 I'm Rusty Komori and this is Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. I was the head coach of the Punahou Boys varsity tennis team for 22 years and we were fortunate to win 22 consecutive state championships. This show is based on my books Beyond the Lines and Beyond the Game and it's about leadership, teamwork, and creating a superior culture of excellence. My special guest today is a very successful leader and general manager of Noi Tai Cuisine and Waikiki. She is Tawaii Tawadee Ford and today we are going Beyond Exquisite Dining. Hey Koi, welcome to the show. Sawadee ka. Thank you for having me today. Now your first name is Tawadee but everyone calls you Koi, right? Yes, right. So it's like a pass for everybody to remember my first name on that Tawadee. Koi is my nickname on my family. My friend called me that and instead of Tawadee. Yes. And Koi, can you tell me a bit about your background growing up and then how you ended up becoming the general manager in Hawaii? Sure. So I'm growing up in Thailand in Bangkok study there. My family is middle class. My dad is CEO on the big company, private there. My mom is teacher. So when we study computer side, finish on the computer side, but I'm working on my career only three months and just turned to marketing, turning to secretary of one company, which is Five Boss and they sent me over to work in Los Angeles. And I feel like, oh my God, this is good. My mom don't have to call me back. Mom call me what time you're coming home, anything like that, because I'm the youngest daughter in the family on a Thai culture. The daughter is like a very kind protecting. You cannot go out to play. You cannot go anywhere longer than, you know, coming home early like that and say, well, state is nice. Mom don't have to call me. So when I go back home, I'm just like, no, mom, I want to go back to study more in state if possible. So I just like, okay, mom just like really can say, yes, I will do it. I love mom and dad and came here, which is 20 years ago without taking their money and starting find a job, you know, in San Francisco. And I got the first job is dishwasher. On that time, 20 years, which is you have to do three things, dishwasher, not the washing machine, because that's a restaurant I'm working, they don't have it, that's the washing machine. And all the way grew up, everything positioned in the restaurant, I know, and to go up to the Hawaii, I live in San Francisco about 18 years. And my husband, which is we met in San Francisco Airport while doing I'm working there, like so many when you see each other in the first and that's right, that's my that's your something like that. Yeah. So the first day and we just like, okay, we fall in love. So he came from he forms Hawaii. And, you know, I'm visiting Hawaii, I like it, the culture is more the same Thailand. And then the time which is he have to come back to work, I just like, you know what, I still love San Francisco. Let me stay in San Francisco a little bit before before I'm change my career, go back, go to a mental career, change my living to Hawaii. So, yes, I came to Hawaii with him like three years ago, and starting like, looking for the job, which is like, Oh, well, what I'm going to do, but a lot of restaurants in Hawaii, anything like that. But one of the CECO in Noitai, just like, you know what, we need help, you want to do helping us and say, Yeah, sure. Why not? I'll try to help what I can. So that's why I become to work with Noitai, like I'm starting from host to food run to bartender to server and become asset manager and manager right now. Yes. It's a lot. Sorry. Yes. Koi, it's absolutely amazing, you know, what, you know, how you started in the industry as a dishwasher and to make it all the way to general manager now. And the other week when I came into your restaurant, I felt so happy to be able to meet your husband and your son. And you have such a beautiful family, they're so nice. And they must really love your cooking, right? They're lucky. Yeah, they love my cooking. So when we had home, I have to prepare like four or five dish for the Thai food for my husband. But my son is just like, Oh, mommy, your chicken is the best. Your fried chicken is the best. You know, we, we come to the restaurant because they love Thai food. My husband, um, they claim the Asian, but he's, you know, they claim the Asian. That's why he can eat Thai food a lot. Yes. Well, they're, they're absolutely fantastic. And, and Koi, you know, I absolutely love your food at Noitai. I need to have the lobster tom yum. I need to have the curries, among others. I mean, the dishes are absolutely incredible. Now, why, what is it that makes Noitai restaurants so unique? Okay, so people thought one thing is about Thai food, it might be state food, you know, easy to find, but the Thai food is, it's not easy to cook. Some curry is hit a long term to cook like maybe an hour to breaking on the what it called a sauce of chili place, the coconut milk to break it. It's all the herb in there. So Noitai cuisine, we serving as the Royal Thai cuisine, which is we have to be the good on the food and beyond and customer service. That's why it's a goal for us and make a Thai success. Well, it's, and Koi, it's like there's needs and wants. I mean, I actually need those dishes. I mean, it's so, it's so good. I crave it. And, and I love how, you know, you do some of these wine pairings with those dishes. I mean, it just really makes a great experience. Yes. So the thing for me is, because I'm from San Francisco, and I into the why, which is like, you know, when I first met my husband, my first day is in Napa, we on the Y testing together. And we're just like, Oh, I learned a Y from my husband and learned a Y from the work, what I worked before in San Francisco, right. And then I was like, Hey, we should be adapt with the Thai food because Thai food have a lot of fairer. Why is to have a lot of fairer on that also? How is become to be together between Thai food and why to be matching not like you come to the high restaurant. I don't know what I drink, maybe a beer. No, we have to want to expand out to everybody to know. So why can be good with Thai food, sake can be good with Thai food is not only the beer or cocktail, you know, like that. And I personally like to drink and find a way which is how the smell on the Y, the grape and what is texture color on that is acknowledged. It's a never in. Well, I absolutely love it. And I'm looking forward to my next dining experience there. And, and Koi, you've had a lot of celebrities that have come to your restaurant, I mean, including President Obama and shark tanks, Robert Herjavitsch, I mean, and many others. How does that make you feel that the celebrities come into your restaurant and they just really enjoy your your dining experience? We, we're very happy to serve everybody and is make sure we so proud when they happy to dine with us, you know, so when they reprise, which is me, like, you know, after it is good, a customer service is good, you know, which is that that's a goal for us. Go for me, go for everybody already. Maybe we exciting when we have like a celebrity coming or sometime we don't know is who that person that looks similar and we find out, oh my God, they want to come into a to join with us without telling who they are. You know, so very exciting and so proud for us, you know, it's like it's like a big surprise, huh? Yes, exactly. Exactly. Like a big surprise for us. Now, Koi, I want to ask you, you know, during the pandemic, what did you do to adapt and adjust to really try to survive during the pandemic? Yeah, we have to shame we lost a lot my staff in the front of the house, you know, and we have to adapt to let every staff to be working with us. We changing from dying to go order to deliberately order to and when we can open the restaurant, we got a support, we got the support from the all the local people. And during a time, the Roy in Hawaiian was a lot helping us on the what they call that the rain rain control rain for us. And also is the main office in Seattle, helping us to promote we have Pia Marketing Mona Wood helping us to expand what is people know us so much about know about us in Hawaii. So that's we try our best to stay on, you know, to make sure people know we want to serve everyone we try to help people, which is, you know, in the first when we close this island, no money, no working in the industry or what everything we wrote a price to help people, which is in Hawaii to can afford to try to tie our food on that will just become with a bento 10 dollar menu before they love it, because at least they can spend like $20 for the whole day for the meal on that. That's with helping, you know, on. Yes, and that's the reef coming to its refresh, not reverse return to us after pandemic happening after that, people just like, Oh, I tried this restaurant already, I want to come back to eat again. Yes. Well, that's that's so good. I mean, that's why you're a great leader, because you guys have to find ways to adapt and adjust to really not just survive, but you know, come out of it. And now you guys are thriving, but you're you have an award winning restaurant. I mean, you have such a great team that you guys all work well together. Now, how does that make you feel when you win some of these awards? It's a little proud. And it's like, you know, you feel like, Okay, you're working hard, it turned out in a good in a good way, you know, I try I do what I do is I treat the restaurant as I own. And I want everyone to come to the restaurant as they want to be at home and get served, you know, so like, how do you want to get served when you go out to eat? That's the way you have to serve like to customer like that. The food is fantastic. You know, I like the food. I eat the food in the restaurant every day. I make sure the food is right quality to come out to customer. But sometimes I have to say I'm apologize. Sometimes it's not so busy. We try to get the order out. But sometimes it's missing anything like that. But we try our best to get to get to same party every food to come out. That's what it. Yes. Now, Koi, you know, how you mentioned earlier that you have worked in every position in the restaurant basically and and that that really allows you to have respect from all of your team members because they know that you understand every part of the business that they're dealing with that they're experiencing. Now, that's that's really valuable, right? Yeah, that's very valuable because, you know, I start from a dishwasher, go up to helper in the kitchen, go up to the chef. When I'm done, go out to the bus boys serve on a server become do bookkeeping, grocery shopping to know how it's cost for the food is and then, you know, running out as a man as a manager in small restaurant being 20 years in restaurant business. I work only for a restaurant in in my turn 20 years. So each restaurant is just like, okay, the way you work. So we don't want you to go anywhere, anywhere. So I respect all the worker to work because the same thing I did because I've been past before. I know what they go through what they had working a day, everything like that. So that's why I just like a feel, okay, I have to get my heart to them to feeling them to support them earn the trust and earn they like, you know, keep them with me to make sure it's like, you know, I trust you, I be on your side, I understand what happened to you. I understand. I try to help what I can see right now every portion in the restaurant like last time you you came to the restaurant and you say, where is it going? People just like, oh, she might be in the kitchen. So that's what I have to like, okay, let's go through with that any position we need to fill up. I have to go hell. Still dishwasher. My first job. I still do that right now too. No, and you're right because when I came in the last time, they said that you were in in the back cooking to really help with what was happening because basically every table was taken and and you were just, I mean, you do it all. Well, that's what make a restaurant running. So you have to can feel every position you can to helping them to get successful from, you know, on business they're doing the work they're doing done. You cannot like, oh, I don't want to do that or single cost with a single point to everybody. You do it and you will they will see it's like, oh, she do it. Well, we have to do it too. One of my boss teaching me, you're telling me and say, hey, remember one thing is you have one head, two hands and two legs. You can do it. Different person can do it the same way too. Yeah. No, I like that you lead by example if something needs to be done. I mean, you do it and that sets the standard for all of your team members to want to do it. And Koi, I want to ask you besides COVID, what are some challenges that you deal with with your business? Oh, yeah. So challenge for us is how can we make person staff to be on the same team challenge to make everybody is professional and food cost in Hawaii everybody know is high food cost for us. How can we do to make a food cost is like, you know, low down and still serve on a good quality for customer, you know, and we're looking for a coflat working with the corporate to making succinct food on the name of brand name of restaurant business, you know, and creating culture between front of the house staff and background house staff have to be in same team together. That's what, you know, we have to do together to make succinct food on a business. Yeah. And it's it's a never ending job. I mean, it's constant, you know, to really keep these details on right exactly is, you know, when you get into the restaurant business, when you get into have to be what the color like in chat on one business, you are they off, it doesn't mean you off. You're still working, even though you're not in a restaurant, but you're still working, your mind is still thinking for everything, you know, go that never end, never end off. When you when you create this up and you solve the problem, this is another problem coming up another challenge coming up for you to to create to learn to to learn and to solve the problem. That's that's what it is, you know, on a business. Uh huh. Yeah, you're you're so right about that. And poi, I mean, you obviously you're a very successful leader. How how would you describe your leadership style? How can I subscribe leadership style. So I earn trust for everyone. And I play a communication have to be sure between back in the house on the house or everybody. Anything have to be adapting to work like this person coming as a host, but she good with something else like a food brand. We have to exchange that on this person when I be bartender, but they're good with customer service. We have to moving people around. So I, for my thing, I would say like, you know, I do trust with them and then team trust the team, give them a fair, you know, fell. Also, what can I say, the worst is like, you know, I trust my my product, my felt to be like, you know, personally, we are for everything, you know, perseverance. I mean, that that's for sure. I like how you said trust and and really you're what you're saying too is you're trying to put your people in the in the right positions to really make use of their strengths, right? Yes, that's right. Sometimes it's happened like, you know, we not we cannot find we just thought we can they can do that. But when the time coming, let's say, okay, I'm good on a on bartender, but the time coming, they not really go faster or doing way the way is maybe have to say, hey, let's try to be server, you can talk to the customer is the way better for you or another position. Sometimes I I still thinking my job as a manager, I want to go back to be server because I think I'm good on that and be working for that for 18 years. I'm good to sell customer like, can you try that? Why like you and try to, hey, try that, try these kind of food is matching with that. That's everybody is, you know, different, you know, different on the opinion different on the way they they got scale on that. And Koi, I want to ask you about my books. You have both of my books now and what are some concepts or principles that really stood out to you in my books? Important in communication means full, you know, full means on that working hard or come, especially miss communication and meet understanding, you know, that's very important on that. If you communicate with one people and they go communicate to another person. But what the first your communication to the second person get lost in translation, that is not support. It's not the way they are. Sometimes when you write it down, and when you talk, it's different, you know, that's make me misunderstanding and make a problem make is drama, everything. So for me, I would love to be direct to the person when I want to talk to not keep to like, Oh, talk to that person for me. I know is they might miss communication on that. Yeah. Yeah. And also concept, as I say, so you on concept on adapting teamwork, you know, under team work, you can do what's the goal for each other and the skill for each other with a different on that. Yes. I love hearing that you brought up the four misses. I mean, because that's so important to avoid those four misses so that you can, you know, continue on to achieve the goals that you want. And, and yeah, and Koi, what do you what do you feel some of the greatest leaders do because we've all been on teams before and we was good or bad. What do you feel some of the greatest leaders do on that is I think you have to show them what you can do. And by example, you know, that's what I think it should do and make sure you stop understanding your team is understanding any questions just asking to make sure to be clear. But that's a communication. Oh, that's, you know, thank you. No, I like that because you're, you know, you're saying that, you know, I mean, to have the open communication going both ways and then to really lead by example, right? Exactly. The lead by example you do, if you lead by example to say, why can't you do that? What about me? I can do that too, right? I'm just like, I don't think this is a good one. So we have to, we have to go, you know, we have to follow together. Yes. Yeah. Now, Koi, professionally or personally, what's a big adversity that you dealt with in your life? Oh, my God. You know, when we first married, we, I miss Carrie. That is so bad for me. But it's tired of a year to get right now, I have to pray for my son Owen. So that doesn't make me so happy right now. And I'm so wide from the cancer, breast cancer, that's us good. It's from the family and parents, you know, and friends to helping me to get that. But Miss Carrie with the first child we should be really wanted, it's hard for me, so hard. Yeah. But I'm grateful right now. I'm great, the best child in the world for me. Yes. Oh, he's, he's such a great, great boy. And thank you for sharing that because there's so many other people in the world that, you know, have dealt with situations like, like you have. And Koi, I want to, I want to ask, what, what's the best advice you ever received? You know, as my parents, my dad is CEO on company. And he teaching me when it grew up, we already see how is dad dealing with all his worker, all his staff. Mom have to be helping dad on coordinate together, which is okay. Enjoy to bring the people come over to get them to know them. And my parents is still advise me on a business job on, including my husband also, you know, we talk on the work a lot on that. We know what we should deal with, how we're going to deal with the thing, you know, one time my dad came to visit me in San Francisco five years after I'm living in San Francisco. And my mom's is telling me like, you know what, I saw you working so hard, why don't you go back home? We have everything for you. You have a house, you have a car, I find a job for you. And my dad, which is like, Hey, you are being here for five years, you are on the back of tiger, you cannot get down, you have to go forward. And that's just like I'm saying, wow, I'm surprised that because I'm only one daughter and you're for you. And he say, you have to go, you have to do it. I trust you, I believe on you, you can do it. I have to say, right now, my mom's so proud of me, which is what I do, what I do. I'm successful on a business right now. Like I told you, this is you can do it, you can do it. Yeah, I think they saw, you know, how hard you work and the potential that you have and, and you know, for them to really keep pushing you forward like that. And, and Koi, when you when you reflect back on your life so far, what's a very important lesson you learned? Um, you know, I will say, what an important lesson I learned, I learned how to be strong, how to solve the problem myself, how to think forward, not think backward, think about future, think about positive, not negative or anything. And people tell you, you bad, whatever, it's fine. Well, fan change that on the, in the, what we're doing, try to do the best we can, you know, on that learn the problem before how we're going to solve the problem in the future if happen like this, what is we going to do? You know, remember and do that. Yeah, because like you're saying it, it's a mindset and we all have a choice to really choose to be positive or choose to be negative, right? Exactly. Exactly. That's right. So we can choose to be negative or positive, but if you choose to be negative, it's in your mind and you just like, I cannot let it go. If you think positive, okay, fine, we'll do it the best next time, we'll do it better. You, my, is happy and go forward and you just like, you know, you happy with that. I would say, yeah. I agree with you because I always tell, told my players, hey, let's only do things that's going to help us win because there's so many people that do things that help them lose. And you know, it common sense is, hey, let's only do things that help you win. And Koi, I want to really thank you for joining me on the show today and really sharing your insights about why you're a successful leader and why Noi Thai cuisine is thriving. So really thank you for taking time today. No problem. Thank you so much for having me though. Thank you so much. And I'll see you soon. And thank you soon. Yes. Thank you. I'll see you soon too. Thank you, Koi. And thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on ThinkTak Koi. For more information, please visit RustyKomori.com and my books are available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I hope that Koi and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.