During our most recent episode of So You Want to Run a Restaurant, hosts Claudia Saric and Spencer Michiel welcomed Bridget Foy, the owner and namesake of a landmark South Philly establishment. Bridget Foy’s has been a mainstay on Philadelphia’s famous South Street since Bridget’s parents first opened doors in 1978.
Today, Bridget Foy’s is a source of comfort and consistency in a constantly changing neighborhood. But Bridget’s is also a story of triumph over adversity. Bridget was literally “born into the business.” After all, her parents named their fledgling restaurant after her when she was still just a baby.
So Bridget’s story isn’t about starting a restaurant from scratch. This is a story about rebuilding a restaurant from the ground up. That’s what Bridget had to do when a devastating fire consumed the beloved neighborhood hangout in 2017. It’s quite a story, one that you should hear from Bridget herself.
But we also wanted to share some of our biggest takeaways from our inspiring conversation with Bridget.
Growing Up in the Restaurant Business
What does it take to run a successful restaurant? Well, it certainly helps to grow up in one. “I was seven years old,” recalls Bridget, “when I started working as a hostess. I’ve done every job in the business.” Bridget gained more than industry experience. She came of age surrounded by an extremely close-knit and supportive community.
“We're situated between two great neighborhoods here in Philadelphia – Queen Village and Society Hill,” Bridget explains. “So we've really become like the Cheers of the neighborhood, where people can come in and they always know somebody, and they can always strike up a conversation and meet somebody new in the neighborhood.”
“Growing up here was a lot of fun,” Bridget remembers. “The regulars were like family.”
Starting Over
“I think one thing about owning a restaurant is you continually have to adapt and grow and change the way you do things and be able to do things on the fly,” Bridget tells us.
She would certainly know. When fire struck her business in 2017, the future of Bridget Foy’s was anything but certain.
“It was pretty intense,” says Bridget. “Sometimes a restaurant becomes almost like a person. It’s kind of like they're living and breathing. They're like a family member as well as a business. So you really feel the sense of loss and shock and grief that you might experience after losing a loved one.”
Five Big Takeaways From Our Chat With Bridget Foy
So where exactly do you go from there?
If you’re Bridget Foy, you roll up your sleeves and start the recovery process. Fortunately, after 40 years of planting roots in the community, the people around her showed up just when Bridget needed them most. Below are just a few of our favorite moments from Bridget’s story of triumph over adversity.
1. It Pays To Embed Yourself In Your Community
Bridget found herself at a crossroads. How could she restore her family’s legacy in the face of such loss? And how could she care for the team of workers that had become a part of this family? Fortunately, the community stepped up to help answer that question.
Bridget Foy’s was planning for a big Halloween party when disaster struck. Naturally, the party seemed like a distant concern after the fire. But, remembers Bridget, “We live close to a historic open air market, and the community was like, ‘Well, let's still have the party.’”
“Close to 1,000 people showed up for an impromptu Halloween party, and we made it a fundraiser for our staff,” says Bridget. “It was awesome because our beer vendors donated beer, and other restaurants came out and cooked. It was just really, really touching to see such an outpouring of love and support for the business. And I think at that moment, we were like, ‘Okay, we have to rebuild.’”
2. Creating a Sense of Community Within
It took time to rebuild. But Bridget boldly used this time to grow her business. As the neighborhood waited for Bridget Foy’s to return, Bridget opened a new restaurant just around the corner. Cry Baby is modern pasta concept that immediately earned the neighborhood’s affection
One reason the new location was so popular was because it channeled the same warmth and familiarity that helped make the original Bridget Foy’s a neighborhood staple. This is because Bridget carried her family’s philosophy into the new business.
“We wanted to keep that sense of community and neighborhood,” says Bridget. “And I think one thing my parents were really great at was making sure that the staff really felt like they were part of a family.” Not only did Cry Baby operate in the same spirit, but it also provided a place of employment while some of Bridget Foy’s staff members awaited reopening.
3. Set Clear Expectations for Your Staff
Bridget Foy’s may be a family business, but over the years, Bridget has learned how to balance that sense of community with a proven set of standard operating procedures. Bridget explains that “it's really important that from day one, you’re saying to people, ‘Hey, here's a list of our expectations and goals. Here's a manual.’”
“We're obviously not a corporate setting,” says Bridget. “But some of those things are really good to have – those standards of service.”
Still, it’s just as important to make sure your staff understands the reasons behind these procedures. “I'm going to go over it with you and say ‘This is why we're doing this step.’ It’s not just like, ‘Okay, this is how we do it,’ but also, ‘This is why we're doing it.’”
4. Personalizing the Experience
Bridget Foy’s is a beloved neighborhood institution, but it still takes a lot of work to keep people coming back. Even with the support of the neighborhood behind her, Bridget acknowledges the value of technology in enhancing the customer experience.
“We use Resy as our reservation platform,” says Bridget, “So we really try to encourage servers to take notes when a guest comes in. Did they love a certain wine? Did they really enjoy this pasta? Take down the name of their kids or their dog…People love when you remember stuff about them.”
Bridget points out that this technology also makes it easy to notate diner preferences, food allergies and more. That’s why she trains her team to “really lean in and get to know people and put some of those notes in. It's almost like a cheat sheet when they come in.” Servers can use that cheat sheet to offer alternative menu items to vegetarian or gluten free diners before they can even ask. That kind of personalization makes your diners feel seen.
5. Some Things Never Change
Even after everything that Bridget Foy’s has been through, and even with all the changes in the restaurant industry, Bridget says that certain things will always be true.
“One thing that remains constant – you have to have good food.”
But there’s more to it than just the menu. “You want to have good service,” says Bridget. “You have to make people feel warmth and hospitality. And I think when you make people feel good and they have a great experience, that's what really makes the restaurant special.”
If customer loyalty and community support are any indication, Bridget Foy’s is truly a special place.
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