EnTrends

Fred Bonnet has worked in the
restaurant business since he was
fourteen years old. Upon graduating
from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa
with a degree in Business
Management, he took a job selling
commodities. His employer assured
him of the opportunities for
advancement and the financial
security that his position presented,
but Bonnet soon grew tired of the
work.

"I sat at a desk and I talked to
twenty-six chicken farmers everyday,
trying to sell them chicken feed. To
me, that just wasn't what I went to
school to learn how to do."

When he was younger, Bonnet had
worked in the restaurant of the
renowned Eagle Ridge Inn & Resort
in Galena, Illinois. There, he met the
owner of a restaurant in Jo Daviess
County. Years later, about the same
time he was growing tired of his
commodities career, the owner
approached Fred about taking over
the business.

Bonnet took his first year's bonus
and used it as a down payment on
the property. The owner set up a two
and a half year financing plan for the
rest. The deal was perfect for the
twenty-two year old budding
entrepreneur. He did not have to
submit a business plan or go through
any of the other rigorous tasks that
would have been required to get
outside financing.

In 1993, Bonnet opened his
restaurant, named Fried Green
Tomatoes, after a film that opened
around the same time. In the
beginning, Bonnet worked almost
ninety hours a week and put in a
great deal of sweat equity to turn the
restaurant into a new enterprise. He
even lived in the upper floors of the
historic building.

In the late 1800s, the site of Fried
Green Tomatoes had been
designated as the Jo Daviess County
Poor Farm. The original structure on
the property housed the poor, sick,
and mentally ill

from March of 1850 until January of
1870. The structure was destroyed
by fire and a new building was
erected on its foundation in 1871.
Finally, in the 1950s, the Poor Farm
was deemed unnecessary. Today,
visitors can still see the structural
areas within the three-story building
where the 8' x 8' cells were located.

The restaurant specializes in country
Italian cuisine served in an elegant
atmosphere. Visitors are welcomed
into a warm, inn-like structure. An
abundance of brick and large
wooden beams accent the lobby that
is furnished with plush couches in
the waiting area.

In the last seven years that Bonnet
has run Fried Green Tomatoes,
business has doubled in volume. His
restaurant has been featured in
Gourmet Magazine, Midwest Living
and several other notable
publications. Bonnet has also begun
to sell his restaurant's house
dressing and olive oil through
Oberweis Dairy of Chicago.

Sixty-five percent of Bonnet's
clientele come from Chicago and the
suburbs. Twenty-five percent come
from outside a thirty-mile radius, and
the remaining ten percent are local
patrons. Bonnet says that an average
bill for his customers runs around
$35 to $40. The most popular dishes
on the menu are the fried green
tomatoes and the steaks.

On average, Bonnet has sixty-five
employees working for him. During
the summer, that number rises to
almost eighty. Bonnet takes great
pride in maintaining a strong team
atmosphere for his employees. He
regularly takes them on trips to view
how other successful establishments
are run. When it comes time to order
things like new uniforms, he gets
their input and lets them choose.
Bonnet says, " I do not like corporate
nature or dictating to my employees
exactly how they should work."
Employees are also rewarded with
vacations and other incentives if
they meet their goals.

Bonnet does not attend many trade
shows for the restaurant industry. "I
don't really care for those. When you
go, it's Utopia. All the equipment is
new and fresh. I'd rather go see it in
action. When you go to a restaurant
and you see good operators, it
inspires you to try harder and do a
bit better."

In terms of negative experiences that
Bonnet has faced as an entrepreneur,

Today, Bonnet works about 65 hours
a week. "To me, it's not that bad. It's
a lot better than forty hours a week
selling chicken feed." During a
typical workday, Bonnet takes care
of a barrage of administrative tasks in
the morning, such as insurance,
marketing, contracts and supply
ordering.

Once 4:30 rolls around, he gets into
the operations of the business. At
11:00 P.M., Bonnet heads downtown
to his other business, The Grape
Escape, which he opened two years
ago. It is a martini and wine bar that
offers appetizers and occasional
entertainment until 1 A.M., Tuesday
through Sunday.