To Everyone Working Today: I See You

People assume the holidays are a break. Time off. Family time. Quiet moments.

In hospitality, they’re the opposite.

Thanksgiving is when the city fills up, when restaurants hit capacity, when guests come in with higher expectations, bigger emotions, and zero patience. It’s when every detail matters and every mistake gets magnified.

Most people never see it — the operators, managers, chefs, servers, bartenders, dishwashers, hosts — all giving up their own holiday to make someone else’s perfect.

Even after all these years, I’m still working through every holiday.
Still at the restaurants.
Still answering calls.
Still solving problems.
Still making sure the team feels supported and the room feels right.

In this industry, you don’t get to step away just because the calendar says you should. A packed dining room is the job. And the truth is, many of us love it — the energy, the pace, the responsibility, the chance to make someone’s night matter.

But it doesn’t mean it’s easy.

Holidays in hospitality require sacrifice. They always have. They always will. And the people who stay in this business long enough aren’t here because it’s convenient — they’re here because they care, because they’re wired for it, because something in them loves showing up when it counts.

There’s pride in that.
There’s meaning in that.
And there’s a quiet understanding among all of us who do this work:

The holidays don’t take a day off,
so neither do we.

To everyone working today —
I see you.
Happy Thanksgiving.