If You Think Big, Then It's Going

When I First Decided To Open A Restaurant, I Was Turned Down By Several Banks. It Was The Late 80's And Many Restaurants Were Failing. I Refused To Give Up Because I Knew I Had A Good Concept.

The Premise Of 'the Originals' Are Places That Have Been Open 50, 60, 75, 100 Years Or Longer That Are Still Doing It Right That Maybe A Lot Of People, Particularly The Younger Generations, Have Not Even Thought About.

I Ended Up Turning Down A Full Scholarship Of Music At The Conservatory To Pay To Go To Cooking School.

I'm Pretty Actively Involved With The Military Because I Think They're Incredible Human Beings. If I Can Give Back To Them For What They're Doing For Us, It's A Good Thing. And I Think To Have Happy Soldiers, You Need To Feed Them Well.

I Was On The Board Of Andre Agassi's Foundation, And Seeing The Way It Operated Blew My Mind. In 2002, I Told My Wife, I Want To Start A Foundation To Give Back, I Want It To Be For Kids In Hard Circumstances, And I Want It To Be Culinary-driven, Because That's Who I Am.