How I Got Here: Genevieve Sparrow

Why restaurants?​
I started in restaurants part-time at 18 and just always loved the buzz of a busy shift. I was working for Living Ventures alongside university and their emphasis on training and development really appealed to me. I saw a clear career path doing something I loved and so I just went for it.

Tell us something you wish you had been told at the start of your career?​
That balance is really important. I was really career driven in my twenties – becoming a restaurant manager at 23 and a GM at 26. I loved my job and I worked really hard, but I wish I had travelled more and just generally given myself more time. I was a mum at 30 so it all becomes a bit trickier after that!

What’s your favourite restaurant or group of restaurants?​
I would have to say the Quality Chop House, the food and wine list are amazing and the beautiful building is so iconic. I’m slightly biased as I did use to work there but that just means I have even better knowledge of the level of quality and love that goes into everything they do.

What motivates you?​
What motivated me to open my own business was a desire to create something that just didn’t exist in Tottenham. I’d lived here for a few years was sick of getting on the bus every time I wanted to go out for a nice meal, so I decided to take matters into my own hands! I started my supper club in September 2019 and from the first event I knew I had to get back to restaurants, and more importantly that I had to find a way to open one of my own. What motivates me now is seeing the restaurant being enjoyed and appreciated, it sounds extremely cheesy, but it’s the truth!

What keeps you up at night?​
We’re still in year one so the list is long! But actually my insomnia is usually more driven by the excitement of all the things I want to do with the business, I’ve got loads of ideas but haven’t quite yet had the time or headspace to implement them all, I think I’ll sleep better once we’re a bit more settled.

Which colleague, mentor or employer has had the biggest influence on your approach to the restaurant business?​
It’s hard to single out any single person or company as I learned a lot from everywhere I worked. I guess my most formative experience was joining Living Ventures way back in 2005, from day one as a waitress I had training that made me feel like I was doing the most important job, and that creating amazing guest experiences was a really worthwhile pursuit. I wonder if I’d have ended up choosing hospitality as a career if it wasn’t for them.

What time do you wake up?​
I wake up at 7.30 every day (whether I like it or not), I’m a light sleeper so once the kids are up I’m awake too, its pretty rare that I’d manage to sleep later.

Coffee or tea?​
Always coffee out, but tea at home.

Do you prefer a night on the tiles or a night on the sofa?​
Friday night movie night with the family would win hands down at the moment.

What’s your signature dish to cook at home?​
Dinners at home tend to be crowd pleasers for the kids, there is a fierce scoring system for shepherd’s pie, I’m currently ranking highest on the leader board…

Typical Sunday?​
I’m usually off on Sunday’s so we always try and make them count with a big family day out – this week we went to Whipsnade Zoo but we might go for a big walk somewhere or to a museum, most importantly we always end with a roast dinner at home. My husband is the king of roast chicken!

What are you currently reading?​
Sadly I don’t find time for a lot of reading these days, so I’ll have to say The Worst Witch​, which my five year old is enjoying having read to her at bedtimes.

What boxset are you currently watching?​
We’ve just finished watching Maid​ on Netflix, it was incredibly heart-wrenching but compelling tv with some great performances and a story you don’t often see represented on screen.

What's been your best business decision?​
Opening a restaurant!

And the worst?​
Opening a restaurant... I have no regrets about taking the plunge but its certainly a challenging time to be opening a new restaurant business with so many difficulties facing the industry. Overall its going well but I can’t say it has been an easy or stress-free opening.

What piece of advice would you give to those looking to climb the rungs in the business?​
Work hard but know your value. Its easy for a strong work ethic to be taken advantage of in hospitality (hello unpaid overtime) so work for a company who values you and rewards you appropriately. Be up front about wanting to develop and ask them to help you understand what you need to work on, there are plenty of employers who will be willing to put the effort in to develop you so make sure that you are working for one of them!

If you could change one thing about the restaurant industry today, what would it be?​
I’d make it a more sustainable career choice. Although there’s loads to love about working in hospitality, there are so many elements that stack badly against other industries: the unsociable hours, low wages for hard work, the uncertainty of the tronc system – its no wonder that as an industry we are struggling to retain talent. There are certainly things we can do as business owners to counteract these but the economics of a restaurant P&L are getting more and more difficult. To really allow for reform we need the government to consider how it can better support the hospitality industry to make change possible.