Jay Lee quit his job as an assistant professor at Kent State University to open Ribsticks, his dream BBQ joint in University Heights.
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio - "Dr. Chef" Jay Lee has given himself three months to create a following for his Ribsticks BBQ restaurant, which opened last month at 13892 Cedar Rd. That's a pretty small window for a first-time restaurateur, located in a busy neighborhood full of larger, better-known chain restaurants.
But Ju Yup "Jay" Lee is unapologetically stubborn and believes that once people discover his slow-smoked meats and made-from-scratch sides and desserts, his business will take off.
Lee, who came to the U.S. from Korea at age 30 to attend the Culinary Institute of America, quit his job as a tenure-track assistant professor at Kent State University this spring to open his dream BBQ joint. He now spends his days massaging dry rub into beef briskets and brushing seasonings onto racks of ribs, which are then smoked over cedar chips.
"We are cooking our meat a little bit differently, and we make everything here from scratch," Lee said. By that he means he grills his meat, chops his coleslaw, mashes his potatoes, and pickles his vegetables in-house.
When he's not helping prep food, general manager Louis J. Gastelum is baking. He pulls plump loaves of crusty Italian rolls out of the oven for the barbecue sandwiches, and creates RibSticks' desserts: chocolate chip cookies with bits of candied pork ends, chocolate cupcakes, and bread pudding.
The most popular item on the menu is the beef brisket, followed by the pork spare ribs, and the two- and three-meat Dr. Chef Sampler. All are served with two sides: baked beans, mac & cheese, bread pudding, bourbon peaches, herbed quinoa, heirloom coleslaw, mashed potatoes, and cheesy grits.
If Ribsticks succeeds, it will do so against the odds in an ultracompetitive industry -- and despite the fact that customer traffic to U.S. restaurants is declining nationally. The NPD Group market research firm says customer traffic to quick service restaurants, which represents 80 percent of total restaurant visits, fell for the first time in five years last quarter.
And Old Carolina Barbecue, another promising BBQ restaurant in nearby Lyndhurst, just closed its doors at the end of November.
"Restaurant operators will need to look for ways to differentiate themselves from the competition," said Bonnie Riggs, NPD's restaurant industry analyst, in a statement.
"They will need to find the means to stay relevant in consumers' minds - innovative products, unique promotions, competitive pricing, stating the benefits of eating at restaurants compared to home - while delivering an enjoyable experience," she said.
Lee believes he is up to the challenge. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in tourism management from Hanyang University, one of the most exclusive schools in South Korea, and worked at the five-star Lotte Hotel in Seoul before he was accepted into the Culinary Institute of America in New York.
After receiving his degree in culinary arts, Lee went on to earn a Ph.D. in hospitality management from Iowa State University, and got the job offer from Kent State before he graduated.
Lee had only been teaching at Kent State a few years when he realized he was running out of time to pursue his restaurant idea. "I taught many, many things: how to set up your own restaurant, layout and design of food service, and activity-based costing (how to avoid making the staff run around more than it needs to)."
But he quickly realized that teaching courses in marketing, hospitality management, and restaurant design was quite different from actually marketing, managing, and designing his own restaurant from the beginning.
With his landlord's blessing, he completely gut and rebuilt Ribsticks' interior, transforming it from a bright orange beauty salon into an industrial-looking brick-and-metal barbecue joint, with butcher-block-style wooden tables, metal chairs, and naked light bulbs dangling from a chain link fence on the ceiling.
Lee's kitchen is bustling from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., or whenever the food runs out. Right now, about 70 percent of his business is carry-out. "I would like to see more dining in, because meat should be [eaten] hot," he said.
He has given himself three months to turn a profit, and wants to open two more restaurants within three years. He has already begun scouting locations for the second and third restaurants, which he hopes will be bigger than the University Heights space, with more parking.
Lee also envisions opening a large central kitchen, perhaps off of Interstate 480, from which he could prepare the food for all three locations. But expanding will require a partner -- preferably somebody local with experience in food service -- to invest in his vision and split the risk.
When his mother in Korea heard what he was doing, she was alarmed. "I never sent you to America to serve food to other people," she told her youngest of three sons.
"It's all a lot of pressure," Lee admitted. At 41, with a wife and two small children to support, Lee said he can't afford to keep trying if Ribsticks doesn't take off.
"I will try my best for three years," he said. "If I can't make it, I will find another way to feed my family."
Lee glances up as a customer walks in the front door. "Hello, and welcome to Ribsticks!" he calls out, stepping from the kitchen and reaching out to shake the man's hand. "What can I make for you today?"