Meet Tim Nevadomski | Owner, Rupert’s at the Edge. A breakfast/brunch/lunch restaurant in Edgewater, CO

We had the good fortune of connecting with tim nevadomski and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi tim, what do you attribute your success to?
The success of our brand starts with the people that work there and the culture we created as a group. Since my wife, Susan Olsen, and I bought the restaurant eight years ago we have tried to hire a crew of diverse and friendly people. Our crew has varied ages, sexual orientation, and race. We also have staff members who would not be considered neurotypical .We want the staff to enjoy working at Rupert’s and enjoy working with each other. There have been many opportunities for mentoring of staff from myself and other experienced members of the staff. One of our back of house team (KK Varkevisser) recently won the Colorado Restaurant Association, Back of House employee of the year.
The next factor in the brand’s success is consistency. We set an expectation within the restaurant to have friendly, attentive service and consistent food quality. If a mistake is made on a recipe, we do not serve that product. This expectation helps us to make sure a customer can have the same experience every time they eat at Rupert’s. The term mise en place (having everything you need in place before you execute a recipe) also applies to all aspects of the restaurants operation. How the tables are set up products and tools in kitchen stored in the same place every time. For the entire staff, being able to find what you need when you need it is very important to our success.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Rupert’s at the Edge is a fairly small restaurant. We have about 40 employees. my wife, Susan, and I both had business backgrounds. She owned 3 coffee shops in Rapid City, SD, and I had moved through the ranks in corporate/franchise restaurants. The training and experience I received set me up with the knowledge needed to run my own business. Susan gave me the push and confidence to own our own restaurant. She was much more of an entrepreneur. It has been challenging and also very rewarding to work for ourselves. We were able to build a culture and a brand. Not answering to a higher up is rewarding and also a little scary. When covid hit and we basically had to let go 90% of the staff, there was no one to turn to for direction. We had to adapt quickly. The staff we did keep on helped us to develop new systems and procedures. As we began adding staff back and started opening in person dining incrementally we shifted again.
I have learned that all though I am ultimately the “boss’, I need people around me that can help the business be successful. The ultimate way to be successful in business for me is to lead more then manage and allow my people to help drive the business forward with there ideas.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
A week in Denver. El Tepehuan on Broadway for lunch and then go check out all the antique stores. Dinner at F n G in the highlands, then head to Coors filed for a game.
Breakfast at Rupert’s at the Edge and then spend a few hours in Meow Wolf. Grab some beers at Joy Ride Brewery and check out what ever food truck is there.
Pack a lunch and go check out Red Rocks . Dinner at West 29th restaurant in Wheat Ridge.
Catch a show at Red Rocks
Museum of Natural history
Go record shopping at Twist and Shout
Tavernetta at Union Station.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have had some great mentors in my professional carrier. The first was Mike Kossak. Mike was my manager at a Golden Corral in Auburn, Wa. It was my first assistant mangers job and Mike taught me a lot about customer service and how to control costs. The second was Jay Mazy. Jay and I worked together in Texas, Montana, and South Dakota. Jay helped guide me in my career and also took the time to listen and offer support on a personal level. Books I have read relating to leadership that I have found benefical are:
One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
Servant Leadership by Liam Taylor
A book I recommend to new managers is First Time Manager by Jim McCormick.

Website: www.eatatruperts.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.coeatatruperts/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RupertsAtTheEdge/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ruperts-at-the-edge-edgewater-3

Image Credits
Angie Olsen
Sophia Nevaomski
Zach Nevadomski
Susan Olsen