all right,
all right, you know what we talk about. It it's great.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
Yes, we get the food out. Said that to me,
so I didn't, but I that was never my intention.
And now that we're doing a seasonal specials like we
get him pretty fast in four weeks, we have the
whole season done, so that gives me eight weeks to
bring you a different item off a menu that we
can talk about. So it's great because you know there's
some people out there that might take the ride out.
I've had some people go your customers need to start
talking more though, because they used to tell me all
(29:41):
the time, here John the Pocket, and I haven't got
all of those speak up.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
If somebody just sent me a thing saying they came
out They sent me a picture. They said they're here.
It is their favorite place to come when they're out
on this side of town. Nice and uh oh, I
will yeah, go say something, then say something, because that's.
Speaker 1 (29:59):
Let him know, Hey, we're here because of Bill Moran.
Yeah all right, well that would be uh that would
be help you as well. Yes, it does, for for Matt,
for Connie. I'm Bill Moran. We'll see you on Monday.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
H
On location and driven by Victor Dot's Chief Brown. It's Billified,
the Bill Moran Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Well, Hello and welcome live from b TV wood Fire,
Pizza and Grill and the mall at Grease Ridge. Where
it when we're taping this, it's eleven thirty five and
he got a nice crowd already.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
It's like I came in here, there all pretty hanging
out of the bar. Yeah, we got you know, we
got a few regulars to come in every morning. Yeah,
and they're retired and they're just enjoying their life a
little bit. Yeah, and then he take some lunch home
and they go home and take a nap.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
I imagine that's that's Uh, that's a pretty nice life.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
It's a pretty.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Nice So I called Madden, asked Matt if he would
be open to me coming out and uh, just kind
of doing a like a one on one type situation
with he and Connie because bTB been sponsoring the podcast
since it started, which is I can't thank you enough
for that. But just the hospitality industry as a whole
(01:14):
has changed dramatically, I feel like absolutely and more because
of customer behavior and stuff.
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Right. But but let's go back, like I know Matt.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Probably since you were a kid was in some form
of hospitality, whether it was being in a hot shot
DJ at all the nightclubs and kick it out the ladies.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
And you to know he was I started. I started
at fifteen in a pizza shop. Yeah. I grew up
in Hamblin, so I grew up in podunks, you know.
But I started Crony's Pizza out there when I was
when I was fifteen, And I'll be honest with you,
I was probably the worst employee for the longest time. Why,
I just like, what fuck things up? Oh yeah? But
(01:52):
oh just because you didn't know? Yeah yeah, And I
you know, I was a dumb kid.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
You know.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
I worked on a farm before that, so you know,
before I worked on a farm, then I worked in
a grocery store. The most disgusting job. I worked in
the meat department. But I was in charge of cleaning
it after it was all done right, and a lot
of that stuff goes on the floor.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Oh yeah, because there's a butcher shop basically in the
meat department.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
But that's where I learned cleanliness because everything had to
be spotless or else you'd have backterios. How old were
you when you were doing this, I was fourteen. Oh yeah,
so yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean that's you know, it
built me to what I am now, So I'm good
with that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
But you so you just decided at that moment this
is kind of my path here.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
Well, no, I just I was kind of a lost
child for a while. Like my twenty one year olds
is basically a mirror image of me. I was kind
of lost for a while. You know. At eighteen, I
was working three jobs. I didn't go to school, so
I was working two full time jobs plus a part
time job. So I was working like ninety hours a week.
But all I cared about was putting money in the bank,
(02:53):
making money, making money, right. I didn't have much of
a life in the early twenties, you know, but I did.
I didn't because the parts of job was working security
or DJing. So I was out and about. I was
making money over use was spending money, right, not quite
the same as you know, you're not partying, but I'm
still out in the atmosphere. Yeah, the DJ, and yes,
the DJ. The DJ. Yeah. I wasn't even a heavy
(03:18):
drinker back then, so it didn't take much, you know,
that's right. The DJ like I, I mean, you heard
stories about guys who were DJ. Yeah, there was nice
that at the time. My best friend Mark, uh, he
would shut the mic off. He'd just be like, you're
not You're not talking no more tonight. That's funny. That's funny.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
And so Connie, what it was your Have you been
in the hospitality?
Speaker 4 (03:44):
I actually went to college for it.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
Yeah, And then I just.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Yeah, how did this kind of union become between you
and and Matt to where BTV is now?
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Right? Because you kind of work hand in hand this
building the building, So this building was Captain Zaddik back
in nineteen ninety four ninety five. Yeah, and uh, like
it's funny because where the door is to the mall
now is what the DJ booth was. And then in
front of that there was a small dance floor like
a I would call it a pergola is what I
(04:16):
would call it, over the top of it. And it
was very small, twelve x twelve maybe, and it was
not the ideal set up for like a club or
with bands because behind that area was a fireplace with
tables and chairs, and these old ass chairs and tables
were so heavy we had to remove them every night.
Wednesday through Saturday, so Wednesday would be the lady you
(04:37):
work at Captain's Adam. Yeah, that's how we met is
working at Captain's addik.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Okay, and then together just decided this is yeah, because it's.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Been funny because her and John have worked for me
in almost every business I've had in some sort of capacity.
John was mowing for me as a landscaper, and she
was doing a lot of the billing and collections for me.
So I, you know, because I had a full time
job running are running this company, so I always had
to rely on some other people to help out, right,
So in some form of capacity, they've always worked I
(05:08):
think in every single business I had, except for maybe
the ceiling business. Yeah wait, you had a ceiling business. Yeah,
I had a driveway sealing business. Oh oh that's I'm
thinking of drivewall. I don't know why, but you know,
the thing with that was like a buddy came to me.
He's like, hey, I got this great idea. He couldn't
keep a job, and he's like, I'm gonna do this.
I did this for two years and I was like okay, great.
(05:28):
He's like, okay, I need the money. I was like,
what what do you, he goes, I want you to
be the investor. Blahlah blah. So we bought a truck.
It was like, I remember we bought the truck. It
was end of August, so the ceiling season for driveways
is over in September. I'm buying this truck, going, why
are we buying this truck right now when the season
doesn't start until you know next bro. Yeah, but anyway,
(05:49):
so I bought the truck. I invested some money throughout
the winner to do it. I learned a business just
by teaching myself online and stuff, and then I would
go out and help. But he lasted like a month
and he just disappeared, just with the truck. Or no,
you had it all. But now I have all these
appointments lined up, so I'm scattering because we only had
one guy working for us with him, So now I'm scattered.
(06:11):
So it threw me into a tizzy at that time, right,
but it was able to It's kind of how we
fix everything around here because you never know somebody's not
going to show up. So but this guy was running
the whole thing. For him not to show up really
kind of screwed me.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
What's the what's the mindset to go, Uh yeah, I'll
just I'll just do this. I'll just make this work,
because it was uh when he left her before that,
just in anything like hey, yeah, this sounds like a
great idea. That's the way you're the entrepreneurial kind of
side of you just goes yeah, yeah, I'd rather do this.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
I mean, you're your own boss, both of you. Right,
It's it sucks though sometimes you know it's it would
be a lot easier sometimes to go to work nine
to five clock that paycheck and go home five o'clock.
I don't care about anything right where. You know, there's
times that her and I are talking at one o'clock
in the morning about things, you know, and really there's
no yesterday I did five thirty in the morning. What
(07:08):
are you doing up? Oh, we don't sleep. You don't sleep.
You sleep in breaks, you know, like.
Speaker 4 (07:13):
Two hours, two hours, two hours.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
I think I had fallen asleep at like midnight, so
by four o'clock I was my mind's racing, so and
then I'm usually for a couple hours and I'll fall
back asleep for like an hour. Again, that's a nice
thing about and I having to come to work at
a certain time, right, I mean I could fall back
asleep till eight thirty and I'm okay. Or most people
had to be up, so yeah, it's it's just in breaks.
It's not healthy for you, that's for sure.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
No, I know.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
I mean, look, I feel like my life, you know radio,
I was up at three and a lot of times
I was sew especially when you know we's left and
it was me and Tommy and you're like everybody's.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
Talking about how you're going to fail and you're to
get down and run over.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
I would work my ass off to find great cash,
right angles, how can we talk about this that nobody
else is? And I would be up to like eleven
twelve and then back up by three thirty or you
know if I could four and sometimes falling asleep at
a traffic light with the kids in the car at
one point.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
I mean, a position basically is like own your own
your own company, because if you don't, you know, if
you don't do well there, you fail. Yeah, you're gonna
get fired. Right, So you had to make it better.
You couldn't rely on a producer. You had to do
things yourself to make sure they got done right.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Okay, so talk to me and I'll ask Connie this first,
because in that mindset, right, I feel like and you guys,
and Matt seems to be pretty good at this, and
he found it in you and you probably found it
in him. Somebody you can rely on and trust that
knows how you wanted things done and knows that. But
outside of that, how much more do you take on
(08:46):
because you just would rather do it yourself than deal
with someone.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
Else everything possible.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
Yeah, and that's like a terrible way to be because
you can't grow because you're doing the small shit that
you am.
Speaker 5 (08:58):
I right, right, but I'll make sure it's maintained so
that we can grow.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
Okay, right, I mean, but are you like that, Like
even with the ceiling business, you're like, I got to
get out there and do it, and then you don't
almost like you'd rather do it yourself.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
I mean, there was a time, and you know, on
Friday nights, I was in the kitchen. You know, it'd
only be for three hours, but I said, rather than
hire somebody else is not going to show up, let
me just do this myself. I know I'm going to
do the right thing by the customer. I know I'm
gonna do the right thing by the employee. I know,
I'm gonna do the right thing by Connie and the
employees that are working here and counting on me. So
why am I going to bring somebody in here that's
just going to not show up and then they're shorthanded
(09:34):
in the kitchen? Yeah? So I just said, screw it
when I hire another person right now? So how do
you keep it? Like?
Speaker 2 (09:39):
So, you guys are here, You're at the Mallick Reese Ridge, right,
there's always changing things around.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
You seem to be sort of an anchor spot. Right,
It's been here how many years now? Almost five five
five years?
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I was thinking, And you've got a reputation that comes
from that. But how do you keep it so much?
Because the atmosphere in here is always like it's it's
different than I would expect for a restaurant at them all.
I mean when I stay different, I mean you walk in,
I feel like I'm in a free standing building. It's fun,
(10:11):
the it's lively. Watching a Bills game here is a
freaking treat, it really is. Like, So, how does what
is that? And how do you bring that when you're
concerned about someone not showing up? Did this delivery happen?
Is that you know, are we getting backed up in
the kitchen? How because you guys are the vibe, but
(10:31):
the vibe in here is always like great.
Speaker 5 (10:33):
You just always have to have a backup plan. Always
in the back of your mind. There's a backup plan
if this person doesn't show up, if this doesn't person
show up, I can switch this, I can switch that
this person's out here. Whenever I wrote a schedule, I
always had a backup plan for every position.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
You should teach a course. Honestly, like, like you know
what I'm saying, I would think we're crazy at the
things that we come up with. Ye why though, because
it's why do you got to worry about that? And
because we've seen every scenario you could possibly through.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Yeah, Like I don't think that there's you can go
to school for anything.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
And and you went to college, right, hospitality. I went
to college communication. You can learn stuff like I was.
I was in.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
I was asked to come back to my college and speak,
and they somebody asked me, if you could do it
over again, would you major in communications? And I said no,
I would major in the history of philosophy because you
have to have something to say into the microphone, you know,
learning how far the distance is from the microphone.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
You need something to learn to say.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
There are certain things that you learn on the job
that they can't teach you, Like everybody, do you know
what I'm saying, Like, they can't teach you.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
And that's where I go.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Sometimes the best teachers are the people who never went
to school, right or.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
Any formal we'll call it formal, and.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Came along and build something successful, and you go, that's
who should be teaching you.
Speaker 4 (11:54):
You know, you learn more on the job than you
do in school.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Yeah, I agree with that.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
You learn everything that you don't learn in school. I
have not taken a week.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
It's how long.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
My honeymoon in two thousand and two.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Holy shit, Connie, that's like the three years. I've only
been with her nine years.
Speaker 4 (12:13):
It's not all my factors that were building up to that.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Okay, is that a good thing?
Speaker 4 (12:19):
No?
Speaker 1 (12:19):
No, but you're happy.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
My husband was an addict.
Speaker 5 (12:23):
Okay, is an addict, but he's recovering.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (12:26):
So there was never any money, gotcha. And if I
was out of town, there was always a problem and
I would have to rush back home. And there was
always something. Yeah, so in the last three years that
he's been you know, Chanying.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Is you're a fucking angel. No, seriously, because most people leave.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
You know, I should have, but you didn't.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
And he's lucky and he's unlucky. You know what I'm
saying like that, that's a lucky dude guy. And he
now knows it, but he didn't know it for the longest.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Of course not you're all up in your head, you
know it says it's tough.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
That's a tough one to go because I told her
probably one hundred times, get the fuck out. Yeah, I'm
sure we're going to take him on a boat.
Speaker 5 (13:08):
Yeah, I do know that he fits in the sixty
gallon garbage bag.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
I didn't test it.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Did That's very funny, but I mean, honestly, like that's
it's so you're you're putting out fire to here.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Your whole life is a fire. It is at times, right,
you don't know what anything's going to pop up. And
for a.
Speaker 5 (13:30):
Few years I took care of my mother and then
my dad got sick and we took care of my dad.
My dad lived with us for a year and a half. Yeah,
we're his main caregiver.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
You just like that stuff.
Speaker 4 (13:41):
I like to fix thing.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
Yeah, I put him getting tired. Yeah, that's the reason
why everybody calls her Ma.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
She said that, She said, everybody calls her. Yeah, because
you fit, you can fix it.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
I tried.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Is there anything that anybody comes to you as an
employee that you haven't seen before?
Speaker 5 (13:58):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Lord, I'm thinking really the things you haven't seen before? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Yeah, because I'm thinking, like most of it, you must
have come across somewhere in there.
Speaker 5 (14:07):
We say all the time we should have a reality
show because people would not believe it.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
We'd make billions.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
Dude, all you need to do nowadays is set up cameras,
have someone edit it and put it on YouTube and
just see what happens.
Speaker 1 (14:18):
You know, put it out there. It could if you
could do it. I don't know what to help your
restaurant or kill it. On the other I'm not going
to deal with those people. It's a great point. I
didn't think of that. You could go on.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
I'm just saying like it would be interesting because I
don't think any I think that young guys often say
I want to own a bar, yes, And I don't
think they know what they're getting themselves into, because beyond that.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Just the state. And they'll give give me a die bar,
give me a die bar all day long. And why
is that? I don't want to say die bars like
b side Yep, very small easy. Not a kitchen. The
kitchen is the headache of the restaurant business. The bar
usually is not, as long as you have good bartenders
who aren't stealing. Right, you could have one bar tender
(15:06):
on and do two thousand dollars in a day, three
thousand dollars and make so much money doing that. Yeah,
where a place like this, where it's got seventy something employees.
Your rents atrocious because it's a huge place. Yeah, your
costs are terrible, your food costs, you know, no matter
what you do. Again, we just raised our our burger,
especially on Wednesdays, was a ridiculous eight dollars for burger
(15:28):
and fries. Now it's ten, which is still ridiculously low.
Nobody else is lower than twelve that has a decent burger.
But beef just went up again this week again. And
when we say go up, it went up ninety cents
a pound. Wow, we go through two well over two pounds.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Me and the grocery store, I would imagine, So, yeah,
the hell's going on.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
I don't know what's going on with beef, but it's crazy.
So your steaks, your burgers, and justin burger alone, we
go through two hundred and forty two hundred fifty pounds
a week, so like, take that, time's ninety cents.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
I'm so glad you're saying all this stuff because I again,
and it's not just BTV will be any restaurant is
like this, and these are the decisions you have to make,
and you know how you're wow, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It's you know, there's certainly I wouldn't sleep either in
a place like this. I wouldn't sleep either. In a
place like this where we're a casual restaurant. We can't
get forty dollars for a rev steake, so we're selling
it for twenty nine thirty dollars and we're not hitting
the margins and we're supposed to. So you've got to
hope that your margin maybe in pizza, recovers that. So
(16:35):
you got it one for the other. Right where if
you're in a dive bar, all your liquor and your
beer are twenty five percent costs, right, you make sure
that and you kill it. So man, Yeah, give me,
give me a little place and continue like it's like
an education though that you guys are like I say
that now the new place is a takeout only place,
(16:55):
which is very small, and I'm already like you know
down the road there's that building that could open up
a little bigger, make it a full restaurant. Yeah, I'm
a glutton for punishment. I put myself through it. But
you like it. And see. The thing is like, do
you think either one of you will ever retire?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
No? No, no, you always own or have a hand
in something, right, Yeah, along the way, and this place
is going great, so why not?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
Yeah, go on a couple of years, you know, hopefully
hopefully in the south. But if even if it's a year,
I'd like to I would like to get back into
it and have my own place again. Yeah, but we'll see. Yeah,
I guess something's a clear up first.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
Yeah, well, everybody has things, but I mean here is
going very well.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
It does go well here, yeah, you know, but then
what do you mean by that? Yeah, it's going great?
I don't know. That's the thing is, like, what what
is well for? You. You don't see like people don't
see you on Monday. Our Monday this week was probably
our worst Monday we've had since we didn't have our
liquor license for a for a short period of time
because of a hiccup on it, and that was when
we first opened. This Monday was just bad. And I
(18:01):
think a lot of it was. The Bills played Monday
or Sunday nights at home, so a lot of people
went to the game. The other people stayed up and
watched it. People were tired, they're hung over, so it
was a very very like alcohol hangover football, and it
put it in perspective, A very slow day here is
better than a Monday I ever had at Beta Billies
really by far. Like I like, we look at the
(18:24):
numbers on Monday, we're like, Jesus, what happened? And I
think back and I go, I would have killed for
that number down the road. It was double whatever.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
My best night was, So Connie, what do you do,
Like does that affect your head? Do you start to
worry about that day or do you just go There
were factors and we got gone.
Speaker 5 (18:40):
Yeah, and you can kind of figure out, you know,
the Bills played late they were, it was up laid
if they stayed and finished to watch the game. But
when it comes a pattern, absolutely absolutely, you stay up
and you think, what do we do? What do I
need to do? What do we need to do for this?
Speaker 1 (18:54):
What are we doing wrong?
Speaker 4 (18:55):
What did we do wrong? Did we screw something up?
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Are we not?
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Are we?
Speaker 5 (19:00):
He is the most creative man I've ever met. Well,
and he has so many ideas and they're all crazy.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
Yeah, they hate me never well.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
See, this is the thing that I have said to Matt.
Like the tweaking of the menu, right, the specials, the stuff,
the food.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
It's amazing.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
And I and she asked me how Laura like the
green fried green tomatoes, and I said, Laura said she
never had them and loved them. And Connie said, I've
never had them either, and they were fantastic. I don't
know where these ideas come from. I don't know what,
but is it always from everywhere?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
That one came from a customer, But she had it
at another restaurant in the South, and they want us
to try it, and I said, I'll give it a shot.
What the hell? And everybody looks at me like you're
fucking crazy. But it used to be a lot worse.
We used to do monthly specials. Yeah, I know, I
remember that that's very taxing, and I realized that, but
it took me a long time to realize how taxing
(19:56):
it was. So I kind of apologize for that. So
I'm glad we got to be even first of all,
to come up with it right. But then you've got
to teach all your cooks. So like, say we have
eight cooks. All eight cooks got to learn how to
do every single dish the exact same way because it
can't go out two different ways. So yeah, you spend
(20:17):
a week making sure everybody's ready, right, and then you
put them out. In four weeks you're done and oh
hey guys, it's time to learn seven new items. Right.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
And I love when you go out and you do
food reviews, sometimes quietly, but you do right on there.
And I always think that that's a great.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know the business. Wow, I just won't, and you know,
people get mad at me, and so I did a
couple of them, and then people got more mad. So
I was like, okay, I'm not gonna so like I'll
be For instance, we went somewhere last night and all
I got was a grilled chicken sandwich.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Right.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
It was the worst grilled chicken sandwich I have ever had.
I tell you, I would rather eat a piece of wood.
I had three bites out of it. We know the
girl who's working there, and she goes, what's wrong. I said,
it's just I can't eat it. What do you want? Said,
I don't want anything else. Don't take it off the bill.
Mistakes happened, and of course she took it off the
bill anyways, because you know she knows this. But I
was like, I just want you to know so that
(21:11):
the next customer is something. Maybe the chickens dried out
because it's been sitting somewhere. I don't know there's a
reason why, or maybe the cook is just overcooking. Just
I just want you to know, you know, And it's
hard if I don't know the people, it's hard for
me to even say something. So I get the people
to want to say something, because what a Karen. You know,
it's not as long as you do it the right way.
No a Karen demands a baseball from a child. Yeah, yes,
(21:35):
it's evenigher. But even with me being in this industry
now for the last time. Eleven years, it's still hard
for me to say to a server, I don't like this,
this is terrible. But I managed to try to squeeze
it out. And I always said, I don't want the
money back for it. Don't you lose money. I just
don't want the next customer to get this. I'm not
the guy who's gonna blast you. The next person could.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
Connie, what's your favorite part of the business?
Speaker 4 (22:01):
The rush?
Speaker 1 (22:02):
The rush?
Speaker 5 (22:02):
What do you mean like we would look like the
dinner rush or the Saturday that I have four caterings
and or Thanksgiving when we serve two.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
Hundred and do you like it when it's like you
got a challenge? Yeah, it's a challenge, right.
Speaker 5 (22:18):
There was there was one Thanksgiving I remember you you're
a masochist. Yeah, And I was in I was in
the back and I was texting him like I can't
do this, and he's like, I shouldn't have gone away.
I'm like, oh, nope, I'm good. That's not the answer
I wanted. I just wanted to say I didn't know
if I.
Speaker 4 (22:34):
Could do this.
Speaker 5 (22:35):
Yeah, but like last year, we fed two hundred and
fifty homeless people for that's amazing.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
That's like, really, who's that through? I don't know what
this Monroe Avenue, Okay, I knew.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
But that's a wonderful thing that you do. And then
people know that, do you take donations for that?
Speaker 4 (22:52):
We didn't this year.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
Now would you ever consider that? Because I will tell
you that a lot of times I have regular customers
that are here that will say, please take this fifty dollars,
please take this twenty, which is inaying. But I feel
absolutely horrible too. Why I don't know you're putting you're doing.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
People like I really do believe and I know that
we'll hear all this shit about the world and stuff,
but I feel like the.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
Fringes get highlighted, the bad gets highlighted. Did this?
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I think most people, no matter where they fall politically,
don't want to see someone suffer, period.
Speaker 1 (23:28):
So I'll help, you know.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I mean, I guess the hand is the word would
be hand up, not handout.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (23:35):
I think we all would like to see somebody go, hey,
you're in America. You got an opportunity, you can make
things happen. Let's not be feeling bad for yourself. But
I've been there, so here, you know, and I think
that's a great thing. I think that's amazing. Though, two
hundred and fifty meals on Thanksgiving that's a lot.
Speaker 1 (23:50):
There was a line and I didn't as I did
is plate stuff. They did all the cooking, they did everything.
I just helped plate the stuff. Like whose idea was this? Anything? Bad? Like?
This is my idea? Hard too? So well no. So
we have a friend, Brittany, who's a regular customer of ours,
(24:11):
and she deals with these people and and I'm going
to say this, and and maybe it's going to turn
some people off to the restaurant. We also handle what
they call the queer prom for them. Okay, you know
a thousand kids that are obviously a little different, right,
but we handle their prom every single year. We cater it.
That's awesome and gladly, and we give them a discount
to help them out. But she also brings us other things.
(24:34):
So she was the one that said, hey, I have
this opportunity. I know this is how you guys are.
Do you want to feed these two hundred fifty homeless people?
And she didn't finish your sentence and we were like yes,
and she's like are you sure?
Speaker 5 (24:46):
Yeah, And when we walked away last year when we
were all done, he said, Okay, now I know.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
What we can do for next year to make sure
how were easy? But you like the rush when things
are busy, and I have to ask you this, No
day is it ever? I know you're coming to the
same place. It's mostly the same people, but out here
it's never never, yeah, never the same.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
Wow. Like you see the bar right now, it's full,
right yeah, Tuesday there was two people there are God
blessed about it. And even yesterday, like you know, the
day wasn't terrific, but like last night, they got their
asses handed to them last night and they just no
big deal. They made it work. And you know what,
I didn't get a complaint. No, you're yeah good. So
(25:29):
what's your favorite part of the business? You know what?
My favorite part of the business, honestly is somebody telling
you that they had a great meal, or walking away
from those homeless people last year saying, you know what,
you just gave them a meal. That to me and
you it's like, shit, I'm gonna be so tired and
fat and full after eat this. This person is like,
oh my god, First of all, I screwed up last
(25:50):
year with that because I thought the meals had to go.
They're hot, so we made sure everything was hot. So
we were late getting there, so now I'm already feeling bad.
Turns out they don't care if it's hot, cold everything.
So this year they're like, just bring it cold because
they're going to take it home quote unquote wherever they're
staying and they're going to be able to heat it somehow,
some way. So I still feel like there's some people
(26:11):
will wait to the last second to make it because
I know the ones that are definitely not living anywhere
but under a bridge, and they will I'll make sure
they get the hot one. There's a lot of people
that aren't quote unquote homeless. They're living in a home.
They can't get a job, no one will hire them.
It's not that they don't want.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
You to bring your kids to that too, because I
know your sons. Both your sons work here.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
Yeah, yeah, both of them are here. Jostin's been to
a couple with us. Yeah, yeah, boys have not okay,
but I think I regret. Oh really, I wish I
could take them back. It seemed like great kids.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
I'm interacted with them and they I mean, he made at.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
The whole thing, well not one piece less. I did
because I didn't want to look like people.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Oh I would have eaten it, we had nothing, but
I was like, I don't think I ate for a
day after that.
Speaker 1 (26:58):
But I hate the entire pizza. So I do that
to honor my father because that's the way I was
brought up. So I hope that maybe that when I'm gone,
it could be tomorrow, could be twenty years. If you
guys are unlucky, they'll they'll hold that hold that same
line for somebody and do that for them. You know.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Yeah, I really appreciate you guys both sitting down, and
I know that Matt was a little hesitant.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
But you know, because we do dick jokes far to whatever.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Okay, But I think that that what makes people tick
is the most relatable thing. And I think that hearing
about both kind of your journeys a little bit. But
what goes into the restaurant, the thought behind it, the
concern behind it, the uh, wanting to be the best
(27:45):
is something that people I don't think know or necessarily appreciate.
And I love conversations like this, So I really thank
you guys for thank you for doing that. Because you know,
my schedule has changed a little bit. I've decided to
take on more in life.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
That sound like, that's why, dude, this is why this
is all best. It's the you gotta do it, you
gotta do it, you gotta do it every day.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
We got camp and should and shouldn't do.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
It right exactly.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
But BTV, wood Fire, pizza and girl, I'm already impressed.
It's twelve thirty. There's not a seat at the bar.
There's other tables filling up.
Speaker 4 (28:19):
There's people at the bar outside too.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
It's also it's beautiful. It's a beautiful. That's a lot
of tables out there. Yeah, yeah, look at the TV.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
We'll get out here and try get those fried green tomatoes.
Try the state of the meatball bomber? Is that what
is goled?
Speaker 1 (28:33):
Yeah, because it is a huge. I devoured half that
totally fast. Bill is able to pick it up. Kevin,
he's a pussy. Fourthnight, I cut it in half and
I just picked it up and ate that thing. He
was wearing a white shirt. Ship. Yeah that was good.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Not even a spot, not a spot until I got
home and I sat down.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Was there was that a Monday night game? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Yeah, I sat down just peek at the Monday night
game and decided, hey, chips and so also would be
good because Jamison begged me to eat the other half
of the sub so and yeah, it's also.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
I'm gonna start bringing in food.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
No, you don't have to bring him in food because
he's fine. I will say this, and I'm gonna say
it on the podcast. I never asked. I know who did,
and I was never comfortable with that. I'm all right,
all right, you know what we talk about. It it's great.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
Yes, we get the food out. Said that to me,
so I didn't, but I that was never my intention.
And now that we're doing a seasonal specials like we
get him pretty fast in four weeks, we have the
whole season done, so that gives me eight weeks to
bring you a different item off a menu that we
can talk about. So it's great because you know there's
some people out there that might take the ride out.
I've had some people go your customers need to start
talking more though, because they used to tell me all
(29:41):
the time, here John the Pocket, and I haven't got
all of those speak up.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
If somebody just sent me a thing saying they came
out They sent me a picture. They said they're here.
It is their favorite place to come when they're out
on this side of town. Nice and uh oh, I
will yeah, go say something, then say something, because that's.
Speaker 1 (29:59):
Let him know, Hey, we're here because of Bill Moran.
Yeah all right, well that would be uh that would
be help you as well. Yes, it does, for for Matt,
for Connie. I'm Bill Moran. We'll see you on Monday.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
H
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