636: Kaiser Lashkari on The Best Ingredients

Originating from Pakistan, Chef Kaiser Lashkari had early aspirations of becoming a doctor until he had a run-in with some goat meat and a spice rack. This experience sparked a new dream of moving to America to open a restaurant. Chef Kaiser made the move to the states and received his master's degree from Hilton College of Hotel & Restaurant Management in 1989 before opening Himalaya Restaurant & Catering. Chef Kaiser was a James Beard Semi-Finalist in 2019, and Himalaya was rated No. 9 in the Houston Chronicle's "Top 100 Houston Restaurants" list and has placed in the top 15 in previous years. Show notes… Favorite success quote or mantra: There are no shortcuts! In this episode with Kaiser Lashkari we will discuss: Indian and Pakistani restaurant scene The immense importance of high-quality ingredients The importance of smell and look of the food Taste every meal before it goes out to the guest Positive reinforcement Defying your parents to follow your passion Mentors The intricacies and false stereotypes of curry Training and development Get partnerships Get things done by working through people, not at their expense Being pressured and bullied by neighbor businesses and how to deal with it The ego and madness of restauranteurs Treat your employees properly and with kindness The importance of sincerity Today's sponsor: Gusto offers modern, easy payroll, benefits, and HR to small businesses across the country — they were even named best online payroll by PCMag. And as a listener, you'll get three months free when you run your first payroll. Sign up and give it a try at Gusto.com/unstoppable.  CAKE provides an easy-to-use integrated software and hardware solution to build better dining experiences for restaurant operators and their guests. With mobile marketing and waitlist management to point of sale payment processing, the CAKErestaurant management system helps you grow your business.  Learn more at trycake.com/unstoppable EthicsSuite.com -provide a safe, secure, simple and anonymous communication channel between you and your employees to help you protect your hard-earned reputation and assets. Demonstrate to your team that you are committed to providing a workplace that operates with the highest ethical standards. Staying informed about important issues will help you resolve them internally before they spiral into larger, costly, or public problems.   Knowledge bombs Which "it factor" habit, trait, or characteristic you believe most contributes to your success? Never quit; tenacity What is your biggest weakness? Impatience with mediocrity What's one question you ask or thing you look for during an interview? Energy level and body language What's a current challenge? How are you dealing with it? To have longevity in the staff Share one code of conduct or behavior you teach your team. Coming to work on time While working be the best you can What is one uncommon standard of service you teach your staff? Knowledge about the food What's one book we must read to become a better person or restaurant owner? The Human Side of Enterprise by Douglas McGregor GET THIS BOOK FOR FREE AT AUDIBLE.COM  What's the one thing you feel restaurateurs don't know well enough or do often enough? Training and development, hiring properly What's one piece of technology you've adopted within your four walls restaurant and how has it influence operations? VCM by Hobart If you got the news that you'd be leaving this world tomorrow and all memories of you, your work, and your restaurants would be lost with your departure with the exception of 3 pieces of wisdom you could leave behind for the good of humanity, what would they be? Never quit Never take shortcuts Always be sincere Contact info: Facebook: @kaiser.lashkari Himalaya Restaurant & Catering website Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for joining today! Have some feedback you'd like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post. Also, please leave an honest review for the Restaurant Unstoppable Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And finally, don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. Huge thanks to Kaiser Lashkari for joining me for another awesome episode. Until next time!   Restaurant Unstoppable is a free podcast. One of the ways I'm able to make it free is by earning a commission when sharing certain products with you. I've made it a core value to only share tools, resources, and services my guest mentors have recommend, first. If you're finding value in my podcast, please use my links!