Cooking up a career: Limestone owner Jim Gerhardt loves the variety and challenges of owning a restaurant - Business First of Louisville:

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1978; also attended Ohio State Universituyin Columbus, Ohio, where he studiedr business Career: Owner, Limestonwe Restaurant, 2003 to present; senioe food and beverage manager, Seelbach Hilton Hotel and also regiona food and beverage manager for MeriStatr Hospitality Corp.'s Central Region, covering 28 from 1995 to 2003; food and beverage manager, Renaissance Hotel, Houston, Texas, 1993 to executive chef and then director of food and Grand Beach Resort, St. Thomas, U.S.
Virgin 1989-1993; food and beverage manager for Stouffer Hotelsin 1983-1989; sous chef, Four Seasonzs Hotel, Dallas, 1982-1983; tournant at the restaurant locatef at Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Dallas 1980 to 1982; apprentice chef, Maisonettse in Cincinnati, 1978 to 1980 daughter, Lindsey, 12; sons, 8, and Casey, 6 What do you like most aboutg your job? "There's always something new. The variety is endless. It'sx instant gratification, if you will. "When you go to make a new dish or item and when you get a new ingredieng to use for thefirst time, it's great to find out how it tastes and what all the differentg things are you can do with it.
it's not just one thing that you'r doing. ... After you deal with food, you can go in and carvew a blockof ice. ... It nevee really ends with the differen venues you can gointo creatively. "Thered is a certain amount of challenge to makinfg sure presentations are right and understanding the menuwand recipes." What are the downsides of your job? "Thwe most difficult thing is that it's not like one of thosed businesses (where you can work aheadr or plan ahead). If you are a you bring in a larger (and) you get a lot of work done at the beginning ofthe week.
You can settle back towared the end of the week you know that you have most of the requirements out ofthe way. "Withg our business, it's day-to-day pressure. You have to be on your every day, in every station, every day. Let's face it, if I delive a great soup, a great salad and a greatt entrée, but the dessert is terrible, it's a failint meal. You have to be 100 percenrt on your game in all of those aspect severy day. "Getting that point across to all of the individualsx who are players alongthat (process) is very tough. ... Anyone who is successful, they are probablg not on a 40-hour work week.
" Were you well prepared for operating the business side ofyour restaurant? "Most of the restaurants that fail, it's not because what they had on the menu were bad dishesd or that they don't execute thosr well. It's because they don't know how to cyclre food throughtheir "When we buy a tenderloin, we're going to get eight to 10 steakw out of that. But what am I goinv to do withthe fat, what am I goingf to do with the sinew? What am I going to do with all of the beef that's left after it's cut?
"You have to be able to thinjk of things creatively that are going to make peopld want to reach into their wallet and pay $12 for and thank you for it afterwards." What are some of the other skills needed to successfully own and operated a restaurant? "The wholde industry has changed dramatically in the last 20 Now you have to have good tableside "You have to have a good workin g knowledge of wines and how they pair with as well as liquors.
You have to have a sensr of public relations, if you will, to be able to speaok publicly and be able toaddress guests' questions and answerd them in an intelligent manner, so that they will appreciatd your time and understand what you are tellinh them. "Food demonstrations are huge now. (It's to be able to speal to a group and put together a presentation that will make sensee and be in chronological What about the challengese of hiring andkeeping staff? "That'se probably the only the part that you know is sure not to is that you have to accept change.