Steve Wong: Place de Fêtes
Clinton Hill, Brooklyn
Very few places have us booking a reservation for our next visit while still in the middle of our meal. Place des Fêtes is one of those, well, places. The name translates roughly to "party square" or center, confirmed to us upon our visit when we ran into many familiar faces, and even had some surprise friends pull up chairs to eat with us. A too-good-to-be-true seafood menu, extensive wine list, and relaxed atmosphere are dare we say, the ingredients for a perfect summer restaurant -- of which PDF has all three. This being said, we invite you to get a peek into the mind of Partner and Co-Founder Steve Wong, who you may know from Prospect Heights haunt Oxalis, whose knack for operations has aided both spots in attaining total excellence. (Stay tuned for another PDF face, Adrienne Reynolds, featured above!)
Full name, age, where are you from?
Steve Wong, 34, San Jose, California.
Was food a big part of your upbringing?
Yes and no — my maternal grandfather in Taiwan was a Chef so it was something that was always talked about. My mother was the one who cooked the most for our family went through a very dynamic timeline. I have very fond memories of dishes from my younger days where she would cook more Taiwanese food, both savory dishes and desserts. She was buddhist so did cook vegetarian a lot more often than we’d liked as kids, but I still have very fond memories of those dishes. She went through a big Americanization in ways, which diluted a lot of her cooking as we got older — more simple protein and vegetables dishes (still always served with rice) which made food take a back seat in many formative years in my upbringing.
What are your earliest memories of dining out?
As a family, we dined out a lot at Chinese restaurants. Most were an experience you might know — large round tables with lazy Susans, friends of your parents that you barely knew, being bored out of your mind with a gameboy. There were some that were more memorable as a kid, particularly the ones with my father in Taiwan and his old friends. These guys would drink more than I’d ever seen, eat giant boats of sashimi, and cheers each other with absolutely every sip. It was probably heightened in rowdiness since his friends hadn’t seen my father in years, but the camaraderie in those dinners always stuck out to me.
If you could give a piece of advice to someone who wanted to pursue your career, what would it be?
There are really three main ones that come to mind easily as a restaurant owner.
First, just do it. Like so many things in life, things that we don’t know seem further away or more alien than we think, but after doing things a few times anything can be learned. The big hurdles I think most people see: how to raise money, what paperwork needs to be filled out, what licenses, what lawyers, signing a lease with a giant personal guarantee, these can all be scary as hell but that scariness can oftentimes be self-doubt, or self-sabotage. A really easy way to get through this is to simply go ahead and take the dive — being a business owner requires an insane amount of risk taking but when you step back, I think you can realize that “the worst thing that can happen” might not be that bad. I do take privilege into account here and understand that my experience might not be the same as others, but without taking the leap it’s near impossible.
Don’t underestimate how challenging the restaurant business can be — it takes a lot of time and effort. Despite thinking I was smart enough to “do things the smart way,” I learned quickly that being an owner is simply a very difficult position to be in (I think regardless of the industry). In many ways our success at our restaurants is from the partners (myself, Nico Russell, and Piper Kristensen) putting in absolutely absurd amount of time and care into what we do. This is physically and emotionally draining, and has required a ton of sacrifice from all of our family and partners that is so important to mention. So be prepared for the long haul and long hours.
Bring enthusiasm to everything you do. Enthusiasm is inspiring, it encourages a positive outlook that makes tackling the day to day easier. Most successful people are very enthusiastic and I find it very helpful to remember, and important for my self-care, to recognize the bigger picture and bring positivity to everything I’ve done.
What do you think working in this industry has taught you?
If you ask me about what I’ve learned by working in the industry, it’s that you can find a way to connect with almost anyone. The thing about the restaurant business (at least in the front of house side where I spend a lot of my time) is that you get to meet a lot of people, some nice, some rude, some funny, some quiet, etc. I’ve learned that more often than not, a lot of the negative interactions aren’t even negative interactions but actually misunderstandings, or that almost always you can find common ground simply by giving someone the benefit of the doubt and having an actual interest in them. Finding ways to find that middle ground isn’t always the most natural act, but I think this translates to where we are as a country right now. We’re so often engrossed in our own perspectives and own understandings of the world, and own comforts, that we aren’t able to find that common ground that can be built on. It’s more common to say, “woah, this person is a complete asshole let’s just avoid them and give them the minimum requirements,” rather than realizing that maybe they have come from a different upbringing, had a different day, be on the spectrum, have a different perspective, and saying, “hey, maybe it’s me that’s uncomfortable or feeling protective or defensive,” and thinking about how we can play a role in finding that common ground.
What's your favorite dish/drink on the menu?
I love the sardine toast at Place des Fetes (with a mandarin kosho and smoked butter from Oxalis we make ourselves), and I love the kebab d’Oxalis at Oxalis. An absolute banger and one of the very few things that have been on our menu since day one. I think it’ll likely be off soon though.
What is your favorite place to go out and eat at and what are you ordering?
Honestly, I’ve been asked this a ton and as any New Yorker will say it will depend a lot on the circumstance: the mood, the neighborhood, the price point. We’re absolutely spoiled with so many good choices.
You’re on a desert island, what are the 5 kitchen items you need to run your business?
I’m not so much a kitchen person, so I might leave this to the people devoted to this craft. I just need this laptop!
