Well-known and well-traveled, Spears returns to Fort Worth
Spears, 38, known for his western restaurants like Reata, the Chisholm Club Restaurant, Granbury’s Nutt House restaurant, and suburban Houston’s The Burning Pear, will bring his Texas-inspired cuisine and trademark chicken-fried steaks back to Fort Worth this spring with the opening of 80 West, his latest venture, at 9904 Camp Bowie West. After a year off, Spears is back with a fall 2007 television series set to debut on PBS, “The Cowboy Way, Cooking with Grady Spears,” and two new books. He’s also on a campaign to generate awareness about ADHD, which he was diagnosed with eight years ago. Spears recently spoke to the Business Press’ Jenny Eure about what he’s been up to the past few months.
It sounds like youÂ’ve had a busy year, with your seventh book deal, new TV show and restaurant, 80 West.
It has been kind of busy. I kind of took a year off and laid back a little bit. IÂ’ve got 80 West which is getting ready to open, I would hope, the first of April. IÂ’ve also got a PBS series lifestyle and cooking show, which should be started in late fall. ItÂ’s called The Cowboy Way. IÂ’ve got a companion book to the show that weÂ’re in the process of compiling, and IÂ’m going to republish The Texas Cowboy Kitchen this year.
How will 80 West differ from Reata and the Chisholm Club?
ItÂ’s actually going to stay very simple and very fresh, with almost kind of a farmerÂ’s market concept. The menus will end up following the same genre. It will be the same chicken-fried steak and IÂ’m going to use as many local products as we can. The back patio will have a smoke-pit rotisserie, and every night weÂ’ll have a different spit-roasted meat. It will all be indigenous to Texas.
What about the décor?
It wonÂ’t be stark or cold, but it will be very warm, worn-in and used. So you can feel comfortable coming in wearing jeans or a tux. The tables and chairs [in the restaurant] will actually be for sale. It will be unique stuff that comes out of Mexico. ItÂ’s all handmade mesquite stuff and all different. WeÂ’ve got a couple warehouses stocked already.
This is your first venture in Fort Worth in two years. How do you think it will fare?
I feel like taking a year off and getting organized and getting structured again, we have a really good shot with it. People in Fort Worth are good comfort-food eaters. WeÂ’ll open up real quietly, and weÂ’ll just build it one guest at a time.
Why the launch into TV?
ItÂ’s great timing. ItÂ’s a great vehicle to sell books, and it also creates longevity for the restaurants, having that kind of vehicle to sell your wares. I donÂ’t know if I could have tackled it a couple years ago.
Can we expect to see some of the secrets to your Reata or Burning Pear recipes unveiled on the show?
A lot of the recipes won’t come from me. It’s more of a travel and lifestyle show. We’re going to feature unique people from all over the southwest United States. Most people forget that everything we have comes from a farm or ranch – the milk we drink, the boots we wear. It’s about telling the story about how farms and ranches really supply everything we have on our food table.
How does your new book fit into everything youÂ’re doing?
IÂ’ve got a companion book to the show that weÂ’re in the process of compiling. It should be on shelves in late 2007 or early 2008. The first book is the first 13 episodes, so weÂ’ll complete it and basically follow the timeline of the show. Each chapter will follow each episode.
In the midst of all this activity, youÂ’re also on a crusade to educate people about ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). What is the No. 1 tip you would offer to aspiring chefs or professionals in high-stress, high-intensity environments to manage the disorder?
The whole thing is just making people aware of the condition. I was diagnosed eight years ago when I was 30; IÂ’m just now able to pull all these things together. It can either be destructive or constructive. The biggest thing is learning how to use it instead of allowing it to manage you.
How has your career changed since you received treatment for ADHD?
It affected both my business life and my family life. Instead of me managing a staff, they were managing me. By being medicated and taking the right steps, it allowed me to get organized and start tasks and complete tasks. It really allowed me to focus and not lose track of where I am. IÂ’m really able to listen to people now, and not blurt out and interrupt.
Do you have any plans for more restaurants in Fort Worth? What about the burgeoning Race Street area (in east Fort Worth)?
Right now, 80 West is what IÂ’m focused on. It would be like trying to have two kids at one time. IÂ’m not going anywhere out of Fort Worth. If I wasnÂ’t so passionate about going to Camp Bowie West, I think that east side deal would definitely be my second choice. There are always possibilities. WeÂ’ve learned to take lessons from some of the things weÂ’ve done. IÂ’m hungry and ready to come back and make some impact.
Contact Eure at jeure@bizpress.net
