So much for humility... oh yeah... I'm really busy

So it looks like at least one person in the world is reading my blog!!! My ego was extensively stroked when I found out that someone I'm doing some design work for was reading my blog on a regular basis. Now I feel the uncontrollable urge to write something meaningful and deep. Alas, I have nothing to talk about. Oh well.

If there is any meat to this entry, here it is. I'M TOO BUSY!! It seems like I'm constantly behind in one place or another. When I feel like I'm catching up at work, I'm falling behind with my family. When I catch up with my family, the restaurant is begging for my attention. Someone is always getting shortchanged. I'm not sure what the point is here. I'm just all over the place. Sorry. Here is nice picture of some ribs. That seems to make people happy. I am such a sham.

Two Stops on the BBQ Trail and an Education

I had to run to Nashville this week so I took the opportunity to sample some barbecue along the way.

The first place I stopped was Jack's BBQ in Nashville. A colleague described the ribs as "fall off the bone" tender so I had to try it out. This place is located right in the middle of everything in downtown Nashville and had a great atmosphere. The rather rude guy who served my food even added to the atmosphere of the place. The pork sandwich was very good, but I came here for ribs. I have only one comment... these are not "fall off the bone" tender.

First off, you don't really want your ribs to fall off the bone. They should hold on just well enough for you to get the meat in your mouth. Then the meat should release cleanly from the bone leaving a bone that, as Kenny says, if you threw it at the dog he would look up at you and say, "What's this?" If there is meat left on the bone, the ribs need more time on the smoker.

This brings me to Sugar's Ribs in Chattanooga. This restaurant is very easy to see from I-24, but is nearly impossible to get to. It was definitely worth stopping. I ordered a half slab and a "mini-que" which is essentially a barbecue sandwich that is the size of a Krystal. These guys do ribs the right way. I can't say that spare ribs are my favorite, but at least these were cooked well. The spicy slaw was a great complement to the pork sandwich and the grilled cornbread was very tasty. I'll definitely give this place another try.

That's it for this installment. I wish I had some really inspiring words, but not so much right now. All this talk about food has made me hungry.

Pleasing People

I like to make people happy. I try to do it in my family, in my full-time job, and especially at Holy Smokes. I just like to see people smiling. It genuinely warms my heart to see someone's eyes light up when I set a rack of ribs down in front of them. My other favorite activity is watching them when they take that first bite and the meat cleanly separates from the bone and they chew it is ecstasy as a little barbecue sauce is dabbed in the corner of their mouth. The final joy comes when I see their plate of empty bones and the only thing they're upset about is the fact that all of their ribs are gone. I love it.

That is why I take negative feedback very seriously. I do not like to hear that someone has dined at my restaurant and had an unpleasant experience. I recently received feedback from an anonymous customer via our website saying that the food was just okay but they otherwise had a rotten experience. I am grieved to hear that. My goal is to make my restaurant a place where lives are changed. I want people to leave happier than they were when they arrived.

I honestly think that we do a pretty good job. There is always room for improvement. We are aware of our flaws and we are working as fast as possible to correct them. Even still, I hear that you can't please everybody... and that kills me. I guess it is something I have to get used to.

I always want to know what we are doing right, and what we are doing wrong. If you have comments, you can send them to our e-mail address on the "Location and Contact" page of the website or you can leave feedback on the "Whadayathink?" page. Either way, all three owners see the comments.

I would lastly like to encourage everyone to please give us an opportunity to right whatever wrongs we may have committed. The last feedback I received was sent completely anonymously. I really don't think it is fair to completely bash my work and not give me an opportunity to answer your feedback and make it right. We will bend over backwards for you if you'll give us a chance. Whoever wrote the feedback that I'm referring to, if you happen to read this, please give us another chance. Download the coupon and come in for a free sandwich. We've learned a lot in the last six months and I feel that while we have a long way to go, we are light-years ahead of where we were.

$3.18 to Happiness

From the time my son was born, I thought about how great it would be to sit with him at Sam's and enjoy a cheap hot dog. It is even better than I imagined. My dad and I used to go to Taco Bell together. That was our thing. I'm sure that my son and I will have many more of our "things" but for now, $3.18 buys an afternoon of great memories.

Ill found confidence

I have a confession. I have no freakin' clue what I am doing. I am a big fake. I do my best to present myself with confidence to my friends, coworkers, and clients, but I am a big mess. Somehow, though, the people I work with have complete confidence in my ability to complete my job and my clients have complete confidence in my ability to get their job done for them. I don't get it.

I have no idea how to run a business. With the help and support of two partners, I'm supposed to take a dream and keep it from making me lose my house... and theirs. I'm supposed to design and build state-of-the-art television studios while the state-of-the-art is changing almost hourly. Most heavily on my mind is how I'm going to design a non-traditional radio studio that will likely be very different than any other studio built. I've never designed a radio studio. I'm not even sure how a radio works.

I guess I just have to take it one step at a time, learn what is necessary to complete the task at hand, and trust that my Creator is going to care for me whether I succeed or fail. I looked for a passage of the bible that would pound home my point, but that would only feed my propensity for being a fake and make people think that I'm more spiritual than I am. Instead, I present my logic. God created all living things. I remember a verse that basically says that if God cares for and provides for simple birds, how much more does he care for those of us who he created to love Him. My trust and faith in God is weak, but I believe Him nonetheless.

That's all I have to say about that... for now.

How Someone Else Would Do Your Job

I've very recently had a unique and great opportunity. We had a project come in at work on a short timeline and there was literally no person to work on it. So the president of the company did what any good president would do. Against everyone's recommendation and to some engineer's utter shock, he decided that he would begin the design process on the project until an engineer was available. The rest of us started looking for jobs, for we were sure we would all be out of work after the debacle was completed.

The truth is that I didn't give my boss enough credit. He has done an amazing job on the project. He has masterfully represented and protected his organization and provided excellent results for his client.

This whole experience gave me the chance to see how someone else would do my job given the chance. I was honestly humiliated and humbled by the way my boss handled the whole situation. He knew what everyone was saying and thinking, yet he did what he knew was right. There are a few things I can identify that I've learned so far:

1. Get as much outside advice as possible. My boss has elicited help from almost every person in my office. No one can possibly know everything. Someone else may have a perspective on a situation that you haven't considered.
2. Be absolutely forthcoming and outright with your client, no matter how much it hurts. Your customer needs to know when you make a mistake and more importantly, when they are making a mistake.
3. Make sure that your client acknowledges their own mistakes... in writing. Some people say this is "covering your ---". I say it is good business.
4. Never underestimate your superiors. They are where they are for a reason.
   

Five Guys

My family and I ate at Five Guys Burgers and Fries with some friends last night. The food was good, but I was very impressed with the operation. They have been open for about a week, and they are handling the crowds like they have been doing this forever. I remember that when we first opened Holy Smokes BBQ, we were struggling to get through the slowest days. Things are a lot better, but it particularly impressed me that this company was handling amazing crowds out of the gate.

You might be able to blame this on the fact that it is a franchise and they have experience. A couple of doors down, the new Steak and Shake didn't have the same success. Legend has it that they had a number of employees walk off the job the first weekend because the store couldn't handle the amount of business.

I was also impressed with the decor of Five Guys. It had a great, upbeat atmosphere. The staff acted like they wanted to be there which, in my opinion, make customers want to be there. The really amazing part was that there was no major expenditure on interior decorations or fixtures. They had the same cheap tables and chairs that we have in our restaurant, and they had signs up around the room with quotes that newspapers have made about their food across the country. Nothing major, just music and a lot of smiling faces.

My conclusion is that the people make the atmosphere much more than furniture or decorations do. If you are greeted by a smiling face in an empty white room, you'll leave happier than if you walked into a lavishly decorated place but the person you meet is sullen and seems unhappy. The guy that did it for me was the guy that gave me my food. He seemed excited to give it to me and tell me that the numbers on the sandwiches match the numbers on the receipt so that I know who's sandwich is who's. I walked away feeling good because of him.