How a Local Greek Restaurant Seized Opportunities and Won a New Food Network Competition

Entrepreneurial dreams are only far-fetched until they travel true. This proved existent for Think Greek, a family-owned Greek edifice successful Port St. Lucie, Florida, that started arsenic a nutrient motortruck and has since won "Best Bite" connected Food Network's Best Bite successful Town. General head Rosanne Leo attributes nan restaurant's occurrence to focusing connected providing authentic Greek recipes and a unique Greek fusion menu.

"We are first-generation Greek Americans, truthful we knew erstwhile we started nan nutrient motortruck successful 2014 that is what we wanted to do," she says. "But we didn't want to [just] do regular Greek food. We wanted to incorporated a fusion menu, coming up pinch different items that group haven't heard of before."

When South Beach Wine & Food Festival asked Think Greek to participate successful 2020, nan squad instantly knew their original fusion paper item, Gyropitakia (Greek wontons), would beryllium a hit. Their hunch was correct, and they won nan title of "Best Bite connected nan Beach." Listen to nan section beneath to perceive straight from Leo.

"It was conscionable an unthinkable emotion because this is thing that we came up with," Leo says. "It wasn't anybody else's recipe. It was [us] brainstorming 1 time connected nan nutrient truck."

The pursuing year, Think Greek returned and won again, helping it solidify its estimation for tastiness and consistency.

Earlier this year, Think Greek participated successful different cooking show, but nan stakes were moreover higher this time. Food Network contacted Leo to beryllium connected nan first play of Best Bite successful Town, a spin-off of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives with personage cook Guy Fieri.

"This was our dream to beryllium connected Food Network, but much specifically, we wanted to beryllium connected Triple D… I was truthful excited," Leo shared.

Related: Guy Fieri, Cable's Highest-Paid Chef, Hopes to Save His Industry With 'Restaurant Reboot'

The show's premise progressive Fieri sending 3 group to a municipality to effort 2 dishes from six different section restaurants, yet choosing 1 "Best Bite" successful that town. The dishes were judged based connected capability, position and taste. Think Greek won "Best Bite" of Port St. Lucie and past went connected to triumph "Best Bite successful Town" during nan show's finale pinch its Gyropitakia.

The judges explained that they'd ne'er eaten thing for illustration Gyropitakia before, starring to Think Greek's win. The dish's novelty and productivity group nan section edifice apart, a immense testament to nan family-owned business's efforts.

"That really made america consciousness each nan difficult work, energy, brainstorming and everything is moving and is paying off," Leo says. "Sometimes, arsenic a family-owned business and arsenic a mom-and-pop, you get overlooked a small bit, and it's disheartening. But to perceive that our efforts are not being ignored really does springiness america that power to support working."

Related: Guy Fieri Is Insanely Busy. Here's How He Gets It All Done.

With caller attraction from nan TV show and increased media visibility came galore comments from customers and viewers. Leo says that scrolling societal media to spot nan latest feedback sometimes becomes overwhelming. She decided to return it time by time and clasp abstraction for some affirmative and critical reviews.

"You can't please everybody, and that's okay. Some comments are little than nice, and that's fine," Leo says. "Everybody's entitled to their opinion. All I cognize is that we're trying our best, and we're putting retired nan nutrient nan measurement we put retired our food."

Leo's willingness to return risks and prehend large opportunities, specified arsenic being featured connected a TV show, has elevated Think Greek's brand. Over time, her persistence helped found nan restaurant's positive reputation.

Her proposal for business owners seeking this benignant of occurrence is to enactment accordant pinch their imaginative efforts and values and usage societal media to prosecute their audiences and uncover feedback for improving operations. She besides encourages business owners to judge successful themselves and what they tin achieve.

 "Sometimes I'm conscionable like, wow, I can't judge it," she says. "But group should ne'er opportunity never. Anything is possible. Some days, you want to springiness up, but support going because this is your baby. This is your dream. This is your opportunity to show what you're made of."

For complete a decade, Think Greek has stood by these elemental — but important — devices for success:

• Seize opportunities arsenic they come. Attending section festivals and competitions tin lead to gaining much visibility, which tin snowball into larger opportunities successful nan future. Being unfastened to trying caller things tin springboard your business into caller and breathtaking arenas.
• Embrace invention to group yourself apart. Innovating your products aliases services tin separate a business and pull customers seeking caller experiences. Creating your ain niche tin thief customers take you complete competitors.
• Value feedback, but don't fto negativity deter you. Receiving disapproval tin beryllium challenging and requires resilience. Recognizing it's intolerable to please everyone allows you to attraction connected giving your champion effort to nan things you cognize you tin do good aliases moreover improve.

Subscribe to Behind nan Review for much from caller business owners and reviewers each Thursday. Available connected Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Pandora and Soundcloud.

Editorial contributions by Angela Lee and Kristi Lindahl

This article is portion of our ongoing America's Favorite Mom & Pop Shops™ bid highlighting family-owned and operated businesses.