What does it take to build one of North America's 50 Best Bars? In this conversation, General Manager, Jake Kelly shares his journey through hospitality, leadership, mentorship, and the realities of running an award-winning cocktail bar.

From washing dishes at 14 years old to serving in the Peace Corps, teaching on Chicago's South Side, and eventually leading one of the continent's most celebrated bars, Jake's path wasn't traditional, but it shaped the way he thinks about service, leadership, and hospitality.

Whether you're a bartender, restaurant owner, hospitality professional, or someone passionate about great service, this episode offers an inside look at what happens behind the scenes of a world-class bar.

Time Stamps / Chapters:

00:00 Introduction & North America's 50 Best Bars

01:05 Meet Jake Kelly of Bisous

01:50 Inside Bisous & Top 50 Recognition

02:33 First Hospitality Job at 14

04:54 Peace Corps & Lessons in Hospitality

07:08 Teaching, Burnout & Career Change

10:17 Re-Entering Hospitality Later in Life

12:58 Becoming a Bartender by Accident

16:28 Mentors Who Shaped Jake's Career

18:40 From Bartender to General Manager

20:09 Building Bisous from the Ground Up

24:44 Rebranding Two Weeks Before Opening

27:27 Opening Without PR & Organic Growth

30:22 North America's 50 Best Bars Experience

34:04 The Emotional Reality of Being a GM

35:51 Perfect Service, Recognition & Leadership

39:05 Hospitality Lessons & Rapid-Fire Questions

43:21 Final Thoughts on Resilience

Hashtags:

#HospitalityLeadership

#CocktailCulture

#RestaurantManagement

Keywords:

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service excellence

Healthy fast casual restaurants are everywhere — but very few combine operational excellence, hospitality, and genuinely satisfying food the way Fare does.

In this episode, we sit down with the founder of Fare to talk about building a fast-growing restaurant brand rooted in hospitality, intentional food, and strong company culture. From working at a roller rink and Gibson’s Restaurant Group to scaling multiple locations, this conversation dives deep into what it actually takes to grow a restaurant business without losing the guest experience.

Whether you're a restaurant operator, entrepreneur, hospitality professional, or someone passionate about healthy food concepts, this episode is packed with lessons on leadership, scaling, culture, and creating memorable guest experiences.

Time Stamps / Chapters:

00:00 – Hospitality chose her

01:31 – Life before starting Fair

03:32 – Missing healthy food in college and restaurant life

04:49 – How meal prep became a business idea

07:08 – Gibson’s Restaurant Group lessons and hospitality standards

09:29 – The importance of details and restaurant culture

11:50 – The failed protein bar business

13:31 – Early pivots and building Fair in a food hall

16:14 – Letting go of control as a founder

20:29 – Scaling Fair and managing growth

24:08 – Hospitality in a fast casual restaurant

27:01 – The customer note that created loyalty

30:14 – Why Fair focuses on nourishment and satisfaction

35:02 – Rapid-fire hospitality questions

40:37 – Where to find Fair

What makes a brand feel real? In this episode of All in Good Taste, Alicia of Owen’s Famous shares her philosophy on branding, hospitality, creativity, and building spaces people emotionally connect with.

From rearranging her childhood bedroom like a storefront to opening a coffee shop during COVID, Alicia explains how authenticity—not aesthetics alone—is what creates lasting brands and memorable hospitality experiences.

This episode is for hospitality professionals, creatives, founders, designers, and anyone trying to build something that genuinely resonates with people.

Time Stamps / Chapters:

00:00 Intro Montage

00:00:56 Welcome to All in Good Taste

00:01:45 When Alicia First Realized She Had Taste

00:05:23 Becoming a Creative Professional

00:08:35 The Psychology Behind Branding

00:10:19 Building the Spilled Milk Bakery Brand

00:11:15 The First Questions Alicia Asks Every Brand

00:15:01 Pretty Brands vs Successful Brands

00:17:01 Misconceptions About Rebranding

00:20:15 Why Creative Work Needs Boundaries

00:24:53 Opening Bay Coffee Company During COVID

00:32:13 Lessons From Running Owen’s Famous

00:36:05 The Story Behind the Name Owen’s Famous

00:39:21 Building a Real Community Through Hospitality

00:46:01 What “Good Taste” Actually Means