We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Misty Mansouri. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Misty below.
Misty, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you?
Im going to start by giving you a little back story. I signed my lease for Lady Byrd Cafe located in Echo Park on Jan 1st 2020. We were slated for a grand opening March 2020 which we were hit by a global pandemic. I opened for takeout service immediately, in that time I was able to get to know so many of the locals who have been in Echo Park for decades and as soon as we were able to open for full service we did.
It really became my mission to give customers a safe place to dine. We are blessed and at times cursed, as the entire restaurant is outdoors. fortunately we have had a lot of success, despite the many challenges. We have some wonderful regulars who live in the neighborhood who I really cherish. One woman in particular, Her name is Marion She is in her 90’s and she is an incredible Human.
In 2023 we had a tremendous amount of rain which was crushing, following by the writers, actors strike and business was greatly affected.
One day Marion came in, and she said ” You don’t seem like yourself, you seem stressed.” I shared with her it was a rough time financially. Marion always sings a song for me when she is there., so she sang me a lovely song. The following day when I came in, an employee said “Marion was here and that she had left something for me”. She would often bring me treats. However it was a card, when I opened it there was a check for $5,000 I instantly felt my eyes well up. I of course did not accept it, but it was so endearing, generous and kind.
Being a business owner, especially in Hospitality can be a rough gig, and there are a lot of days I want to throw in the towel. Then there are moments with people like Marion, you meet along the way and in one second you remember exactly why you do what you do.
Misty, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am a native Angelino. I mostly grew up in West Hollywood. my first job was at the Farmers Market at a Mexican food kiosk when I was 13. I have spent most of my life working in Hospitality. I started serving, hosting, bartending I then opened the first mega nightclub as a GM in Hollywood in 2004 we were the pioneers of Electronic Music. and hosting large scale events. I later went into event production and started a management company where I partnered with Sofitel Hotel on the Bar and Restaurant. I lived in Echo Park from 2004-2010 It was there that I connected with my life Partner and became pregnant with my Son. I have a lot of fond memories from that time in my life. Naturally when the opportunity came up to open Lady Byrd Cafe it felt like the Universe had guided me there.
Lady Byrd Cafe is a beautiful outdoor Cafe/ Restuarant It truly is hidden Gem. It’s located back towards the Hills in a residential neighborhood. It is Unique and transcending. The goal is to feel the comforts of being home, while feeling like you are no longer in Los Angeles.
We strive to give everyone an experience. We have made it through some very challenging times, and we continue to do so. We are continuing to learn and move with the tide. The Industry is changing, and we are absolutely doing what we need to do to move with it, while keeping the integrity of the brand.
I am m most proud of the diversity we have at Lady Byrd Cafe. We have every age group, gender, race, Ethnicity and Religion. including Dogs and KIDS. IT’S A BEAUTIFUL THING!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I started this Journey with a Pandemic, Everything was difficult. From getting staff, setting the bar and expectations, finishing up any design, down to getting products. Managing safety with staff, and patrons, while trying our best to give everyone an experience. We went through protests that were pretty aggressive , fires, incredible amounts of crime we have been burglarized several times.. Inflation is through the roof and so are wages. We have seen floods of restaurants closing because the cost of operating a restaurant is close to impossible in the current climate, and operating any business is very difficult in California. It’s amazing we have made it almost 5 years. Resilience seems to be in my nature.
Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?
I have had so many crazy, sad, scary and close calls – experiences working in Hospitality over the years.. When I was bartending 30 years ago I worked at a club that mostly did Hip Hop events. This was the early 2000’s a riot broke out, and the next thing I knew I had 2 men coming at the bar with guns pointed at us. We grabbled the cash drawer and ran to the back room and locked the door. It was intense! I actually went through 2 riots at the same place. I worked there for close to a decade, and met some really amazing people as well. When I was a GM sadly I watched someone shoot and kill one of my security guys. We had 2000 people in the venue at the time, and probably had close to 150 employees working. A man was denied entry, and he came back hours later and pulled out a gun. Looking back, I really don’t know how I held it down and kept it together. You have seconds to respond. The staff really was a big Family, just the looks on the faces of our security team as they urgently tried to keep him alive, doing CPR and rushing him off in an ambulance. Getting patrons out safely, and a therapist onsite for Staff. Then walking investigators through a crime scene. The following day we had a sold out show. Leading the staff to work through the grief, and shock.
I could probably write a book of short stories about spending my Life in Hospitality. From the outside I am sure people think it’s a life of glam.. However I am here to tell you, it is not. It’s really hard work, very high stress. You really have to be a little crazy and have a whole lot of passion and love for what you do. Life at the Cafe, is far more calm. We have great months, some not so great months, and some in between months. Over-all tho It is far less stressful and I get to enjoy a beautiful Space every day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ladybyrdcafe.com
- Instagram: @ladybyrdcafe
- Facebook: lady Byrd Cafe
- Yelp: lady Byrd Cafe
