Photograph by Katherine Bish
This writer never thought the restaurant business was easy, and I especially never expected a 26-year-old to show me how uncomplicated it can be. Prior to opening the new P’sghetti’s in Glendale, Michael Brannan shared how his parents started the business 23 years ago, under adverse circumstances and with little money. What they had was something more important: solid character traits, traits today’s restaurateurs either never learned or chose not to exhibit, traits they passed along to their son.
How’d you get into the business?
My parents started P’sghetti’s in 1987 and still run it. Even though I’m only 26, I grew up with it. I’m more than ready to run this store.
What did they do before they got into the business?
They both worked for Caterpillar in Peoria, then both of them got laid off. My mom’s uncle owned the La Gondola chain of restaurants, a similar pasta concept, in and around Peoria, and my father went to work for him. My parents ultimately decided to do their own version here because there was nothing like it in St. Louis.
I remember the original store. It was very small. The original place had only four tables, but it seats 55 now. We’re still predominantly a pickup business.
And I’ve always loved the name. It was catchy, and it attracted the exact market we wanted to appeal to: families. Now we’re seeing the next generation.
What is it about your bread that gets everybody so excited? There’s that sweetness that makes it unique, plus a saltiness, and it’s made fresh everyday.
Did you alter P’sghettis’ concept over the years?
The base product never changed--a bucket of quality pasta layered with homemade sauce that we designed to simply invert and eat. And the bread recipe never changed. The original store was so small it precluded us from doing anything else.
Combining a solid product and incredible value seems so basic. Why has no one ripped you off?
There was a place in Brentwood called Cafe Linguini that was similar, but the bread wasn’t the same. That’s an integral part of the concept. There were others…people with [investment] money but no commitment. Not many people have the work ethic that’s required.
Have you been approached to franchise the concept?
Many times. My parents intend to keep it in the family, where we have 100% control over what we sell. It would kill my parents to have someone cut corners on what they’ve nurtured.
So is Glendale the second store?
In 1998, we opened a second store on Richardson Rd. It was too much for my parents to take on at the time—to be in two places at once—so they sold it to relatives who renamed it Pomodoro’s.
Will you change anything in Glendale because the demographic is different? We feel just doing what we know will be sufficient… Everyone loves a deal. We toyed with changing to real china and flatware, but decided against it. Using good disposables has always served us well.
How about beer and wine? Not to start. Our focus is the family, but we’re neither naive nor close-minded... If the customers want beer and wine, so be it. We’ll live and die by comment cards. Glendale supports their businesses…and we’ll do all we can for them.
How about hard liquor? A Manhattan and some pasta? Not a great pairing. Martinis and meatball sandwiches? Nah.
Many restaurants have occupied this building. Do you believe in cursed locations? Obviously not…we bought the building. My parents have been looking at it for 15 years.
And now is the best time buy a building and open a restaurant?
There’s never a perfect time, and never a perfect place. But we do have the personnel, and that alone trips many people up.
You say your parents approach this business differently. They take care of their employees like they’re their own kids: full health benefits, retirement plans, paid vacations, matching IRA funds, tuition reimbursement for high-school kids entering college, cash bonuses…all golden rule stuff. Consequently, turnover is minimal. We have 32 employees, and last year we didn’t hire anyone.
That’s so refreshing. I hope some restaurateurs are reading this. And we still close on holidays and at 5 p.m. on Sundays, so employees can spend time with their families.
What advice would you give to a prospective restaurant owner? Keep your employees happy. We have no theft, no attrition, no abuse—just courteous, happy employees that we intend to keep that way. We’ve always worked right next to them... Coming in occasionally and barking orders doesn’t get you anywhere.
I think it’s great that a place selling inexpensive items has owners that are so generous.
My parents work at keeping a balance: save some, spend some, invest some in employees. Many owners pocket everything they make. When our business dipped because of the economy, we had enough money in the bank to ride it out.
Was it ever difficult working for your parents?
They managed to separate the parenting from the business. There was some tough love…some of the crews my mom left me to manage were a challenge--I thought she was picking on me--but now I realize she did it on purpose and for a reason. Now I can say I respect her for it.
What happened when the Atkins craze hit? Did you think, “We are in big trouble here?” At that time, our business was booming, so we decided to let it play out. Oddly enough, it never really affected us. The economy, on the other hand, has. We gained some family business, but lost some of the parish and tax-exempt businesses.
Your “Family Special” is the classic deal. That half gallon of spaghetti, big loaf of garlic bread, 16-inch sub sandwich, plus the tub of tossed salad for $23 is the staple that’s put us on the map. It’ll feed any family of four to six.
Will you do more of that type of thing?
We’ll see. We can do it at that price because it’s a carry-out special: it’s good, it’s fast, it’s cheap, and we can do ‘em in our sleep.
How much sauce does P’sghetti’s go through a week? We make a 10-gallon batch at least 16 times a week.
What are your biggest days of the year?
Our biggest day is Christmas Eve—we’ll do 700 customers in 6 hours--followed probably by Mother’s Day.
Now that you’ve done two places, will you do three?
Could be. My dream is to have 5 or 6 stores, but only if I can do them well. If two seems like the right amount, so be it. Think about it, though, the Bread Co. started the same year we did.
Pretty big divergence…what was the difference?
Massive amounts of capital and willingness to take a chance. We played it safe. But it worked out fine for us as well.
Won’t your concept work anywhere…in any bedroom community?
The population density needs to be high and it helps to have a good balance of incomes, like in Glendale and S. County. Families can either go basic or add on and spend a few more dollars more.
How about gluten-free pasta?
Not to sound insensitive, but I don’t see it as a big niche and it’s certainly not our niche. We’d have to step away from what we do, match it with gluten-free bread. After 23 years, even though we try to accommodate, we’ve accepted not being able to please every customer.
Will you ever do a white sauce? We won’t do 15 different types of sauce, but yes, a white sauce is in the works.
Because there’s a company that sells a lot of Pasta con Broccoli in this town… [Smiles.] Yeah. I’ve heard of them.
Do you have another concept up your sleeve?
Believe it or not, we have relatives who have been very successful with the “cook-it-yourself” steakhouse concept.
Sorry, that one I just don’t understand.
They work in certain communities. In rural areas, they work. Provide a big potato and a nice salad bar…there’s very little overhead. That’s why they work.
