“We Can Transfer That.”

If you’ve spent much time in restaurants, you’ve no doubt heard or used the phrase “We can transfer that,” which refers to transferring a drink tab from the bar to a table.

Do you ever look at people with really cool restaurant-adjacent jobs they seem to have crafted to perfectly suit them and wonder how they got there?

Many of us feel that the world would be a kinder, more civilized place if everyone worked in customer service for at least a year. The transferable skills that are honed taking care of people in a welcoming, hospitable, efficient, unflappable way can be applied to how we move through life and how we treat the people who take care of us. They can also lead to other fun and satisfying work.

To that end, at least once a season Maître d’ Diaries will interview someone for a “We Can Transfer That” episode in which our guest talks about how working in dining room service helped them gain knowledge, hone skills, and make connections they now use in hospitality adjacent roles and careers.

Who better to be our first “We Can Transfer That” guest than our friend, Shari Bayer?

Shari is the founder of New York City culinary & hospitality focused Bayer Public Relations, the host of the popular All in the Industry podcast on Heritage Radio Network, and the author of Chefwise: Life Lessons from Leading Chefs Around the World (published by Phaidon last Spring).

Shari’s worked in restaurants since she was in high school, went to culinary school, attended the Food Studies Program at NYU, and boasts some serious OG credit having worked at Charlie Trotter’s in Chicago. Join us to hear about how Shari went from summer jobs at Bennigan's and Chili’s to running her own company, sharing the stories of behind the scenes talent in the hospitality industry on her award-winning podcast, and traveling to visit chefs in their restaurants all over the world.