We recently connected with Sara Gabriele and have shared our conversation below.
Sara , looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
Growing up, I was surrounded by a family of innately hard workers. My mom and dad really don’t know another way to do things. Watching how hard they worked and the things that they were able to accomplish really made the case that hard work really does pay off. Now, at Gabi James, my husband, Adam and I are always trying to lead by example. There really isn’t a minute at Gabi James where we aren’t moving and thinking.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
For the last 6 years, my husband and I have had the great pleasure of living out our dreams of owning a restaurant. Gabi James is our Spanish and French restaurant in Redondo Beach with super fun food and a really incredible bar program. It really is a place filled with our passion for food and beverage as well as amazing people. Our guests and our team are 2nd to none and make every day an exciting adventure.
Next week, March 26th, we are celebrating our 6th anniversary with Gin & Jams, a fun evening filled with great music, neighbors and amazing cocktails by Freeland. We are so proud and excited to celebrate our 6th anniversary!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The 3 qualities that were most impactful in my journey were probably being organized, being creative and having a hefty thirst for knowledge.
Being organized kind of speaks for itself, but it is imperative in the restaurant business because you are always spinning multiple plates and wearing multiple hats. You are constantly playing Tetris with all the different aspects of your day.
Creativity is essential because we are always evolving and making changes. Without creativity, things can become redundant and lose the freshness that is so important in our business.
I am always learning. I want to know all the new things in the food & beverage industry, good and bad. Not every new idea may be a good one, but even the bad ideas can spark something in me that breeds creativity we can bring into Gabi James.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Collaboration is always invigorating. Working with other creative people and sharing ideas can be truly inspiring. So, we are always on the hunt for a fun collab, whether it be swapping ideas or ingredients or bringing in a fun new product to introduce our guests to. You never know what you might create when people come together.
collabs: [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: gabijamesla.com
- Instagram: @gabijamesla (restaurant) – @sommofabeach (personal)
- Facebook: Facebook.com/gabijamesla
Image Credits
Anne Fishbein
