In 2008, The Fifty/50 opened its doors for the first time on West Division Street, giving Chicagoans a taste of what an upscale sports bar looks like. It was an immediate hit. Owners Greg Mohr and Scott Weiner pondered, ‘why stop here?’ The duo, coined as ‘The Fifty/50 guys’ by media outlets, began popping up restaurants ranging from pizzerias to bakeries to fine-dining establishments and beyond. The success continued and with it, the team grew from 40 to over 500. DiningOut spoke with Scott Weiner to get the inside scoop about the group’s success and how they plan to celebrate a company milestone this spring.
Photo via Homestead
DiningOut: What motivated you and Greg Mohr to start your own restaurant group?
Scott Weiner: Greg and I began working together in 2003 with the hospitality group, Lettuce Entertain You. When 2007 came around and the smoking ban in sports bars was implemented, we realized that we had the opportunity to create an elevated sports bar in an environment with higher quality food and service. We never had aspirations to open more than one restaurant or to be known as ‘a group,’ but after we opened our first four concepts, we realized we were headed in that direction.
Tell us more about The Fifty/50 Restaurant Group’s mission.
Our mission puts the guest and their experience first, and it is the pulse of this company. We back up everything we say in our mission by putting our money where our mouth is, literally, by structuring progressive employee benefits and rewarding great employees who have tenure with us. We also put a lot of time and effort into giving back to the community, working directly with local foundations and schools near our restaurants. We especially try to take care of our officers in blue.
Photo via Apogee
How has The Fifty/50 Restaurant Group achieved its current success?
Hard work, attention to detail, and our amazing partners. We promoted the managers that have made themselves assets to us by making them partners. These individuals include Eddie Mahoney and Martin Arellano, both of whom helped us survive the recession and are the reason that The Fifty/50 and Roots Handmade Pizza have prospered. Chris Teixeira, Sam Turner, and Patrick Wingert helped keep the West Town Bakery alive. Ben Schiller has created a culture of excellence in our bar programs and is the man behind our incredible ice program. Newer partners, John Aldape and Nate Henssler who are helping us push forward into the future and have helped make Apogee and Portsmith successful concepts. Behind everything is a solid foundation in the central offices led by Lynn Yuan and Malinda Reicher. Without these individuals, we wouldn’t be where we are today.
Photo via Roots Pizza
How have you seen the Chicago dining scene evolve over the years and how has The Fifty/50 Restaurant Group responded?
When we first opened The Fifty/50, Chicago had just banned smoking in bars and good bar food served by professionals was still very rare. A cocktail program with a curated wine list and craft cocktails was also quite a treat back then. Today there is so much competition from really talented, hard-working people and it’s just a different landscape. We stay up on the trends and study our guests dining and drinking behaviors, but mainly we just continue to focus on our core values, stay consistent, and take care of guests. Restaurants and bars will come and go, as will dining trends and diet fads. We just focus on being the best we can be.
Photo via Portsmith
Reflecting throughout the past 10 years, what has been the biggest obstacle you have faced as a restaurant group owner?
We were under-capitalized many times throughout the early years of our company and lost a lot of money back then. Greg and I have gone without paychecks many, many times. And when we were actually receiving paychecks, we had to put them back into the company to keep West Town Bakery alive in its first couple of years. We just never quit. Perseverance is a word that I feel describes us very accurately. Our friends and family have always been supportive, which made it easier to overcome the stress and challenges.
The group’s 10th anniversary is March 2018—congrats! Will you be doing anything special with your team to celebrate?
We are so excited for our 10th anniversary. We will have an awesome birthday party at The Fifty/50, and we’re currently working on a commemorative hot sauce to launch in honor of one whole decade of The Fifty/50. One of the little things that we do at all our concepts is make our own hot sauce.
Photo via The Berkshire Room
How does it feel to have such a loyal following across neighborhoods?
We’re proud and grateful. In the neighborhoods, you are literally fighting for every dollar and every meal. People are usually paying for meals with their own money as opposed to a corporate credit card. Our loyalty program membership is about 75-percent West Town and Lincoln Square neighbors and it is growing in River North and the Gold Coast. To me, it’s an incredible feeling that people actually care about our rewards program and make us a part of their lives.
What do you love most about being a part of this dynamic restaurant group?
Every day, I get to wake up and know that I am providing jobs and creating opportunities for a lot of people and that extends past just our employees. Contractors, designers, food vendors—it’s cool. Every day we create unique and wonderful experiences for guests who find special places in their hearts for our locations. I also get to run my own business with one of my best friends—can’t beat that! I’m 37 and Greg is about to turn 40 (he’s the old guy in the company). I think the dynamic part is that we are just getting started.
Interviewed by Elizabeth Liberatore
The post The Fifty/50 Restaurant Group: 10 Years and Counting appeared first on DiningOut Chicago.