<updated> An unconfirmed source says that Chef Ned Elliott was let go yesterday. Same with pastry chef/consultant Jodi Elliott, and at least one other.
Things could be getting interesting!
Updated: According to Willamette Week:
The shake up was due to a “difference in management style” Peter Karpinski, Chief Operating Officer for Urban Farmer’s parent company Sage Restaurant Group, told WW —though he wasn’t willing to elaborate. He did confirm that the change over happened within the last 24-hours.
Urban Farmer’s current chef de cuisine Michael Corvino, previously a chef at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, Florida and the Peninsula Hotel Chicago, will take over kitchen duties, like, now .
Sounds like if they’ve just let two major kitchen staff go, things are past “interesting” and into “uh oh.”
wow! perhaps they can open a place with the sommelier from lucier?
Or move to Seattle…the “Portland’s Chef’s Graveyard”!
Appropriate comment FoodRebel, considering it’s Halloween! Seriously though, Ned will be better off anywhere but there. The place has the feel of a drug-fueled Vegas sex-club after 9:30 p.m. Urban Farmer is nothing more than a cheesy hotel restaurant that happens to can their own tomatoes rather than buying them from Sysco. The GM is from a casino in California. That says everything I think.
Hmmmmm….”differences in management style” could mean 1) those mediocre reviews we’re already receiving (though, DUDE, it’s a freakin’ steak house, there’s only so much to be done!), 2) even with not giving anyone the breaks we docked them for (and maybe forcing unpaid overtime), we STILL aren’t hitting our labor numbers, 3) even charging through the nose we still aren’t hitting our food costs or 4) even after well over a year of planning this, we don’t really know what we’re doing or the market we’re playing in.
Or someone was overworked and snitty and told the wrong someone else where to put it. But I’ll lay easy money we’ll be seeing plenty more firings and defections in the next few weeks at both the Urban Farmer and The Nines.
Lur Kerr – if you don’t want to get picked up by the spam filter, I’d suggest you not use the words “drug-fueled Vegas sex-club.”
Now where are my keys ;)
Lur Kerr, do you mean the hotel’s GM or the restaurant GM? I already knew the hotel GM had a quite flimsy, lots of red flags popping up type resume—but I don’t know (other than from being from out of town) much about the restaurant’s GM.
It would seem that Sage has hired possibly the most underqualified they could find, for quite plum positions in Portland. I predict a bloodbath soon.
“The place has the feel of a drug-fueled Vegas sex-club after 9:30 p.m.”
Is that bad?
Von Drashy, it’s not a bad thing if that is the bag of tricks you are trying to sell, but with a name like Urban Farmer…unless the farmer is growing some funny stuff. Plus, I heard it is a Starwood Luxury brand. Somehow, I don’t see Mr. and Mrs. 30-year-anniversay content to pay $300+ for dinner with all the f-bombs and reach-arounds I saw going down there.
Zumpie, yes, the restaurant GM, Mark Woolford, is a guy from a casino in northern california. The land of all you can eat buffett. The new chef is the former banquet chef. Can’t wait till they start all you can eat prime rib night. I’m so NOT there!
FD-I hope that “reach-around” doesn’t land me in the spam blocker again ;)
Lur Kerr, that’s quite interesting since as recently as August their GM was a woman named Megan, also from out of town. But perhaps she’s a spot up from Woolford—or was canned, as well. Neither an unneeded layer of management nor a quick terming would surprise me, though.
And thanks for all the info on this election day! BTW, I agree with you about the restaurant veering towards failure. El Gaucho is cheaper than Urban Farmer and is elegant, yet completely unsnobby. This seems more like a concept that would’ve been “cool” (for 5 seconds) in NYC in 1985 (and went out with the chic, fancy diner). We’re a limited market to begin with and we already have a lot of steak houses.
wow. for a “food and drink” site, you guys don’t really have anything to say about the food or the drink. all i’m seeing is catty cheapshots, defamation of character, wild speculation, and spreading of gross misinformation and rumors. entertaining…yes, but mostly BS. You’ll have to excuse my country upbringing…but last time i checked canned heirloom tomato jam was delicious, and would love to be educated as to how it could be seen as otherwise.
half shark, I’d say firing a chef 2 weeks after opening has a LOT ot do with the food itself. And management can and will affect a restaurant (or any business) on every level. And, of course, it’s fun. Based on the rather defensive level of your post you either A) work there, B) are best friends with someone who works there, or C) know absolutely nothing about the restaurant world
Could be that Peter Karpinski has no real experience and doesn’t understand Portland. Never worked in the restaurant industry before. Got let go from the Starr Group in Philadelphia 8 months into the job
A handful of questions from way outside the gossip-mill loop:
One: I note that the departing chef and the departing pastry chef/consultant share a last name. Are Ned Elliott and Jodi Elliott related, and if so, how? [This strikes me as possibly relevant in a discussion of what "differences in management style" might be construed to mean -- or, alternately, suggests additional possible interpretations of who initiated one or both departures.]
Two: As I read the posts, we have either conflicting or incomplete information as to the identity of Urban Farmer’s GM. Zumpie says that as of August (some time before the restaurant opened) it was a woman named Megan; Lur Kerr says it’s presently Mark Woolford. It would be useful, in a discussion of management decisions, to know more about how, when, and why that position changed hands (or whether Megan and Mr. Woolford actually occupy/occupied different positions, as Zumpie suggests).
Three: We also have contrasting information about the incoming chef, Michael Corvino. The WW quote says he’s been a chef at two high-end resort/hotel properties (one in Florida, one in Chicago); Lur Kerr says he worked as a banquet chef at a northern California casino, either under or alongside Woolford. It would be interesting here to know how many of these were/are also Sage properties, in what order the three gigs occurred, and a little more about that casino — there’d be a significant difference in scale between a major Lake Tahoe resort and one of the smaller tribal casinos, and a move to Tahoe from Chicago or Florida seems far more plausible career-wise than going from either eastern gig to a California tribal casino.
I can’t decide if Urban Farmer is genius or a BS gimmicky “green marketing” concept. Something about it reminds me of Petite Hameau – you know that little fantasy country farm Marie Antoinette created in Versailles to have a “real” rural experience (sans the peasants and the actual real farm part). It especially feels that way to me right now given our current economic and political climate. But hells bells, maybe the food is great. Who knows?
And how much is that organic, regional free range burger again?
Dining in restaurants is not all about “delicious”. It is about experience, value for that experience, the business of food, and for many of us authenticity – and yes, I think this restaurant might be a car crash in the making for those mentioned reasons and bad management. Not sure yet.
I think there is no “gimic” in trying to serve organic, sustainable food. I think the real issue’s are cost / how do you charge the end customer? and how do you maintain quality control. It really is a noble cause. I am just not sure a luxury hotel should try to do this. Especially a hotel so large, expensive and dependant on banquet revenue.
Also this “hotel/restaurant group” failed to hire any local “recognizable” faces in their banquet or food and beverage departments. Yes they hired a couple of hourly local concierges, but no local talent. You ask why do you need local talent? They know the diners & movers and shakers.
Now I can see how a company want’s their own ” identity” but locals know the farmers, vintners, suppliers, and diners in the area. Building a team of “out of towners” and Californians can be shaky.
If you look at the high end steak houses may it be Peter Luga’s, Sparks, Wolfgang Puck’s “Cut” or Jean Georges’ Prime. The menus although priced high, are very basic and simple. JG tried to do the “swanky” steak joint in New York – 66. It failed. This is why he changed his view in the concept with Prime. 66 had a large bar with no bartenders or bottles displayed. It was glitzy, and had a cold feel. 95% of the customers hated that there was no interaction with any bartenders, and they did not like that they could not see their drinkns being made. Now at any JG restaurant there are inviting bars with people smiling, mixing and interacting ( HELLO LUCIER !!!!! ) sorry got off track there.
If you look at the local chef’s who really care / cared of local cuisine and sustainablity ( Gregg Higgins, Vitaly Paley and Corey Schriber ) they never have / had a whole bunch of steaks listed on their menus. It’s because they were afraid to charge what was needed to be charged. Know they have less costs then a hotel. Hence as I have stated previously, this is why so many local hotels have restaurant groups manage this piece of businees. Heathman, Governor, Lucia, Modera, hell even the Red Lion at Jantzen Beach does this.
Also if the Nines becomes a “hit” how will they be able to buy enough quality organic, local products? Ask the local chefs who buy local sustainable cuisine ( Higgins, Paley, DiLullo, Pommeroy, just to name a few ) how does the Nines get enough early season heirlooms for the 500 person banquet on Saturday and Sunday? Will the local farmers markets suffer? Will the Nines advertise line caught chinook for the the 4000 banquet covers for the month of July? cause those are not lofty numbers in a healthy banquet department? How much will that chinnok cost? I may be willing to pay $36 for salmon at Higgins once a week, but will 4000 guests? or for that matter 20-30 special event coordinators?
Like i said good intentions, but lets see what happens two years from now….interesting to see how many concepts “evolve’ and how many managers and chefs have come in and out.
Amoureuse, I agree with you about hiring local talent (and can tell you almost every person in upper management is from out of town, with middling at best resumes)–but I’m pretty sure the banquet department is entirely separate.
And $36 per person for salmon (line caught or not) would be fairly low/mid end these days. Since they’re charging $59 per gallon for coffee in catering, I can guarantee you dinners will start at about $50 per head and go up from there. Plus, without question, the banquet food won’t be all local, sustainable, etc. The sales staff will certainly HOPE you assume this and not do anything to disabuse you of this golden thought, but it’s just not feasible.
As for Peter Karpinski, doesn’t surprise me in the least to hear that, if you start looking into everyone’s backgrounds at Sage, there’s quite a bit of that (mediocre, “B” or “C” grade properties, that they performed quite poorly at). I will give him that he had some good ideas for some of Sage’s OTHER restaurants, like the one in Chicago that’s trendy, decent food and moderatly priced. But its success clearly comes from the last element.
It’s a shame in so many ways—especially on the hotel side, because we really don’t have anything even approaching real 4 stars. But with weak managment and a bad economy (and a company already drowning in red ink), they’ll definitely find themselves changing thier strategy soon.
One additional thought, on rereading: it’s also interesting in context to note that WW got its comment from way up in the corporate hierarchy, as opposed to the GM on the ground. If HQ isn’t letting its local execs talk to the media, that suggests additional dimensions of conflict.
And an aside: judging by the timestamps on this morning’s posts, either FD has invented practical time travel or the site clock is still running on Daylight Time…. :-)
Ooops. That is one annnoying thing about WordPress – you have to set DST manually. Fixed. Thanks djonn
you guys are crazy. i work there and everything is fine right now. its the best job ive ever had, and by the way, the pastry chef is still here….you guys need something better to talk about. especially since everything you say is an assumption and speculation. The food is delicious and the staff is the best staff i’ve worked with…
Be careful rc. Defending your territory can lead you into a corner you can’t get out of. Calling us crazy is uncalled for and erroneous. Portland is a very small town and word travels VERY fast. It took less than 48 hours for the industry insiders who read and post to this board to figure out what is going on there.
Operative words: fine right now. Or is it just us crazy people that seem to understand that actions speak louder than self-serving words?
Djonn, just to clarify, yes, Ned and Jodi Elliott are husband and wife. Meaghan was supposed to be the GM of Urban Farmer until Mark Woolford was hired and then no one can figure out what happened next. Willamette Week misprinted Michael Corvino’s title. He was not the Chef de Cuisine. He was the Banquet Chef for the Nines Hotel. I am friends with more than one vendor that supplies the Hotel and Restaurant, which is how I have my information, none of which is speculation or assumption as rc would like to believe.
Ah; this mostly clarifies the scorecard, particularly regarding Michael Corvino’s background — clearly I misconstrued part of the prior post. That said, I’m still a little curious about the northern California item on Mr. Woolford’s resume; in his case as well, a Tahoe resort would seem a more likely credential than one of the tribal casinos. And we now have apparently conflicting information about the status of UF’s pastry chef; the WW story says she’s gone, while rc says she is not.
And having contributed to raising questions, let me also pose a possible explanation on one point. I don’t think it’s unusual in the hospitality industry for one manager to oversee the build-out of a project, and another to then be assigned to run the facility once it opens. So that could very well be why Mark Woolford replaced Meaghan.
Lur Kerr-you should renounce your source then, cuz you’re wrong across the board lil fella. Keep trying though, this is fun readin.
If I’m wrong half-man, then why don’t you set the record straight?
“wow. for a “food and drink” site, you guys don’t really have anything to say about the food or the drink. all i’m seeing is catty cheapshots, defamation of character, wild speculation, and spreading of gross misinformation and rumors. entertaining…yes, but mostly BS.”
Cause he’s already been assimilated apparently.
I’m just proud a comapany came into little ole’ Portland and created jobs for a lot of people. It’s funny no one here really has all their information straight. I’ve heard nothing but positive things about the restaruant and the hotel. Lets keep it that way. This hotel alone will bring a lot of business to Portland. The last I heard, there were a couple of big names in town planing company parties in the restaurant.
I can’t say anything about the firings or inner workings of the place, but I did go to happy hour there yesterday, and it’s a pretty sweet deal. It’s very limited, but the moonshine punch (pretty much a moonshine margarita) is only $3, and the barman’s martini (yesterday it was a pomegranate influenced concoction) is $5. And I usually don’t go in for foo foo martinis, but this one was not too sweet and packed a punch.
Think about it, you could have three tasty cocktails in a stylish setting for under ten bucks – pretty damn hard to beat.
So at least they have that going for them.
Be Proud, many companies plan many parties at hotels. It’s what the catering department does. And what you’ve heard probably refers to Holiday parties, which almost every large company does. While a large convention hotel will bring business to Portland, a mid-size boutique hotel, while quite nice, really doesn’t. Especially in a recession.
By a company coming into Portland and building a hotel, do you mean because it’s (supposedly) 4 stars and (supposedly) “luxury” (a privilege which they pay Starwood for, BTW)–because if you just mean because a medium sized hotel company built something here, we already have that (Sunstone, Hammons, Kimpton, Coast, CSM Lodging and the company that owns the Lloyd Center Doubletree), plus Hilton and Marriott still running some properties.
And please be specific with some of the sources and/or “good things” you’ve heard. You’re more than a bit vague in your praise.
Speaking of Sage, it should be noted thier corporate slogan is (gag) “Good to Great”. Apparently they A) haven’t heard this management trend was out 10+ years ago (and the book’s author has been outed as a complete hack) and B) half the companies in America like to use that same cliche. I wonder if their cutting edge ideas also include using that horrible Pike’s Place Fish Market video that HR people loved 10+ years ago.
RJ, I’d definitely try for cheap cocktails, but I seriously doubt that was on the original plan (back in April/May, they truly thought they would be choosing their clients)–that sounds more like a loss leader. NOT a bad idea, mind you, but something born more of desperation (and possibly to disappear if they’re able to turn things around).
Be Proud….every event planner in town wants to try the “new banquet facility”. Its can they keep the repeat business? That is when they/Sage will know if they are a success. I have heard that the food was not bad ( for a banquet situation. But the service was “clumsy” although the staff tried hard and was polite. I guess the staff tried to do “synchronized service” and it did’nt go as smooth or as quick as they have liked. Granted this was a lunch so time was even more important ( people gotta get back to work). I too have heard the coffee was $20-$30 a gallon above the norm of Portland ( $39 a gallon ) I think Zumpie quoted a price of $59 a gallon. That coupled with a supposeded minimum $50 a person price not including the standard %20 banquet gratuity makes it tough for most companies in the current economic market to due much repeat business. Yeah maybe Christmas, but in order to maintain a good banquet staff,, you gotta “SHOW THEM THE $$$$$”.
That means you need to be booked 75-85% of the year, with 100% booked through wedding season. Now no disrespect to Oregonians but there are not too many $50k – $100k weddings in Portland. ( This is not NYC or LA ) The average in town is anywhere from $20k – $40k. Total for the whole show ( dress, food, pictures, etc. ) Based on the Nines minimums a modest wedding for 150 guests with a cocktail hour with open bar and passed hors d’ouvers ( 6 types – 3 hot 3 cold ) btw, domsetic beer, wine and sparkling with basic call liquor. Basic three course ( salad, choice of three entrees, and cake service ($8 per person ) & coffee service in “Silver” at their pricing will average $35k – $65k depending on food choices ( Pricing to go up for salmon, filet mignon etc ) Thats just for food and service ( valet parking included of course ).
Couple that with a very expensive Steakhouse that is lacking leadership. This is why all the conjuncture. Yes the staff is very considerate, and the space is gorgeous. But its new, so it should be. Ask Lucier, Morton’s and El Gaucho how their numbers are compared to last year or even two years ago. ( Ask Lucier if their projections are even near what they projected?) My bet is they like all the restaurants in Portland or the United States they are anywhere near 10-20% down.
Dinner for 4 with a round of cocktails, Appetizers, salads, entrees, something sweet and 1-2 bottles of wine has to average at the above mentioned restaurants anywhere from $350 – $700 a table depending. Who is doing that twice a week in Portland? For the chosen few ( top 10% of earners – pre this economy maybe twice a week ( not business related ) now they go out once a week. ) Now divide that number by 12 ( top restaurants including the previously mentioned plus Paleys, Higgins, Castagna, Ten-O1, Sel Gris, Hiroshi, and a couple I am missing ) but you see how the numbers diminish. My hunch is the upper priced restaurants are getting 1 1/2 turns on the week-ends but missing that 1/2 to full turn they miss ( or the gravy ) . Also the wine choices are getting more “economical” and instead of 2-3 bottles per 4-6 people the restaurants are seeing 1-2 bottles per party.
That’s why it was so shocking to hear that the Nines made such a huge switch so soon. I am sure they had a VERY GOOD REASON. The rumors are out there. But for the true diners out there. Every big failure or closure just scares operators to open the type of restaurants the readers of this forum really talk about. That’s why so much pressure/hype is on places like The NINES and LUCIER. Maybe they need to fail. People fail to realize that Thomas Keller failed miserably twice in New York before he got it right.
But a sustainable /Organic high end steakhouse is genious in my opinion. I just dont know about the timing, or why it had to be such a big restaurant. Sage should have opened up two satellites. One a basic dining room serving 3 squares for the masses. Satellite #2 a 40-50 person dinner only organic/sustainable steakhouse. But what do I know?
Amoureuse, that was a great post! And as someone who sold catering, let me just add, even the “standard” banquet pricing and lower minimums frequently met with extensive resistance. As you point out, we’re not NYC, LA or even Seattle. We’ve already seen some other establishments price themselves out of the market and I can definitely see this happening at the Nines.
And now we have the Big O’s version of the story (in this morning’s “Platter” column), which is . . . interesting, in the ways in which it does and doesn’t resemble WW’s. The Platter report gives virtually the same quote from Peter Karpinski as the WW story, but where WW said that Jodi Elliott was also out, Platter (in line with RC here) says she remains. Yet Platter also gives Michael Corvino’s previous title as “chef de cuisine”, which Lur Kerr says is wrong.
An aside on the GM question, explored here but not in either media report: I don’t think it’s unusual in the hospitality industry to appoint one GM to oversee a build-out, then name a new one to run the operation once it opens. So depending on the exact timing, it seems possible that that might explain the transition from Meaghan to Mark Woolford.
I met with Meaghan in August and know for a fact she was planning on the position being for the long haul. To be fair, she might have gotten promoted—but I kinda doubt it since replacing someone at such a critical point isn’t great planning.
I think there’s a LOT that we don’t know…
Now in Porland Business Journal, Sage is hiring for Chef for Urban Farmer, Chef for Departure, and Assistant GM for Urban Farmer. They haven’t even been open a month. If I worked there in any sort of a supervisory capacity, I would be more than a bit peeved that they felt the need to cast their net outside of the staff on hand. I think the writing is on the wall. Here’s the scenario that my five year old could have come up with:
1. Meaghan and Ned are hired to launch Sage properties in Portland
2. Meaghan and Ned hire all staff to launch Urban Farmer
3. Sage hires Mark Woolford to head up F & B
4. Mark decides he is the “man” and selectively fire those who were not hired by him
5. Sage now must look for new blood to be hired by Mark so he can feel like he is in charge
Sage should be embarassed. The staff on hand should be pissed. I will personally never eat there, and will ask that my wide circle of friends do the same.
Lur Kerr, I agree. When I finally came across the little blurb on Platter, I also found her comment about Ned’s only having lasted 6 months at Genoa quite nasty and uncalled for. No mention of how Karpinski’s previous gig lasted just 8 months and he really doesn’t know all that much about F&B.
A little more research into Sage and you start to see just how far fetched something this elaborate, especially given the combination of a small market AND a bad economy, really is for them. While they do well with being a franchise running management company or turning around a distressed franchise (by cutting everything to the bone), in the upscale market they seem pretty confused (and no where is it more apparent than in their management hiring decisions).
Another example of their weird concept ideas are their Coco Key Water Resorts. Now I’m ALL for waterslide parks—and had thought perhaps they were looking to do things along the level of Wisconsin Dells (the waterslide capital of America). But no, these are like Great Wolf Lodge—except not as nice. These would be lower mid-scale suburban/airport properties (Holiday Inn) that happen to have an indoor slide or two (the North Clackamas Aquatic Park is better, from the looks of it) in cities like Omaha.
In other words, they slapped a goofy parrot motif on the motel you stay at when you visit Aunt Hildy and it’s a resort. I can only imagine the horror of paying true top dollar to the Nines people and receiving a like level experience.
I’ll definitely spend my steak dollars at El Gaucho.
Dinner at Urban Farmer on November 8th was outstanding! I don’t know anything about managment changes, et cetera, but the food was terrific. My husband and I are devoted Portland diners — the best steak houses and chef-owned restaurants throughout the city. Our dinner at Urban Farmer was one of our best Portland meals. The steaks were outstanding, the vegetable side dishes were exceptional. We did find the steak platters awkward to eat from, and I don’t need a choice of steak knives.
We will be back in a heart beat.
I don’t know about manager shake-ups. What the company’s concept was/is doesn’t really interest me. What I do know is that my wife and I had cocktails in a GORGEOUS lobby, dinner in a comfortable, stylish and fun environment/ table! Enjoyed delicious food which was at the same time comfortable and adventurous.
The staff were gracious, SINCERE and not stifling. They possess that rare combination of approachable, casual elegance: informed, aware and yet still able to smile, engage a conversation AND know when to be a ghost! We had the chance to meet the restaurant manager who our server credits for their style of service. Can’t remember his name…it’s a doosy! He is a charming African-American gentleman, the consummate host he was aware, organized, gracious! When we commented how much fun we were having, shyly with a sincere, quiet tone he stated ” the Staff, Chef…and the Wine deserve the credit. Thank you.”
When everyone in “high end” restaurants are clamoring for credit, seeking the critics favors, or just plain obnoxious, it is a breath of fresh air to meet a manager focused on creating a memorable experience for everyone, destination diners, critics, fans, whoever! If I could cast my vote for Urban Farmer GM, it would be that gentleman who helped host a dinner for two people who simply wanted a wonderful night!
and that’s my 2-cents!
c.dunn, it’s lovely that you had such a fabulous night—but the last time I read such a glowing review of an establishment it was a plant by a member of its staff. For this very reason, I’m always suspicious of an and all glowing reviews of a hotel or restaurant I know to be “less than”.
And giving your money to company that knowingly violates labor laws is unethical.
zumpie, your cynicism is unfortunate. I am neither a plant or unethical. In a town filled with , green, “ethical”, educated, labor conscious “critics,” I find it hard to imagine a multi million dollar establishment would be able to violate labor laws. Your opinion of “less than” is neither mine nor fact.
When did you stay at the hotel or eat there? If it makes you feel better, they ran out of paper towels in the restroom.
Not as unfortunate as your naivite. It’s well documented that the restaurant routinely violated break and overtime laws prior to opening and to this day. Actually, that’s a quite common occurrence in most hotels and restaurants—including many that position themselves as socially concious. I’ve worked in many hotels and restaurants in this town as both hourly staff and management and trust me, it’s quite common (though not as egregious as was done by Sage).
The reason for this? Labor is a big expense and mid-level managers are under pressure to keep a lid on it by corporate bean counters who set difficult to reach margins. It isn’t about service, it’s about staffing properly—but if the money isn’t there you just violate the law.
Your defensive tone, BTW, all the more indicates that you’re a Sage employee.
Oh for crap’s sake, Zumpie–can’t you just accept that someone had a good time there? Just because everyone isn’t jumping on your “Urban Farmer Sucks!” bandwagon doesn’t mean they have ulterior motives.
Wow, I’m defensive?! As a parent of 2 it is a rare thing to get out and play. It is an extreme VALUE for our sanity. All I care about is that my wife and I had a good time! You still haven’t answered the question: when did you stay and/or eat there?
You maybe right regarding this labor dispute. I have never worked in this industry. You obviously have, I defer to your claim of knowledge. Thank you for sharing. How many sweat shops have you closed down?
One need not be a plant to want to foster honest, unbiased, non-malicious dialogue. You sound as if you are a recently fired Sage employee!
I don’t mean to razz you, I just say let’s give them a fair shake. If they succeed great! If not, let it be from poor execution and delivery….. not a witch hunt.
Actually, I’ve routinely received heat for refusing to violate my employees’ rights as a manager and have filed more than a few complaints as an employee. As you say, I am far more familiar with the inner workings than you are.
I visted the hotel on opening night and knew quite a bit about the behind the scenes workings of the place. And they definitely will have trouble given the progressively weakening economy. And why exactly should we “give a fair shake” to a company that doesn’t do so for their employees?
Pestogirl, I did comment that I was glad c.dunn enjoyed himself, just that normally such glowing reviews (and note, most others are quite mediocre at best) do indicate a plant. My last employer (and many others before them) made a cottage industry of such practices, for both internal and external evaluations.
Also….my inside sources confirm: the restaurant is busy only with happy hour/cocktailing biz (which ironically might be their saving grace). And Mark Woolford is a complete tool.
The hotel ranges from 20% – 40% occupancy. VERY bad. Especially considering they’ve had a DOS in place for almost a year, a large sales staff AND national referral “feeding” from Starwood (for both group and transient).
I’d say the bad economy is definitely hurting them!
And no, I have never, ever worked for Sage. But I have met quite a few of their transplants and know quite a few of the locals who work there, as well.
My wife and I stooped into UF Friday at happy hour. We sat at the bar, which was fairly busy. The space is very nice. The happy hour menu is very short . . . only 3 food items, including potato chips. We wanted a salad, so we ordered a Caesar to split and some chips. The food took a painfully ling amount of time to arrive. We expected the chips to arrive soon, but they came along with the salad. The chips were below what you get in in a Kettle bag and they were cold. You would think they fry them to order. The salad was very unimpressive. It was what one would expect at a a mid-level chain restaurant. Now, In understand that we only tried two items and they both weren’t the most dynamic of choices. But if they can’t get it right on something so simple, I’m going to pass on dinner.
I too do not work for The Nines. But I am in the the “biz” in a hotel with a healthy catering and restaurant business in town. So I too have a little inside info ( actual guests, concierge’s who work for the nines, and servers who know staff at the Nine/ UF. )
Zumpie’s information is correct. Business ( as is the same for everyone in town ) is suffering from the economy. Occupancy is down especially in business travel ( although the holiday season always is a down time ) and the restaurant is not doing near the numbers management had hoped for. Like the rest of Portland, happy hour is doing well all over town. ( Same with week-end brunch ) Dining is suffering every where.
In reality The Nines had to plan for some of this. The real test will be how they do in the Spring/Summer ( tourist season ) and how the catering department does during banquet season. I am sure the Nines catering department is 85-90% sold out for the holiday season. But it is tough out there. Many corporate policies with the current economy are not allowing lavish holiday celebrations ( Price Waterhouse Coopers, Morgan Stanley are not having their usual holiday gatherings for instance )
I wonder how long the Urban Farmer concept will survive? The food is good, the service is good but it is a tad over priced. No one can deny that this is the reason why their numbers are so low ( as is Lucier, and all those “Steakhouses” ) The problem with the Nines/Urban Faarmer is , hotels that “own” their Food and beverage operations have a different set of costs/problems. Money and Labor flow and are dependant upon occupancy. For a new venture, corporate does expect/accept a lose for a certain amount of time. But once that “time” is up patience can be short. I dont know this hospitality group. I have heard that this is their first real attempt at a 5 star experience. So maybe they will have more patience. If you believe the papers/ press they state that the economy will get worse, then take maybe 2 years to stabilize and get back on an upward trend. Can the Nines/UF survive this long? Only they know. But I am willing to bet the room rate’s will go down, the sales staff will be stream lined, and Urban Farmer may get “tweaked”.
Amoureuse, not only do I (as usual) agree completely (including banquet space being fully sold out Holiday-wise, but probably a bit undersold and with lots of receptions versus dinners) but I suspect we know each other since until fairly recently I worked in the sales and catering side, too.
And while Sage tried to improve on Kimpton’s business model of F&B separate from hotel (though in Sage’s case, catering goes to the hotel, so they further screw the pooch on that one), they overlooked a lot of things in doing so:
1) Kimpton’s own business model works only as a marketing strategy. In practice it creates a lot of conflict and all the pitfalls of the independent restaurant in a hotel–without the benefits of a client/lessee relationship for pressure, etc.
2) It is so freakin’ cost ineffective I don’t even know where to begin. A traditional hotel would have (depending on size and service level) an F&B Director, a banquet manager and a manager for the restaurant. This might be expanded in a larger hotel to an AGM of F&B, ass’t managers, etc. But generally, managment staff is lean–and gets it done. With this model we see there’s Hotel: F&B Director, Banquet Director, etc AND Restaurant: GM, AGM for each of the outlets, assorted managers, etc.
The result is an absurdly bloated management payroll, with lots of people doing the same thing (and frequently other key things being ignored). And no, service isn’t typically any better. And it’s also why it’s really hard to make a luxury hotel profitable unless you ARE at full occupancy.
And I rather suspect The Nines/Urban Farmer’s “goodwill” days are running out—especially given the leans against them and the original anticipation of getting to “pick their own clients” and “not be touched by the recession”.
You guys are right when it comes to the management heavy hotel style… I’ve worked in hotels and never understood the GM – AGM – Director of Sales – F&B manager – Assistant F&BM – Restaurant Manager – Assistant RM – Banquet Manager – Assistant BM – Captains – Exec chef, etc… But always short staff in the kitchen! As long those people do not understand that a restaurant should be chef driven, they’ll keep failing. When the chef has to sit in a meeting with all those managers telling him his labor cost is too high (sic) when they work 9 to 5 and take holidays off, that chef has to have a tough skin to go back working 60 hrs / week and punch his numbers!
There’s something seriously wrong with the way hotels are run, IMO.
*sigh*
I’m currently working in my third hotel restaurant, and I also agree with you. Management is always well staffed, while the hourly employees are told to work harder with less hours. Shifts are getting cut, employees sacked, and we see MULTIPLE managers working 40 hour weeks, taking three vacations in two months(true story) and overall not having much sympathy.
This isn’t the first time I’ve seen it, nor will it be the last.
Don’t forget Sales and Marketing Manager, Food Rebel, of which Urban Farmer has one for the restaurant. She’s a real peach. Heard she messed up the reservation system for their soft opening (friends and the like) so bad that when she was confronted on it, she blamed everyone but herself. If I had a party booked with her for the holidays, I would check, check, and re-check my reservation.
Lur Kerr, hilarious! And as we see she isn’t doing a whole lot to “market” the restaurant (unless you’re of the only bad press is no press school of thought)—and I doubt she’s managing to really book all THAT much business (limited space, bad economy). I suspect after the holidays she might be gone, since it’s not a position that’s really needed to fundamentally run the restaurant AND if she’s unable to use Open TAble (which also serves as their database) then what point does she serve?
BTW, I realize you’re not gonna give us her name, but where did she come from?
Hey Zumpie time to move on and stop being a disgruntled EX employee and hope that what the future holds for you is as good as you had it at Urban Farmer. Good Luck and hope you don’t hate your next job as much as the one you got canned from.
I agree that this thread needs to move on. Let’s get back to more interesting reports about the restaurant.
Already said, I never worked there. But now I’m happy to move on.
And….it’s time for a big update, kiddies!
Back during pre-opening days (mid-October), both the hotel’s GM, Fred Kleisner, and a corporate VP (of development???) told Ryan Frank of the big O that they wouldn’t need to worry about business, their sales department was working extra hard and they wouldn’t need to lower guest room rates because that was what losers “who don’t know HOW to manage hotels did”.
In January, after a holiday season of 20% – 40% occupancy and a bleak outlook, they launched their $99 for 99 days promotion. Not even a bad idea, but isn’t that what losers do?
Last Thursday, Ryan Frank (yes, the same reporter) ran a story about their wobbly future and how while they won’t reveal how far off original projections their revenues are (translation: embarassing level of complete suck), they need the PDC to defer their repayment of our tax dollars (at interest rates ranging from a high of 5% to a low of 0%) or they will default on their loans to JP Morgan Chase. All while they A) lie that things are great to the Portland Business Journal and B) prepare to open ANOTHER hotel up the street.
Last night, they fired Urban Farmer GM Mark Woolford (to the rejoicing of the staff)—though details are currently fuzzy. And a lot of other managers were canned before him when they tried to improve things.
I wonder what’s next? Once again The Nines/Urban Farmer is like our very own AIG…Or soap opera