When on a road trip it's advisable to make breakfast the day's main meal. Restaurant owners frequently attest to this: It's hard to foul up breakfast. So driving into Stilwell, Oklahoma, my eyes panned parking lots searching for vintage pick up trucks, fender to fender, signifying a multi star breakfast spot. The first sign of good food, strong coffee and fresh doughnuts just after sunrise is a truck lineup in front of a community diner.
Although not a truck stop, Izora's Family Restaurant and Daily Donut shop was the perfect place to spend thirty minutes, a bit of conversation and fourteen dollars. After the meal the night before, Isora's could have reached star status just by presenting an understandable menu. The diner offered more than that. An old style breakfast menu, portions and prices to back it up, good quality, spotless ambiance and extraordinary service. One of the first signs of the restaurant's cleanliness was the silverware sleeve that each customer received as a place setting. A tremendous feature which immediately puts the customer's mind at ease as to where the silverware has been.
This is not to say we received French service while sitting at the six stool counter. We got something better. Something I have sought for years: A waitress who voluntarily washes her hands after bussing a table.
My brother in law and road trip partner, Don Burks, was equally surprised when Diane, who has worked at Izora's for 15 years went to the hand washing sink as soon as she placed the dirty cups in the busser's bin. Burks owns Randy's Steakhouse in Frisco, Texas and the conversation immediately turned to how difficult it is to train a new waiter to wash their hands after bussing a table.
But waiters are not the only ones at fault when it comes to hand cleanliness. Owners also bypass the sink. When was the last time you washed your hands after leaving your office and going into the dining room to greet guests? How many times a night does you wash your hands after playing host, shaking hands and seating people? Exactly.
Izora Clark began her namesake diner 25 years ago. She probably doesn't hold pre shift meetings. She doesn't have fancy uniforms, or fusion food. She does have a loyal faithful clientele made up of regulars from town. When one customer walked in and merely ordered a "half order and black coffee, to go" Diane instantly new what he wanted. Seconds later the grill cook brought out a Styrofoam container filled with a half order of biscuits and gravy.
As soon as the biscuit order was rung up, and the change given back to the customer, Diane washed her hands. Isora then came out from her back room office and before even looking at the customers reached for the bottle of Pure and sterilized her hands.
It's obvious, you can lead by example. It's a great way to run a good restaurant.
