Brennan restaurant group offers lesson in setting standards for quality, culture and service
True hospitality starts with making a friend, according to the Brennan philosophy of running world-class New Orleans restaurants. Culinary matriarch Miss Ella and her siblings, Dorothy (“Dottie”), Dick and John Brennan, understood that when they took over at landmark Commander’s Palace restaurant in the Garden District in 1974. The stately museum-like space has served as home to chefs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse and is still run by Brennan family members Claire “Lally” Brennan and Ti Adelaide Martin.
Dick’s son retained that key hospitality ingredient when he started his namesake Dickie Brennan & Company in 1991 with his sister. Now the family is expanding the interpretation of that vision with a fifth restaurant. We asked Managing Partner Steve Pettus, who works with Dickie and Lauren Brennan Brower, about the signature approach to serving locals and visitors at Palace Cafe, Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse, Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House, Tableau and, now, Pascal’s Manale.
The Friend Zone
“Dick Brennan used to say, first you make a friend, not with the intention of what am I going to get out of this but to make a connection even if you never see the person again for the rest of your life,” explained Pettus, a lawyer by training.
The secret to making a real friend is to relax, according to Pettus. Often that happens over a meal, especially one that has heart at the center. His touchstone is remembering all the big Sunday suppers in Europe, where all the kids brought friends and the friends brought friends and his mother was always welcoming.
“That is hospitality, the joy of watching people eat food made with care. It fills your soul and all the other worries go away for a little while,” he said. “We are just happy to be part of that.”
Teaching staff at all levels to fulfill that mandate by always looking for ways to go above and beyond is one of the Brennan trademarks. “We say, ‘It’s never about you. It’s always about them. It’s better to give than to receive,’” said Pettus.
“Each of our 600 employees is an individual, and it takes individual care to make sure that everyone is doing what they’re supposed to be doing and understand why they are doing it,” he said.
Aligned with that culture of respect is the recent establishment of a non-qualified employee benefit plan so tenured employees can participate in the success of the operation.
“The care and consideration we show for each other is completely within our control,” said Pettus. “When I get to work in the morning, I feel safe. I’m surrounded by people who care for me, have my best interests at heart and know I care for them.”
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By safe, he doesn’t just mean from physical harm, but nurtured. Training everyone to live up to that ideal is even more important than the etiquette rules of presenting, the technical aspects, the philosophy that you underpromise and overdeliver, ensuring the best product arrives at the back door and that it is handled properly. Those things are the ticket to entry. “You always strive to exceed the guest’s expectations, but never by so much that it gets in the way,” he said.
Pettus always brings the conversation back to the people. Dining has to be a human experience, right down to answering the phone. It can’t be a memorized script. “The individual has to come out in every experience. Because if they’re just a bunch of robots, that’s not who we are,” he said.
A Culture of Nourishing
“New Orleans is a little bit like a foreign land to many visitors, with all its flavors and traditions,” said Pettus. Brennan kitchens and dining rooms combine the history of the area with fresh interpretations and Southern charm.
Each restaurant has just a little bit of a different flavor. Palace Cafe is in a 1905 French Quarter building that once housed the oldest music store in America and is an institution on Canal Street. Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse is in the basement of a garage that is the oldest pre-formed concrete building in the state. Tableau “oozes charm” in Pettus’ words, with history going back to when the area was a Spanish territory.
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When bringing an existing business into the group as they recently did with Pascal’s Manale, they have to add the Brennan charm without alienating those who already love that place. The 111-year old Italian restaurant is known as the birthplace of New Orleans-style barbecued shrimp and that won’t change, but some of the sourcing may be stepped up a bit. “You can polish the jewel, but don’t change the jewel,” Pettus said.
Similarly, at another new venture, Audubon Clubhouse by Dickie Brennan & Co., in Orland Park, the team is bringing elevated hospitality to catering at an Acadian-style venue with a wraparound porch in the midst of oak trees and a golf course. Whether serving at Audubon Aquarium & Insectarium, Acorn Cafe in New Orleans City Park next to Louisiana Children’s Museum, at The Commissary Kitchen + Market in the Garden District or at a catering gig, the ethos is the same. Make friends. “People just like walking in and hugging you,” he said.
That warmth is for locals and visitors alike. A third of group travelers who come in are from business events, and they have an outsized impact on the success of the outlets.
“In banquets, it’s about the presentation details. When a person trusts you with some of the most special days, it is a big deal. Our job is to say, ‘I’ve got this; your job is to relax and enjoy.’”
Putting guests at ease and letting them know that you’re going to have a great time is an art. “You have to set the expectation and then deliver that expectation and go beyond that,” he said. He pointed to little touches like reusing flowers from a previous event and not charging, and making sure every technical detail is right. “We are constantly trying to up our game,” he said.
After the recent growth, the team is hyper-focusing on quality. Pettus declared: “It’s time to clear our eyes and start with a clean slate, rethink everything we’re doing and find a better way.”
