Inspiration: Kenny Shopsin

Kenny Shopsin doesn't like press, or attention.  I apologize, but I am going to write about you anyways.  It's not like that many people read my blog.  I have not met Mr. Shopsin in person, nor have I eaten at his restaurant, Shopsin's in Greenwich Village.

I started hearing and reading about about Kenny Shopsin a few years ago.  I remember rumors of a 900 item menu, and a long list of rules for his patrons.  There were stories of him kicking people of out of Shopsin's a la Soup Nazi.  I didn't hear or read anything about Shopsin's over the past year or so, until one day, gleaming like a beacon on top of a bookcase in a used bookstore, I found Kenny's cookbook, Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin.  

They say you should never judge a book by it's cover, but Eat Me has the best cover of any cookbook, ever.  You know when a lady greets you with a big smile and you know you are going to like her?  That's the impression I got with the cover, and the impression was right.  Only $12 used, "cha-ching" went the register and I was out the door with a big smile.

As I read Kenny's eloquent words about the love for his kids, for his patrons, for cooking, for control, and for his abhorrence of bullshit, I felt like a kindred spirit was talking to me.  The way he interweaves the subjects of cooking, family, and sex is impressive.  I hope I get to story-tell like he does someday. 

What made the most impression on me from Eat Me is how Kenny controls his customer base.  Shopsin's is a small diner in a big market, and Kenny is particular about who he wants to cook for.  For Kenny, Shopsin's is not just a place to work, to make a buck, it's practically a home for him and his family, and he doesn't like assholes in his home.  He wants conversations with his customers, he wants connections.  Kenny wants to have a give-and-take relationship with each person who walks in the door at Shopsins.  He wants to cook delicious food for everyone there, and he does not think payment is enough of a return on his investment.  He wants feedback, appreciation, conversation, and loyalty.  Anyone who is not up for conversation, who has a bad attitude, who shows the slightest risk of being bad customers, are shown out the door before ordering.  He has an excellent base of regulars who support Shopsin's, and thus support him and his family.  Shopsin's doesn't turn a huge profit, but Kenny and his wife Eve have raised five kids on the grocery store-turned-diner despite a few re-locations.

How does this apply to Linea?  I will specifically look for a small restaurant space, centrally located in a big neighborhood.  We will have excellent food at affordable prices, with amicable service and lively ambiance.  If we are a small restaurant in a big market with a line out the door, I will not be hesitant to kick anyone out who comes in with an attitude, with an overblown sense of entitlement, or who behaves inappropriately.  Linea will have the opportunity to cook for the people whom cooks enjoy cooking for - genuinely good, fun people who appreciate our craft.  And I will leave the asshole customers out of the equation, for the other restaurants to deal with.

http://www.shopsins.com/