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Amy McBee
33 years old
graduate: Berkeley Springs High School
married: Scott McBee -- three children: Kiarra (15), Ashlyn (13), Cody (12)
worked at Tari’s Cafe since 1989; general manager since 2001


AMY'S  INTERVIEW

WHY ARE YOU TAKING ON THIS RESPONSIBILITY
I feel I'm carrying on the family business.  I've known Tari my whole life.  She has helped me grow as a person & has taught me that whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well.  I also want to provide a future for my children.  Someday I would like to hand this business to one of them; but if that's not what they want, I want to be able to help them achieve their own goals through further education.

ARE YOUR KIDS EXCITED ABOUT THIS?
They’re very excited.

AND THEY DON’T MIND THE IDEA THAT IT’S GOING TO MEAN A LIFE OF SERVITUDE FOR THEM?
They don’t. They like the fact that they can work here and earn their own money and play a part. One of the reasons I wanted to do this was so I could help provide a future for my children. I’m big on responsibility and would like them to pay for their own future and I would be there just to assist. My children are responsible people. They are like young adults and I’m very proud of them.

DO ANY OF THEM HAVE A PARTICULAR ATTRACTION TO ANY SPECIFIC PART OF THIS BUSINESS OVER ANY OTHER?
Cody does. Cody is interested in being a chef and cooking. He mentioned a few years ago that he would be interested in being a chef in Tennessee. I don’t know where that came from but I’ve got my eye on Cody. He’s salt of the earth. He’s been back on the line. He says “ I was line cooking today.” Of course all he did was a few hamburger buns but....so Cody’s really interested. Kiarra and Ashlyn.... they both love working here.

WHY BUY THIS NOW?
I feel Tari has been grooming me for this for many years.  I now have more knowledge and the confidence that it takes to run a steady, solid business.  She has laid all of the ground work and is so good at it.  She instilled a lot of important qualities in me over the past 33 years of my life, 17 of them working almost as an apprentice. So I feel I'm ready to accept the "family legacy.”   If it weren't for the great employees or customers none of us would be here and you can't forget that, you have to take care of your people. 

I know Tari is a very busy woman running a full time business.  With me taking over the business, there are many things she can pursue that can still benefit the place such as her gardening that will provide me with the home grown organic produce this restaurant needs.  She can finally write the cook book which customers constantly request.  Those are just a couple of the many ways this can benefit both of us. 


HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU STARTED WORKING AT TARI’S?
I was 16. I was actually 15 turning 16. I was still in high school and then I moved on to Hagerstown Business College. I wasn’t even there a full semester when I knew it wasn’t for me. I went to be an accountant but I wasn’t the right material. I’m a hands-on, people person and accounting wasn’t my gig. The restaurant was working out better for me. I could be with my children. Tari worked with me so I could work here in the daytime. This is my second home. I get to see everybody I like. The flexibility, the hours. I stuck with what I know best and what felt right.

YOU CAME HERE WHEN YOU WERE 16 BECAUSE YOUR MOM WAS WORKING HERE?
Actually, I didn’t come here because of mom. I followed Tari wherever I went. She and I worked in the Chinese restauarnt when I was 12, and that was my first real experience. It was a real job for her and I was her little follower. Then I worked at the hair salon for her. I went to work for the Chicken and Pizza House and she went away to do advertising so we lost touch for a year or two. I could watch from the Pizza House as she built the cafe. I was itching to get in and was able to because Mom worked here otherwise I would have been too young. That’s how I got here.

TARI’S IS A VERY COMPLICATED BUSINESS WITH THE ART AND INN ROOMS. WHAT PART OF IT DO YOU LIKE THE BEST?
The part I like best that I don’t get to do that often is hosting and greeting people. I also love the art aspect but my favorite is being at the door greeting people. I have to be busy, not that there’s ever a dull moment. I like waitressing but I’ve done that. I’m not saying that it gets old but I don’t have the time now, Hostessing I can see everybody which I like. If I’m waitressing here in the gallery, I can’t see who’s in the other sections. If I’m hostessing I get to be everywhere.

I love cooking,. I love to bake and I love to cook. I’m really interested in expanding my baking; someday that’s a possibility, The art shop area near the bar used to be a deli with a little bakery. I’m still learning. I have lots to learn and I like the idea of a bakery with nice baked goods, but baking takes up a lot of time and I’m not ready to tackle it right now.

WHEN YOU BECOME THE OWNER WILL YOU CONTINUE DO THINGS YOU NOW DO AS AN EMPLOYEE OR ARE THERE PARTS YOU WILL HAVE TO GIVE UP BECAUSE THEY ARE TOO TIME CONSUMING?
I need to learn to delegate and I haven’t. It’s hard because I’m a control freak. I want it done right and I just can‘t delegate yet. I have to learn that or work myself into the grave because I want excellence. Tari’s instilled that in me., She’s my mentor and wants everything perfect and that’s how I need it . If it’s not perfect in the kitchen then it doesn’t come out perfect out front for the customer. Probably I’ll do everything just the way I’m doing it now. I’ll still cook. I’ll still waitress, I would like to hostess a little more. When you are waitressing that’s really all you can do. It’s hard to be a manager and a waitress. So I’ll probably give a little more of my waitressing up just so I can have more hands-on with everyone and I’ll have time to deal with the problems like the washer that’s leaking upstairs. When you’re a waitress you can’t leave that table and you need to be a little more available.

I ASSUME YOU’LL FOLLOW TARI’S PATTERN WHERE SHE’S EVERYBODY’S BACK-UP.
I’m just going to be here for whatever and somedays I will waistress. I don’t want to lose the touch I have. I still want customers to know that I’m here and not going anywhere. Because I’ve backed out of working the floor a bit and I miss that. And my customers wonder: where’d Amy go? They don’t know.

My favorite customers may think: she doesn’t care, she doesn’t wait on me anymore. Where did she go? I’m still here. Let so and so know I’m back here. I just coooked your sandwich. I’m here. That’s what has helped me, I just love my customers. All of our little locals from the bank. And then I disappear. I don’t want to disappear. I want to be around. I like it.


SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE THERE MAY BE CHANGES?
There are lots of ideas and lots of things that I want to do, but right now no major plans.  Just sprucing up here and there. Right now I’m concentrating on keeping it the same so everyone has a sense of security as a customer. Nothing’s going to change,. Of course it is changing but I don’t want it to appear as a huge drastic change. I have different tastes than Tari but the bar is a perfect opportunity for us. When the smoking ban is completely in place, I can redo the bar area and make it different, make it hip and make it me. There will be a little bit more me in the restaurant years down the line when all of that comes about. And Tari can get her artifacts back because they are her personal artifacts on the walls. This will always be Tari’s Cafe. That’s another reason we’re not going to change it. This has been Tari’s for years. This has been my family for years. I want to keep that going but also I want to put a little bit of Amy in it. I would love to do a beautiful deck ,garden and dining area.  There’s lots of ideas. Once we get through the change we can look at that so we can do it right. It takes money tomake changes and I’m starting over. Starting a clean slate. I need to save money and put it back into the business and make it better. I don’t want to make mistakes.

YOU’RE GOING TO CONTINUE TARI’S CONNECTION WITH ALL THE PEOPLE DOWNTOWN?
THE BUSINESSES, THE TOURISM INDUSTRY?
Yes, that’s what makes Berkeley Springs click and flow: everyone’s community effort,. I have to be part of that.

EMPLOYEES?
That’s a really important area. I’m grateful I had someone like Tari. When you’re young with the economy the way it is these days it’s hard to have a fanily and a home and a nice secure job and I’m so thankful that I had the opportunity to do that. I want to be the provider for all the young people who are working here. Without these people I couldn’t do it. I always want to remember that. Just take care of the people who take care of you,. My grandfather preached that over and over. I really believe in taking care of the employees.

YOU WERE BORN IN BERKELEY SPRINGS, WENT TO BERKELEY SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL. YOUR FAMILY HAS BEEN HERE FOREVER. YOU ARE MARRIED TO SCOTT MCBEE -- HIS FAMILY ALSO HAS BEEN HERE FOREVER. HOW DOES SCOTT FEEL ABOUT THIS?
He’s actually really excited. He’s ready to come here and start working but.financially I’m not ready for that, I need to know that I have a solid piece of income first. He was cooking here a while back. We started him here this winter to ease him in. He’s a very very hard worker, But he’s not my line cook. He’s my prep guy, my Lovey, my fix-it although he doesn’t fix things like Lovey but he’s very anxious to get in. Lovey worked for the survey place for two extra years when he and Tari first opened the restaurant so we’ll do what has to be done until we’re good and secure and I can pay my bills at home and we’ll be OK.

WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU’VE LEARNED IN THE PAST 17 YEARS THAT PREPARE YOU TO DO THIS?
I've watched both Tari and Lovey the past 17 years interacting with both employees and customers. That in itself is a life lesson.  Tari's has been the place where teenagers/young adults have come to work yet leave with valuable lessons to help them in the real world.  Tari and Lovey are amazing human beings and they are very caring and giving people as well as knowledgeable.  I too care a lot about people.  We are in the "I Care Club" around here.

I've learned that Tari's is a special place not only because it has been my  family for the past 17 years but because Tari and her hand selected employees care about their customers.  We always go that extra mile.  That really matters to me.  It takes months to find customers but it only takes seconds to lose one.  What I expect as a human being is to give people more than they expect to get.  If we don't take care of our customers and employees, some one else will.

I know about hard work. My father, mother, and both sets of my grandparents and of course Tari and Lovey were all excellent role models for me. I know that respect needs to be earned and in business you need to earn respect not only from your employees, but from customers, businesses and the community. 


ANYTHING YOU’RE NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO?
The 24 hour days. I do like that part of being an employee; being able to say, oh I can’t make it today, you’ll have to find someone to cover. How to be at your best all the time. I’m not afraid of work. I’m a very hard worker but I don’t know how to delegate and I stress myself out trying to do it all.

UNLIKE TARI? (Laugh)
I learned from the best. And I also have her right behind me holding my hand. That eases the whole experience. And having Lovey there too. I couldn’t do it without either one of them. I’ve been there for her and she should be there for me. She’ll only be a phone call away if I have a question, We don’t abuse each other. I’m a pretty ballsy person. I’m not scared. Maybe a little scared of the unknown...every cooler breaks on Monday,. Have to fix it. Get some ice....

SO THAT’S NOT UNKNOWN...
It’s a restaurant; it’s the unknown. Everyone is uneasy about the unknown. If they’re not, they’re crazy.

It’s an honor to do this. Tari could have sold it and been out of it. It’s a true honor,. She trusts me to do this and take it on. I want to do good and excell and exceed and just do it.

IT’S CERTAINLY AN INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO WALK INTO SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
It is. I feel very honored. She’s amazing. She’s been there for me my whole life. Tari’s like another mother to me. She’s taken me when I was little. She practically raised me. I remember you at your house when I was little tagging along. She’s been there for me and Lovey too; they’re both great and it’s a great opportunity and I’m honored.

ANYTHING ELSE?
Wish me luck. There are a few little insecurities I have. There are people I don’t know in the bar. Some of our greatest customers eat in there and I don’t know them and they’re probably asking who’s Amy. I just want to show them that Amy has been here and I want to take care of you. It’s a lot to learn and do -- the mechanics of the buisness, equipment failure, plumbing issues, just the everyday unknowns.  Like Tari says "there are only so many hours in a day"  It’s a good business.

THE STAFF IS HAPPY?
Yes, and that’s nice. We found that out a few years ago when we voted for employee of the year and they almost all voted for me and that was very very astonishing. I didn’t expect it.

YOU WEREN’T OUT THERE CAMPAIGNING?
I wasn’t and if I’d known I would have been. That’s my way, making signs and making deals....I’ll give you a dollar. I didn’t even have to do that. It was a surprise. I believe I have all of their support and I’m on a good basis with all of them. I’m ready to do it and get through a busy summer. It’s a hard time to takeover but the perfect time.

WE CAN PUT OUT THE CALL THAT YOU ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR GOOD EMPLOYEES?
I need to find an Amy. That is my major need. I do need to find an Amy. I don’t have the Amy that Tari has. I do have my children but that’s a few years from now. I need someone I can delegate things to. But I’m prepared to do it. I’ll have Tari backing me.

Tari's has excellent employees, but when one leaves it's hard to replace them.  It's  hard to find good hard working employees that want to work in this line of business.  We have truly been blessed in that department, but are always searching for more.

A FINAL FEW WORDS FROM AMY
I am up for the challenge and grateful that Tari has faith in me. This place has been “her baby” for 17 years. She has been more like a mother to me than a boss and now she trusts me with “her baby.” I won’t let her down. All of the employees have been supportive of the idea and we are all like family here. I assured them that all the employee benefits like health insurance, retirement benefits and all aspects of the operation would remain in place. My children and husband are excited about the chance to own a business. The debt of three buildings is a little scary but I will work seven double shifts a week if I have too. I remember well how hard Tari worked in her early years here just to make the payment and keep all the bills paid. I will be glad to see some of the pressure off of Tari and Lovey so they can spend more time doing the things they enjoy. I have never even seen them sit down together and eat a meal. I want to see Lovey on his Harley and Tari in her garden. I took Tari’s for a test drive this past March when Tari went to Florida and ran the whole place without calling her. She gave me an A+ when she came back. I have been “playing owner” for the last year and gained a lot of confidence. There is never a dull moment in the restaurant business. You have to be a cook, bartender, waitress, dishwasher, busser, hostess, therapist, plumber, electrician, computer tech, manager, accountant, repairman, carpenter, janitor, purchaser and leader. You have to smile while you are doing it and overcome the daily problems. I hope my customers are supportive of the idea. Without customers, we don’t exist. Tari says “that’s right Amy and don’t ever forget it.”

 

TARI HAMPE-DENEEN
by Jeanne Mozier. June 22, 2006. Berkeley Springs, WV

Tari-Hampe Deneen
45 years old
Graduate: Berkeley Springs High School
Husband and Co-owner: Lou “Lovey” Deneen
Purchased main building 1988; opened April 1989
Purchased gallery building and opened August 2000



WHY ARE YOU SELLING TARI’S?
How much time do you have?  The short answer is why not?  The truth is that I’m tired of watching my husband work seven days a week. Though he NEVER complains, I can see the toll that his long days have taken on him.  The only way I know to get him to stop is for me to stop.  He will still be there for Amy, making sure things are in working order, but he won't be allowed to be there every day and all day.  As for me, the answer is simple.  Turning the business over to Amy is a WIN-WIN deal.  The customers win, Amy's family wins, the employees win and Lovey and I win.  I still get to work there but I won't have to be the owner.  I am a much better employee than a manager.  Keeping it in the family is the right thing to do and Amy is like a daughter to me.  I am not ready for retirement and certainly not ready to leave the wonderful people I work with.  I took a trip to Florida last March and missed them so much I would look at photos of them and cry.  I will now have the best of both worlds.  Great people to work with, a job, nice customers and more time at home with Lovey. 

WHY NOW?
I have been thinking about my exit strategy for many years.  Many business people fail to do this and before they know it, they’ve spent their whole lives in their business.  No one is lying on their death bed saying, "boy, I wish I would have spent more time at work."  Life is over before you know it.  I have so much more I want to do.  The timing of this is perfect.  I think that sometimes in life you just know when change is right.  I do have this overwhelming feeling that this is the right thing to do and to do it now.  The time is right and the business has a good track record.  The high risk period is over.

This year alone I’ve had more than a dozen bona fide, real high offers to buy Tari’s. Some of them were people who were in the restaurant business and had experience and others who wanted to move to Berkeley Springs and own their own business. First of all Tari’s is very very complicated,. It’s more than just the restaurant. It’s the inn, the rooms upstairs; the art gallery, the gift shop. People look at that operation and think, oh yeah I can do this, but truly it’s very complicated. I cannot see the average person walking in there because they had a few dinner parties at home and think oh yeah I can do a restaurant and make a go of it. It’s actually difficult. The hours are grueling, the profit margins are very slim and like I said, if anyone can do it Amy can because I know her. I don’t know two strangers that walk in off the street and want to buy my restaurant. I’m not going to sell it to strangers,. It’s not going to happen ever.

Amy's children are old enough now to help her.  Amy is still young enough to work 80 hours a week and Lovey and I are old enough to know that our bodies are not going to keep up the pace.  Berkeley Springs is booming and Amy is taking over in our busiest season.  I made this decision last summer and Amy has been "playing" owner since then.  She did a heck of a job too.

WHY AMY?
I decided five years ago that I definitely had to "keep it in the family."  Since I have no children, I did the next best thing.  Amy is like a daughter to me.  I’ve known her literally since she was in her mother’s womb. I truly used to change her diapers. There is somebody that I know. I know that girl. If anyone can do it, that girl can. She comes from a long line of hardworkers. Her mother, Janie, was there when Tari’s opened and has been a waitress on and off since. Her two brothers cooked there and her sister did salad prep. I know her both sets of grandparents, her mother, her father, her brothers, her husband, her children. They’re all hard hard working people.

Amy has been at the restaurant since Tari’s opened in1989 and is one of the hardest working and most dedicated people I have ever known.  She has the energy, stamina, brains and skills to do the job.  Customer service is her middle name.  She can do 20 things at once and with ease.  She is honest and straight-forward with the staff.  If anyone has earned the right to own my creation, it is her and I trust her with it. 

Amy understands the needs of the local customers.  She strives for excellence.  Her children and husband have the same work ethic.  She has the drive and determination to not only keep Tari's going, but to improve on what I started. 

I should mention her "can do" attitude, no matter what.  Also, she is the only employee that has ever taken a serious interest in making such a huge commitment.  She is fully aware of the risk/reward factor in owning a business. Amy will always do the very best that she can do.  Our customers and staff can count on it.

I had an impromptu employee of the year contest about 5 years ago at an employee Christmas party.  The question posed to employees was "What employee at Tari's is ALWAYS ready to go the extra mile for a co-worker or customer?”  All the employees threw a name in a hat.  Amy got 98% of the vote.  That started my wheels turning.  I knew the customers loved her but the fact that the employees gave her that much support motivated me to crown her our new General Manager that night.  I have been grooming her ever since.

WILL YOU BE STAYING AROUND?
I signed a non-compete clause which is commonplace but I also signed up to be an employee for five years. This is rare but what I want to do because it’s all in the family. It is more of a role reversal than the sale of a business. I will become the manager and Amy will be the owner. I really do feel like I will work at Tari’s for the next 100 years. Tari’s is my family and those are the people I want to be with and contrary to what people may believe, I have to work. I have to pay for my health insurance, I have to work. I also have the right of first refusal so if something happens and Amy decides she does not want to do this, I will have the option to take it back. We work very well together.  It will be an honor to be her employee. 

WHAT DID AMY’S TRAINING ENTAIL?
All of the business aspect -- she’s trained to do every part of it. She knows more about computer equipment than I do. The impromptu employee of year contest got my mind rolling about Amy someday owning it, since then, I’ve tried to teach her every single aspect of that business. Unfortunately, office duties of Tari’s are impossible to do at restaurant because of interruptions so I still run my main office out of my house and will continue those operations for many years because we’ve never had the time for her to come here to my main office and learn the work that I do. I’m just going to keep doing it for her until she has the time to learn it. For example, I do employee scheduling and I will continue to do that. Having 54 employees with numerous requests for time off and vacations, each schedule takes me about four hours to accomplish. I do them two weeks at a time. I almost always have four weeks of schedules hanging for my employees in advance so they know when they work and can make plans for a doctor’s appointment or time with their famililes. The scheduling alone is a real time consuming project.


WHAT ABOUT THE COOKING ASPECT? AMY DOESN’T COOK DOES SHE?
Oh yes, she does. Amy has been training in the kitchen for over a year. Of course, we recently promoted Devon Lucas to chef. A couple years ago I started Amy with baking. Amy can bake anything in the restaurant there is to bake,. She makes wonderful pie crusts, she makes cakes and pies. So I started her with baking. Then she moved on to learn to cook the lunches. And she’s been cooking lunch a couple days a week for about a year. She’s also been trained on dinner. The only thing she hasn’t done is be the head cook on a busy Saturday night. And I don’t have very many employees who can actually do that now. She will have to learn to do that. I was the main cook at Tari’s seven days a week for several years. Amy will indeed have to get in there on a busy Saturday night and wing it and I’ll stand there beside her and make sure she can do it.

DO YOU ANTICIPATE THAT YOU WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE ONE THAT WORKS WITH YOUR CHEF INVENTING NEW DISHES?
I think that will be a team effort with Amy, Devon and me. It has been this year. We work on our specials together. We work on our creations together. One of the great things Amy will have going for her will be having me as a spare. It won’t be devastating to her if Devon takes a vacation or another cook takes a vacation because I’ll always be there for her. She won’t be up against it as I was. When somebody takes off she’ll have me to fall back on. i also would really really miss cooking. After 17 years of being a cook, there will be days that I go in and do prep work all day long and make buckets of soup. We make everything at Tari’s in huge quantities. I will go in there particularly if it’s cloudy or rainy or in the winter when the weather is bad. I’d go stir crazy and I know I’ll be in there cooking for Amy.

YOU’RE GOING TO KEEP YOUR HAND IN THE COOKING. YOU’RE GOING TO KEEP DOING THE SCHEDULING, YOU’RE GOING TO WORK AT HOME. WHEN DO YOU ANTICIPATE SPARE TIME TO DO SOMETHING ELSE?
I’m so used to working ungodly hours that I’m going to wean myself and slowly back off the hours I’m actually at work. My garden in the summer is very important to me. I never did like working day shift. I’ve always worked double shifts on Tuesdays and Saturdays so I had those two days I had to be there. I’m a night shift worker. I’ll be waitressing in the back of the bar if anybody wants to visit my section on Friday and Saturday nights. I’ll still be there on Jam Night being sound man. You won’t see me at Tari’s in the day time much because I never did like dayshift so that will be where I catch up on my free time.

AMY’S READY, BUT AS THE MOTHER FIGURE, YOU SIT HER DOWN AND SAY: “AMY YOU KNOW HOW GLAMOROUS THIS ALL IS, YOU KNOW HOW MUCH FUN IT IS BUT YOU HAVEN’T NOTICED THE PROBLEM AREAS. THESE ARE MY TOP THREE CONCERNS.”
Amy and I actually had this conversation yesterday because in my opinion she is worried about all the wrong things and she’s not worried about the things I want her to be worried about. I think a big concern -- and it ccertainly has been a big concern of mine -- is the fact that our water and sewer bills have gone through the roof. All of our utility costs and oil costs are through the roof; also employee health insurance and business liability insurance. Our expenses have squeezed the profit margin really really tight and if I would keep up with the cost increase of our utilities, a hamburger at Tari’s would be $14.95. and of course you can’t do that or you would go out of business. My #1 concern for Amy is to keep a very sharp eye on water consumption and basic overall utility cost. There isn’t much you can do about insurance expcept price it out each year. She has to keep a sharp eye on waste. I’ve always been very frugal about wasting food. Our culture at Tari’s has always been one of not being wasteful. We would always rather give money to the employees than give it to the trash can. However, costs of employees go up every year. People earn and need raises each year. The costs of utilities goes up too so to keep a menu that has fair prices that people can afford but pay all these monthly bills is definitely a challenge.

WHAT WOULD YOU ANTICIPATE AS THE MOST NOTICEABLE CHANGE? DO YOU THINK PEOPLE WILL NOTICE ANY CHANGE AT ALL?

I really don’t. Amy runs it exactly as I do. She’s worked side by side with me at Tari’s for 17 years, Amy does have plans for some improvements. She has plans for a complete and total renovation of the bar area when the Health Department doesn’t allow smoking in there anymore. Together, we have come up with a five year plan that includes some very exciting additions and even some expansion of Tari’s. Those are the kinds of things you’ll see down the road but on July 1 everybody will see it run the same and that’s the way the I want it to be,. She doesn’t want to go in and make a bunch of changes because we have something that works and if it isn’t broke don’t fix it.

AND SHE’S BEEN PART OF THE EVOLUTION SO IT IS WHAT SHE WANTED IT TO BE. WHEN YOU SAY EXPAND, ARE YOU PLANNING TO BUY THE NEXT DOOR STAR THEATRE?
We’d have to ask you and Jack about the Star. (laugh) We talked about a deck over the back. We’ve had some space upstairs that I’ve always used to take in homeless and wayward women; I call it the home for wayward women. We do have a lot of space upstairs. There is a potential for additional artist shops upstairs. There’s lots of things we’ve talked about doing. She’s extremely interested in being able to deliver lunch to downtown business people and her children could certainly help her with that. I’ve never done it. We could do more online pre-ordering and delivery. There’s still plenty of things Tari’s could do. I’ve been too busy to pull it off and I don’t have three kids who would run lunch all over town.

WHAT ABOUT YOUR PROCESSED FOOD SALES?
They are ghangbusters at this point. My salsa wins just about every tasting contest it enters. I’ve got lots of additional sauces that I plan to bottle. Of course, I’m giving that business to Amy but she will really excell in that. My Hillbilly Bean Soup has been selling like hotcakes. There is a lot of opportunity there and recently Mountainmade.com has picked up our salsa for their new line, We have a lot of room to grow with my bottled food products.

YOU’VE MENTIONED ONE CONCERN. WHAT ABOUT OTHERS?
One of my big conerns is that Amy has spent most her life working in the Gallery and dining room and has very little experience working in the bar. I work in the bar because I worry about people drinking too much and driving. It has been an ongoing and continuing nightmare for me. It’s against the law to serve anyone to the point of intoxification. We don’t do that, however occasionally people walk in the place, look stone sober, have one beer and their head hits the table. Who knows what they took before they got in there and they become our problem. The state makes us responsible for these people that wander in and you have to sit there with them all night and sober them up. You can’t let them leave or you have to call the police and I just don’t think Amy has spent a lot of time in an environment where people try to get drunk. I need to work with her very hard on that. I need to keep working that bar. Most of my employees, including Amy, have been through a training program in noticing the effects of alcohol on people. Basically, if you come to Tari’s and haven’t eaten anything and have three drinks, you’re not going to get a fourth. She understands those rules and will deal with the situation. People trying to drink too much will be one thing about Tari’s I will never miss. One of the worst parts about owning a restaurant for me is having to deal with people who want to drink too much.

WITH EVERYBODY AND THEIR BROTHER ON VARIOUS KINDS OF MEDICATION IT BECOMES EVEN MORE CHALLENGING. YOU CAN SERVE THEM ONE DRINK AND THEY COULD HAVE BEEN TAKING SOME MEDICATION....
It happens. As I said, we have to sit there with them all night, we can’t let them leave. It’s an unfortunate libaility and exposure risk that’s unfair to the average business owner.

BECAUSE IT’S BEEN IMPOSED TOO HARSHLY?
It makes the business owner and bartender totally responsible for somebody else’s behavior and somebody else who could be lying. I won’t shed a tear in having to give up that aspect of the business and I know that Amy is very very strict and once she sees what people try to do.... One of the things people say is “I’m walking.” I don’t care if they’re walking, that’s all the more reason why they could walk out in front of a truck and get hit. Or they’ll say, my wife is driving. That’s fine except what happens when you two get home and get in an argument and you jump in your pick-up truck and go out. None of that stuff gets by me. I’m very strict about alcohol consumption and I know that Amy will be the same.

The third concern is that there are simply not enough hours in the day. Tari’s is a seven day and night business. There is no whistle that blows and you’re off. You’re off when the guests are gone and the cleaning is done. When you operate a seven days and nights a week business there truly are not enough hours in the day and she’s gonna have to figure out some kind of time management and prioritization. I think that you spend a lot of time in this business putting out fires. My style, being the worry wart I am, is to try to eliminate problems before they become problems. She is going to be so slapped in the face with the absolute and constant work,
dealing with problems all the time. Even after you come home, there’s more to do, more work to be done. You’re never really off when you own a restaurant. You’re never off. Just because you’re not there doesn’t mean you’re free of the responsiblity of it. It’s a constant worry. A cook could cut their finger off; a guest could choke or fall. It’s a constant constant worry and I don’t think you really carry that worry and responsibility fully until you’re the real owner of that restaurant.

CERTAINLY NOT EVERY RESTAURANT OWNER TAKES IT AS SERIOUSLY AS YOU DO?
I’m hoping that Amy isn’t the worry wart that I am because what good does that do? I am literally cooked with worry and just the whole responsibility of it all. I hope for me that when I turn it over to her, I can release some of that worry. It worries me that I’m such a mother hen to Amy and everyone at Tari’s that I’m not able to let that go and pull that off, then I’ve made a terrible mistake. There I am working as a waitress at $2.13 an hour and worrying myself to death every day about Amy.

I want to make sure that at the end of this story there is a big thank you to my customers, to all of my employees past and current, my friends, my supporters, my family and of course Lovey.

DID LOVEY SIGN A CONTRACT TOO THAT HE’S GOING TO BE WORKING THE NEXT FIVE YEARS OR IS HE GOING TO GET LAID OFF?
We are trying desperately to fire him from dishwashing. Lovey works seven days a week at Tari’s. We don’t want him going in there every day to wash dishes. Amy’s the apple of his eye and Lovey’s a creature of habit. I want to see him enjoy his life, play with his old cars and motorcycle. Lovey is a funny guy and he will also want to make sure that Amy is doing well. The restaurant is doing well so we’re going to try and limit his hours. We’re going to let him go in every morning. He has to go in and make sure everything is working because in the restaurant business something is broken every day. We have about 45 pieces of refrigeration and something is broken every day. So we’re going to allow him to go in and make sure that everything is in working order. He’s obsessed with cleaning all the wine and beer glasses and making sure there are no fingerprints on the glasses and the silverware. We’re going to let him do this. But we’re going to have a real dishwasher on the schedule and we’re going to kick him out of that job. We’re not going to let him do this so we’re firing him. He says he’s going to work for food so he won’t be on Amy’s payroll. If the cooks make a mistake Lovey will eat it but that’s what Lovey and I have always done. I can still count on one hand the times that Lovey and I’ve gone into that restaurant in 17 years and sat down and had a meal. I’ve never believed in having dinner and having your employees wait on you. We don’t do it, we don’t believe in it. When I have waitresses running around working their butts off, they don’t need to be waiting on me and Lovey. We’ve just never done that. We eat mistakes; we live on mistakes.

There is one trick thing that is important to me. When you own a restaurant both of you can’t go away very often together because somebody has to stay and work at the restaurant. Lovey has an awesome family. His mother is wonderful. The rest of the world does things on weekends. That’s when all the picnics and the parties and the weddings are, on Saturdays, on weekends, and I have missed so many family gatherings with Lovey’s family I can’t even count them. I did get to go to church with them on one Mother’s Day; the whole family showed up and surprised her at the church. I do look forward to and am very excited about a family vacation this summer. All Lovey’s siblings and his mother and stepfather are going to Ocean City togther so I’m really excited to be spending a whole week with Lovey’s family

AND NOT GET CALLED BACK SINCE OBVIOUSLY YOU GO TO FLORIDA TOGETHER IN THE WINTER AND GO ON CRUISES AND TO THE BEACH BUT THERE’S ALWAYS THE THREAT.
We took a trip to Ocean City one time and I had just gotten on the beach. I wasn’t there five minutes and I saw Lovey on the beach. First and only time I’ve ever seen Lovey run. His feet were touching sand. I thought someone had died. So he comes flying up to me and says get in the van Darling. I rode home in my bathing suit and worked in the kitchen in my bathing suit because an employee had buirned her arms at another job and there was no one to cook so my vacation that time lasted five minutes.

UNDER THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES AMY WOULD HAVE TO FIND SOMEONE TO COOK OR DO IT HERSELF?
Or she could call me.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE THEN?
Ijust feel... I’m hoping that being an employee imstead the owner will give me some sense of relief.

AND YOU WOULD BE THE LAST CHOICE OF WHO SHE CALLS?
It depends on the need at hand. If it’s a cooking duty and a busy Saturday night it will be a matter of who can she find last minute. I’m always easy to find. It’s role reversal. She’s the owner and I’m the manager. It’s really nothing more than a role reversal.

I am wondering how I feel that day, July 1. I am scheduled to work that night in the back of the bar section. I just don’t know how I’m going to feel that day, whether it will be a sigh of relief or cry all day. I don’t know. Thus far, and even during this interview and having told about 80% of my employees so far, it’s feeling right. I know I’m doing the right thing, I just don’t know -- after 18 years of the lifestyle I’ve lived -- what it’s going to feel like on July 1 when I’m just a waitress. I hope it’s a feeling of relief and not sadness.

THERE’S CERTAINLY GOING TO BE A PERIOD OF ADJUSTMENT.
Certainly. We’ve been playing that Amy’s the owner for about the last year. I took that trip to Florida in March and deliberately called only once a week. She pretended she was the owner and she did a bang up job. And the only reason I called once a week is that I missed their voices, they are truly like my children. I would sit in Florida and cry because I missed these people so much. They are like my children.

I will be working for Amy for a long time.  I started a consulting business for restaurants that are in trouble.  The chains are eating up all the mom and pop businesses.  They have tremendous purchasing power and huge advertising budgets.  It is sad to see people work their lives away only to be destroyed by chain restaurants.  I will do more gardening and work in my greenhouse so I can provide more fresh produce for Amy.  The food starts there.  I hope to have time to get back into music and painting.  Lately, I have been making jewelry.  Other than that, I have three books to write and a few places I would like to visit. 

AND PEOPLE CAN NOW SEE SOME OF YOUR NEW CREATIONS....
Right inside the door, I hung a used screen door and hung all the jewelry there. So I started that business. I also started Restaurant Nurse which is my consulting business. So I’m not going away. I have to work. I’m taking a huge pay cut in this transaction so I have to work just like the next guy and that’s fine with me. I’m not ready to retire.


AND YOU’LL BE THERE TO PERFORM FOR JAM NIGHT BECAUSE THAT’S OBVIOUSLY ONE OF THE THINGS THAT AMY DOES NOT DO.
I’ll still run Jam Night, I’ll be the sound man. I don’t perform much on Jam Night. I run the sound and monitor the drinking. Jam Night is the only night that Tari’s is like a bar. All the other nights, it’s a restaurant. And yes, Amy has three children and I don’t want her to be there every night. During most of her time working, Amy’s worked day shift so she could be home with her family at night.

One change that people will see is that I won’t be sitting down to chat with people but there are only a few that I do that with so most people won’t miss me. What I’ve learned in my last few months of waitressing is I don’t want to sit down. I’m not getting any younger and I don’t like to sit down. I like to get in, get my job done, Sweeping and cleaning up done and get out. Once I sit down, I don’t want to get back up. That’s just me. Other people do better by sitting down a bit. I’m not a sitter when I’m working.

The Health Department’s smoking ban is really going to hurt the bar business. The truth of the matter that restaurants are surviving this unconstitutional rule is that business owners are by nature entrepreneurs so when you’re slapped in the face by some ridiculous government rule you must find a way to survive and circumvent the rule. It would not surprise me that when the rule destroys Amy’s bar business that it becomes a bakery. Who knows. People have to do whatever they have to do to survive what government does to them. My point is there definitely should be a law, and the law should be that there should be a sign that says smoking happens here and if you don’t want to come in, fine. Don’t come in. We don’t run to the government when we make poor decisions for our businesses.. If we make a poor decision and allow smoking in our bar and we go out of business because our bar is smoky that’s a choice we make that was a poor business choice. Government gets to make all these rules but they don’t pay the price for all these rules they make. The entreprenuer pays the price. I still resent the fact that government and the Health Department call Tari’s a public building. Tari’s is a private building. I worked my butt off to own that building and it’s mine and no one has the right to tell me that something legal -- and cigarette smoking is still legal -- isn’t allowed to happen in my private building,. It’s not a public building. No one makes you go there, you go there by choice and they’ve removed that choice. The other big gripe for me is that as people in the hospitality business -- and that’s what we are -- we’re in business to serve people from all walks of life, handicapped people, people with food allergies, we are called on to serve all kinds of people. Smokers to me are another breed of customer that we need to serve and they’re taking that right -- our ability to serve -- that right away from us.

YOU’RE ABLE TO SERVE THEM, YOU’RE JUST NOT ABLE TO ALLOW THEM TO SMOKE.
Yes, but I will always think that’s wrong. I hope that by this time next year I am not a smoker,.

IS AMY A SMOKER?
No.

SO THIS IS NOT A PERSONAL ISSUE WITH HER?
It will be a personal issue for her because she also feels it’s wrong. And I hope I’m not going to be a smoker. This is not about whether or not I smoke. It’s about government infringing upon the entreprenuerial spirit, government infringing on my right to serve people from all walks of life. Smokers are just one of those customers and they’re taking away my ability to serve them.

DO YOU AGREE WITH THEIR LIMITATIONS ON DRINKERS?
Absolutely. Because drinking kills other people. When you drink and kill someobody’s child, you’ve killed somebody. Somebody smoking a cigarette after lunch isn’t going to kill anybody,. It;’s only going to kill them, eventually.

OF COURSE THERE’S EVIDENCE THAT DISAGREES WITH THAT, THAT SAYS SECOND HAND SMOKE IS...
Then don’t eat in the bar.

WHAT ABOUT EMPLOYEES? WHAT IF AN EMPLOYEE DOESN’T WANT TO WORK IN THE BAR?
We have employees who don’t work in the bar because smoking goes on there. No employee is forced to work in that bar because of smoke. Most of my employees who work in the bar do smoke. I’m going to say that 99% of my employees who work in the bar smoke. I’m never going to make an employee of mine work in the bar. It would be wrong.

ARE YOU HOLDING THE NOTE?
Yes. 100%. The sale price is a matter of public record at the Courthouse if anyone is interested. I definitely gave her a good deal on the real estate. She’s buying it all lock, stock and barrel.



ANYTHING MORE?
No, except to thank all the people who believed in me. Especially the couple whose name I won’t mention that loaned me all the money to open Tari’s in the first place. I was 28 years old, an uneducated redneck from Berkeley Springs. Very little business experience, very little business knowledge and this couple loaned me a small fortune to open a business where the failure ratio is seven out of eight in the first year. And I just can’t thank them enough for believing in me and taking that risk. They were the ones who took the risk loaning me all that money. I’m very grateful that...,.I feel that I was a pioneer in reinventing Berkeley Springs as a tourism destination. I was one of the first businesses. I’m very proud of the fact that I had the guts to do it in a town that was still a ghost town. I took a huge risk and encountered a huge debt and it really pleases me to help promote the businesses that have opened in Berkeley Springs and we’ve become such a lovely town. I think Travel Berkeley Springs has been a God send to so many of us and it just makes me feel good to see people who have these boring careers get to come here and open a little business of things they really like -- Bath Bookworks and Portals and all of the businesses that have opened -- and I’m sure they don’t make the money they used to make in what their profession was but I’m also sure they’re a lot happier people. And that makes me feel good to look back from 1988 when I bought that building and looking at it today and seeing the huge difference that our town has made and the total transformation.

YOU BOUGHT THE FIRST TWO STOREFRONTS.....
Yes, Thanksgiving Day 1988. I was allowed to look at the outside of the buildings and we purchased them sight unseen. We were not allowed to go inside or upstairs because there were two ladies who lived upstairs. They had lived there for 20-30 years and Vernon Close owned the building. He was an elderly man and he didn’t want to upset the elderly women who lived upstairs., So basically I stood across the street on the bridge and stared at the building and truly visualized what Tari’s was going to look like and what it was going to be like and it absolutely became a reality.

AND THEN YOU OPENED. DID ALOT OF WORK ON IT?
Yes, we totally renovated it and opened in April 1989 and I had the good sense to go and visit Julia Linaweaver and told her if she ever sold the building next door I would appreciate the opportunity to bid on it when she was ready to sell it. I bid on it and won the bid which allowed me to expand into my gallery in August 2000. I also always wanted an art gallery. A restaurant needs decor. A restaurant has walls. I was able to start the art business the year I opened. Back then it was mostly Jonathan Heath that was being shown at Tari’s. I really got into local women who were craftspeople and artists and they also had boring deadend jobs to make ends meet and I wanted to showcase their work. Now, I’m very proud to say that many of them have thrown away their day jobs and sell enough art at Tari’s that they are thriving on their art business. I’m still about 90% local art at Tari’s and that also makes me proud that we have a nice place to showcase local art. You know that Berkeley Springs is one of the top 10 art towns and I hope that I’ve helped make a dent there too.

If it weren’t for Lovey I wouldn’t have survived this long. That man is a a rock and through thick and he has stood beside me every step of the way and there have been some very very hard times in that restaurant. The first year I was open and the second year I was open I had to buy two new roofs and didn’t have the money. I was always running to the bank taking out 90 day notes to fix this or repair that. For the first five years I was in business, I took a second fulltime job every winter just to pay the help. I can honestly say that I’m proud of the fact that I’ve never had a layoff. I’ve never laid off an employee. I said when I opened that place I’m not going to be one of those seasonal businesses where you work your butt off for me all summer and then when winter comes: see you later. Don’t need you now. And I’ve never done it. And even if I had to go out and take a second job to pay them, that’s what I did. I’m really proud of that because so many tourism businesses get rid of their help in the winter.

If I had it to do over again, I really wouldn’t be open in the winter. I would do several things differently and that would be one. We really lose a lot of money being open in the winter. I believe in being open and what we get by with on Apple Butter Festival weekend allows us to bank enough money really to pay our entire payroll in January. That’s how we’ve always done it. We just bank as much as we can that weekend, then when winter comes the employees are not an issue. One of the questions people ask me a lot is how do I have such excellent employee retention -- well I’m committed to them and they know it. And they know they’re not going to get laid off in the winter and I’m going to do everything I can to generate business in the winter and I’m so committed to them that I think they’re also committed to the restaurant.

AND YOU HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE FOR YOUR EMPLOYEES.....
and retirement. I’m probably one of the first independent restaurants and may be one of the only independent restaurants that when you work at Tari’s and when you’re full time and committed to the organization, we provide health and retirement benefits and that’s another fact that I’m very proud of because Tari’s is a real career. It’s not a low end tourist job, it’s a real career when you work there if you ask any of the full time staff they’ll tell you you get exactly out of Tari’s what you put into it. If you’ve busted your butt for me and you’re working it and you’re doing it right then Tari’s is a good place to work.

YOU’RE ANTICIPATING THAT AMY WILL CONTINUE ALL THIS?
Absolutely. We’ve had hundreds of conversations about this and for the last three or four years every time I’ve wanted to give an employee a raise or make an important employee decision she has been there behind me all the time.

She truly understands that we can’t do it without employees and she really has a good grip on her benefits and treatment of employees.

WHAT IS THE PREDOMINANT REACTION AS YOU’VE BEEN TELLING YOUR EMPLOYEES ABOUT THIS?
Well about a year and a half ago I hung a sign on the bulletin board where their schedules are because there were a lot of rumors going around about me and my business. There was a rumor that I was buying Coolfont and the Country Inn and the Castle. They love rumors about Tari. There was a big rumor that I was selling Tari’s to two guys from DC. That rumor took hold and it was really scaring people. I hung up a sign that told them Tari’s was not for sale; Tari’s was not listed on the market; the two guys from DC were not buying Tari’s and I promised them that someday Amy would own Tari’s. So that when I told them these last several weeks they all were aware that some day Amy would own Tari’s. Some of them were a little shocked that it was this soon. There were a few more tears shed on my part than theirs. The impromptu employee of the year vote we took years ago -- I knew they would support Amy. They know that she works her butt off. I do believe that Amy will be a llittle more strict than me in some areas. Amy will have a healthier separation from her employees than I do. They are my children; they will be her employees. I loan them money, I bail them out of their troubles. I never drew the kinds of lines that you probably should draw within yourself and your employees. I am the mother hen. I don’t regret that. I helped a lot of people own their own homes; I’ve heped a lot of people with their health care issues and their family problems and I’m glad I did but I don’t think that Amy will take on that particular role with her employees. I’ve told them that I will always be here for them.

YOU WON’T LET THEM COME TO YOU AGAINST AMY?
Absolutely not., Except when I am the acting manager on duty -- I will manage accordingly. I will do my best to make the decisions and choices that I believe Amy would make as she has done for me. Amy and I work so well together. Our minds are so much alike. We think so much alike. There’s a popular book called the One Minute Manager that I’ve never read; but I can tell you that Amy and I are the one second managers. We deal with problems immediately,. We’re serious multi-taskers. We get stuff done. We’re seriously efficient. My staff would never play that game with us and neither of us would allow it if somebody did. There are a few people there that are my best friends and they are like my children. Our firendship goes way way beyond a business so they’re not going to do that.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE GOING TO BE THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THIS TRANSFER.?
The big question is going to be why and I hope we’ve answered this. There was a rumor lately that I had some sort of cancer and that Lovey and I were getting a divorce which is totally laughable. Yes, they will wonder if my health is in order and it is. For my age I am pretty healthy; everybody has their issues and I smoke too much but yeah, please make sure they know this is not a health crisis or anything of the kind.

I have two new companies that I started. I started a corporation last year called Heartworks; it’s an art business where I plan to do more artwork and sell jewelry....


TAKING A STROLL DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH TARI
There have been some magical musical moments at Tari's.  I even got to feed Kitty Wells and catered Roberta Peter's son’s wedding.  I didn't know who Roberta Peters was.  She did some Jewish singing during the ceremony.  At the end of the reception, I said, WOW.  Your voice really kicks butt!  You oughta do something with that.  The next day, she arrived at the restaurant with an autographed picture and she told me who she was.  SO much for my knowledge of opera!
 
 
I have always stayed in town during snow storms and blizzards.  During the last blizzard, I was the ONLY person open in town.  I had my three dogs with me.  I was roaming around the kitchen at about 6 in the morning in my nightgown and people were banging on my door.  Hundreds of tourists were trapped in town with nowhere to go.  I made a breakfast buffet on the bar and charged $1.00 per guest.  They put the money in a jar.  We used the honor system for everything else.  The funniest part was I stayed in my nightgown until 2 that afternoon.  I was too busy to dress!  I asked a customer to guard the fort while I showered and got dressed.
 
Some of my favorite memories are the employee Christmas parties.  My kids all play well together.  We have a waiting list of customers that beg to be guest bar-tenders at the party.  The staff loves to have fun, do crazy things and dance.  It is so much fun to watch them play!
 
I also have some sad memories.  When a customer passes away, we all mourn.  We have lost a lot of great people in the last 17 years and we really miss them.  I also miss some great people that used to work at Tari's and have moved on to bigger and better things.  Many people worked their way through college at Tari's.  I am proud of them, but we still miss them.  I also miss a few that worked their butts off for me but have moved on. 

Here are my favorite ten things.
1.  I have worked with some outstanding people.
2.  I have made some terrific friends.
3.  I have done some good things for the community.
4.  I survived a grueling business.
5.  I helped some people who really needed it.
6.  I learned a lot.
7.  I worked with some kids that needed guidance and supervision.
8.  My marriage survived a stressful business and is truly blissful.
9.  I laughed more than I cried.
10.  Bottom line:  I had and still have some of the best employees one could ever hope for  The local customers have given me lots of support.  I am forever grateful for my survival.  Lovey has been my best friend and my rock.  Without great employees, loyal customers and Lovey, I would have never made it.  I can't thank them all enough.