Author Archives: Robert

“Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.” –Henry David Thoreau, Walden Of all the great debates I have held with friends over the years, most have been about music. Beatles or the Stones? Bonham or Moon? VanContinue reading “Seasons in Mississippi”

Cartoon credit: Marshall Ramsey   It’s February in the Pine Belt of South Mississippi. It’s 82 degrees outside, the azaleas are blooming, and the crawfish are in season. I’m not stupid enough to think that spring is already here, but it sure feels like it today. This is what I call Mississippi fake spring. ItContinue reading “Endure”

The year was 1968. It was my 7th Christmas. Also, the first Christmas after my father died. The only thing I asked for that year was an Easy Bake Oven. When my mom took my brother and me to visit Santa Claus at the Maison Blanche department store in New Orleans (because that’s where theContinue reading “Easy Bake Memories”

It looks like 2023 will go down as the year of the king cake— at least in my book. I have bought more king cakes, eaten more king cakes, and sold more king cakes this year than all my previous years put together, and probably by a factor of 20. For the past six yearsContinue reading “Neck Deep In King Cake Development”

BLACKBERRY FARM— A portion of Newton’s Law of Motion states, “An object in motion remains in motion at a constant speed, and in a straight line, unless acted on by an unbalanced force.” I am not sure if Blackberry Farm has ever been described as an unbalanced force, but for the past 25 years, thatContinue reading “An Unbalanced Force in the Foothills”

To be successful in the restaurant business it takes total commitment and sacrifice. It’s a brutal way to earn a living. But for those of us who are bit by the bug, and are totally obsessed, we couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Bankers hate restaurants. The reason bankers hate restaurants is because of the highContinue reading “A Golden Opportunity”

“A party without cake is just a meeting” –Julia Child It started as a whim. It ended as a quest. A quest that probably added five percent to my total body mass index, an inch to my waistline, and almost put me in a diabetic coma. But it’s what I do. I eat for aContinue reading “It’s A Tough Job but Somebody’s Got to Chew It”

Many of the business books I am familiar with go into great detail about how successful people commit to a rigid routine in their workday. A specific time is set aside for checking emails, another period is devoted to text responses. Some of these experts allot time— down to the minute— for phone calls, meetings,Continue reading “Breakfast, Routines, and Bacon”

It is my belief that some people are born with their life’s mission already implanted deep in their DNA. Just as we are wired at birth to like certain foods, musical styles, and activities, I am of the school that believes that careers and interests are hardwired from the start. It’s better that way. We’dContinue reading “Restaurant People”