John Healy, general manager, Suesey Street Restaurant and Bar and No. 25 Fitzwilliam Place, takes the Business & Finance 60 second challenge.
Q. What was your first job?
I was a lounge waiter in 1983 in The Town House Hotel in Naas as a summer job.
Q. What would you regard as your greatest achievement to date?
I was proud of being part of the opening management team of Sir Terrance Conran’s massive eatery in Soho called Mezzo London. It seated 600 people on two levels. The restaurant was enormous and it would feed 900 on a normal Saturday night. The famous John Torode was the executive chef.
Q. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
Don’t worry what other people think.
Q. If you could step into the shoes of one business person for the day, who would it be and why?
JP McManus. He has so much happening on such a large scale.
Q. What’s your motto?
Trust your gut instinct and rely on your experience.
Q. How do you define success?
Happiness is wanting what you already have. Success is always doing your best and having a good work-life balance.
Learning how to say no is also important.
Q. How do you motivate yourself and your staff?
Through humour and leading by example – never ask anyone to do something you would not do yourself.
Q. How do you relax?
Yoga, walking and cooking.
Q. What are your aspirations for the future of your business?
I will continue to develop the business on all levels, social and corporate. I’ll be keeping my public profile active with the 2017 series of The Restaurant.
My aim is to make Suesey Street and No. 25 Fitzwilliam Place fantastic destinations for good food and service – with a fun atmosphere of course.
Having commanded the dining rooms of some of the greatest restaurants in New York, London and Paris, Healy’s experience is second to none.
A familiar face as the maitre d’ on TV3’s The Restaurant, his operational experience ranges from five-star hotels in Dublin, London and New York, to independent super-sized bistro restaurants in London.
In his own words, John has described Suesey Street as a “stylish, upmarket bistro with a focus on quality, value and service”.
