 Hi, I'm Rusty Komori, and this is Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii, and I'm super excited that this is my 90th episode. 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. My books Beyond the Lines and Beyond the Game is about peak performance, leadership, and creating a superior culture of excellence, which is what this show is all about. My special guest today is an extraordinary man who's been a super close friend of mine for decades, and he's the owner and CEO of some of our state's best restaurants. He is Aaron Plakarakis, and today we are going beyond fine dining. Hey, Plak, welcome to the show. Nice to be here. In fact, I'm impressed that it took 90 shows to finally get me on. I know I'm one of your 90th-closest friends now. I'm in the top 100. Plak, you and I know each other for decades because I trained you privately in tennis, and we've had so many experiences on the tennis court. What do you remember about our training, our tennis days? Wow, that was a great period of my life. In fact, it's funny. In my industry, I've always had the little hobby on the side. I was kind of an athlete in college. I played water polo, UCLA, but once I got into the restaurant business in my 20s, I was a racquetball freak, and then in my 30s, I decided once my daughter, Lexi, got into Punahon's kindergarten, I said, ah, maybe I'll play tennis because the courts are right there by the kindergarten area. That's when Chris McLaughlin said that I went to him and said, hey, can I play some tennis? You got anything to teach me? And that's when they gave me you. Wow, all people. I didn't know what I was getting into. That was a great decade of tennis, and I learned so much about not only that, but many other things. And that started my friendship with you, which is a joy. And Plak, you were our boys' varsity tennis team's biggest supporter for all those years, 22 years. I mean, the boys, they absolutely love you, and you taught them so much at your restaurants. You kind of got me in on that one. I remember when we first started, I was so impressed with you and the whole program, and I remember thinking, I think it was your first year of coaching, right? Yeah, it was. And I said, hey, listen, if your boys win the state, we'll do dinner at one of my places. And I remember thinking, that's a safe bet. I didn't even know much about tennis. Needless to say, 22 years in a row, I was hosting 20-some-odd people in our different restaurants, and you got me good there, but it was awesome. Yeah, we had the best potlucks at your restaurant, I guess, huh? Would they call potlucks? No one had to bring anything, and they left full. I know that. Yeah, for sure. It was so awesome. It's priceless with you, Plak. And let's talk about your family. You have five kids, Gabby, Jesse, Lexi, Aris, and your young one, Manoli. And Manoli's in ninth grade now, so tell me about your kids. There's certainly the highlight of my life. My oldest, Aris, is 34 years old. He works for a very cow boat, which is the largest producer of raw cocoa products in the world. They supply Hershey's and everything, and they've got seven offices throughout the world. He's in the Chicago office. In fact, he's in Europe this week. Great kid, self-sufficient there in Chicago. My daughter, Lexi, is 31. She's in Dallas, and she has given me my only grandson, who's seven, and his father plays for the Cowboys. Really good people there. Jesse's 29. He's working with me here in Maui, which is kind of one of the highlights of my career, actually, to be able to have a son working with me. So that's kind of cool. And then Gabby just moved to New York. She's modeling. She's working. She's doing her thing. She's a go-getter and very impressed and proud of her. And then Manoli's 15, the final chapter. And he's a freshman in high school. He's a tennis player and guitar player. And it's really been kind of the joy of my life having one at this stage in my life. You know, older dad, kind of fun. Your kids are, they're all amazing. And your wife, Rhonda, I mean, she is like the fitness queen. She's the iron woman. How's everything with your wife, Rhonda? Well, she is definitely the love of my life. And I feel blessed to have been able to trick her into marrying me. It wasn't easy. I had to dig down deep, use all my tricks to get that to work out. But we just celebrated our, this summer, it'll be 17 years of marriage. And she's not only a personal trainer. She works with me in our company with the five places. She's very helpful there. And she's, we call her the Food Nazi. She's what a normal wife of a restaurant person would be the opposite of. You know, she believes in the actually good, healthy products. And actually we've learned a lot and our menus have reflected a lot of that influence. So it's been a win-win. So, Plack, how did you get started in the restaurant industry? Well, when I was at UCLA, I was, I got a job working in the kitchen. And actually it was the first next fish market open in 1975 or 77 or no, 73 or 4, that's right. I was a freshman in 75 and I was a cook for them all through college. Oh yeah, there you go. And I kind of worked my way up. I was, you know, pre-law. I didn't know what I wanted to do. I kind of went the opposite. I figured, what don't I want to do? And I started eliminating things. And then I found that the restaurant business seemed so multi-dimensional, where you weren't just doing one thing. You were being creative. You were being teaching. You were in the community. You were building. You were, you know, strategizing. You were doing so many different things. I thought, geez, this kind of fits my disposition. I thought this could be something that works for me. So I got an opportunity to go to Europe and spend a year with the International Hilton's in Roman Athens and worked in the kitchens there. And that's when I said, ooh, this is me. This is what I'm going to do. And I was lucky enough to make that decision young. So I was able to really sink my teeth in at that early age. And came back from Europe in 1977 and opened the Knicks Fish Market in Chicago and was there for eight years before we came, actually moved here in 1985 to open Nicholas and Nicholas, which later on became Aaron. So that's kind of how I got here, because Maui and Hawaii was always, as a kid, romantically the place that I always wanted to be. And I just, it came once when I was 15 and the way it smelled and the people and everything about it, it was always in my mind, Hawaii. So to be able to come out here in 85, and I was supposed to only come and to help them open the place because I was running the Chicago operations at the time. And certain things came up and they needed me to stay. And that was a quick, easy one to get talked into. I said, yeah, I'm in. And so ever since then, this has been my home base 35, 36 years now. And if I never had to leave this island, the islands, I would be a happy guy. Well, you know, when you opened up Aaron's and Sorrento's top of the Ilikai, I mean, those are two of my most favorite restaurants on Oahu. And when the lease came up, why didn't you renew the lease? Well, actually, 25 years in each place, I happened to renew a number of times. But after, you know, certain times it, it went its course. And at the time, 21 years ago, we opened the next fish market in Maui. And then I opened another Sorrento's on the beach in Maui. Next thing you know, I'm spending a little more time on Maui. And the top of the Ilikai was a great place and even the top of the Alamoana. But, you know, we had our challenges there. And after 25 years of fulfilling my obligations there, I thought, you know, it's time, especially being on the top of the Ilikai. It's an older building, the first elevator that went up there. I mean, to do anything and get everything up there. I mean, it was, it was a challenge. But I'm very proud of the fact that for 25 years in each of those places, I was on the top of those hotels. And I thought represented our industry and my family well. And certain times it just, they end their course. And when I started focusing on Maui, that's kind of what I didn't even really plan on. Not renewing the lease. It just kind of happened that way. And now with Maui Nix's 21 years open, Sorrento's will be 20 years. I have the Steakhouse, Sun Steakhouse at the highest, 15 years. So, you know, I've been sunk my teeth in here real deep. And kind of didn't even know I was moving to Maui. And about 10 years later, I said, geez, I think I live in Maui now. Yeah, because you lived in Oahu for so long. And then you started opening up restaurants in Maui. So in Maui now, you have five of them. Can, can you go through all five and where they're located? Yeah. Well, Nix Fish Market was the first. We're at the Fairmont Kaolani Hotel, beautiful property on Wailea. And like I said, 21 years there. That's a, that's kind of the landmark. And just love that property. Then we have Sorrento's on the beach, which is right where Kihei and Wailea meet. And that is literally on the beach. And that we have a little more of a Mediterranean flair. Similar to what we had up at the Ilacai, but a little different being right on the water. It's got the little Italian Greek, Portuguese, Spanish, French, all the influences that, that make it easy when you're living on the water and living on a place where you have produce and veggies and, and seafood and everything all year round. So that, that fair fits in perfectly. And then Sun Steakhouse is the old Swan Court at the original big, Hematers Big Grand Hyatt at the time. And that we converted to a steakhouse called Sun Steakhouse. Been there, yeah, 15 years. So that's been super. And eight years ago, we opened a cool little casual pizza place called Manoli's Pizza Company. And Manoli's my son and was my father. And on that same note, Sorento's was my grandfather and Nick was my uncle. And these are the three men that really influenced me in my life. And to be able to have a tribute to them was the reasoning behind that. And then sons, I have three sons. So those kinds of things in the, you know, it's an extension of me and us and the restaurants. You know, to me, I'm kind of a dinosaur, old school where I like to smell them and touch them and feel them and be a part of them. They're an extension of us. And you never, it never really gets old because that's part of what the hospitality industry is. You don't really learn it. You kind of just learn with it. And I think that's what's made this little community here so great for me. In fact, then I purchased a place called Coho's, which is a 30 year running breakfast, lunch, dinner place in the Kapu Manamal, which is kind of local place, cool place. In fact, when I took it over, part of the agreement sale was that I retained all their employees. And they had seven people that've been there since they opened 30 years ago. And so we got a bunch of, yeah, just sweet people, good hard worker. It's a real nice, cool little local spot. And so those five places keep me busy, 260 employees keep me busy. And just being a part of this community is just a joy. Plack, you know what? And some of your longtime employees are some of your best managers now. And they started as bussers, right? Everyone pretty much starts at the bottom, especially in the old days. It's, you know, when we opened Nix, we brought 39 people over from Oahu. And a number of them are still with us. In fact, our general manager, Doug Mosman, that's a Kamayana family in the Oahu, Kamehameha grad is running our operation over here. Great guy started with us when he was, he was working at Aaron's at Nicholas Nicholas, when he was in college at UH. And been here, just had triplets three years ago and raising his family here. So yeah, we have a bunch of stories like that. And it makes it that much more awesome to be here. Plack, you know, I mean, obviously, your team members are like your family. What do you, what do you look for when you're hiring people to join your team? You know what I like is whether it be back of the house or front of the house, you know, you can't really teach hospitality. You can't teach someone to be nice. You know, you can see a resume where someone's worked in New York and they've had all these great accomplishments in the industry. But maybe they are a little stale or they don't just get the fact that, you know, sometimes when I'm interviewing someone in the kitchen, the first or even a chef and they're used to and they're ready to get, to cook for me and do something. And you know what I'll ask them. I said, you know what, make me a tuna melt. And I can tell right then, I can tell right then if they look at me like tuna melt, you know, I'm trained in France and they have that attitude or if they say, I'm going to make you a tuna melt. You're not going to ever forget because that's what our business is all about. It's not saying finding a way. Not everyone's going to want exactly what you want to serve. You want to be able to take care of people and that's what it's all about. And sometimes you can't really train that. That's what that's what the hospitality comes in. I rather have a guy that's never even been in a restaurant that's got a big smile and wide eyes and enthusiastic. Because you know what? I can train him on our system. But I can't train some pro how to be nice. I don't know how to do that. So me, that's the most important thing. Plack, that's why you're the best. That's why you are the best. And Plack, we're going to take a quick break and when we come back, we're going to continue going beyond fine dining, okay? Right on. Thank you. You're watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii with my special guest, Aaron Placarakis. We will be back in 60 seconds. Aloha, I'm Keisha King, host of Crossroads in Learning on Think Tech Hawaii. On Crossroads in Learning, our guest and I discuss all aspects of education here in Hawaii and throughout the country. You can join us for stimulating conversations to enrich, enliven and educate. We are streamed live on Think Tech bi-weekly at 4 p.m. on Mondays. Thanks so much for watching our show. We look forward to seeing you then. Aloha. Welcome back to Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. My special guest today is my friend who is truly one of a kind. He's the king of fine dining and I can say with confidence there will never ever be another Aaron Placarakis. So let's continue going beyond fine dining with him. Plack, you are a huge fan and big supporter of my book Beyond the Lines. I want to ask you, what is it about the book that you liked? Well, other than your picture that was where you have it like four or five different times. Oh no, you have it in the front and the back. That's my favorite part. But no, actually the book, the thing that I like most about it is it's common sense. And the little things that you do are things that anything you can do today, you don't have to do tomorrow. The things like the way you train your guys, not just on this actual sports part, but make your bed in the morning. That's the thing that resonates with me. It's getting that organization, being composed, being ready to be able to start your day the same way every day. And that pertains to any business. So to me, the things like that, just like our business, it's not a scientific formula. It's common sense. You greet people with a smile. You pull the chair up when you see them. You offer them something and get it to them promptly. You thank them for coming. Those are the same things you're doing. You come to work out on time. You come mentally prepared. You come knowing that it's not going to be perfect, but you're going to have to dig down deep sometimes. And that's why to me, the book resonates so well, not just with me and all my people that we read. It's common sense. And that's what life really is in business. I like comment shifts. Yeah. That's what it's all about. Yeah. And plaque, I talk in the book a lot about creating a superior culture of excellence. And that's exactly what you have done and continue to do for all these years. How do you sustain that superior culture with your teams? Well, I think a lot of it is just, not just the attitude is a big part of it, but you got to walk the walk. It's easy to talk, but you got to really show it. And a lot of it's not just what you say. It's the body language. I like to be in my places, not because I just feel I have to go. I think customers, especially with the prices we charge, it's important that ownership's represented. I think it's also important that my employees see that I care enough to want to be there with them. And so when I do have to pull rank and see this and see that, I got the street cred to be able to see something. I'm not just someone looking at a computer, looking at numbers, analyzing this and saying they don't do this, don't do that. So I think that's really one of the biggest parts of any business, but certainly ours. Yeah, that's for sure. And Plaque, I think there's a big difference between attention to details and superior discipline details. And I feel that elite organizations all have superior discipline details, and you have that as well. So tell me about how important details are. Well, I think they're super important. And I think more important than the details is explaining the details. Like, for instance, when we put, when we're training our bussers on how to put a coffee cup down to the guest, we tell them you put it at four o'clock. You put the handle at four o'clock and people are cleaning four o'clock and they're looking at a clock and they're trying to figure it out. But basically, if you put your hand and you drop it down, that's where your hand ends up. So you're not lifting, you're not going anywhere. But after you explain to them, that's why it's at four o'clock because I don't want a guest having to go around and turn around to get the handle of the coffee cup. So it's a detail, but not only is it a detail, it's an explanation of the detail that then makes sure they never forget it. They're never going to forget that you drop your hand down, that's four o'clock, that's where you put the handle of the coffee cup down. They're never going to forget it because you're telling them you're explaining to them. So that's what, to me, details are one thing, but the common sense and the explanation of the details so they retain it is the important thing. Yeah, and right there, what you mentioned about communication, I mean, you're explaining why you're having them do that and why it's important. And communication is so key. Absolutely. And that's probably the easiest thing to do. And sometimes we're in this new high-tech society where it's four this and scan that and there's nothing beats the one-on-one talking, taking the time to articulate what you're talking about both good and bad because, I mean, some days in the restaurants, I feel like it's my first day. You never get it down. You never stop learning. So if that's happening to me after 40-some odd years doing this, I mean, can you imagine what the new people are or even experienced people are? They still need to be told in a way that shows the compassion. You can be firm and stern and highly disciplined, but also fair and compassionate. And I think that's how you really get your message out. Not the fear factor, the common sense, the understanding factor. Plack, I mean, you've been successful for decades. I want to know why are you successful? Well, it depends on what you mean by success. And I think what makes me successful is I thank you for saying that. I'm certainly not the richest guy in the world and I certainly haven't made all the best business decisions ever and I haven't done a lot of that. But I think my success is based on how I feel about the people around me, my family, how I'm able to be a role model for my kids and the people that mean something to me, how I've respected the people that I've looked up to in a way that now I can give back and like I say to my kids, you become as a parent a coach. But there comes a point in time when that coach becomes now a cheerleader. And I think, you know, as your kids become an adult, you know, you want to be there for them, but you don't want to micromanage. You want to, when they ask you something, you tell them. But basically, I tell them, I'm a cheerleader now, guys. I'm not your coach. You're on your own. I'm a cheerleader. And I like cheering for them. And if they do ask, I'll tell them, but they're adults. Yeah, I like that. It's funny how things get flip-flopped after a matter of time that goes by. Now, Plack, what are some of the challenges that you face in your business? Well, I think nowadays, especially in Maui, probably Oahu also is just virtually no unemployment. So, you know, you don't have a plethora of people, you know, when you're looking for openings and different jobs, you don't have what you did in the old days where there were a bunch of people coming and you had the interview process. Now it's, you know, you got, that makes it a little more challenging because there is no real unemployment over here. So I think that's part of it. And then just keeping everyone focused on, you know, everyone has families, everyone has their own problems, everyone has other things they're dealing with. A lot of people have two jobs, you know, to get them to actually, you know, smell the roses. You know, we're still, you know, things are tough and business is tough and you have things, but you know what, we're alive. There's billions of dead people that wish they had it this bad, you know. And I think that we got to remind ourselves that, hey, you know, we are blessed to be on this earth as long as we are, let's try to take advantage of it and spread the love and spread the goodwill and enjoy ourselves. I totally agree with you, Plaquen. You know, some of the best leaders in society, I mean, it takes courage for them to make tough decisions. Have you, is there an example about you having courage to make a tough decision in your business? Well, yeah, a lot of times, actually, you know, every day you're dealing with smaller things, but as far as real tough decisions, you know, would be evaluating if I'm going to expand, if I'm going to open something else or going to add on something, then you know, you got to make a decision that, you know, you have to do your homework and justify the expense and see if you think you can be able to get a return on it. And sometimes you're tempted to do it and it's like buying a house. You fall in love with the house, but you know, you got to look deep down. And you got to be able to not get too excited when it's good and not get too bummed out when it's bad and minimize those huge decisions that can make or break you and just be able to realistically look at things and put all of the situations down on paper and going to just decide if it's a justifiable thing that you want to chance. Plaquen, you know, most successful teams are never complacent and they're always taking calculated risks. How important is risk taking for you and your success? Well, I think it's no different than tennis or anything else. You know, you know the shots that you can depend on and you know, once in a while, you can take, you can go for a kill, a really aggressive shot, maybe when the score is a little different. So, you know, when you're way ahead, you'll go for that ace. But when you're right in the middle of a tough match, you're going to be a little, you know, focused on what you're good at. And I think that that's in our business, that's the same thing. Yeah, once in a while, you may want to take a risk, but no, I want it to be a calculated risk, just like you coach your guys. You keep your composure and you know, you stick to the plan. You stick to the plan. And when something happens that you weren't quite ready for, you know, you're able to take that deep breath and regroup and stick to the plan and not start freelancing. And all of a sudden you get an opening. Oh my God. And you start, you got one ace. You're going to start acing everyone. You got to stick to the plan. I think that's what it's like in life and relationships and business and in tennis. Yeah, I totally agree. I like that analogy, Plack. You can use it. Now, Plack, what's the best advice you've ever received? You know what? I got to give this to my pops, because he said it best. And I've always loved the way he said it. He said, treat your family like friends and your friends like family. And you know what, it's just kind of, it says it all. Because so many times you see families that are fighting in this and that, because you know what? They take families for granted. Yeah, we're family. Yeah, we're family. And then friends, they treat them like, you know, and sometimes you have those relationships with your friends where you don't really cultivate it. But if you take the time to treat your family like friends and your friends like family, look at the relationships. You're going to be able to cultivate on both of the important areas of the people that are important to you. So I give my pops credit for that one. I like it. Now, Plack, what's the- And you can use that one too? I'm going to use all of them, Plack. Now, what's a valuable lesson you learned in life? Let's see, cheese, you know, because you're always learning on a daily basis. I probably would say not taking anything for granted. You know, appreciate what you have. Try to make it better. But don't ever get on that little pity potty because you wish things were a little better. Or this guy has more than you and this girl has more than you. You know, don't compare. Just appreciate what you got. And if you don't like it, then do something about it. Yeah, look at the big picture in life, right? Exactly. Now, Plack, I want to ask you one more thing before we wrap. What gives you fulfillment? I think this next stage in my career and as it is with my parenting, you know, as I mentioned earlier, turning from a coach to a cheerleader, you know, I'd like that next chapter in my business life to be that way, where I'm getting my managers to put them in a position where they can, you know, eventually get a piece of the pie and eventually be accountable for that place and me being able to coach them more and cheer them on more. And I think that's the next stage, the next chapter as you do it. And that's why I always think whether it be your sports, your family, your business, your relationships, it's all the same thing. It's all the same thing that resonates in all of them. And I think that's what makes life easier. I think we got to keep it simple and get rid of all these complications that I think get people kind of dizzy. Plack, you know, that's why you're successful because you go beyond the lines and I'm so excited for you to get my new book beyond the game. Yeah, I'm looking forward to that. And just let all your viewers know that if they're in Maui and no one will feed them and they're dying of thirst, I'm their guide. I'll let everybody know. I'll take care of it. Yeah. Thank you. Hey, thanks for joining me on the show today, Plack. Thanks for having me, my man. I'll see you soon. And thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii and a special thank you to my clothing sponsor, Ilani Incorporated. For more information, please visit RustyKomori.com and my books are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I hope that Plack and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.