Rick Roman

Nation's Restaurant News, Oct 14, 1996 by Carolyn Walkup

Chicago restaurateur Rick Roman thrives on working 10- to 12-hour days.

Roman, 39, an outgoing, personable man, undoubtedly enjoys being his own boss as president of the Signature Room at the 95th, which he bought from Aramark three years ago. The restaurant is located on the 95th floor of the John Hancock Center. A recent day began with a trip to the South Water Street Produce Market at 9 a.m. and ended around 9 p.m. with a visit to an on-premises private party of VIPs to check that everything was running smoothly.

When Roman made the decision to take over the fine-dining 95th restaurant, which Aramark, then ARA Services, no longer wanted to operate, his friends told him he was crazy. "This was a big risk because it had a history of not being a huge moneymaker," recalls Roman, who had been general manager of The 95th.

We were focused and passionate about it," he says. "Sometimes passion will win in the face of logic." He and his team have since built up the business to a projected $10 million in sales.

The 95th consists of the 225-seat restaurant, with its spectacular views of the city and Lake Michigan; additional private party rooms for parties of 30 to 500; and the Signature Lounge. The restaurant serves a buffet lunch daily, with a $9.40 check average, and a contemporary American a la carte menu for dinner, with a $42 check average. About 70 percent of the guests are tourists or out-of-town business people.

Roman looks like something of a tourist himself on this day in the blue-collar world of the produce market. Wearing a dark suit, a white shirt and a tie, he stands out among the produce men, forklift drivers and purveyors at the market.

The purpose of this morning's visit is to see what new seasonal produce is coming in and how it can be incorporated into the October menu. Meeting Roman at George J. Cornille & Sons were his associates Mark Di Tomassi, executive chef; Chris Wallace, receiving and purchasing manager; and Jay Roman, director of purchasing--and his brother.

Much of the produce had been picked the day before, according to Tom Cornille, third-generation produce man of the family company founded in 1927. The Signature Room is one of about 15 restaurants with which he deals directly--a small but enjoyable part of his wholesale business.

Cornille talks nonstop about the origins and quality of his vegetables, organic greens and herbs. He also shows Roman and his team his refrigerated spice room, where he stores whole spices, grains and dried beans. Leaving the actual purchasing decisions to his staff, Roman returns to his minivan and heads for North Michigan Avenue.

Back at the restaurant, Roman does his morning walk-through at 10:45 a.m., before the 11 a.m. opening. Accompanying him are Javier Bustos, stewarding manager; Terry Sheridan, general manager; and Luigi Millacardi, food-and-beverage director.

Roman points out various maintenance needs to Bustos, including chipped paint, a nonfunctional electrical outlet, dust and other cleaning details to be taken of later. He observes that spiders have again made a mess on the outsides of the windows, which need to be washed soon. The cost is $500.

He also asks Bustos to begin a glassware inventory so that orders can be placed for replacements as the busy fall-and-holiday seasons approach. Glassware delivery usually takes several weeks, Roman says, so it's necessary to plan ahead.

In the dining room Roman looks over the buffet setup, which passes his inspection. He also checks the freshness of the table flowers, noting that they are lasting longer since a new florist was contracted. He tells Sheridan to notice that the decorative shades need to be pulled earlier to block out direct sunlight, because of the changing seasons.

Moving into the kitchen, Roman and Millacardi discuss replacing a fish dish that wasn't selling well and changing uniform companies to upgrade the quality and consistency. Stopping in the pastry department, Roman chats with the chefs and samples a cookie, saying this is his favorite part of the kitchen.

He stops in the separate garde manger kitchen, where the temperature is set about six degrees cooler than in the rest of the kitchen to help the produce stay crisper. The jovial restaurateur greets many workers by name.

Over lunch in the dining room, Roman meets with Karen Hickey, marketing manager, and partner Nick Pyknis to discuss marketing plans for the fourth quarter and early 1997. He notes that the $19.96 special promotion during the Democratic convention was a success.

Hickey recommends several charities to be designated as the ones the restaurant will benefit for the rest of the year. The restaurant donates 10 percent of the proceeds of a fixed-price Monthly Signature Selection to a designated charity. In August the selection raised $2,241 for Habitat for Humanity Hickey says.

"We decided to pick groups where we could really make a difference with larger donations," Roman says. A residual benefit is that people involved with the charities are inclined to support the restaurant.