David Cid of Silver Sun Group: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became a Restauranteur

An Interview With Vicky Colas

It’s true what they say, you can please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. Guests come in from diverse demographic groups, and their wants and needs are just as varied. Some may think the music is too loud or high-energy, while the person sitting next to them may think it’s not loud enough. It’s important to take all feedback into consideration, but also to understand that it’s impossible to make everyone happy all the time.

As part of our series about the lessons from influential ‘TasteMakers’, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing David Cid.

David Cid is the principal partner of The Silver Sun Group, a leading consultancy in operations management, brand building and experiential marketing for the food, beverage and hospitality industries. David is the Master of Rum for Bacardi Rums and leads brand development for the world’s leading rum brand. A native of Puerto Rico, David and his team have just opened Wildflower Restaurant and Craft Cocktail Bar in Stowe, Vermont, to critical acclaim.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to ‘get to know’ you a bit. Can you share with our readers a story about what inspired you to become a restaurateur?

I love to cook and I love experimenting with flavors and aromas. Cooking is a great art form — -there is so much creativity to be expressed through food. When opening a restaurant with my partners, it was important to us that we incorporated our respective cultures into the cuisine. I am Puerto Rican and my business partners have roots in the Dominican Republic and Korea — so we wanted to fuse a classic American menu with the Latin-Asian flavors of our culture. But to be successful, it’s not enough to just be creative — you have to know how to manage a business efficiently as well. At Silver Sun Group, we are challenged to be great all-around leaders, both in business and art.

Do you have a specific type of food that you focus on? What was it that first drew you to cooking that type of food? Can you share a story about that with us?

You will recognize that the dishes at Wildflower are traditional American cuisine. However, infusing each dish with Latin-Asian ingredients and preparation techniques is what sets this menu apart. As we were getting started, the more we cooked together, the more we realized there were similarities in so many of the ingredients and flavors of our culture, and we wanted to bring those flavors to life.

For example, the Roasted Chicken is marinated overnight in herbs and spices, baked and roasted for a crispy, crunchy skin, a favorite preparation style in Korea. We serve this with maduros, or sweet plantains, a staple in Latin American cooking. The result is a dish that goes from ordinary to extraordinary.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you became a restaurateur? What was the lesson or take away you took out of that story?

Recently, we hosted a private party, and one of the guests was a four year-old boy, who was completely fascinated by the monarch caterpillars in our outside garden. He befriended me and spent the next 45 minutes informing me about all the insects and plants in the garden. Imagine, this from a four year-old! It was really sweet and reminded me that these chances to connect with others are what make this business so special to me.

Can you tell us a story about the hard times that you faced when you first started your journey? How did you overcome this obstacle?

Finding the right staffing mix is difficult and one of the biggest challenges we faced on our journey. Finding people that you can trust, that hopefully will be with you for a long time, is difficult.

I overcame this obstacle by embracing the fact that not everyone who is hired is there for the long haul, and that change is inevitable. When building a team, it’s important to have an arsenal of talent that you can trust to get the job done correctly.

In your experience, what is the key to creating a dish that customers are crazy about?

The best dishes are those with flavors that have layered complexity of aromas, flavors and texture, but are also visually appealing. We are drawn into a dish with our eyes before ever taking a bite. The look, taste and aroma must be intriguing to capture the attention of the consumer.

Personally, what is the ‘perfect meal’ for you’?

The perfect meal, to me, is one that is shared with family and friends, that engages all the senses and brings to life the social aspects of dining together.

Coming from Puerto Rico, a simple dish of steamed rice, pink beans and a protein is a staple in our culture and as close to a perfect meal as one can get. These meals are nostalgic for me and transport me back home, to my childhood. I cherish those memories and the important role that food plays in these special moments in my life.

Where does your inspiration for creating come from? Is there something that you turn to for a daily creativity boost?

I think with both sides of the brain, so I’m both analytical and creative. My ability to create takes me outside of my comfort zone and challenges me in new and unique ways. I like to say I’m intrigued by intrigue — I like the process of creating and reinventing myself.

Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? What impact do you think this will have?

At Silver Sun Group, in addition to just opening Wildflower, we have some exciting new projects underway. We are getting ready to open the Cottontail Room inside the Grey Fox Inn. The Cottontail Room is a speakeasy-style lounge named after the New England Cottontail Rabbit that is indigenous to the region.

On the drinks side, we are also building a culture that is unprecedented in this region and includes bar program development and educational components for bartenders throughout the area. With our collective backgrounds as leaders in spirits and mixology, we look forward to leaving an indelible imprint on the cocktail culture of Vermont.

What advice would you give to other restaurateurs to thrive and avoid burnout?

Being tired is inevitable! Embrace it and be sure to find the right partners to build a solid support structure. Also, don’t be afraid to admit when you are wrong and put the best interest of the team at the core of everything you do. Equally admit defeat and celebrate success as you go.

Thank you for all that. Now we are ready for the main question of the interview. What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started as a Restaurateur” and why? Please share a story or an example for each.

1. I wish someone had told me about the not-often-mentioned costs associated with opening a restaurant! This includes all the expected labor and supply costs, but also the hidden costs like insurance, attorneys, bookkeepers and tax accountants.
2. The volatility of even the best prepared pre-opening projections, or proforma. Write the best one you can so that you can account for all costs and have a clear roadmap for success, but also get ready to adapt.
3. It was surprising (and a bit frustrating) to have members of the team who have such varied levels of experience, many who have been mismanaged in the past. Communication is key in building high-functioning teams.
4. It’s true what they say, you can please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. Guests come in from diverse demographic groups, and their wants and needs are just as varied. Some may think the music is too loud or high-energy, while the person sitting next to them may think it’s not loud enough. It’s important to take all feedback into consideration, but also to understand that it’s impossible to make everyone happy all the time.
5. Make sure to check in with every big decision and ask yourself, am I doing this because it makes me happy, or the guest? Did you choose a certain design on the walls or add a certain dish to the menu because it is personally meaningful to you, but may not appeal to your customers? Always put the guest first and adapt to each situation with the customer’s best interest at heart.

What’s the one dish people have to try if they visit your establishment?

There are so many favorite dishes, it’s hard to choose! A must-try is the Grilled Octopus Bao. This is a dish that marries our team’s Asian and Latin cultures together perfectly. The combination of the crispy, richly-textured octopus with the softness of a fresh steamed bao bun, is something you will only find at Wildflower Restaurant and Bar. It’s been a huge hit with our guests.

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

The best advice I can impart is one that was shared with me early on in my career, and these are words to live by: Hire Attitude, Teach Skill. Skill is something that can be taught, and everyone comes to the job with varied levels of experience that can be improved upon. But, if you find someone with the right attitude, who is enthusiastic, positive, who takes pride in his/her work and puts the customer first-that person is a gem. Hire them on the spot.

Thank you so much for these insights. This was very inspirational!