Page 38 - the NOISE July 2014

BUSINESSNEWS
A WHISK AND A DREAM
AFTER 20 YEARS, THE HOLLANDAISE BEATS ANEW
STORY & PHOTO BY BETSEY BRUNER
Brandy & Ed Wojciak, right, symbolically hand off a giant whisk to new Brandy’s Restaurant & Bakery
owners, Kelsey & Jamie Drayton, left.
Sometimes it’s just the right moment to move on in life. Such is the case for Ed & Brandy Wojciak, who have just retired after 20 years of running the popular Brandy’s Restaurant & Bakery.
At the end of April, general manager and close family friend Kelsey Dray- ton, along with his wife, Jamie, took the helm. “We want this whole thing to be a warm exchange,” said Ms. Wojciak.
“They’re part of the family.”
Her husband agreed. “It’s just like
a perfect fit,” he said. “I don’t think we could find better people. This is like turning it over to a member of the fam- ily. It’s kind of a small miracle.”
The family feeling runs deep and dates to when the Wojciaks’ two sons grew up with Mr. Drayton. They were even in Little League together, with Mr. Wojciak as their baseball coach.
At 15, Mr. Drayton started as a dish- washer. After two years, he was promot- ed to a counter position, then to a baker & when he was 19, to a server. “Working at Brandy’s paid my way through college,” Mr. Drayton recalled, who met his wife when both were music majors at NAU.
In fact, one of their first dates was at Brandy’s. Mr. Drayton was performing in the restaurant with a group of musicians, when his future came to watch the show, and they’ve been a pair ever since.
After graduating from NAU, the cou- ple moved to Los Angeles. He contin- ued to work in restaurants, first in vari- ous positions at Chili’s in Torrance and then as a server and bartender at The Tower, a four-star hotel in Beverly Hills. His last job in LA was in production work & marketing, managing a team of 16 people for E! Entertainment & the Style Network.
The family connection continued when they married in 2007 and the Wojciaks attended the wedding in Malibu with their sons as groomsmen. In another bit of synchronicity, when the Draytons had their baby girl in a Phoenix hospital, the
Wojciaks were just down the street welcoming twin grandchildren. “It’s a romantic story,” Mr. Drayton said.
In Los Angeles, Ms. Drayton started a 15- year career in administration, focusing on communication, media-relations writing and creative planning and implementation. Her last job in Southern California was as co- ordinator for corporate communications at a television studio.
The Draytons hope to combine their past career skills to carry Brandy’s forward. “We were doing well in our corporate jobs,” he said. “We were moving up the ladder, but we wanted to be closer to family.”
Mr. Drayton will continue to manage the daily operations of the restaurant, supervis- ing about 22 experienced staff members and making sure there’s enough whisks & eggs to get through the weekend rush. Ms. Dray- ton, who has already been drafting Brandy’s promotions & special events, will be at her husband’s side, greeting guests, creating new visions for the restaurant, and keeping an eye on the books.
Through the years, the Wojciaks, who met while watching a Woody Allen film on cam- pus, have taken great pride in running the restaurant. The recipe for success at Brandy’s has included a mix of a loving marriage, a reputation for wholesome food & baked goods, a good-natured staff, a loyal patron base of locals & travelers alike, and involve- ment in the community & the arts.
The couple’s history began while in their 20s when they opened La Bellavia on South Beaver Street. At the time, only about 17,000 people lived in Flagstaff, there were only a handful of restaurants, and the cafe served as a popular break- fast spot. They sold La Bellavia in 2005 to concentrate full time on Brandy’s, which went on to become a Flagstaff institution. Part of that popularity can be traced back to the famed egg dishes.
“We’re known for our exceptional eggs,” Mr. Drayton explained. “We have 10 different variations on Eggs Benedict. My favorite is the
new bacon and avocado recipe. We use an apple-cider-cured gourmet bacon that mixes really well with the avocado and the Hollanda- ise sauce.”
The lunch menu features Reuben sand- wiches that draw regulars back again and again, Mr. Drayton notes. “The menu is di- verse, with a little something for everyone.”
Among many accolades, Brandy’s was voted Best of Flagstaff for Breakfast & Lunch by Arizona Daily Sun readers 16 times and for the past two years has been awarded “Best Breakfast in Flagstaff”by LocalEats.com.
Brandy’s hosts many annual art shows for schools and organizations, including Flagstaff Arts & Leadership Academy, LOU Corp, and the Artists’ Coalition of Flag- staff. The early shows fostered the careers of local painters Shonto Begay & Connie Townsend. For their longtime support, the Wojciaks were honored early this year with a Viola Award.
Other high points in Brandy’s history were the 8-year collaboration with chef Sherman Johnson — whose globe-trotting perfected his gourmet cooking — and the 2009 film- ing of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives with Guy Fieri. At the time, Mr. Fieri said he loves
“driving into towns and discovering people who have a real passion for their communi- ty.” And the Wojciaks fit that description. The episode still repeats on the Food Network.
Meanwhile, the Draytons were looking for a way to move back to Flagstaff. “We want- ed to start our own business and get out of our corporate jobs,” Mr. Drayton recalled.
“We heard from Bret that the Wojciaks were thinking of selling. Brandy and I had our first brainstorm on the phone during a 45-min- ute drive in LA.”
The handoff did take some time as the young couple found a home here and Mr. Drayton entered as general manager. “It’s been a lot of work,” Mr. Wojciak said. “These guys have done massive amounts of paperwork.”
“To apply for loans, we wrote 50-page busi- ness plans under the guidance of the Small
Business Development Center,” Mr. Dray- ton explained. “We applied to three banks ... After 31⁄2 years since that first conversation in LA traffic, this has been quite the journey. From dream to real- ity, from dishwasher to owner, our new adventure begins.”
Thirty-eight years of high-octane restaurateuring, the Wojciaks know the transition of retirement might be a shock.
“It’s going to be really weird to not come down here and make the decisions,” said Mr. Wojciak, who served as “overseer” of the business for years. “We’re going to clear our brains and take a break.”
The Draytons have no plans for imme- diate changes at Brandy’s. “Our plan is to do business as usual,” Mr. Drayton said.
“We have ideas we’ll work on by the end of the year, but we’re not changing to a Mexican restaurant or anything. We’re also going to continue with the arts. We have some big shows coming up ...”
“We want to keep the legacy alive,” agreed his wife, who noted they had made it through their first two weeks, which in- cluded graduation & Mother’s Day, “typi- cally our busiest weekend of the year.”
The Wojciaks made a point to add, “We have been honored to have had a restaurant in this amazing community for 20 years and are so happy Kelsey &
Jamie will continue it for the next 20!” Brandy’s Restaurant & Bakery is open daily from 6:30AM to 3PM and is located at 1500 E. Cedar Ave. #40, in the Safeway
Shopping Center. For more information, call the restaurant at (928) 779-2187.
| Betsey Bruner is a longtime Flagstaff journalist who recently launched the freelance
firm, Words & Images.
betseybruner@gmail.com
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