DOUG'S
NOTEBOOK
Ideas that work.
Ideas that don't.
Recipes, design, travel, hospitality, mistakes, and everything it takes to build G&C before the doors ever open.
What you'll find here:
- Assumptions challenged
- Decisions made — and remade
- Details that matter
- Design and architecture
- Hospitality and operations
- Travel and field notes
- Mistakes and lessons learned
- Ideas worth pursuing
LATEST NOTENOTE 24
THE BEST BACON DISCOVERY WASN'T ABOUT BACON
The details matter.
The bacon was right. The better discovery was underneath it.
READ NOTE →
FROM THE NOTEBOOK
NEWEST FIRST.
New notes land here.
Everything else moves down. ↓
NOTE 23
CRAFT
OPERATIONS
CRAFT
OPERATIONS
OPERATIONS
HOSPITALITY
RECREATING A PENNSYLVANIA CLASSIC - THE PHILLY CHEESESTEAK
Philadelphia history meets ingredient research.
NOTE 22WRITING THE MENU: WHEN A SANDWICH NEEDS TO SELL ITSELF - PART 2
A sandwich needs to sell itself. The words have a job.
NOTE 21THE FRIDAY FISH FRY REIMAGINED
A Wisconsin tradition, with a few questions worth asking.
NOTE 20DESIGNING THE G&C SANDWICH COMPANY MENU - PART 1
A menu starts with decisions, not a list of sandwiches.
NOTE 19THREE DOGS. THREE CITIES. ONE G&C HOT DOG PROBLEM.
Three regional classics. One menu decision.
NOTE 18FINAL THOUGHTS – PART 5: TIPPING ISN'T BROKEN. TRUST IS.
Service charges, tip pooling, suggested gratuities, and where I stand after five parts of the tipping debate.