|
| Photo credit: Buck Ennis |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| Please note: All information reflects age, title and company at date of publication. |
| Randy Garutti, 30 |
|
2006 |
| Force behind the four stars |
| Director of operations |
| Union Square Hospitality Group |
|
| By Lisa Fickenscher |
As the 24-year-old general manager of Canlis restaurant in Seattle, Randy Garutti was feeling homesick. He had worked at eateries from Hawaii to Aspen and now longed to return to the East.
Though owner Chris Canlis knew he would lose a prized employee, he sympathized with Mr. Garutti's plight and contacted an acquaintance in New York to lobby on his behalf.
"You'd be making an enormous mistake if you didn't meet with this kid," Danny Meyer of Union Square Hospitality Group recalls Mr. Canlis saying.
That conversation helped Mr. Garutti land a job with Mr. Meyer's growing empire. Starting as general manager of Tabla, he moved to Union Square Cafe and then became director of operations for the entire company in just five years.
One of the youngest senior managers at USHG, Mr. Garutti is the liaison between the restaurants and other ventures in the 1,000-employee firm.
He's been grooming himself for the role since he was a student at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration. Most of all, he says, "I want to be seen as a coach and a great leader."
The sports metaphor is fitting. A self-described "athletic fanatic" who runs marathons and enjoys mountain biking, Mr. Garutti says that in his next life, "I'd like to come back as a relaxed person." |
| |
|
|
