739: Isaac Toups on Taste Your Food and Work Clean

Chef Isaac Toups represents the new guard of Cajun chefs, known for his sophisticated approach to a cuisine that's best known for deep rustic flavors. His culinary style is the direct result of his New Orleans fine dining experience, coming up in Emeril Lagassi restaurants and growing up Cajun, born and raised in Rayne, LA, in the heart of Cajun country. With over 300 years of New Orleans family roots, Isaac and Amanda opened Toups' Meatery restaurant in the spring of 2012. 5 years later Toups' Meatery was followed by Toup's South.   Show notes… Calls to ACTION!!! Subscribe to the Restaurant Unstoppable YouTube Channel Join the private Unstoppable Facebook Group Join the email list! (Scroll Down to get the Vendor List!) Favorite success quote or mantra: "Too dumb to be scared." In today's episode with Isaac Toups we will discuss: The true meaning of "Cajun" There's an insane amount to learn as a chef, even 20 years in Organization Take a fault and turn it into a superpower Consistency How to "taste your food" "Work clean" Seniority advancements are a mistake Have a good report with everyone in your circle Be as straight-forward as possible with your staff Being a manager in a kitchen for 20 years gives you a degree in psychology Everyone knows that dick at work; don't be that dick at work Staging/traveling Marketing yourself Being a chef with a talent agency Celebrity chefs Recipe books The reality of "living the dream" Location, location, location Today's sponsor: Toast - A POS built for restaurants by restaurant people Adapt fast with Toast's cloud-based restaurant POS system that updates to evolve your POS along with changing industry trends and guest expectations. Toast is built exclusively for restaurants of all shapes and sizes, with over 2/3 of our employees having restaurant experience to serve you better. Online Ordering - Let guests easily order directly from your restaurant for pickup or contactless delivery to keep revenue flowing during these uncertain times. Toast Delivery Services Dispatch local drivers through an on-demand network to keep your community fed and revenue coming in.   Knowledge bombs Which "it factor" habit, trait, or characteristic you believe most contributes to your success? Drive What is your biggest weakness? Ego, a little is good but too much is bad news What's one question you ask or thing you look for during an interview? Team player What's a current challenge? How are you dealing with it? Staying calm, learn when to walk away from a situation and/or let someone else take it over Share one code of conduct or behavior you teach your team. Do to others what you would like done to you What is one uncommon standard of service you teach your staff? The customer is not always right What's one book we must read to become a better person or restaurant owner?  Au Pied de Cochon by Martin Picard GET THIS BOOK FOR FREE AT AUDIBLE.COM  What's one thing you feel restaurateurs don't know well enough or do often enough? Don't ask their employees or their best customers what they could be doing better What's one piece of technology you've adopted within your restaurant walls and how has it influence operations? Instagram: @toupsmeatery 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? Be there for your children Do your work 100% or don't do it at all Find someone to love and love them more Contact info: Facebook: @ToupsMeatery Instagram: @toupsmeatery | @teamtoups 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 Isaac Toups 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!