We caught up with the brilliant and insightful David Weiss a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
David, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you as a business owner?
I had the chance to work in the world best amusement park in German for 10 years, Europa park, a family owned business, I started in a restaurant as a line cook and worked myself up to become a manager, by the end of my career there I was in charge to manage two small snacks in the park.
Working in Germany and especially in a family owned empire where everything is create to be as perfect as possible and become successful and to make all the customers around the world there main priority. I learned so much, I always say that was the best education that I could get and that helped me to become who I am now, a business owner here one the United States.
Respect, punctuality, work ethic where very important, many rules and they all had to be followed very strictly, I had to work with some very strict superiors, even if it wasn’t easy everyday, I know see the results from all those years.
David, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I came to America in 2014 as a chef in a small restaurant in Madison WI, after almost 2 years I felt the need to grow and fly on my own, I decided to purchase a restaurant in Florida on a small island called Tierra Verde close to St. Petersburg. I opened “Alsace French bistro” in July 2016. We offer an authentic home style cuisine, where all the products and ingredients are hand picked and locally sourced. Next year we are celebrating our 10th anniversary. We became very popular among our locals and many snow birds that call the island there home for half of the year.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Well all started in early 2016 when I decided stop by a restaurant somewhere here in America back then I was already a Chef in a French bistro in Madison, WI, I did like my job and loved to live in this country, but I wanted to fly on my own and to become my own boss, take my own creative decisions, back then i still owned a small apartment in France that I just finished to pay off so i put it on the marked and sold it, that was luckily just enough to cover the cost of the purchase of the restaurant in Tierra Verde.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Honestly Word to Mouth I would say, my bistro is very tucked away and not visible from the Main Street, luckily our customers where so thrilled that thy talked to their friends and neighbors about us and so within the months and years after opening we became a staple in the area, and one thing led to an other, like the local tv channel start knocking at our door to get an interview that led to some tv production on a local news channel as well as on a national network, a book and many other interviews later we finally happy to be known in all the area bringing in people from all over the place into our bistro to try our food, I am very great full of that.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.alsacefrenchbistro.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alsacefrenchbistro?igsh=MXNuZjlibDJ2emhucw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1au7XQrKi9/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Other: https://www.wfla.com/bloom-tampa-bay/french-cuisine-with-a-healthy-twist/
