Constant Striving
When we tried (and failed) to open a second restaurant a few years ago we finally took up the task of writing a business plan. The first step in the process was introspective in nature: The Vision Statement. This document had three parts: Purpose – The Star We Follow; Mission – The Mountain We Intend to Climb; Values – The Guideposts We Use to Find Our Way. For the work on values we didn’t settle for simple labels or a list of aspirations. We worked at drilling down into the core beliefs that underlie our behaviors. Somewhat surprisingly, we discovered that the #1 Core Value that drives what we do here at Bethany’s Table is Striving. It never stops. Janet will never settle for an okay ingredient if she can find a better one. Building, furnishing and decorating the restaurant is never-ending. We are constantly pressing to improve our service standards. We have had qualified employees that didn’t share this value and, though they were basically competent, we simply couldn’t communicate – especially in times of stress – and they just went away.
Brilliant aspects have shadows. The more prominent the aspect, the more brilliant the light that shines on it, the deeper and darker the shadow. The shadow side of our striving is over-reaching. And – I gotta tell you – it can wear you out.This year, after being turned down in the past, we participated in Portland Dining Month. It has been a fabulous success for us as it brought in hundreds of first-time customers. There have been only a few nights in March that we haven’t been full. Wouldn’t you know that this surge in business came at a time when our kitchen big dog, Kyle, was taking a month-long vacation in New Zealand and Australia. Though Sundays would have been packed as well, we had to cut back to a six-day week. Historically, the week of Spring Break has been slow so we decided some time ago to close Sunday-Tuesday at the beginning of the break and some of the staff planned vacations. In hindsight, we should have stayed open. We would have been packed. But it sure was nice to be able to catch our breath.
It’s bad business to close from time to time, but it’s good for the soul. We stretch and stretch to be a reliable resource for our customers and we never want you to have to guess if we’re open; and we certainly don’t want you to get all the way here only to find a sign on the door. Sometimes though, it’s just too much. We are very sorry if you were inconvenienced by our closing and we beg forgiveness. We are reopening on Sunday again this week (though we are not doing Easter Brunch) and will be reliable from now on… or at least until the 4th of July.