We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Whitney Wingfield a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Whitney with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
I Think I get my work ethic from my Mom and Grandma.. Growing up my mom was always working and making sure I was getting taken care of, She owned a cleaning service, and would leave super early in the morning, and come home late at night. When I turned 14 (age we are able to work) I applied everywhere and finally got a call back from Taco Bell, I was excited to start making money on my own to buy the things I wanted and wouldn’t have to rely on someone else. It was long hours and mainly weekends so I missed out on alot of parties, football games, dances etc. But I knew if I didn’t work hard and make my own money I would be riding my bike in summer time in phoenix to get to work.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
My name is Whitney Wingfield, I am a 4th generation Arizona native and a Arizona State University Alumni, I have been in the Food and Beverage Industry for over 20 years. Starting with Taco Bell, and helping a family friend with a BBQ restaurant on nights and weekends as I was still in high school. My mom also had a catering business and I would help her when she needed it.. (which was very hard work and lots of cleaning) But always wanted to be my own boss and own my own restaurant someday, Over the years I have worked in many bars and restaurants either for seasonal help or fill in when needed, I have met so many talented people in this industry and it really is a small world when it comes to Food and Beverage. When I was living in Tempe there was a neighborhood bar I would occasionally go to to watch TV, I was so poor and didnt have cable or internet to work on school projects so it was a spot I could get homework done and get a bite to eat during a late night study session. I remember the bartenders and customers being so welcoming and friendly even though it was my very first time in. I always thought to myself how cool would it be to have your very own “cheers” like bar..
So Fast forward a couple years, I got a job at Baseline Sports Bar as a bartender, and I loved it, loved the regulars, I met tons of people and some of these relationships I still have to this day all because I got a job at a small neighborhood bar. Throughout my employment of 13 years at the bar I would create my own drink recipes and have my regulars pretty much be my guinea pigs and tell me which ones were good or which ones were gross and shouldnt make the cut. We had a set schedule, so I always worked on Thursdays, and that meant Thanksgiving always fell on my shift. My Owner would always close the kitchen on Thanksgiving to give our kitchen staff a much needed day off. The first Thanksgiving I worked there my regulars came in and we didnt have food… so knowing all these people probably had nowhere to go or family isnt here to spend the holiday with I had a regular customer hold down the fort while I went to the grocery store and got a Turkey breast, a couple boxes of stuffing and some instant potatoes. I rushed back to the bar and started to make a makeshift dinner for the people that are there for me and tip me year round. So for the next 12 years “Bar Thanksgiving” became a tradition, with everyone that had to work that day coming in for a plate after shift, Cops, Doctors, Grocery store workers and bartenders and waitresses.
During my time working at the bar, Jon Taffer from Bar Rescue reached out to my owner and offered to remodel the bar and be on a episode of Bar Rescue. I panic. What if I do or say something embarrassing or wrong on tv?
What if people are mean on social media because of something on Tv? Everything went great, Taffer left me alone, They renamed the bar to ” Brick and Barley” and we got a ton of new business with the facelift and customers would come from other parts of the country to check out the bar. Pretty neat experience overall
Fast Forward to 2020, I am still working at the bar, and COVID 19 hits, with many rules and guidelines coming from the city and state on where people can sit, how many chairs you can have close to each other, how many people are allowed in the building, everyone being forced to order food, and making bartenders enforce mask policies if people had to walk to the bathroom they would have to put on a mask. At one point we were only allowed to have 8 seats at the bar, and it just wasnt worth it financially and mentally to go to work anymore. The hardest decision I ever had to make was to quit the job that I loved and all the people that I have been around for the last 13 years as they were now family to me. It was like a bad breakup.
During covid I did small catering jobs and even mixology lessons over zoom to stay afloat during me not working. As the pandemic went on I meal prepped for clients that had kids that were stuck at home and needed meals while they worked from home. Also I had never had this much time on my hands so it was kind of nice to take a break for a bit… I always had a love for cooking and trying out new recipes so now I had a ton of time to work on those things.
May of 2022 I found out the bar was for sale because my owner wanted to retire. I brought it up to my boyfriend, and said the bar is for sale, I want to buy it, but just like alot of my crazy ideas, didnt think it would be a good move due to the pandemic just happening.. what if we get another covid? tons of bars and restaurants didnt make it.. which was very scary..
But here we are a year later, the bar is doing good! I have made a bunch of improvements to it, new tvs, extended the patio, added some fun new recipes to the menu and finally get to call the bar mine and continue to grow and have regulars and new customers support my dream.
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?
My skills and knowledge of the Food and Beverage industry and having a great staff have helped me immensely to be successful with the restaurant. If I have any advice of someone that wants to start up a restaurant or open their own bar, I would say start small, work at one for at least five years to make sure this is what you want to do. Ownership is alot of work and expense up front. I would say maybe start catering first or work for a mobile bartending company before you jump into a commercial lease and the expense of having a brick and Mordor, Its certainly not for everyone!
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
My number one obstacle that I have currently is time management, and trying to stay focused to get everything done. I also own a bartending company that provides bartenders for weddings, corporate events, parties etc.. so it is very hard to juggle both. This year I hired a full time assistant that keeps me in line lol.. and makes sure everything gets done. It was very hard for me to get go of the reins a little bit and trust someone, but was very much needed after the growth of the businesses.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.brickandbarleyaz.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brickandbarley
Image Credits
Photography By: Tim Brunty
