Gene Colbert, aka Gino, has been a cook at Sugar n’ Spice for somewhere around fifteen years. He specializes on the egg end of the menu.
“I like to make the omelettes. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”
While 15 years as a short-order cook at the same restaurant is a definite sign of loyalty, Gino is quick to point out that he’s definitely a junior to the man he calls “Mr. Love.” “That would be Don Love,” Gino explains. “That’s out of respect. He deserves to be called Mister.”
Donald Love, has been cooking at Sugar n’ Spice longer than he can remember. Literally, longer than he can remember. But it’s over 25 years.
“Before I got here, I was a cook in the army, and then I worked at a few other restaurants. I wasn’t thinking I’d be here that long.” Don laughs. “I thought this was going to be a stopover for me and I just fell in love with it. I don’t know why I just did.”
Talk to Don for a minute and you’ll discover a big reason why Sugar n’ Spice is more than just a breakfast joint that’s been around a long time.
“No, I’m not the head cook – I’ll just say I’m the most experienced,” Don offered.
“I care about what I cook, and I enjoy the compliments.” he added. “When you got people at a restaurant just for a paycheck, the food ain’t gonna be right.”
Don shared that he’ll often stop in on his days off and head for the kitchen to see where he can help. On more than one occasion, a regular has asked Don to go cook especially for them. Mr. Love is more than happy to oblige.
As a creative outlet, Don is also tasked with coming up with the daily specials that appear on the restaurant’s chalkboard.
“I do things that I think the customers are going to like,” Love stated.
Like the time Don had it in his mind to do a creamed-chipped beef on toast as a special, and quickly dispatched owner Frankel to the grocery store to pick up the dried beef for his inspiration.
And as close to carved in stone Sugar n’ Spices menu is, one of the most recent breakfast additions is “Love’s Salmon Platter.” That’s a Don Love signature salmon patty with eggs for breakfast, or with mac and cheese for lunch. That’s Love legacy stuff. It’s also very, very tasty. While veteran cooks like Mr. Love and Gino take care of the food end of things, you’ll also find a seasoned set of servers on the front lines.
When asked how long she’d been waiting on customers at Sugar n’ Spice, Patty Baehr thought for a moment and said, “Well, I have a regular who first started coming here when she was pregnant. I think the kid is eleven now – so let’s say 12 years.”
And Patty is third in terms of wait staff longevity.
“Over time, you just learn how to work smarter, not harder. A lot of us have been here so long we’re like family. Like Don, he’s been here through four owners. Everybody just knows everybody. We’ve had a lot of people come and go mainly because they just don’t give themselves the time to settle in and learn what works.”
Knowing what works certainly describes Tammy Peters, who’s been slinging hash and wispy thins for the better part of 15 years.
“It’s like you’re like married to these people after 15 years,” Tammy observed. She added, “We haven’t really had a manager here, ever. There’s not that many of us and everyone knows what they’re supposed to be doing. They do it.”
Tammy loves the job, is a big fan of the restaurant’s turkey sausage, “We sell a million of ‘em,” and loves the hours (she’s off at three). Fifteen years ago she hired on to help out a couple days a week. And even though she earned her college degree, fifteen years later she’s still helping out a few days a week, and loves what she’s doing.
“We’re trying to make a living here, not make a fortune. We do the best we can do when we’re here.”
When asked about “regulars” who walk in the door and you already know what they’re going to order, Tammy jumped in, “I have a million of ‘em.”
Sugar n’ Spice is one of a very few restaurants that can truly be called “generational.”
