Encore performance
DANA SLATKIN • Violet Bistro + Cooking School & The Wilkes
WORK • Thursday Routine
DANA SLATKIN • executive chef & owner • Violet Bistro + Cooking School & The Wilkes
Neighborhoods you work in: Westwood Village & Brentwood Village
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
Thursdays are the most jam-packed day of the week. I start with a giant bowl of oatmeal and blueberries, because I often don’t eat lunch until after service in the late afternoon. I meet with our accounting advisors from home at 10a to discuss the financials from the previous week. Then I’ll jump in the car and head to The Wilkes — our new restaurant in Brentwood Village where we’ll be reinterpreting nostalgic steakhouse favorites with seasonal ingredients — to check on the construction process. I get so jazzed whenever something new gets installed! [The Wilkes opened to the public earlier this week. -Ed.]
Next it’s over to Violet to assist with lunch service. I like to be at the host stand greeting guests, but I usually end up bussing tables and cleaning bathrooms. At 230p, our management team meets to discuss operational issues, upcoming events, and budgeting. Afterwards, I try to go home for an hour to put up my feet and have a latte (I call this “treat o’clock”). By 5p, I’m back at Violet to help with dinner service. There’s usually a line of guests waiting to get in at 530. There’s nothing more gratifying than creating a space people want to be in!
What’s on the agenda for today?
This week, we’re discussing our uniform policy. What can we ask our team to wear that allows them to express their individuality while still presenting as a cohesive team?
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
I take Monday nights off but many of my favorite restaurants around town are closed that night, like Dear John’s. So my hubby and I usually end up at one of our favorite bars: Scopa, Little Fatty, Bar Toscana. We like to try new restaurants and support small businesses. I’ve been trying to make it to RVR, and when we can get in, Anajak Thai is a fun time.
How about a little leisure or culture?
My favorite leisure activity lately is a flea market. I love hunting for treasures for the restaurants and our home, I love the people-watching, and exploring other parts of Los Angeles. On a free night, nothing beats a show at The Geffen Playhouse or a concert under the stars at the Hollywood Bowl.
Any weekend getaways?
Summerland is a lovely trip for a Sunday. You can get there in just over an hour, explore all the antique shops, have a lovely lunch in Montecito, then be back in LA in time for dinner. Field + Fort has beautiful gifts, strong coffee and delicious chocolates for a late afternoon treat. I could spend hours browsing Godmother’s Bookstore, and I get into big trouble buying vintage treasures at Big Daddy’s Antiques.
What was your last great vacation?
We went to visit my daughter at Ballymaloe, a cooking school in Cork, Ireland. It was such a treat to spend a week in Ireland: The people were jolly and hospitable, the food was soulful and the scenery was lush and serene. Ashford Castle was dreamy. And the Indian food in Dublin was top notch.
What store or service do you always recommend?
Brent-Air Pharmacy. It’s been there since 1950 and they carry everything from my favorite candies (violet pastilles by Les Anis du Flavigny) to my favorite toothpaste (Tom’s of Maine fennel flavor) to flu shots. And the staff couldn’t be sweeter.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
I’m obsessed with vintage lighting, and I’d been searching for months for the perfect chandelier for the dining room at The Wilkes. I finally found it at Liz’s Antique Hardware, one of my favorite shops in LA for things that have soul and patina. This one is a gigantic spoke chandelier, in the style of midcentury Italian lighting maker Stilnovo.
Where are you donating your time or money?
We give a lot of Violet gift cards to schools and organizations in the neighborhood. I also support causes that are near and dear to my heart: World Central Kitchen, my alma maters (Marlborough, UC Berkeley, Culinary Institute of America), and public radio.