Quotes from Danny Meyer

Nice gets nice.

But the fact that something is free alone doesn't make it wise or compelling to proceed.

Doing two things like a half-wit never equals doing one thing like a whole wit.

THE FOUNDER OF ANY new business has an opportunity to initiate the first expression of that business's point of view through a compendium of aesthetic and philosophical choices.

Previous success in any field invites high expectations and scrutiny the next time around. People are less forgiving when a winner falters than they are when an up-and-comer stumbles. But a mark of a champion is to welcome scrutiny, persevere, perform beyond expectations, and provide an exceptional product—for which forgiveness is not necessary.

I have taken from the continued success of Union Square Café is that willingness to overcome difficult cimcumstances is a crucial character trait in my employees, partners, and restaurants.

I was developing what I would call an "athletic" approach to hospitality, sometimes playing offense, sometimes playing defense, but always wanting to find a way to win. ... The point is to keep the dialogue open while sending the message: I am your agent, not the gatekeeper!

To go through the motions in a perfunctory or self-absorbed manner, no matter how expertly rendered, diminishes the beauty. It's about soul—and service without soul, no matter how elegant, is quickly forgotten by the guest.

There us no point for me … to work every day for the purpose of offering guests an average experience.

There us no point for me … to work hard every day for the purpose of offering guests an average experience. 90

In hospitality one size fits one!

The ABCD strategy —always be collecting dots.

At the base level, a burger is a piece of meat and a bun with something on it. It's simple but it seems to make a lot of people happy.

A restaurant is a compendium of choices that the owner has made. If you look around a restaurant, everything represents a choice: the kind of salt shaker that's on the table, the art on the walls, the uniforms on the waiters.

You wouldn't have the same art on the walls at every restaurant or the same waiter uniforms. Neither should you have the same service style at every restaurant.

I couldn't sit in a chair in an office all day.

Constant, gentle pressure is my preferred technique for leadership, guidance, and coaching.

I run in London, in San Francisco - any city that's got a waterfront or park.

It's the job of any business owner to be clear about the company's nonnegotiable core values. They're the riverbanks that help guide us as we refine and improve on performance and excellence. A lack of riverbanks creates estuaries and cloudy waters that are confusing to navigate. I want a crystal-clear, swiftly flowing stream.

Sometimes, early in their careers, chefs make the mistake of adding one too many things to a plate to get attention. If a chef is just coming up with wiz-bang gimmicks on their plate, that has nothing to do with bringing real pleasure to people.

I don't get to cook in my own restaurant.

There are three things that people pick up on the instant they walk into your home on Thanksgiving. They will be able to feel the human energy. They'll smell the food. And they will see, instantly, the table.

I adore going to a very, very fancy restaurant - as long as the spirit is genuine, like it's their pleasure to welcome you.

Human nature doesn't change. When enough people are comfortable enough financially, there is going to be human nature that wants to spend more money on better quality and, to some degree, status symbols as well.