Meet Victor Steinbrueck

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Victor Steinbrueck. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Victor below.

Victor, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

In my mind, finding ones purpose is an ever evolving task. The trick is to not let fear stop you from finding the next path to purpose. For me, I did not find cooking as a purpose of mine until my mid twenties. I grew up identifying as a basketball player. That dream came crashing down on me as injuries prevented me from continuing. It took me quite some time to fall in love with cooking the way I have. I actually didn’t even have cooking as a profession on my radar until a close friend suggested I take a job doing so. They had witnessed the joy food and cooking gave me over the years. Something I did not realize myself. I recall them prodding me to look into food and hospitality as a career by recounting the numerous times I had jumped at the chance to cook for friends and family when the opportunity presented itself. They saw the excitement and joy that would wash over me when I got to provide a meal and space for loved ones.

Now, years later, I can look back and see the intricate path that led me to food. I grew up in a household with my Chinese/Filipinx grandmother. The time we spent as a family was always in the kitchen, never in the living room. We would spend long days stopping by and scouring various asian markets to get just the right vegetable or type of rice for the meal. I got to experience a true appreciation for food and the patience and love it requires. As I look back on it now, even through the years I thought of myself as a basketball player, I was always surrounded by food. I was unknowingly being educated on what my purpose would become years later.

I say this, to say that we do not always know where our paths will lead us. But I strongly believe that our life’s journey is teaching us and preparing us for what is to come. Our task is to recognize when opportunity to step into our purpose is knocking at our door and not be too afraid to step into it. I like to believe that life doesn’t show us opportunity we aren’t ready for. It’s undoubtedly a scary thing to be confronted with the unfamiliar, but if we can get over our own fear, and approach something new with authenticity and determination, there is often beauty on the other side.

Nowadays, (4 plus years since opening up my restaurant), I am beginning to realize a new purpose. What was recently making food and sharing it with people, has begun to shift to something else. It’s less about the food, and more about the community I foster. From my staff, to the guests that come in to the shop. My purpose has become to create safe and healthy environments for people to exist in. To create opportunity for my staff that have historically been made to feel as just another employee, and not allowed to show their unique qualities.

I feel my purpose shifting into something higher than just making food. Food has become the platform for something much more important. I’m not sure I’ve fully yet come to understand what that purpose is, but I know that when the opportunity to step into it begins to show itself, I won’t fear the step forward into it.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am a local business owner here in Seattle. I own a seafood restaurant in Fremont.

What is most exciting and special about Local Tide is the community that has been formed through its existence. From the crew, to the customers, Local Tide has really been able to create a culture of inclusion and hospitality that is rare. The relationships that have come with owning and operating a small business is what I value the most. It is so special to have a place where people feel welcomed, taken care of, and safe.

Opening Local Tide, has been the most life altering experience. In the best way. It started as a passion for cooking, and has turned into a platform to share caring hospitality, create friendships, spread happiness, and explore creativity. I’m currently focused on continuing to dive further into these aspects of the work, and to create continued opportunity for my staff.

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?

1. The courage to dream.
2. Resilience.
3. Finding joy in the little things.

My advice on developing these skills is to practice ones mindfulness. Be open to new perspectives that are different from your beliefs. We never know when our beliefs are actually keeping us from growing because of our own stubbornness to change.

Learn to think wildly and creatively. No one sees your vision or dream the way you do. That image is unique to you and your experiences. Don’t let someone else, who hasn’t experienced what you have, tell you your dream isn’t tangible because of their own fears and insecurities.

Learn to continue moving forward. Life will throw you roadblocks, it’s your task to figure out how to sidestep them and continue forward without allowing to be held back by perceived failure. There is always a route to the next step, it’s on you to figure out what that looks like. The route may be different than what you envisioned, but there’s beauty in allowing your vision to be altered by life. I think often it works out better than you could have imagined.

Practice gratitude and appreciation for the small things. Don’t diminish small wins just because they don’t feel as grand as a big one. The small wins, that get strung together are what create the big ones. Stay consistent.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

Being overwhelmed is tricky. I find when I am overwhelmed it’s hard to find clarity or know where or how to proceed. My strategy for dealing with this, is to write. Sometimes that looks like journaling my thoughts and feelings. Sometimes that looks like a list of everything that is weighing me down. Often times the feeling of being overwhelmed means I have a lot on my plate that I have not addressed. Writing helps me define them. Once defined, I am able to begin finding small tasks within them that allow me to address and solve for. As I begin to make progress on the small tasks, and find little wins, the feeling of being overwhelmed starts to calm, and I begin to be reminded of how capable I can be. This helps me to relax and realign with myself so that I can continue to handle all that life throws my way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://localtide.com
• Instagram: @localtide and @victorsteinbrueck

Image Credits

Gordon Fox
Nathan To
Blaze Ben Brooks