ushg wine spectator may, 2012

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W i n e S p e c ta t o r CONTENTS May 31,2012 Vol. 37. No.2When Danny Meyer started in restaurants, he proved a natural at hospitality. But theworld isfilled with restaurateurs who are good at making their diners feel caredfor.Meyer has successfully found aformula for reproducing that on a large scale. -COVER STORY

42 I T h e p ri nc e o f N e wY o r k d in in g

COVER STORY42 I The Meyer Method New Yorkrestaurateur DannyMeyer places the diner front and center at his trendsettingdestinations. FromUnion Square Cafe to Gramercy Tavern toShake Shack and beyond-the story of one man's quest toachieve his vision of excellence M it ch F ra nk

49 I New York Dining Menu A complete list ofhis Manhattan restaurants56 I The Sizzle Behind Shake Shack How a uniquetake on hamburgers and fries grewa single hot dog cartinto a chain with global aspirations

69 I Sou th A f r ica 's d ive r s ity

FeaturesTASTING REPORTS69 I South Africa's Hidden Gems A bevy of deliciousreds and whites awaits wine lovers with a sense of discovery J am es M o le sw o rt h103 I Austria's Twin Bill Riesling and Gruner Veltlinerdeliver firm structures and aging potential in 2010 KimMarcusENTERTAINING61 I Celebrate, New England Style Bringing the feasthome with the help of a Massachusetts oyster farm and tried,and-true family recipes O wen D uganTHE ENVIRONMENT79 I Back to the Land in Italy Three artisanal vintnersand their families carve out niches with overlooked grapes anddiverse terroirs Robe rt C amut oTRAVEL88 I Exploring Long Island A photo essayand guide toNew York'sgentle winemaking landscape S a ra Ma tt hew s


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. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 1 THIS ISSUE 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Danny MeyerCelebrity chefs get most ofthe spotlight in today'sculinary culture. But in New York,an honor roll ofrestaurant owners who patrol the dining room, notthe kitchen, has created and sustained some of thecity's top dining spots.The tradit ion dates to the 19th century and Manhattan 's first

serious restaurant, Delmonico's; established by Swiss brothers in1827, it evolved through many locations and chefs while becom-ing known as the finest restaurant in the United States. HenriSoule opened Le Pavillon in 1941 and set the standard forFrench restaurants for 30 years. Sirio Maccioni of Le Cirque,Paul Kovi and Tom Margittai ofThe Four Seasons, and CharlesMasson of La Grenouille are additional examples.

Today, the restaurateur who issetting the bar for hospitality,diversity and growth, in New York and beyond, isDanny Meyer.

Meyer opened his first restaurant, Union Square Cafe, in1985. He expanded only reluctantly, persuaded by top chefTom Colicchio to partner in what became Gramercy Tavern in1994. But once the ball started roll ing, Meyer moved fromstrength to strength.

His Union Square Hospitality Group now operates more than20 restaurants, from fine dining venues to catering operations atmuseums and sports arenas to the phenomenally successfulburger chain called Shake Shack.

It's a uniquely American success story, as passion and hardwork turned a hopeful novice into an industry leader. There wereplenty of ups and downs along the way, including the develop-ment and eventual sale of Wine Spec ta to r Grand Award-winningEleven Madison Park at its peak, but through it al l Meyer honeda philosophy of hospitality and service that issetting standardsaround the country.

Youmay have eaten in a Meyer restaurant , and you may havemet him in one of his dining rooms, welcoming his guests. Butour profile, written by associate editor Mitch Frank, delvesdeeply into Meyer's personal history and his business. It's a fasci-nating story for anyone interested in the restaurant industry, orin human nature.

Our tasting reports this issue span two continents, touchingdown in Austria and South Africa.They focus on different varieties-Riesling andGruner Veltliner in the Old World country, Syrah and CheninBlanc in the Southern Hemisphere. But these two wine regionsshare an emphasis on fresh fruit and rninerality, on low-alcohol,food-friendly wines that are sleek and racy.Let our expert tastersguide you to the top wines and best values from each.

Our dining stories take you from the Pacific Coast to NewEngland. Editor at large Harvey Steiman reviews some exciting

new restaurants in San Francisco, while features editor OwenDugan traveled to the rocky shores of Massachusetts to bring useasy,delicious recipes from a fisherman's family feast.Not least , we offer a photo essay on a region that brings i t alltogether-a distinctive geography, a long history, a lively, loca-vore food culture and an emerging wine industry. I t's the EastEnd ofLong Island, and once you get beyond the glitz and glam-our of the Hamptons, you'll f ind everything we love about theworld ofwine. Check out our recommendations, and let usknowwhat you think.

Marvin R. ShankenEditor and Publisher

Thomas MatthewsExecutive Editor

MAY 31. 2012 WINE SPECTATOR 7


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Danny Meye r ( s ta n di ng ,a t rig ht) g re ets g ue sts inT he Mo de rn 's d in in gro om , w hil e w in e d ire ct orE h re n A sh ke na zi ( le ft )d ec an ts a s e le ct io n f ro mt he 1 0 ,O OO -b ot tl e c e ll ar .


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AST OCTOBER, DANNY M,EYERWAS ON TOP OF THEWORLD.THE NEW YORK RESTAURATEUR WAS OVERSEEING MORETHAN A DOZEN VENUES IN THE BIG APPLE, SPANNING INSTYLE FROM THE HAMBURGER STAND SHAKE SHACK TOTHE CLASSIC GRAMERCY TAVERN. BUTTHE JEWELIN HIS CROWN

WAS SLIPPING FROM HIS GRASP.Meyer had opened Eleven Madison Park in 1998, and guided it

to the pinnacle of culinary success: three stars from the MichelinGuide, four stars from T he N ew Y ork T im es and a Grand Award fori ts wine l ist from Wine Spectator. But the restaurant's chef, DanielHumm, and its general manager, Will Guidara, wanted to run theirown show. Backed by new investors, they were working on newprojects. They left Meyer with an unpleasant choice-either sellEleven Madison Park to them, or go on without the team thathelped make it great.

Meyer weighed his options based on 27 years of experience inrestaurants. Since opening Union Square Cafe in 1985, he has builthis company, Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG), into amultifaceted culinarv giant that operates five fine-dining venues,two Blue Smoke barbecue restaurants, three cafes in art museums,a jazzclub, nine Shake Shacks, a catering company that runs con-cessions in three sports venues, and Hospitality Quotient , whichgives seminars to corporate groups in USHG's philosophy of hos-pitality and teamwork.

The sale of Eleven Madison Park at what might be the peak ofits popularity would allow Meyer to payoff the restaurant's inves-tors and put the rest of the money into further expansion. Itmadesense in dollars and cents. And so he let it go. (Neither side wouldreveal for how much.)

"People asked, 'How could you sell something when it had justrealized its vision?'" Meyer says. "When you can sell i t at its peak,when you can help two people fulfill their dreams-I would makethe same decision again. That doesn't mean it was easy.These res-taurants are l ike my kids. But this is also a business."

Why would a smart CEO worry about helping "two people fulfilltheir dreams"? When Meyer started in this business, he proved anatural at hospitality. But the world isfilled with restaurateurs whoare good at making their diners feel cared for. Meyer has success-fully found a formula for reproducing that on a large scale. His corebelief isthat ifyou treat your staff well, they' ll treat customers well.He hires warm, smart, ambitious people like himself-people whooften want to own restaurants someday.

"Danny's management style is to let his teams run his restau-rants," says Guidara, "He let usrun [Eleven Madison Parkj l ike wewere owners long before we actually were,"

While Meyer was sel ling Eleven Madison Park, he was also ne-gotiating a much bigger deal. In January, USHG partnered with Re-lated Companies, one of the country's biggest real estate developers.

44 WINE SPECTATOR MAY 31, 2012

That deal will put Shake Shacks and other Meyer restaurants inmalls and sports arenas around the country over the next five years.

Meyer had met Guidara short ly after he was hired as a manager14 years ago. Until recently, Meyer sat down with every personUSHG hired, making sure each had the emotional skills to put hisvision ofhospitality first. But with 2,500 employees and counting,that's no longer practical. Can a company that serves more than21,000 people a day maintain the warm, personal touch? Or is thisthe end of the USHG that produced Eleven Madison Park, andthe beginning of the company that expanded Shake Shack?"EVERYONE SUPPORTS EACH OTHER."On a recent sunny morning, Meyer issi tting in his office at USHGheadquarters, overlooking Manhattan 's historic Union Square.He's been meeting with his six partners, planning the next reorga-nizat ion of the company. "We go through this process once everytwo years. The partners hit the reset button on what we all do,"Meyer says. "We ask, 'Where is our business going and why?' Thebig question isalways how to grow Union Square Hospitality whilewe still focus on how we make our customers feel. The highway islittered with companies that find that their cultures and growthdon't go together,"

Meyer, 54, is 6 feet tall , sl im, with dose-cropped, graying curlyhair. When he smiles, he uses his whole face-his blue eyes sparkleand deep laugh lines form. After three decades away from his home-town of St. Louis, he still has a bit of folksy Midwestern charmabout him.

On the couch near his desk sits a board game-Risk, "the gameof strategic conquest." His approach has been more intuitive thancalculated, however, He never went to business school and neverwrote down a master plan. "Only recently have we started toproject our goals for five years out," says Jeff Flug, a partner andthe president ofUSHG.

There's no denying their method has worked, however. WhileUSHG does not disclose financial data, industry sources estimatethe company's 2011 revenues to be more than $120 million. Flugwil l say only that revenues have increased 70 percent since 2009.

Meyer was just 27 when he launched Union Square Cafe, the$740,000 startup money coming from his savings and from familymembers. It was in a then-run-down neighborhood, and Meyerwas a novice, but he had a vision. He wanted the warmth ofanItalian trattoria, the fresh ingredients ofCalifornia cuisine and the


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refinement of French dining. At a t imewhen upscale dining in New Yorkmeantclassic French, Union Square Cafe of-fered pasta and New American cuisine.Meyer proved ahead ofthe curve. Withina few years, "international bistros" likeUnion Square Cafe would sprout all overthe city. New Yorkers began to see finedining asfun.

In 1992, Tom Colicchio called him.The young chef had known Meyer foryears,and had built a reputation at Mon-drian, which had recently closed. WasMeyer interested in opening a new place 1After two years of planning, they founda space not farfrom Union Square in thehistoric but neglected Gramercy neigh-borhood and opened Gramercy Tavern.Meyer was now operat ing with a biggerbudget-$3 million-a name chef andan ideal space.

But there were growing pains. He andColicchio had good reputat ions, so ex-pectations were high. The day the doorsopened, N ew York magazine published acover story on Gramercy Tavern withthe headline, "The Next Great Restau-rant 1"Customers came to find out ifthatwas true, and found a restaurant in itsearly awkward stage. "The New YorkTimes gave us two stars," saysColicchio."I thought we deserved one."

Meyer has always shown an ability toadapt. He replaced Gramercy Tavern'sgeneral manager, who Meyer felt was toofocused on profits. And Meyer sat his staffdown at both restaurants and issued newmarching orders-the top priority had tobe treating each other well. If they lis-tened to one another's needs, listening tocustomers' needs would come naturally.Meyer calls this "enlightened hospitality,"and while it may sound like goofy corpo-rate-speak, most ofhis current and former employees swear by it.

"Everyone supports each other-the GM takes care of the man-agers, the managers take care of the staff, and therefore the staffhas no worries except to take care ofthe guests," saysPaul Grieco,who started as a waiter at Gramercy Tavern and rose to beveragedirector before leaving the company to become wine director atHearth and Terroir. "Danny taught us all to think about the en-tirety of the hospitality experience."

"The difference between Union Square Hospitality and otherrestaurant groups is [USHG is] more guest-centric," says DrewNieporent, whose Myriad Restaurant Associates operates top spotssuch as Nobu and Corton. "They run chef driven restaurants, butthey have incredible empathy with their guests."

Soon enough, Gramercy Tavern found its footing. Over the years,

E le v en Madi so n Pa rk wa sMe y e r' s c rowni ng a ch ie v em en t, e a rn in g t hr ee M ic he li n s ta rs a n da W i ne S p ec ta to r Grand Award.B u t wh en t he c he f a nd manage r t hr ea te n ed t o l ea ve , M e y er s o ld t he r es ta ur an t t o t hem .

it has probably been Meyer 's most consistently great restaurant.Success gave Meyer the confidence to grab new opportunities. Hebegan exploring real estate farther north, around Madison SquarePark. It took two years to find a space, however, and the one hefound was challenging-the ground floor of the art deco New YorkLife building. It is on the National Register of Historic Places, sohe was limited in what he could change. It was big, too big for onerestaurant, so Meyer gambled and opened two simultaneously.

Meyer wanted to push the envelope by creating a high-end In-dian restaurant. Thanks to a tip from a sous chef at Gramercy, hefound the perfect chef for the assignment, Floyd Cardozo Born inMumbai, Cardoz had trained in classic French technique in Europeand was working in New York at Lespinasse. Tabla opened in late1998 to strong reviews and was quickly a success.



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Ch e fs Ga b ri el K r e ut he r ( le ft ) o f T he Mo d er n a nd F l oyd Ca rd oz , p r e v io us ly o f T ab la a n d n ow a t N o rt h En dG r i ll . I n a n a ge o f c e le b ri ty che fs , USHGha s f o un d a b a la nce b e tw eena ll ow in g i ts che f s t o c re a te t he ir ow n i nd iv id ua l r e st au ra nt s a nd ma k in g su re ea ch venu e h ews t o Meye r' s t r ad emar k h osp it al it y a nd sa vv y b u si ne s sa ppr oa ch .

On the other side of the building, Meyer opened Eleven Madi-son Park. Perhaps no restaurant better i llustrates Meyer's patientapproach. It took a decade for the restaurant to find the right for-mula. The original chef backed out of the project six weeks beforeit opened. Meyer and Kerry Heffernan, the second chef, envisioneda modem French brasserie, but diners looked around the soaring,elegant space and saw a restaurant for special occasions.

Meyer kept adjusting. In 2006, he replaced Heffernan with theSwiss-born Humm, who was working in San Francisco at the time.Humm brought a more sophisticated, experimental menu to thetable. He also brought his sommelier, John Ragan, who began in-vesting much of the restaurant's profits from wine sales into build-ing a far more ambitious cellar. Meyer put Guidara in charge ofthedining room, and Guidara responded byremoving seats and elevat-ing service to top-tier standards.Itwasn't cheap. Every time the three men came to Meyer with

a new, expensive idea, he simply said, "Make your argument. Con-vince me." And they usually did. Dining critics responded withpraise, and the restaurant joined the ranks of New York's eli te.

Then Humm and Guidara came to Meyer with a new proposal.They had always dreamed ofowning their own restaurant, and werestarting to assemble backers for a new project. But they loved ElevenMadison Park and wanted to stay there. "We wanted Danny in ourlives," says Humm. "We naively thought we could somehow workfor ourselves and USHG."

Meyer had been down this road before. When Colicchio openedhis own restaurant, Craft, in 2001, he and Meyer agreed to con-tinue working together at Gramercy Tavern. But it didn't work.


As Colicchio became more invested in Craft and expanded fur-ther, Gramercy Tavern stagnated. "I've always believed we needto have our chef in our restaurant," says Meyer. "The staff didn'tknow if Gramercy was a Union Square Hospitality restaurant ora Craft restaurant."

In 2006, Meyer offered to sell USHG's interest in Gramercy Tav-ern to Colicchio. The chef thought about itfor a few days and thendecided to pass, because he believed Meyer was better suited torestore it. "What made Gramercy Tavern so good was we had agreat staff lineup," saysColicchio. "That 's a Danny strength, put-t ing together a team."

Meyer had no intention of reliving those days. Which left himwith a hard choice-s-he could let Humm and Guidara leave, andhimself recruit a new team at Eleven Madison Park, or he could sell.Meyer made the men the same offerhe had made Colicchio, and theytook it ."At the end, he took himself and usout of the equation," saysGuidara. "He asked what was best for the employees and the guests."

Some members of the restaurant industry believe Humm andGuidara put Meyer in an unfair situation. But the three men insistthat there is no bad blood. Meyer has been meeting with themregularly, continuing to offer advice as they start their company."DANNY ADDS A LEVEL OFCREDIBILITY."Meyer gave up three Michelin stars, but he kept his cash cow, thehamburger stand that got its start in Eleven Madison's kitchen.

In the late 19th century, Madison Square Park was the center ofNew Yorksociety. When Meyer opened two restaurants facing out


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on it, the park was a neglected dust bowl, and he made restoringitpart ofhis agenda from day one, co-founding the Madison SquarePark Conservancy. In 2001, when the Conservancy began summerart exhibits in the park, they asked Meyer to do a hot dog cart aspart of the first exhibit . Meyer chose the team at Eleven MadisonPark to run it. After three summers, they struck a deal with theDepartment of Parks and Recreation and the Conservancy to opena permanent kiosk, which they dubbed Shake Shack.

Shake Shack is the brand that has made Meyer known outsidethe Big Apple. Some observers have rolled their eyes at the ideaof the guy behind Gramercy Tavern opening burger joints, whileothers have called it genius in tough economic times. In 2009, alarge private equity fund invested in Shake Shack. Itwas the firsttime USHG partnered with a large investor, as opposed to friendsand frequent customers, and it allowed the company to expandoutside New York, opening Shake Shacks in Washington, D.C.,Florida and Connecticut. There are nine standalone locations inthe United States today, and USHG has plans to open six morethis year. [See "Burgers and Beyond," page 56.]

Over the years, as Meyer opened new restaurants, USHG's cor-porate structure evolved in an organic fashion, growing as needed.As he prepared to open Tabla and Eleven Madison Park, Meyerrecruited Richard Coraine to be his director of operations and Da-vid Swinghamer to be CFO and head of business development.Coraine had been general manager at Postrio, one of WolfgangPuck's restaurants. Swinghamer was working for Lettuce EntertainYou, a restaurant group in Chicago.

The company's next evolution was far more ambitious. By2001,Meyer had become a name in New York. Some of the city's most

powerful people loved to eat at his restaurants, which led to high-profile opportunities. When the Museum of Modem Art closed tobegin a three-year renovation that year, museum board memberswho were regular USHG diners urged Meyer to think about devel-oping and operating restaurants in the new space. When USHGwon the bidding process, Meyer and his team had to figure out howto Simultaneously open a fine-dining restaurant, two museum cafesand a staff cafeteria. They also needed to start a catering company,now called Union Square Events, to handle museum soirees. "[TheMoMA deal] opened a lot for us as a company," says Swinghamer."It taught us how to handle large projects."

When they won the contract, Meyer, Swinghamer and Corainewere all working out of offices in Gramercy Tavern's basement.Meyer reluctantly agreed that USHG needed a corporate head-quarters, and they leased the offices overlooking Union Square.Michael Romano, longtime chef at Union Square Cafe, became apartner in USHG and president ofculinary operations. Paul Bolles-Beaven, who had started as a bartender at Union Square Cafe andwas now general manager, also became a USHG partner and thefirst head of human resources. From 2003 on, what had been aninformal collection of restaurants was now a real company.

In 2008, USHG signed a deal with the New York Mets to oper-ate several concessions at the team's new stadium, Citi Field. In2011, Meyer opened Unti tled, a cafe on the lower level of theWhitney Museum of Art. USHG's newest venture, North EndGrill, ispart ofa deal with Goldman Sachs. The investment bankisdeveloping a luxury hotel in lower Manhattan near its headquar-ters, and Meyer opened not only the fine-dining restaurant but alsoa second Blue Smoke and a Shake Shack there.

THE DANNY MEYER FAMILY OFNEW YORK :RES~URANTS

In addition to it s various Shake Shack locations, Union Square Hospitality Group operates nine restaurants in New York City, here listed in orderof their opening date. All are linked at www.ushgnyc.com. but each venue is unique in style and cuisine so we have included individual websiteaddresses for your convenience.

UNION SQUARE CAFEOpening date: October 198521E.16th St.: www.unionsquarecafe.com;(212) 243-4020

CAFE 2/ TERRACE 5Opening date: November 200411W. 53rd St.; www.momacafes.com

UNTITLEDOpening date: March 2011The Whitney Museum of American Art,945 Madison Ave. at 75th Street; www.unt it ledat thewhi tneycom; (212) 570-3670

BLUESMOKE /JAZZ STANDARDOpening date: March 2002116E.27th St., www.bluesmoke.com;(212) 447-7733www.jazzstandard.net; (212) 576-2232

GRAMERCY TAVERNOpening date: July 199442 E.2 0th St.: www.gramercytavern.com;(212) 477-0777Best of Award of Excellence

THE MODERNOpening date: February 2005; bar room,January 20059 W. 53rd St.; www.themodernnyc.com;(212) 333-1220Best of Award of Excellence

BLUESMOKEBATTERY PARK CITYOpening date: January 2012255 Vesey St. ; www.bluesmoke.com;(212) 889-2005MAIALINO

Opening date: November 2009Gramercy Park Hotel, 2 Lexington Ave.;www.maial inonyc.com;(212) 777-2410

NORTH END GRILLOpening date: January 2012104 North End Ave.; www.northendgrillnyc.com; (646) 747-1600

http://www.ushgnyc.com./http://www.momacafes.com/http://www.northendgrill/http://www.northendgrill/http://www.momacafes.com/http://www.ushgnyc.com./


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Meye r o pe n ed G r ame rc y Tav er n, h is s e co nd f in e -d in in g l oc at io n, i n 1 99 4 w it h c he f T om Co li cc hi o. I ts s uc ce ss g av e h im t he c on fi de nc e t o e x pa nd f ur th er a nd t ry ou t n ew con ce pt s.

In addition, there is new backing from Related Companies, amajor real estate developer with $15 billion in assets, known forbuilding the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle and for itscurrent development of the Hudson Yards on Manhattan's westside. In the January deal, Related bought a sizable minority sharein Union Square Events, an agreement that will put Meyer's brandsin front of a lot more people. "We like their business plans and welike their people," saysKen Himmel, president and CEO ofRelatedUrban, the company's mixed-use division. "Danny adds a level ofcredibility to the Hudson Yards project, much like when we signedThomas Keller to open [Per Se] at the Time Warner Center."

Related executives and USHG's partners are actively explor-ing putting Shake Shack, Blue Smoke and other USHG conces-sions in multiple sporting venues, art museums and retail/officebuildings in major markets such as Miami, Chicago, San Fran-cisco and Seattle. "Our goal is to grow Union Square Events intoa business with over $100 million in revenues in three years," saysHimmel."HE WAS M'Y HERO. AND HE FAILED."Danny Meyer has always been ambitious. Entrepreneurship runsin his genes. Born and raised in St. Louis, in a family of German-Jewish descent, Meyer had several business role models to choosefrom. His paternal grandfather ran a chemical company. His moth-er 's father, Irving Harris, co-founded the hair product company,Toni, which Gillette bought in 1948 for $20 million. Harris turnedhis fortune into a larger one through various investments, and

50 WINE SPECTATOR' MAY 31, 2012

focused much of his later life on philanthropic causes.Meyer's father, however, was cut from different cloth. Morton

Meyer was a born gambler who lived to take chances in business.He had fallen in love with French food and culture while stationedin France as an Army counterintell igence officer during the early1950s, and he indulged those passions by founding a travel agency.He enjoyed some success and opened offices in New York, Chicago,Los Angeles and across Europe. But he expanded too rapidly. Inthe late '60s, the company went bankrupt.

Meyer remembers the failure as a devastating event for his fam-ily,and the beginning ofa long slide toward divorce for his parents.He still blames his father for the pain it inflicted. Morton spentthe rest of his career launching risky travel ventures, repeatedlyoverextending himself. When he died of lung cancer in 1990, hewas bankrupt again. "He was my hero, and he failed," Meyer says.But he also credits his father for his passions in life-baseball, mu-sic, food and wine. "Nothing makes me happier than to be withsomeone over a table filled with good food and good wine, and Igot that from my dad."

When the younger' Meyer was studying at Trinity College inHartford, Conn., he spent a summer in Rome, working as a tourguide for one of his dad's companies. Entertaining jet-lagged Amer-ican tourists for weeklong trips through Italy taught him the basicsof hospitality-he learned to identify the grumpiest person in thegroup and win him or her over.

But when he graduated, Meyer didn't consider hospitality as acareer; in 1980 nice Jewish boys from successful families didn't


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punched a belligerent customer whowouldn't stop screaming about how long hehad waited for his food. Another night, alight fixture fell from the ceiling, narrowlymissing a guest.

When Meyer heard arumor that The NewY or k T im e s was sending a critic soon, he de-veloped Bell'spalsy-the left side ofhisfacewas paralyzed for six weeks. After the Timesgave him two stars, the feeling returned tohis face, and he found his stride. In 1987,he hired Michael Romano, a young talentwhom he had met at Pesca, to elevate thecuisine. And where initially Meyer hadtaken care of everything his staff droppedthe ball on, he eventual ly learned to teachthem how to do things properly themselves.He began to verbal ize his vision of hospi-tality-that everything a staff member did,whether cook, waiter or porter , had to cen-ter on how it made a customer feel.

USHG lived a blessed life before the re-cession hit in 2008. Meyer admits he wasunprepared for how bad it might be. "I wasnot extremely concerned," he says. "In ret-rospect, I should have been. It was a realshock. Tabla never got off its knees."

Tabla, the cutting-edge Indian restaurant located next door toEleven Madison Park, had been a success when it opened in 1998.But business had slowed some over the years as the novelty woreoff .The recession put Tabla in the red. Adding to the stress, UnionSquare Events, founded to serve MoMA, had never gotten muchbusiness from the museum and was underut ilized. It had a heavydebt, and the recession meant that banks were tighter with credit.Bylosing money, Tabla was further decreasing the company's cred-ibility with lenders.

Meyer had bragged for some time about how he had neverclosed a restaurant . "I thought that we could just keep adjustinguntil we found the right formula," he says. But in late 2010, Tab-la's doors had to close. Meyer walked from his office to MadisonSquare to tell the staff in person. When he walked in, the firstperson Meyer saw was a porter who had been there for all 12years.After saying hello, Meyer hurried upstairs to the manager 's officeand sobbed.

: : t I I ! " " ' ~ " ' ~ . - . ~ '


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the start. Meyer regularly sayswine isa con-diment, a seasoning that food isincompletewithout. He rarely makes it the star, but itplays an essential supporting role.. Unlike most Midwestern kids in the1960s, Meyer grew up with wine at the din-ner table. His parents had fallen in lovewith wine during Morton's Army years inFrance. In addition to having wine athome, the family spent their vacations inthe French countryside. Meyer learnedmore about wine while working in kitchensin Rome and Bordeaux, visiting producerson his days off.

Meyer has classic tastes. While he enjoysmany regions, France and Italy, particularlyBarolo and Barbaresco, are closest to hisheart. And he's passing this love on to hischildren. On a trip to Italy a few years ago,he brought them along to meet one of hisfavorite producers, Giuseppe Quintarelli.He keeps a photo of Quinrarclli, who diedin January, on a shelf in his office.

Wine was always going to be a key part ofUnion Square Cafe. Meyer knew that if heoffered good wine at great prices, smart cus-tomers would come back. And when thingswent wrong, he deployed it as a secretweapon. "In the early years, I used wine as acrutch for our shortcomings," he says. Whenhis staff missed a beat, a complimentary glassof dessert wine could do wonders.

He had a powerful ally helping him buildhis program, too. Early on, he befriendedimporter Robert Chadderdon, which wasakin to befriending J.D. Salinger. Chadder-don has long been a top source for some ofFrance and Italy's best wines, but has a rep-utation for being reclusive and difficult towork with. Meyer formed a bond withChadderdon, who supplied him with wines,offered him advice and introduced him to top producers. To thisday, many of Meyer's restaurants have sizable allocations ofChad-derdon wines. In 2008, Meyer even explored buying Chadder-don's import business, but after some research decided it was nota line of work USHG wanted to enter.

The same day Meyer met with his partners on reorganization,Ragan was meeting with most ofUSHG's wine directors. Like thecompany's chefs, the wine directors run their own fiefs-this is nota Las Vegas resort where restaurants draw largely from the samecellar, Ragan insists. USHG wine directors build and supply theirown programs and educate their staff members. Ragan's job ismuchlike Romano's for the chefs-be a mentor, offer advice and help,and encourage the team to ask one another for assistance. Raganis also organizing a wine school, which would extend an internaltraining program into classes for paying customers.

Meyer believes that "every restaurant has its own rerrorr"; thus,

J o hn Raganand Ma ia li no w in e d ir ec to r L iz N ic ho ls on i n Ma ia li no 's w in e r oom . An u rb a n- pl an ni ng ma jo r f rom Kans asC it y, M o ., R a gan bu il t o ne o f t he wo rl d' s g re a t w in e p ro g ram s a t E le v en Mad is on Pa rk a nd i s n ow USHGw in e d ir ec to r.

the director needs to design the particular list of wines and otheralcoholic beverages. The goal is to make each list as distinct aseach menu. He also wants guests to feel that they're gett ing some-thing special at his restaurants, whether it's wine, beer, cocktailsor even coffee. (Each restaurant picks its own coffee supplier, andhis Untitled cafe at the Whitney offers coffee-tasting classes.),

The lists range from the 12 wine selections available at eachShake Shack, including a few selections produced expressly for thecompany, to the medium-sized list ofwines and extensive selectionofbeers and whiskeys at Blue Smoke, to Maialino's 250 wines fromevery comer ofltaly, to the extensive list at The Modem at MOMA.(The Modern and Gramercy Tavern each hold a Best of Award ofExcellence from Wine Spectator.)

USHG serves about 1,000 bottles of wine each day, accordingto Ragan. "Our restaurant wine lists have to add to the customer'sexperience, whether it's a glass of Frog's Leap at Shake Shack in

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Madison Square Park or a bottle of Quintarelli Alzero at UnionSquare Cafe."

Eleven Madison Park had 3,300 selections on its list when itearned a Grand Award in 2011, and while Meyer is deeply proudof the accomplishment, he says he has no current plans to repeatthe feat. "John had the Grand Award in mind," he says. "At theend of the day, I don't think thousands and thousands of selectionsare necessary. I believe it's often harder for a wine director to puttogether a smart list of 200 wines."

That said, Meyer won't rule out another wine director convinc-ing him otherwise. And Ragan adds, "If a team at a restaurant de-cides that a Grand Award-worthy list will enhance the experienceof their customers, I would throw all my efforts behind it."

The closest to the prize would be The Modem, where more than1,250 selections include an impressive array of French wines, pickedto match chef Gabriel Kreuther's Alsace-mspired cuisine. Winedirector Ehren Ashkenazi and Ragan have been working to refinethe list and elevate Kreuther's cuisine even further.

'The goal of The Modem is to have a great wine program fromstem to stem, by which I mean from the cheapest glass at the barto the most expensive bottle on the list," says Ragan. "Ehren isfocused on deepening Alsace, Champagne and Burgundy, but healso want to diversify with more from the Loire and lesser-knownFrench regions."

Meyer is far more likely to offer a wine director feedback onwine pricing than on wine selection. He'd rather take a smallermarkup than risk turning off a wine lover who might not return.When Liz Nicholson, the wine director at Maialino, Meyer's Ital-ian trattoria, put together a flight of Nebbiolos by the glass, shefil led it with Barolos, which are a Meyer favorite. But, he told her,"Don't make guests pay to play." Nicholson took lower marginson the Barolos and added some value-priced Nebbiolos from lessprestigious regions.

"SUCKLING PIG"After an afternoon stuck in the office, Meyer eagerly heads down-town in a cab to his newest venture. It's a cold January night in lowerManhattan, and North End Grill has just opened for its second nightof dinner service.

The bar is rapidly filling up with Financial District workers whohave fled the biting wind outside and are gratefully soaking up thewarmth emanating from Cardoz's open kitchen. Meyer stands in acomer, arms crossed, surveying the room.

"I'm taking in the smells," he says. "It's a gnll=-can you smellthe wood? I'm listening. Can people hear their conversations an dthe music? And I'm watching the staff. Are they having fun witheach other, helping each other out? I f they're having fun, the cus-tomers will have fun."

BURGERS AND BEYOND AT SHAKE SHACKOtside the Big Apple , Danny Meyer isnot a householdname. But more and more people are starting to hearabout his hamburger stand. .

Shake Shack began at Eleven Madison Park. When the MadisonSquare Park Conservancy organized summer art exhibits , ElevenMadison Park operated a hot dog cart. Meyer liked the challenge oftry ing to shift f ine dining-quality service and food to a casual set-ting. In2004, he negotiated a deal with the parks department toopen a permanent kiosk.

Meyer wanted the venue to have elements of the classic burger andfrozen custard stands he frequented as a kidinSt. Louis. Heconsid-ered calling it"Custard's First Stand." Heand partner Richard Corainetoured old stands around the country. Eleven Madison Park chef KerryHeffernan and Coraine spent hours tastings blends of sirloin,brisketand chuck to craft a tasty burger that could be prepped ina stand.

Quality food was one thing; quality hospitality was another. Whilemany ofthe staff are new to the company, the managers are veterans,usually from USHG's other restaurants. "The managers come fromfine dining," Meyer says. "But for 80 percent of the staff, this istheirf irst job. I t'sa challenge, but we are teaching them that hospita li ty isacareer." Shake Shack alumni now work inthe fine-dining restaurants.

All those hamburgers and shakes helped Eleven Madison Park aswell. Shake Shack remained part of Eleven Madison Park for f iveyears, owned by the same investors. When Daniel Humm and WillGuidara began their campaign to take Eleven Madison to the nextlevel, costs went up, and the fine dining restaurant would have lostmoney had it not been for i ts sidekick's heal thy profits. In 2009,


The K uwa it C it y S ha ke Sha ck f ra nc hi se . M e ye r p la ns a b ig e x pa ns io n o f t he c ha in .Eleven Madison Park's investors sold Shake Shack to a new, stand-alone division of USHG.

Meyer and his partners had opened a second Shack, on theUpper West Side, in2008. As the recession began, they wanted toexpand while compet itors were cont ract ing. Today there areShake Shacks inMiami Beach, Washington, D.C.,and Westport,Conn. They plan to open six new locations this year. And whi leMeyer has no plans to franchise his restaurants domestically , wor-r ied about losing control of his brand, he isopen to experimentingwith the idea inoverseas markets . An international partner justopened Shacks inDubai and Kuwait City, and Meyer isa lso lookingat possible European franchises. -M.F.


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"I'M WATCHING THE STAFF. ARE THEY HAVING FUN WITH EACHOTHER. HELPING EACH OTHER OUT? IF THEy'RE HAVING FUN.THE CUSTOMERS WILL HAVE FUN." -DANNY MEYER

Satisfied that all is well, Meyer departs and hops into anothercab. Unless he's opening a new restaurant, he only rarely works'during dinner service, preferring to head home to his wife and kids.His wife, Audrey, isan actress and Meyer's favorite sounding board.They have four children, ranging from 12 to 18 years old.

If he does go to dinner, Meyer will usually visit the restaurantthat 's closest to home and closest to his heart. He lives in GramercyPark, and across the square, on the ground floor of the GramercyPark Hotel, is Maialino. When Meyer was a tour guide in Rome,his supervisor dubbed him "Meyerlino," or little Meyer. But thatquickly evolved into rnaialino, or suckling pig, after Meyer's favor-ite food. The restaurant is Meyer's vision ofa Roman trattoria, withplenty of homey touches. Tonight it's packed, and Meyer stops tochat multiple times before reaching his table. Barbara Walters isseated nearby and Owen Wilson is at the table beyond hers.

Fresh salumi, fried artichokes, caci o e p epe , suckling pig-theseare the foods Meyer fell in love with as a young man, and as hesits, eats and drinks a glass of Quintarelli Valpolicella 1989, helooks tired but very happy. Building a new fine dining restaurantis exhausting, so why did Meyer open North End Grill? WithShake Shack and Union Square Events expanding, USHG doesn't


necessarily need to extend into additional fine dining, where thestartup costs are higher and the margins far slimmer.

"Fine dining defines our culture," he replies. Meyer can't meetevery new hire anymore, but he knows that if a new Shake Shackcashier reports to a manager who started out at Gramercy Tavern,they will learn enlightened hospitality. "If you took away the finedining, I don't think Shake Shack would be as good as it is," hesays. For now, Shake Shack provides about a third ofUSHG's rev-enues; fine dining provides just over half.

Meyer also believes that one of the main reasons to keep expand-ing his company is to provide his staff with new opportunities. Youcan't retain top people if you don't offer them fresh challenges. To-day's assistant manager needs to know that they can be tomorrow'sgeneral manager at a new USHG venture. Or that they could starttheir own restaurant company someday.

Meyer realizes something. Today would have been his father'sbirthday. Though the scars remain, Meyer, through his balancingact of hospitality and business, has succeeded where his father couldnot. "I'm lucky that I can do what I'm good at," he says. "My jOQkeeps changing, but that's good. I don't see an end in sight, becauseI have more ideas than ever." 0

ushg wine spectator may, 2012

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