We were lucky to catch up with Elyse Dana recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Elyse thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What do you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry?
Large corporations in the food and beverage industry often overshadow local establishments, impacting community dynamics. This can result in the diminishing presence of culturally rich and traditional culinary practices. Standardization and mass production contribute to the homogenization of regional cuisines, posing challenges to preserving authenticity and diversity. Achieving a balance between corporate influence and the preservation of community and cultural values remains an ongoing struggle within the industry.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Being from the town my business is located in doesn’t hurt, however, I think my reputation was built on authenticity. Everything I do comes from my authentic self- which ultimately is why I was destined to own my own business. I believe that customers and the broader community can sense when a product or service comes from the heart and they truly appreciate it!
Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?
Iris had been hired to build a cocktail hour masterpiece for 175 people, and after two years of Covid postponements, this had to be perfect. The week leading up to the event was full of shopping and prepping for the wedding. On Thursday before the event, I was notified that I had been exposed to Covid. Devastation ensued. What was I going to do?!
The clock started, I took necessary precaution’s but worked diligently to be as prepped as possible. By Thursday night I was developing symptoms and by Friday, I. Was. Sick.
I had a two staff planning to help me day of, but they had never executed something to this scale solo.
I had to make a decision to close the restaurant on Saturday, and use my cook in my absence.
Contact Info:
- Website: Iriseatsmaine.com
- Instagram: @iriseatsmaine
Image Credits
Elyse Dana Lauren Lear