World-renowned bartenders share secrets to their success

By Wendy Waren, VP of Communications for the Louisiana Restaurant Association. This article ran in the LRA Fall 2013 A La Carte magazine as part of the ongoing series, Beverage Beat.

Jacob Briars receives the "Golden Spirit" award at Tales
of the Cocktail in 2010 for his informative and funny
presentations, and for his passion for connecting spirits
and cocktails to their broader cultural context.

The Art and Philosophy of Hospitality was one of the most well attended seminars at the 11^th Annual Tales of the Cocktail, a five-day cocktail conference that took place July 17-21, 2013 in New Orleans. Nearly 200 industry professionals—owners, managers and bartenders—packed into a Royal Sonesta ballroom to hear from four of the leading bartending pros in the world.

“What has now been the topic for the last couple of years is: Have we lost sight of service? Are we now so focused on producing the perfect cocktails, using the very best ingredients and products?” asked Jacob Briars, head of training and education for Barcardi. “Understanding the history and the very fundamental part of bartending that is taking care of your guests and giving a warm hospitable feeling to every person that walks through your door.”

Panelist Ludovic Miazga perfected the art of cocktail making at some of France’s top establishments before making his mark on the London cocktail scene as the manager of one of the world’s most highly acclaimed bars, Milk and Honey. He kicked off the seminar with a little history lesson on hospitality.

Ludovic Miazga shares his insight of cocktail and culinary
pairings with guests of the exclusive D'USSE Cognac
event at the Degas House in New Orleans, July 17, 2013.

“Hospitality has its origin as the word host,” informs Miazga. “But it wasn’t always a very welcoming term. Often it meant to prepare yourself to receive your opponents.”

The contemporary definition centers on the relationship process between a guest and a host, connected to the entertainment world, to deliver an experience for something that you know or even don’t know. The root of hospitality is respect.

“Hospitality is about ownership and training, individuality, confidence, being authentic and sincere,” said Colin Peter Field, of the Hotel Ritz in Paris.

Field knew he wanted to be a bartender when he was 14 and took a study trip to Paris. As the head bartender at the Hotel Ritz in Paris since 1994, his philosophy on the art of hospitality has earned him numerous awards and twice named the World’s Best Bartender by Forbes Magazine.

“Don’t ever ask guests if they’d like a drink half way through the beverage they are drinking,” said Field. “Remember, you are not in your house, the guest is not in his house, but as a bartender you are there much more often, so be a gracious host. In a bar setting, never tell people where to sit, let them seat where they will feel comfortable.”

In France, the hotel schools, all 137 of them, specialize in hotel training—meats, wines, whiskey, scotch, vodkas, service and etiquette—in the first two years. In 1984, France’s Minister of Education added a degree for bartenders in the country with an additional one year of educational training.  Field developed the bartending degree curriculum over the course of 10 years.

“The visual aspect of the establishment is 55 percent of a guest’s experience – clean cloths, tidy bar, clean bathrooms,” said Miazga. “You should be able to hear the melody of the bar tools, avoid unfavorably smells, no fruit flies, no smell of cigarettes on hands and the tangible like the garnishes, engagement, glassware and menus.”

Originally from Czechoslovakia, Alex Kratena is one of the UK’s leading mixologist and has worked in various establishments from New York to Tokyo, in Michelin start restaurants and 5-star deluxe hotels.

“Bartending is really about common sense,” said Kratena. “Great service is about three things, planning, expectations and measuring success.”

Kratena encourages managers to involve everyone in the operations and creative planning process. He says leaders provide the vision and make sure the ladder is against the right wall, while managers focus on how the team can climb the ladder most efficiently. Including the entire team may improve creativity and efficiency and as a result, the bottom line.

“How do you measure success?” asked a seminar attendee.

Although it seems very corporate, Kratena encourages secret shopping on a regular basis. In addition to self-assessments and staff performance reviews, having a third party to visit the establishment several times at various times of the day is a real indicator of how well the staff is doing in providing exceptional customer service.

Zdenek Kastanek, hailing from the Czech Republic and bartender at 28 HongKong Street in Singapore, credits his mother with giving him the book “Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” which he reads regularly.

“The book teaches you everything you need to know to be a good man,” said Kastanek. “Don’t steal anything, put things back where you found them and don’t hit anyone. I’d recommend this book for any person who wants to be a bartender or work in the hospitality industry.”

Increasing the awareness of the bartending profession is the goal of Tales of Cocktail and the underlying message of all of the panelists. Kastanek seeks to educate and remove the public assumption that individuals are working in a bar or restaurant because they are in school or can’t find anything better.

“Staff selection is key to creating a successful bar business,” said Miazga. “Women tend to drink less behind the bar and have less of an ego than men.”

Miazga recommends establishing a standard of service guide. In his 12-page handbook for staff, he includes an overview of the business, the rules of the house, staff responsibilities, tasks to do all the time, speed of service, floor responsibilities and closing procedure.

Miazga’s Standard of Service Guide’s Staff responsibilities:

1.       Be on time.

2.       Be ready for service.

3.       Be sure to eat your staff meal before or after opening.

4.       Take ownership of the space.

5.       Make guests feel welcome.

6.       Enter everything into the POS system, including ALL accidental drinks, off wine, flat champagne, etc.

7.       Keep your work environment tidy and clean (all floors, office, staff room, stock room and even the bathroom).

8.       Speed of service (drink delivery), food and upselling.

9.       Attention to details and awareness of building—candles on, music, napkins, ashtrays, ambiance.

10.   Give customers what they want, within reason.

11.   Do not give excuses, find solutions.

“Never say hello and goodbye the same way twice,” advises Field. “’Are you leaving already?’ ‘When will we see you again?’ ‘Oh, you’re heading out?’ Saying it differently each time keeps you authentic and sincere.”

Miazga referenced a quote that he always keeps top of mind by American poet Maya Angelou, “’People will forget what you told them, people will forget who you are, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’” He concluded with, “To serve is to love.”

Acme Oyster House leaders named LRA Restaurateurs of the Year

This article was the cover story for the Louisiana Restaurant Association Fall 2013 A La Carte magazine.

Michael Rodrigue, Lucien Gunter and Paul Rotner, president/owner, chief executive officer and chief operating officer, respectively, of Acme Oyster House, have a brotherly rapport, with a teasing banter that is entertaining to watch. The three of them run extremely successful restaurants, spanning from Louisiana to Florida, and volunteer their time, money and resources to several local charities, while still living life to the fullest.

Paul Rotner, Lucien Gunter and
Mike Rodrigue of Acme Oyster House
are the 2013 LRA Restaurateurs   
of the Year.

This Acme trio was among the guests of honor August 3, 2013, at the LRA Education Foundation (LRAEF) Five Star Futures Gala, where they received the Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA) Restaurateurs of the Year award.

Restaurateur of the Year is the LRA’s most prestigious award. Each year, it is presented to an individual (or individuals) who has contributed unselfishly to the advancement of Louisiana’s restaurant industry and has continually dedicated his services at both the local chapter and state levels. Past winners include Ruth Fertel, Emeril Lagasse, Leah Chase and last year’s recipient, Todd Graves of Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers fame.

Rodrigue, a native New Orleanian, bought the iconic Acme Oyster House in 1985, during a slow period in the restaurant’s history. He got to work, reviving the restaurant and creating a brand that boasts five locations in the Greater New Orleans area, Baton Rouge and Florida and has grown to 500 employees with an annual revenue topping $25 million. Rodrigue is one of the founding members of the Bayou District Foundation, which revitalized the former St. Bernard Housing Project and City Park Golf Course.                                

With more than 20 years of hospitality experience, Gunter serves as Acme’s chief executive officer, successfully opening four of the company’s five restaurants. Next year, he will oversee the sixth location, located in Gulf Shores, Ala. Gunter serves on many boards, including the LRAEF and the Fore!Kids Foundation and currently chairs the New Orleans Oyster Festival. 

A California native, Rotner has more than 30 years of management experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry, with stints at the Hard Rock Café and Hotel chain in Las Vegas, among other cities, and the Pink Taco Restaurant chain. He joined Acme in 2007 and is its chief operating officer. Rotner sits on the LRA Board of Directors and is currently the LRA Greater New Orleans Chapter President. He also volunteers his time to the Save Louisiana Coalition and the Sunshine Kids Foundation.  

“Acme is involved at every level of our association,” said LRA Chair David Hearn. “Their commitment of time, staff involvement and funds are unmatched. We are so thankful to have them on board. They make the LRA a stronger organization.”  

Serving patrons for more than 100 years, Acme Oyster House’s first location opened on Royal Street in the French Quarter in 1910. Its current French Quarter location was established on Iberville Street in 1924, after a fire devastated the original restaurant. By the early 1980s, the restaurant had hit some lean times and just before Rodrigue purchased it, Acme’s famous “Waitress available sometimes” neon sign was born. The eatery only employed one waitress and closed at 4 p.m. That the restaurant had fallen on hard times was not daunting to Rodrigue, who was determined to turn it around, without having to make too many changes. 

And turn it around he did. According to Acme’s website, the restaurant served 250,000 raw and chargrilled oysters in 1985. In 2008, Acme shucked 3.6 million fresh oysters across four locations. That amounts to 10,000 oysters a day, not including the ones that are fried.

A secret to their success? Proximity. Each Acme location is a short, refrigerated drive from where the restaurant’s oysters are harvested.  

While Rodrigue, Gunter and Rotner’s business sense is certainly something to be commended, even more lauded is their work with the community. All three men join a long, illustrious list of LRA Restaurateurs of the Year who have made it their mission to give back to those that have patronized their restaurants year in and year out. Restaurateurs are some of the most philanthropic people there are, and the guys behind Acme are right at the top.

ProStart Student Spotlight: Tyler Day

This ProStart Student Spotlight ran in the Fall 2013 issue of the Louisiana Restaurant Association A La Carte magazine.

The Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Foundation (LRAEF) loves to share great success stories about its ProStart^® students. While learning in the classroom is important, getting real-world work experience is integral to the student’s, and the program’s, ultimate success. The LRAEF is so appreciative of the LRA members who hire ProStart students and give them the on-the-job training that will take them that much further in their culinary education.

Tyler Day, West Monroe High School

Eighteen year old Tyler Day is a senior at West Monroe High School. He decided to participate in Bette Maroney’s ProStart program because he was interested in pursuing a career in the culinary field. Day’s classmates learn viable skills through ProStart, including the very important food safety curriculum.

“I enjoy when we help with events and I enjoyed getting ServSafe^® certified,” said Day.

All ProStart students across the state have the opportunity to take the 8-hour, nationally-recognized ServSafe food safety course. After the course, the students are tested on the material and if they score high enough, they obtain ServSafe certification that is valid for five years.

“Offering ProStart students the chance to be ServSafe certified provides great advantages,” said LRAEF ProStart Coordinator Devi Theriot. “Not only does it teach the students about the importance of food safety, but it also gives them a certification that they can take with them to any restaurant job. It’s an automatic positive in their favor.”

The LRAEF has trained thousands restaurant employees in ServSafe since 1997. At least one employee in every restaurant in the state must be ServSafe-certified.

Day is a fry cook at Warehouse No. 1. Open since 1980, the restaurant overlooks the Ouachita River in Monroe. Co-Owner/General Manager and LRA Northeast Chapter Board Member Dennis Clack understands the importance of hiring ProStart students.

"Tyler was a rare find," said Clack. "The training he learned through ProStart put him above other candidates applying. He has a vast knowledge of how to handle food safely and as a young person, his knife skills are better than average."  

Day believes that ProStart has given him a better understanding of the restaurant industry, which was helped him in his job at Warehouse No. 1. He aspires to attend the Louisiana Culinary Institute in Baton Rouge and wants to continue to have a career in the culinary arts.

Maroney feels it’s important that her students have real-life kitchen experience to supplement their ProStart coursework.

“[ProStart] allows students the opportunity to get a true taste of what working in the foodservice industry is all about,” said Maroney. “While actual kitchen experience is important, a foundation for those experiences is definitely needed to ensure it is a worthwhile experience.”

She continued, “Tyler is a talented young man who knows what he wants to do in life.”

Interested in providing a job opportunity to a ProStart student? Want to host a ProStart class at your restaurant and provide a tour? Contact LRAEF ProStart Coordinator Devi Theriot to talk about all the different ways LRA members can get involved.

Meet your LRA SIF Safety Dividend Criteria before the close of 2013

The LRA SIF for Workers’ Compensation has five criteria for plan participants to meet in order to be eligible for the safety dividend and receive up to an additional five percent of their premium returned as a dividend. One of the five is to attend at least one safety seminar or webcast annually.

It’s not too late to attend this year’s LRA SIF seminar, “Workers’ Compensation Claims Management.” The seminar reveals strategies to use before, during and after a workers’ compensation claim to reduce negative effects on your business and control claims costs.

Three dates remain to attend in person—Nov. 13, 9-10:30 a.m. at Café Vermillionville in Lafayette; Nov. 14, 9-10:30 a.m. at Acme Oyster House in Baton Rouge; and Dec. 5, 9-10:30 a.m. at Jefferson Orleans-North in Metairie. Click here for more details. As an added convenience, this year the LRA SIF began offering “On-Demand Webcasts” to assist plan participants whose schedules may not permit attending in person.

The remaining four Safety Dividend Criteria are:

·         Complete the fund year with a loss ratio below 50 percent

·         Provide a written copy of your working safety program to the Loss Prevention Dept.

·         100 percent compliance with the Second Injury Board Knowledge Questionnaire. A Louisiana Office of Workers’ Compensation post-offer medical history questionnaire must be completed and on file for ALL employees.

·         100 percent compliance with Post-Accident Drug and Alcohol Testing. ALL employees must sign a post-accident drug and alcohol testing policy and if injured while on the job, must be required to submit to a drug and alcohol test.

Want to knowmore about the LRA SIF for workers’ compensation or need a comparison quote? Read about the LRA SIF rate reductions here or to request a quote, email lrasifquote@lra.org.   

Business going to the dogs?

By: Michael S. Mitchell, Fisher & Phillips

Imagine a big night at your restaurant:  the place is packed with guests, all enjoying themselves.  A diner shows up with an unexpected companion – a dog.  You’re concerned about health regulations and the effect on other patrons.  Politely, but firmly, you tell the guest she cannot enter with the dog.  Either it stays outside or she does.  Any problem?  Yes.  You’ve just politely, but firmly, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

There has been a lot of coverage recently about the changes in the ADA, but this particular area has been around for a long time.  Unfortunately many restaurateurs still seem to get it wrong.

Like Restaurants, These Animals Are in the Service Business

The ADA requires reasonable modification of policies and practices to accommodate disabled individuals with service animals.  Most people think of dogs when they think of service animals, but dogs aren’t all you might conceivably see. Indeed, monkeys, pigs, and miniature horses now may serve this role (though it’s highly unlikely any disabled patron would show up with a miniature horse!). 

Moreover, animals are now trained to provide far more varied services such as hearing or signaling (alerting deaf individuals to sounds); mobility assistance (pulling wheelchairs, picking up things that are dropped, providing stability for walking); and seizure alert/response (alerting owners to impending epileptic seizures or to sounds).

The Department of Justice defines “service animal” as “any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including, but not limited to, guiding individuals with impaired vision, alerting individuals with impaired hearing to intruders or sounds, providing minimal protection or rescue work, pulling a wheelchair or fetching dropped items.” 

The DOJ regulations do not require service animals to have a state certification or permit and restaurants may not require proof of certification as a condition of the animal entering.  Nor may restaurants exclude a guest’s service animal because the animal does not meet a state law definition of service animal.  You may, of course, ask the guests whether their disability requires the animal if you cannot visually determine whether or not the animal is a service animal.  Generally speaking, service animals are recognizable by the special harness or collar they wear.

Emotional Rescue

Further complicating the reasonable modification request is the existence of “emotional support animals.”  For example, a patron with a mental disability may ask the restaurant to permit his “emotional support animal.” Unlike service animals, emotional support animals do not necessarily have “task specific training” and are therefore different and treated differently under the ADA. 

That means you may deny guests’ requests for an emotional support animal to stay with them unless a patron with a mental disability can show that the animal has been trained to perform specific tasks to ameliorate the effects of the disability.  In that situation you will be required to grant the request.  So someone who requests that Fluffy or Fido sit at the table with them because “it makes me feel more comfortable” can be turned down. But don’t be too quick to press your rights, even in this type of situation.  Restaurants have gotten bad publicity at times when the patron was an ex-serviceperson suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and the animal was a legitimate emotional-support animal.

Additional Rules

Once the service animal is in the restaurant, you may not charge patrons an extra fee because of the animal.  Nor may you require disabled patrons with service animals to use service elevators if your establishment is multi-story.

Of course, restaurants can impose requirements that a service animal not pose a direct threat to the safety or health of others.  But even if a service animal is a direct threat, you should not automatically exclude the disabled patron.  Rather, you should offer the guest the opportunity to dine without a service animal on the premises.  But such situations should be rare, since service animals are unlikely to create safety or threat problems given their specialized training and desensitization to distractions.  The more likely problem is keeping other diners and staff from treating the animal like a pet when the animal is “working.”

Restaurants are not required to grant the accommodation request under the ADA if doing so would significantly or fundamentally alter the nature of the dining experience.  Again, this is unlikely to occur with a service animal, but if it does (for example, if a guide dog barks or is otherwise disruptive) you may exclude the animal – again you should offer the option to the patron of continuing without the service animal).  Finally, the ADA does not require you to permit an animal-in-training to stay in the restaurant nor to permit non-disabled patrons who request to have animals they are training for the disabled to stay with them.

An Animal Checklist

Whether a patron’s request for a service animal is a reasonable modification of your rules requires some thought. In making your decision the restaurant should evaluate the following issues:

• Is the patron disabled? While certain impairments are easily understood to limit major life activities – paralysis, blindness, deafness – others, such as chronic fatigue syndrome or depression, are not.
• If there is a disability, is the animal a service animal?  If you cannot determine whether it is, you may ask what tasks the animal has been trained to do.
• Does the animal ameliorate the problems the patron’s disability causes?  Keep in mind no federal standards exist with respect to answering this question, which would most likely be answered by the patron’s physician in the event of litigation.
• Will the animal’s presence create a threat to the health and safety of the other patrons?
• Will the presence of the animal fundamentally alter the nature of the restaurant’s service?

Accommodating a disabled patron is, of course, the right thing to do. It is also the “legal thing” to do, so be sure you have a policy in place covering service animals, and train your staff so that they are aware of and comply with Title III of the ADA.

Mike Mitchell is a partner with the law firm of Fisher & Phillips LLP, and is labor counsel to the Louisiana Restaurant Association.  

The real story about workers' comp costs

This article ran in the Louisiana Restaurant Association Fall 2013 of The Source, within the A La Carte magazine. The Source is a publication designed to further educate LRA SIF participants and prospective participants about workers' compensation.

While assisting members of the Louisiana Restaurant Association Self Insurer’s Fund for Workers’ Compensation (LRA SIF) to improve their safety and health programs, one of the most common problems seen is employers who attempt to solve their safety and health problems by strictly focusing on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) codes and standards and ignoring sound loss prevention and control measures.

One example of this was a 65-employee facility that was recently visited by OSHA and given a $7,000 fine. They were in the process of rewriting their company’s Safety Policy and Procedures at a cost of more than $10,000.  When questioned about how their claims had also affected their workers’ compensation premiums, they had no idea. A brief investigation revealed that their workers’ compensation premiums had risen to more than $20,000 over the last several years! And because of the excessive losses over the last two years, their premium could rise an additional $10,000. 

The likelihood of OSHA visiting your facility is slim unless you have a fatality or an employee complaint. However, your workers’ compensation costs accrue every year like clockwork. These costs affect your business’ ability to make a profit.  The owner of the company mentioned above probably drives by competitors on his way to work every day that are paying well over 50 percent less for their workers’ compensation coverage. Most businesses cannot afford to pay 50 percent more in workers’ compensation premiums.  That is why your injury and illness prevention efforts should legitimately be an integral part of your company’s management plan and not just an ancillary OSHA compliance program.

Direct and Indirect Costs

All employers are familiar with the direct costs of workers’ compensation. Direct costs include medical bills, pharmaceutical bills, lost wages, mileage reimbursement, etc. However, more important than the direct costs of workers’ compensation claims are the indirect costs.  The reason that the indirect costs are more important is that statistically they are 5 to 10 times more costly than the direct costs! The reason they are more costly is because you are not insured against those losses. All indirect costs of claims are paid directly by you—the employer. 

Some examples of indirect costs include:

• Training replacement workers
• Reduced productivity because of the breakup of a crew
• Manager’s time spent dealing with the claim
• Lost production/productivity due to work stoppage
• Repair or replacement of damaged equipment
• Overtime of additional workers

Although this list includes some of the major indirect costs associated with claims, these are by no means all of the indirect costs that may affect an organization. The list of the indirect costs can be quite lengthy.

How Does Your Business Compare?

Is good enough really good enough? What steps are you taking to ensure that your workers’ compensation premiums are as low as possible? If you compare your business to other businesses and feel that your business is just about average, you should ask yourself if average is really good enough? If your competition is able to reduce their workers’ compensation direct and indirect cost then they ultimately will be able to produce a product for less. Workers’ compensation claims should be thought of as losses to a business like any other losses and controlling them can be managed very much like many other parts of your business. Simply, safety and loss control needs to become an integral part of your business. 

However, many business owners say that controlling their losses or putting safety first is not their main business. Their number one priority is producing a good quality product at a fair price. In order to do that however, a business must operate efficiently with as few interruptions as possible. Injuries and illnesses are interruptions that affect a business in similar ways to breakage of equipment. They disrupt the operations and cause a loss of productivity and efficiency.

What Can You Do?   

• Determine your workers’ compensation costs—both the direct and indirect costs (multiply your direct costs by 5-10 percent).
• Evaluate your operation and determine what types of safety and loss control programs should be in place and determine the costs of implementation.
• Designate a Safety Coordinator. This person should have enough time to devote to safety and loss control and not simply wear several hats within the operation.
• Implement a safety and workers’ compensation loss control program that includes employee participation.
• Regularly monitor and evaluate your program and make changes as necessary.
• Contact the loss control department of your workers’ compensation carrier for assistance in developing your safety and loss control programs.

If you are a member of the LRA SIF and you would like additional information on developing your workers’ compensation loss control programs please contact LRA SIF VP of Loss Prevention Victor Balbuena, vbalbuena@lra.org or (504) 454-2277.

The LRA SIF recently reduced its rates for the third time in three years. If you are interested in receiving a quote for  your workers' compensation needs, please email lrasifquotes@lra.org.

Restaurateurs, chefs invited to learn more about the Share the Gulf coalition

This article ran in the Louisiana Restaurant Association Fall 2013 A La Carte magazine.

As a member organization of the recently created Share the Gulf coalition, the Louisiana Restaurant Association is advocating for maintaining the current allocation of red snapper (51 percent commercial and 49 percent recreational) for current and any future increase in total catch allowed. We invite you to visit the Share the Gulf coalition website to learn more.

The Louisiana restaurant industry depends on fair and sustainably managed fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. This means equal consideration for restaurant and consumers as well as recreational fishermen. We recognize that recreational anglers currently face harsh rules on some favorites like red snapper, grouper and others. At the same time, fishermen, seafood providers, restaurant owners and chefs with Share the Gulf are asking: How does taking fish from consumers help solve the problems facing anglers?

The current red snapper catches have seen a 70 percent increase in the total catch allowed in just the past five years. Commercial fishermen, seafood businesses and the consumer are reaping benefits because the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has considered stock assessments, NOAA data and public input in executing a management plan that has helped promote fish population recovery.

Unfortunately, angling seasons continue to shrink, regardless of the increased total catch, because the underlying recreational management plan remains broken. Anglers are understandably angry, but assigning them more fish (reallocation) won’t help. Instead, it hurts more people and our industry’s access to the highly desirable fish our restaurants love to offer their guests.

Many of us enjoy recreational fishing with our families and friends, and we want our families to experience catching their own dinner. We also know that many of our guests enjoy recreational fishing.

In our view, we should encourage an engaged discussion including recreational fishing, harvesting, distributors and restaurant interests.  Let’s talk about what everyone’s goals are and how we can achieve them together. Let’s stand up together and ask the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council to focus their attention on recreational management plans that will actually extend seasons over the long-term, improve data collection and reporting and enhance sustainability.

The commercial management through the Gulf Council is working. We hope that similar success can lead to addressing the concerns and fishery management challenges for recreational interests as well.