The lighter touch
Mette Larsen, owner of the Storyteller restaurant in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, has decided that she will take a back seat in the running of the business from next January. Head chef David Spencer will take on the responsibility of overseeing the restaurant and take an active role in administration and marketing.
Spencer has been at the restaurant since it opened in July 1997. In fact, he was head chef before Larsen and her partner, Paul Lavelle, bought the business. He adapted from the traditional fine-dining menu expected by its previous owner to the Cajun, Mexican, Creole and Californian cuisine introduced by Larsen and Lavelle. The pair had already had success with such a mix in Stavanger, Norway, where they opened the first Storyteller.
Since opening, the menu has gradually evolved away from the heavy sauces favoured in New Orleans cuisine to the lighter, more health-conscious offerings of California.
The other major change since Caterer's last visit (Caterer, 12 August 1999, page 38) is the redecoration of one of the restaurant's rooms. The conservatory which was added in May 1998 quickly became the preferred room to dine in, and Larsen says that customers were reluctant to be shown into the room next to the bar - it was too dark, he says. But white paint on the walls, an oak floor, new modern lighting and mirrors that mimic the large sash windows have made a huge difference.
The restaurant has achieved the goals that Larsen and Lavelle set in the early days, and Larsen feels that she is ready to back away from the day-to-day running of the operation. She is considering developing another restaurant and says she would continue with the Storyteller concept. "We are still unique outside of London," she says. "We offer a very different dining concept here."
Being unique has brought financial rewards. Turnover for 1999/2000 will be £545,000, with £100,000 going to net profit. While turnover is up from last year, profits have not risen substantially because Larsen has reinvested £20,000 in kitchen equipment and a point-of-sale system.
The lunch trade is a continuing battle, made more difficult by the restaurant's location on the "wrong" side of Cheltenham to capture the shopping and business trade. But Larsen has made inroads with Sunday lunch business, which shows a 100% increase over last year.
Key to Storyteller's success has been the relative stability of the staffing at the restaurant. Larsen's sister Toril and Peter Hardiman have shared the responsibility of managing the restaurant, while Spencer's kitchen team of five has remained unchanged over the past year. However, commis chef Stuart McCullen is hoping to go to the Antarctic for five months from September, and Toril is planning a round-the-world trip, leaving in January.
One task which Spencer has already begun is writing for Storyteller's quarterly newsletter. His trip to cook at a regatta in Greece featured in one issue, while a trip to the Mesa Grill in New York was his report in another. Larsen believes that the newsletter, which goes out to 4,500 customers, is vital for Storyteller's image. "It keeps David motivated, going out seeking adventures," she says. "And it gives the image that we are doing something all the time."
