Her Place: Amanda Shulman

From cooking in her apartment to earning Philadelphia’s first Michelin star, Amanda Shulman’s journey is anything but traditional. In this She What? episode, Amanda shares the bold choices behind creating a career she actually loves. In addition to fun and laughter, we get a glimpse of what it takes to run a top tier restaurant in a most authentic way.  

Check out Amanda's fabulous restaurant, Her Place, in Philly and her Instagram. 

For more, visit She What? on Instagram.

Brought to you by Capital Health

Credits:

Producer and Host: Jess Downey

Producer and Host: Maureen Petrosky

Producer and Editor: Leigh Iacobucci

Artwork: Peter Yates Design

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Transcript

Amanda Shulman (00:04):

If I'm enjoying it, and the people who I bring into work in the restaurant can pick up on the same energy, that is what makes something have longevity.

Jess (00:23):

I am Jess Downey. You might know me as Editor in Chief of Real Woman and Thriving Magazines for Capital Health. And

Maureen (00:29):

I'm Maureen Petrosky. You might have seen me on the Today Show or CBS mornings as an entertaining expert or know some of my books like Wine Club and Zero Proof Drinks

Jess (00:37):

And we're two friends who created She What?

Maureen (00:41):

<laugh> a podcast that digs into the personal and often surprising stories of women who inspire us and

Jess (00:47):

They get real about the wins, the fails and everything in between. Here we

Maureen (00:52):

Invite her to tell the whole story, the pain she endured, the triumph she celebrated, the friends she made along the way and maybe even how she reinvented herself.

Jess (01:03):

These are the kinds of stories that make us think. They make us laugh, they keep us going.

Maureen (01:08):

Need a dose of inspiration. It's here. Need a fresh perspective. We got that too.

Jess (01:23):

Hi Maureen.

Maureen (01:24):

Hi Jess.

Jess (01:25):

People ask us a lot how we find our guests for She What?and this one was a long time in the making. Remember at the beginning of the year we talked about our wishlist and you had Brooke Shields on yours?

Maureen (01:37):

Yes. And you had Dawn Staley on yours.

Jess (01:39):

Yes. <laugh>. And today's guest, Amanda Shulman, chef and owner of Her Place Supper club in Philly.

Maureen (01:46):

Yeah. Over a year ago I reached out to her and we chatted, but then just a couple days later she went into labor with her first baby, Evie .

Jess (01:54):

<laugh>. A little busy.

Maureen (01:55):

And then just like a couple months after that she won Philadelphia's first ever Michelin star for her place.

Jess (02:02):

She what?

Maureen (02:04):

<laugh>.

Jess (02:04):

Seriously, even if you aren't in the food world, you've probably heard of the Michelin Star. It's sort of the Oscars for food and restaurants. After about 10 seconds of talking to Amanda, you realize she's gonna be a star no matter what she did.

Maureen (02:17):

Definitely. I mean she graduated from UPenn with a poli sci journalism degree, but

Jess (02:21):

She focused her talent and energy and attention to detail on food and restaurants, which is good for her and good for us. We all get to benefit from that. <laugh>,

Maureen (02:31):

There's about 10,000 She Whats in this interview, including a really adorable love story. So stick around. Amanda Shulman, welcome to She What?

Amanda Shulman (02:44):

Thank you. So happy to be here.

Jess (02:46):

We're so psyched to have you here.

Maureen (02:48):

We are thrilled. And a year ago we were actually in touch because we wanted to put you on the cover of Real Woman Magazine, but then your life got a little busier. You received two incredible gifts this year, A baby and a Michelin Star. So tell us what has the last year been like for you?

Amanda Shulman (03:03):

The last year has been a whirlwind and it's just going a mile a minute and that's kind of my preferred pace. I'm a little chaotic myself. I love controlled chaos and the busier the better. Okay. But you know, it's been a wild year and the baby is the best thing in the entire world and she's definitely slowed me down in a much needed way. So I think she brought a lot of perspective and balance to my life and she makes anything we get better but also gives a healthy dose of reality check <laugh>.

Jess (03:36):

Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (03:36):

So it's been a good year.

Jess (03:38):

Yeah. Well let's back up. You're from Connecticut?

Amanda Shulman (03:41):

Yep.

Jess (03:42):

I bet you went to UPenn, is that right?

Amanda Shulman (03:44):

Yep. Went to Penn, studied political science and journalism and started cooking while I was in college. Professionally I was st staging around in kitchens and it landed me my first job after college with the veteran company.

Maureen (03:58):

So cool. And Mark has been a big influence on you over the years, right?

Amanda Shulman (04:01):

Yeah, he's like my kitchen dad. He's been like this guiding light. I call him all the time to ask him various questions from like how many bank accounts should I have to like how I should talk to an employee, to what space I should be in. He actually toured like three spaces with me when I was looking for the initial her place and the night before we opened, he came in when we were eating tacos and gifted like a ton of all clad pots and pans to us because at that point I had literally just taken everything from my own home kitchen to open the restaurant, which was like two pans. So he's been really important in my entire career and it's nice to have his support

Jess (04:38):

For people who aren't in the food world, who's Mark Vetri,

Amanda Shulman (04:41):

He's like the original Italian god of what true Italian cuisine is and is one of the people that was like doing the old school things, the old school way when everybody else was embracing like classic red sauce. He was like, let me show you what pasta from Bergamo looks like. And uh, <laugh>, he's been super influential and he just sticks to his guns and I always admire that about him.

Maureen (05:05):

Well I feel like that's something maybe you two connect on because you seem to stick to your guns. I mean you've been doing things your way and it's resonating and working but definitely different than what people typically do in the restaurant space. I mean you decide it's not open on the weekends at one point and that's like unheard of. You're serving food that you like and I just wanna know like how do you get the confidence to make those decisions?

Amanda Shulman (05:34):

You know what it's kind of like this is my life. It's not just work and I wanna really enjoy my life and what I do every day. So a lot of these decisions are very selfish <laugh> because I'm the happiest when I'm making food that I really like. I'm the happiest when I can see my family and go to my nephew's birthday party on the weekend and it's making choices that are super deliberate but it's more intentional decision making that ends up making the product better as a whole because the energy I'm putting into what I'm doing is like a hundred percent because I really believe in it and some of the decisions I make definitely don't make sense from a financial perspective or maximizing revenue. But if I'm enjoying it and it's resonating with people and the people who I bring into the orbit and work in the restaurant can kind of pick up on the same energy, that to me is what makes something have longevity.

Jess (06:34):

Yeah,

Amanda Shulman (06:35):

We're doing all these different things. Sure. But like it's not intentionally like trailblazing <laugh>, I'm just like, this feels right, this feels good and then happens to be a little different than the norm but it works for us.

Jess (06:47):

Seemed like right off the bat something about Philly resonated with you big time. Yeah. What is it about this city that made you wanna set up shop here? You really seem to understand like the heart of the city. I

Amanda Shulman (06:58):

Just love Philly. Philly doesn't deal with. They just like, we want real and we want authentic. And when I opened the restaurant it was me and two friends and it doesn't get much more real than the same person ordering, making, putting away all your food, plating it, serving it, telling you what you did. It's like no smoke and mirrors just here you go, this is what we're doing. And I think there's something really Philadelphia about that because Philly is just a place where you are what you are. Mm-hmm <affirmative> you can't really hide. No one really wants a big show.

Jess (07:31):

They actually revile a big show. Yeah. I feel like that's how you can make yourself an outsider quickly.

Amanda Shulman (07:37):

Oh yeah. Philly hates try hards. Yeah. Kind of need to just be the real you and the most authentic form of whatever you are, what you're doing. Totally. But also Philly's cool, there's so much going on and whatever you do in order for it to stand out it needs to kind of fit the natural fabric of the landscape. But there are a lot of people in Philly who are excited about new and different as long as it kind of carries that like genuineness. Mm-hmm <affirmative>. Yeah.

Maureen (08:04):

And I feel like I just saw you on your social media running through the streets with the container of soft shell crabs from My Loup <laugh>. Yeah. To her place <laugh>. And I just feel like it doesn't get more real than that. Like you are wearing all the hats. <laugh>

Amanda Shulman (08:16):

Doesn't get more real. It's pretty gritty. And I wouldn't say that's the most glamorous part of my life, but like the baby's crying, the soft shell crabs need to go from A to Z and this is what's happening

Maureen (08:28):

And you get it done. So when do you get a day off?

Amanda Shulman (08:31):

Um, you know what, when you own three live businesses there's not really a day off and that's kind of part of it and it's hard to take that hat off. And that's one of my weaknesses as a owner is like I am one of those people that could just work forever. I don't ever need to shut off, which is bad. I could just go to sleep looking at a list of products coming in and like analyzing, oh I have this list it. It's really hard to shut off. So.

Maureen (08:57):

So do you drink coffee or what? Like how is this happening for you?

Amanda Shulman (09:01):

Do I have a hobby? I could use a hobby.

Maureen (09:03):

No, not a hobby. No. <laugh> I said do you, I said do you, do you drink coffee <laugh>?

Amanda Shulman (09:09):

I heard hobby because I'm desperate for one.

Jess (09:12):

Get her into some other things. In her spare time.

Maureen (09:15):

<laugh>. Yeah. Let's add some more things.

Jess (09:17):

In her sleep she can play Mahjong. Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (09:19):

Yeah. You know what my best friend started a Mahjong league and I was like this could be it. Could this be my hobby?

Maureen (09:25):

No. I had said, do you drink coffee? That's what I asked <laugh>.

Jess (09:30):

That's her hobby.

Maureen (09:31):

That's the hobby. The hobby is drinking coffee. <laugh>

Amanda Shulman (09:34):

Too much.

Maureen (09:34):

Yeah, too much. That's how you run.

Amanda Shulman (09:36):

Basically. I drink a lot of coffee but I, I love it and I live it and I breathe it. But my friend, a very good friend who's also a chef said to me, you know what? I used to think it was so cool to work so much and tell everybody about how much I worked and now I'm like that's not cool anymore. It's cool to like not work as much and not be there all the time. And that like blew my mind. And I came home and I told my husband what she said and we were just like staring at each other like wow. Like what a profound piece of wisdom. And that is something Isabelle Kos shout out to you. I really am trying to think about that. And you know when you're young, I'm still young, but when you're like coming up like it's cool to be like, I'm here every day. I'm here all the time. I don't miss anything. Like I'm in every single part of it but like she's right.

Jess (10:27):

That's what your twenties is for.

Amanda Shulman (10:29):

That's what your twenties is for. Yeah. And now it's time to figure out which parts are the most integral to be involved with on the day-to-day basis. But I'm a control freak and it's hard to let go.

Maureen (10:39):

I have seen you holding your daughter on your hip in the restaurant. Yeah.

Jess (10:43):

Just not with the knives.

Amanda Shulman (10:45):

Just not knives. Yeah. Only one time. <laugh>.

Maureen (10:48):

Well not yet.

Jess (10:50):

She has four fingers on her right hand.

Amanda Shulman (10:52):

She loves the hotline though. I'm in trouble. She loves the hotline.

Maureen (10:56):

So she's just already at home in the kitchen. Was there anyone in your family that was in that worked in the kitchens like no this was completely out of left field for you?

Amanda Shulman (11:04):

Completely outta left field. I just became infatuated.

Jess (11:09):

Well and you thought you were gonna be either in journalism or

Amanda Shulman (11:12):

Yeah, journalism was the plan or maybe law school and be an international uh, human rights lawyer. <laugh>.

Maureen (11:20):

I mean it's a big change.

Amanda Shulman (11:22):

Once I started being in kitchens, the heat, the energy, everything else was like boring. Like I can't sit at a desk. Yeah. This is so

Maureen (11:31):

I completely

Amanda Shulman (11:31):

Creative and every day relate is different and it's problem solving in real time and I love problem solving. That's one of my skills. It's like give me something, I've got 10 backup plans ready to go. Um, and I love the

Jess (11:43):

People you say heat and energy but then like over here watching The Bear, it looks like a psychotic, overwhelming, intense, stressful <laugh>.

Amanda Shulman (11:51):

I love that. That's like, like I thrive in that.

Maureen (11:54):

That's why The Bear was successful. 'cause it's so true to what's actually happening. You know what,

Amanda Shulman (11:59):

I only watch season one, which

Maureen (12:01):

Was probably the most intense. The most stressful. Yeah. Mm-hmm

Amanda Shulman (12:04):

<affirmative> But like that's all real, you know every dollar counts and especially when you're a small business, like we're on smaller scales than some of these larger companies. So like all of it's like true. You feel all the pain of like when that ticket machine was going off I was like I don't even do takeout but I'm gonna have a nightmare about this. Yeah. <laugh> also, I think one of the amazing things about kitchens is like every day is a new day. You have an entirely new chance to prove yourself and there's something really awesome about leaving a day behind and having the ability to just start fresh and deal with an entirely new set of guests.

Maureen (12:39):

And you can make it pink if you want. Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (12:42):

Oh always pink whenever the chance arrives. <laugh>,

Maureen (12:45):

Let's talk about the color pink. Let's talk about how you embraced that and again did it your way.

Amanda Shulman (12:52):

Yeah, I'm a girly girl and most of my life in kitchens I was far and a few of not many women. My first line cook job, I was the only woman on the line. There were some other women that worked there, you know, it's just predominantly men. That's just kind of what it is. Yeah. I was lucky to work with some great women at CO and in Italy and at Joe Beef, but it's still male dominated and I never worked for a female chef. I wanted to bring a little bit of my personality because all of these guys were like just too much men bro power.

Maureen (13:26):

It's a lot, it's a lot of testosterone in the kitchen

Amanda Shulman (13:29):

That I'm like, you know what? Mm-hmm If I wanna wear a bow in my hair and I want my shoes to be pink <laugh> even though I'm wearing a men's Excel shirt because we couldn't get in smaller jackets that fit. This was like my one little nod of like, all right, I'm still girly, I still got it. Pink shoes, pink knife bag, pink nail polish on my knives to make sure nobody took them. And like I definitely got for it when I was at my two Michelin star restaurant job. Like they did not want me to wear the pink shoes and they said something about all of this and I get it in this environment where everybody's like kind of supposed to be homogenous and we're like representing this fancy clean identity. But at the same time I was like okay, well when it's my turn to do this I wanna put some femininity in it. And it wasn't so much like the presence of the color that I needed to get out. I didn't need to be wearing like crazy chef pants and that wasn't it. Yeah. It was more the idea of ringing a feminine touch and finding my confidence and being like this is gonna be my thing that makes me still feel like myself. Yeah,

Maureen (14:33):

I love that you did that <laugh>. I do too. And I don't even like pink. Yeah. Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (14:36):

It doesn't even matter. It doesn't gonna be whatever it is.

Maureen (14:40):

Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (14:41):

You gotta find your moments to be authentic.

Maureen (14:43):

Yeah. And so I came up a little bit before you in the restaurant business but I was the only girl on the line. I made really great friends in that space, you know, because I think there is a respect from some men to women in the kitchen space but there was also some really awful experiences and it being male dominated and it being really chauvinistic and you know, being overlooked because you're a woman or just being treated less than. Did you come across any of that? Like I'm curious Oh yeah. It seems like for me looking at you from the outside, like you've nailed it and the space is so different now and that might be just the space that you've created. But before you got to her place, did you still come up against any of that? Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (15:22):

You know what, I'm a guy's girl so I always had a lot of guy friends growing

Maureen (15:26):

Same that helps in the kitchen.

Amanda Shulman (15:28):

It really helps. And so when I entered Vetri I fit right in. I'm really competitive and I was kind of like here's my challenge. I'm gonna lap all these guys on the line and I'm gonna jump over them and I'm gonna work the stations faster and better. Yeah. So it made me hungrier but I got along, these are like the most amazing guys and I still talk to them. Yeah. And those are like some of the most formative relationships and I was so much younger and they all taught me and they were incredible and I really in that environment it was so nurturing. But at the same time I had a dishwasher tell me my staff meal was so good I should go home and get married and just make sandwiches in the kitchen. Wow. I had a chef tell me that no one was gonna take me seriously because I was a little girl and that I needed to work harder than them. And I was like, you know, someone says that to you and they're your superior and you're like okay, you. Like watch this, hold my beer. Yeah. Hold

Jess (16:22):

My beer with my Michelin star. Thanks. Yeah. Bye. Yeah,

Amanda Shulman (16:26):

Exactly. That never really got to me. But then I worked somewhere where people were mean like mean and they didn't want you to succeed because they were insecure. And I remember being at this restaurant and someone tells you, you don't know how to cook fish. And I'm like, I know what like what are you talking about? It was very um, don't let her cook the fish. She doesn't know what she's doing type thing. And I'm like, you have that thought where you second guess yourself but like I'm a confident person and part of it is from cooking outside of the restaurants. I was making things all the time. I was getting validation from random people that I was inviting into my apartment to cook for. And it was kind of like I felt like I was building my own track outside of what I was doing. But I do credit a lot of my confidence to my first real kitchen job at Veteran where I knew I had the tools and everyone there made me feel good and made me feel like I was learning and confident and they really pushed me And everything after that in this like bad environment was noise. It

Jess (17:26):

Gives you that strength and that scaffolding so you're not just gonna fall apart when people challenge you. Yeah, yeah,

Amanda Shulman (17:32):

Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a lot of confidence and you do have to kind of like hype yourself up. The mean ones were tough.

Jess (17:38):

Yeah. Like

Amanda Shulman (17:39):

Someone laughing at me 'cause I didn't know how to file a mackerel and I was like, dude,

Maureen (17:43):

Teach me. You're supposed

Amanda Shulman (17:44):

To be teaching me. Yeah. That was the one time I cried when someone was mean to me. Me. Holy

Jess (17:49):

Mackerel. How could they do that to you? <laugh>?

Amanda Shulman (17:52):

Holy mackerel. I know, that's what I'm saying.

Maureen (17:55):

I still think about one time I cried in the kitchen and I'm so mad at myself for it, but it was a similar situation. I just feel like, why did I have to cry? I know

Jess (18:03):

They wanted you to cry

Maureen (18:04):

Then it's like, oh she's the girl. She cried. But in the same vein, Jess, you were talking about the intensity of the bear and it is an intense mm-hmm <affirmative> place where you're either, like you said family, you get so close to the other people you're working with because you are in the trenches every night together. You are in like battle until it's done. You're with each other side by side. So learning from the good and the bad and how do you take that now into your spaces and what advice do you have for other women bosses that are going to go out on their own?

Amanda Shulman (18:37):

I mean like MySpace now is like a sanctuary. Her place is like not a regular restaurant, but it's also because of who we hire and where each person is at in their career. Service is the least stressful part of our day at her place. Prep is like push grind, head down and then other days it's kind of chill. But service is like the way that the restaurant is designed. It's like we get to take our time and really put our best foot forward even with such few hands, but like everything's crafted so two people can taste each thing. You have a double check and of course it's stressful because you want it to be good, but it's not like working an intense hotline at Joe Beef. It's very, very different. But I really think it's about the team and how you build your team and then the energy with which you lead. And I'm like the most positive person you'll ever meet. And that is one of my strengths as a leader is I am glass half full all the time and I don't yell, I don't rarely get short and I don't, I think it's like you need to lead with positivity and certainty but also being, I'm gonna laugh because I'm gonna say the word vulnerable and I'm watching my like my one reality TV show and like vulnerable is like the word everybody uses.

Jess (19:53):

What's the show?

Amanda Shulman (19:54):

It's so bad The ultimatum. Oh,

Jess (19:57):

I've watched that. All of them.

Maureen (19:58):

So I haven't watched that one. And I love reality tv.

Jess (20:01):

It's, it's really bad but

Amanda Shulman (20:02):

Unbelievable trash <laugh>. Um, but I do think like admitting you don't know is a really good strength and makes everybody feel like it's okay to ask questions. And if they hear the person in charge being like, I don't know the best way to do this, what do you guys think? That's really important. And just because you're the leader doesn't mean you have to be the loudest one in the room. And it doesn't mean you have to have all the answers, but it does mean that everyone's looking at you all the time and that includes your energy. Yeah. So I'm a big energy person if the vibes are off, you gotta remove yourself from the equation. Everyone has bad days, but I really do believe that being the person in charge, you still are on the hook to set the bar. Yeah. And when you're not feeling it, someone else needs to take it. I'll look at my chef Anna, who's incredible and I'm like, I'm not feeling it. I need you to step. And she

Maureen (20:57):

Does and you trust her.

Amanda Shulman (20:58):

It is all about teamwork, energy, vibe, positivity.

Maureen (21:02):

And I feel like you share the stage. Like I was telling Jess when I met you and I said let's get a picture. And we were with my, our mutual friend Jeremy Fox who's also an incredible chef and you were like, hold on, let me get Alex. And I just kind of loved that you took pause to be like Alex, for those of you who don't know, Alex Kemp, another amazing chef and his own right is your husband. And he was also there that night cooking at Milo and you brought him over for the photo and I was like, that's so cool that like she knows she's not doing this by herself. And a lot of times when you start to rack up those awards and all of the accolades, people do forget that it's a whole entire village to get to where you are. And I feel like that's something we see again and again that you bring your team in, you're grateful to them, you're thankful you share the spotlight. And I do think that makes a huge difference when you're leading a team that you acknowledge them.

Amanda Shulman (21:55):

I mean Milo is his restaurant. Yeah. Right. Her place is mine, Milo is his, and Pine Street is ours. We do everything together but it's really hard to get that narrative across. We're talking about food for each restaurant together all the time. It is just like such a joint thing and in terms of sharing the stage, it's like these individual awards like Right, come on. It's not like it's my name. It it is my name but my name is 13 people at least. And it, it is such a team sport and gotta share the love because everybody works so, so hard and deserves to be acknowledged. Yeah.

Jess (22:31):

Can you tell us your love story? How did you meet? How did you tell us that? Yeah,

Amanda Shulman (22:36):

So we met working at MoMA fuku co and Alex actually convinced me to take the job because it meant that he got to move up stations.

Jess (22:46):

<laugh>.

Maureen (22:47):

Okay.

Amanda Shulman (22:48):

<laugh>. He probably took the job. So we became really good friends and it was a tough place for me, but he was like my safe space and he would make fun of me and he would help me and bail me out of the weeds. And he just became my lifeline there. You know, if I was having a bad day, he would take pieces of white chocolate and leave them on my station to make me feel better because I loved white chocolate and sometimes Stanley meal was really bad and we were so hungry that we were just like persisting on white chocolate, you know? We became best friends and it was joking. And then one late night after work

Jess (23:23):

<laugh>, that was it.

Maureen (23:24):

There you go.

Amanda Shulman (23:25):

Here we are 10 years later with a

Maureen (23:27):

Baby modern day romance story.

Jess (23:29):

A baby a business. Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (23:31):

We were like secretly dating for like a couple of months and then I left and then we told everyone and our friends just like couldn't believe it. A true restaurant romance for sure.

Maureen (23:41):

I love it.

Jess (23:42):

Yeah. I was married to another journalist and I loved being able to have someone who I trusted his acumen. We could bounce things off each other, but it brought tension too. Has, has there been moments working together in this crazy business? How's that?

Amanda Shulman (23:57):

I mean we're competitive. It used to be like before we opened the restaurants it was more competitive. But I mean we are just the ultimate team and I would say any moment of tension, it's kind of like we like don't agree on a way something should be plated or like how something was communicated. But we very much have our lanes and we try and stick to them and we find the most success when we just do what we each need to do. But we are super collaborative. We spend more time together than any couple I've ever met in my entire life,

Jess (24:29):

<laugh>.

Amanda Shulman (24:30):

And I love that it's like the greatest thing in the world that we work together. I feel so lucky.

Maureen (24:35):

We, I think that's amazing because it is a space that's, you know, can be pretty ego driven. Mm-hmm <affirmative> So to hear that there is a space that you can find a good relationship in there and work. But I think maybe you've nailed it by having your own lanes and you each have a little bit of something that's just yours. So tell us about Pine Street. That's the newest, right?

Amanda Shulman (24:53):

Pine Street's the newest, it's awesome. I'm obsessed with it. It's the all the time place and the other two restaurants are so specialized and passion projects and have, you know, a more special occasion vibe Pine Street you can eat at three days a week. It is the everyday casual bring your kids and we meet it like we've got custom bibs that say Pine Street baby and Spoons and it really reflects where we are in our life right now. We go out to eat not so much anymore, but like when I do, I kind of don't wanna always think about the food and like I don't want 20 ingredients on a plate and I don't want things to be super chefy and I just want a really good rose chicken and a Greek salad. So that's kind of the approach and it's going really well and it's really fun to use a different part of our brain and we got a amazing team there who's making it happen.

Jess (25:48):

I feel like we didn't really get a chance to hear you talk about her place yet though in this conversation. Like I've heard you describe her place as an intimate dinner party so many times, which makes you know what you do. So innovative but it's clear there's so much thought and love and affection you're putting into every aspects aspect of it. So can you just really describe like the process of making her place special every night and what that's like? Yeah,

Amanda Shulman (26:16):

I mean her place is just so fun and it feels really good because we do have so much control, but there's also so many elements that are uncontrollable, right? So we change the menu there every three weeks and we sit down as a team every two weeks and we talk about ideas, we read the produce list, what's coming in, we reach out to the reps, how long until asparagus are actually here. And I think it's so stimulating because it is this like constant evolution where we're always changing, we're always pushing and we like have to dial things in really quickly. There's a lot of pressure there at restaurants like this where people talk about them and they're hard to get into and we have all these whatever we have and we don't take that lightly. Like we really wanna perform and we really wanna deliver something great. So we try really hard to control all the elements and make it fun, but it's just a special place. We've gotten dynamite front of the house team and they are more than half of it. And I think that is something that as a chef restaurateur, everyone just like talks about the food but like, come on, it's not the food. Yeah,

Maureen (27:25):

The service,

Amanda Shulman (27:26):

It's the room, it's the service, it's the hospitality you're getting and we're gonna deliver on the food, we're gonna bring it up to here. But like they're the ones bringing it home. And even though our space is like no one's like selling you tableside this or that necessarily in terms of food, because it is a set menu. We do the add-ons, we do a wine pairing, the way that the dining room operates that is like the next level touch to me and they just do such a good job and it's really brings the entire experience full circle.

Maureen (27:55):

And the plates. And

Amanda Shulman (27:57):

The plates. <laugh>,

Maureen (27:58):

I love the plates <laugh>. Okay, so the plates are like a mis mix and match. I see some like vintage plates and Jess is like, huh, the plates. And I just love all those things and when I, yeah, yeah, she's like, huh, you wanna ask her about plates? I'm like, I

Amanda Shulman (28:12):

Mean I've been to every thrift store within like a 15 mile radius and collected those plates and I'm a eBay shopper and I just found an amazing new website and did some serious damage this weekend.

Maureen (28:25):

Yes.

Amanda Shulman (28:25):

I love, oh my gosh.

Maureen (28:26):

So you're speaking to my heart because I am like a trash picker. I love to save old things. I love salvage old things, especially tableware. I have a glassware problem, my husband said I'm a one in one out now. Oh

Amanda Shulman (28:38):

That's funny.

Maureen (28:39):

I cannot bring any more glassware into the house because I love vintage glassware, but I do love all the details and the touches and you can just see like your personality shines through. It's not the typical standard white plate that people are putting their food out on. It is the whole vibe.

Amanda Shulman (28:54):

I just want every detail to be considered. We want you to know that we thought about each thing, we thought about the custom candle in the bathroom <laugh>. Yeah. We want that to be its own experience. We thought about the Chex mix giveaway, like everyone does granola, this is different. It's like homey. It's like a little kooky and funny but it's delicious. And when you find it on your purse two weeks later it's still good <laugh>. Like there's just a lot of thought that goes into each thing and that's why I think it's special.

Maureen (29:22):

Well we joked earlier about having a hobby and you said you don't have any time, but you are also doing other things in the community, like the chef community with female chefs and then also giving back to the community. Can you tell us about some of the programs you're involved in in the city that just makes you even more Philly like just as if you're not doing enough, you know, making Philly a food destination, you are also still like boots on the ground and collaborating with other Philly chefs.

Amanda Shulman (29:46):

That kind of feels like it's part of the job though because it's like if we're gonna be in this industry and have like a voice and a presence, like I do feel a responsibility to create community but also give back to our community. So mm-hmm <affirmative> I've started Women on the Line. Yeah. And it's kind of a little offshoot of sisterly love and we have quarterly meetings and it's open to all back house women in the city and beyond. We get people from Jersey and DC coming in in Delaware and the whole idea is that we have a different topic and a speaker or a panelist each meeting and these are all topics suggested by the group. We have breakfast and we talk and it's really awesome and it's been amazing and I really look forward to these meetings. I like meeting all the women who are cooking and doing things right now and it also is just a really good chance to hear everybody's take on things and get a group together and still a male dominated field. It's nice to like look around and know there's other people doing it with you. Right.

Jess (30:47):

Sisterly love is such a cool thing. Yeah. And it, I love that it like happened organically and it has such a, like a true spirit totally

Amanda Shulman (30:54):

Sisterly amazing. And this is like part of that. And I feel lucky that it's so specific that it gets to get directed to the young women who are on the line. Which I think sometimes it's hard to speak to like a targeted group and this is like the opportunity to like get everybody in one place at the one time and a topic that really affects everybody. Yeah. Well that's the goal at least.

Jess (31:19):

What kind of topics? Like what are you talking about?

Amanda Shulman (31:21):

Yeah, so I mean we had a financial advisor come in and give us financial advice and talk about, and she like kind of has a background of where everybody's at because she knows how much a line cook makes, she knows how much as a sous chef makes. So she was really able to give poignant advice that felt like it was targeted to all of us sitting there. Mm-hmm <affirmative>. Our last meeting was two weeks ago and it was talking about the state of the Union and awards and lists and restaurant criticism and like an Instagram and online age. We had someone come in and speak about personal branding and social media. We had a cookbook conversation with the owner of Binding Agents and a recipe tester, Peggy Costella and like opening people's eyes to different types of jobs in the cookbook industry. Those are some of them.

Amanda Shulman (32:07):

And then in terms of community involvement, I have a deep relationship with the Sunday Love Project and Greater Goods in Kensington. They are an amazing organization and anything we can do to support them, I will because Margot Murphy who runs it is a gem. We do our Cookies for Coats fundraiser every year. And I don't wanna create more work for anyone and ask someone who's asked to do a lot of charity events. I want a light lift from a lot of people and that's what I feel yields the best results. So we get 40 pastry chefs or bakers or cooks and they make one cookie, a hundred of them, they bring them and we sell these boxes and we raise like $12,000 to buy winter coats.

Maureen (32:49):

That's amazing. Wow.

Amanda Shulman (32:51):

I love giving back to the our community and I think it's like a huge part of what we do.

Maureen (32:55):

Well you talked about a light lift. Let's talk about a heavy lift. How heavy was that Michelin star and how <laugh>, how heavy is that A good transition? How heavy is that to carry now <laugh>? That

Amanda Shulman (33:05):

That's a big one.

Maureen (33:07):

That's a big one. Well we were talking about the look on your face, how you were like completely stunned that you did. Did you not think you were gonna get it? Like, I mean Jess said it was like watching Meryl Streep winning an Oscar.

Amanda Shulman (33:18):

I thought I was filler. No,

Jess (33:19):

No, not, not like Meryl Streep. You looked like someone who was in a category with Meryl Streep. Yeah. Like, yeah, okay, obviously I'm not gonna get it, but whatever. And then you were just like, oh,

Amanda Shulman (33:29):

<laugh>. No. Well that's really what it was like because the invitations were, I guess they were staggered and like we didn't get one until after my Lou got one and I knew what other people had got one. So I was like, we're just filler. Like they just want us in the audience and they're bringing restaurant people together. Like sure. I didn't tell anyone I was going, I didn't tell my parents I didn't, I had not one thought in the world that we were getting anything because I was not gonna get a bib gourmand. I didn't know a recommended category was a thing. Got a haircut that day, <laugh>, I bought a dress the day before <laugh>,

Jess (34:06):

My

Amanda Shulman (34:06):

God. And we're there and then I'm, I'm looking around, I'm like, oh this is so great that there's so many Philly people here. Like nice to have community. They do the first thing and um, the recommended and like nearly 98% of the people that are in the room are up there and then they do the bib gormans. And then I'm like looking around and I'm like, oh my God, like everybody here has like pretty much been on stage and I look at my husband and, and I'm like, I'm not getting a star. I was like, this is not, and then they called my name and it was just like, what the? Like this was not on my bingo card was not mentally in the state. It wasn't even something I was like looking for. So that's been really interesting. And you know what it's been, it's an honor.

Amanda Shulman (34:56):

Like it's really cool. Yeah. And it's like one of the only rating systems that doesn't acknowledge like gender and specifics and it feels non-political and that is cool because we didn't even know they were there. And that's another thing, it's like, you know, in today's day and age, you know who the inspectors are, you know what the critics look like. You can cook for them. They're not getting the regular experience. But this was like didn't ask for this, didn't know what was happening. And to be recognized as a consistent experience for a restaurant that changes its menu all the time, like that was really cool. It's changed things. We get different types of diners, we get people who wanna come in, is it worth it? Is this what? And I'm like, I didn't say anything like, we're just gonna keep doing our thing. I'll probably buy a little more expensive plates so I don't have to <laugh> have chips. <laugh>.

Maureen (35:54):

Yeah.

Amanda Shulman (35:55):

It, it is what it is. But it it it's, it's really cool and it, it's, it's a really nice no for the team and what we're doing.

Maureen (36:01):

Well huge congrats. I mean - thank you - on all of the success, not just the awards and the accolades, but we can just see and I hope the listeners can hear the joy in your voice when you talk about what you do. Passion. Yeah, the passion, it just really comes through and I think that probably comes through on the plate to the diners and completely well deserved also that you're such a big part of the community I think is commendable and we just feel really lucky that you took the time to talk to us today. There's a couple things we always ask our guests before we let them go though. - Alright.- Is there any advice that you've been given along the way or maybe mantra that you think about that kind of gets you through each day that you can share?

Amanda Shulman (36:42):

I have a new one and it's, I don't know where it came from, but when there's problems which arise or things that feel really big, you just have to breathe through them until you get to the other side. And like we were having a really stressful experience opening Pine Street with the health inspection being pushed back and like, we already had the whole team on payroll and it was like really rough and I remember just being like, I'm gonna breathe through this because I know there's another side. And that has like, kind of helped me get through a lot of things, whether I'm having an issue at work or at home or at life or really anything. It's kind of putting things into perspective and breathing through it and knowing like I'm gonna get on the other side eventually. That's a good mantra that I've been living by lately.

Jess (37:28):

Definitely. Yeah. What do you have up your sleeve or you and Alex, what do you got going like,

Amanda Shulman (37:34):

Well, I'm gonna have short sleeves on today. So <laugh>, um, what do I have up my sleeve? Making the restaurants that we have really great and dialed in and also acknowledging that they're in their best forms now. I think restaurants really hit their stride when they're middle aged. Her place is turning five, Miley is turning three and they're like better than they've ever been. And I think what the public doesn't necessarily connect with is like, you know, we're so excited about the new spots and the new this and the new. You don't even know who you are until you're like three years old. We just hit our stride and I do feel it's really cool to be in your restaurant and know that it's better than it was, even if not as much attention is there as when you first opened. So I think our goals and what's up our sleeve is just kind of like fine tuning and honing what we've already built and

Jess (38:27):

A little Mahjong

Amanda Shulman (38:29):

And a little mahjong one day. Who knows <laugh>. Yeah, we'd love a little Mahjong in there. Yeah.

Maureen (38:34):

All right, well, we'll we'll try to make that happen. We'll do a Mahjong day at her place, you know? Perfect.

Amanda Shulman (38:37):

Yeah, just you'll learn the rules. <laugh>.

Maureen (38:40):

Well, Amanda, thank you again so much for being with us and we cannot wait to see what you do next.

Amanda Shulman (38:45):

Well thanks for having me. It was just so much fun to be here and talk with you guys. I like the name of the podcast so much that I would love to be able to say she what?

Jess (38:53):

<laugh> said it. Perfect. Thank you. That was refreshing in about a hundred different ways, <laugh>, you know, we're still seeing headlines where head chefs and people are being outed for their bad behavior and misogyny and all of this. And it's just so, so refreshing. The Amanda Schulman the pink of it all. Yeah. Her vibe and her collaborative energy. Her passion is so infectious

Maureen (39:19):

A hundred percent. And I wanna be best friends with her. Like she just made it seem easy and good. And on the other side of really hard work, like she's not compromising the end product to have a workspace that's enjoyable and intriguing. She's putting out really high level amazing things and maintaining a space that people wanna be in. It's

Jess (39:42):

Clear that's the part that sounds easy. Everything else about it sounds hard, but it's like, yeah, if you're gonna create something, make it fun, make it thoughtful, make it innovative. Make it exciting to be there. Yeah. I love, love, love it. But also like, duh, why did I even thought of this? How does, how It's just like it's innovative but it also seems obvious. Yeah.

Maureen (40:04):

And she said, you know, this is my life. And she pours her whole heart and soul into it. And I think if people would stop saying things like, it's just business, none of it's just business. We're all humans and she's creating a fully human experience that is like you said, duh, I want part of that. Let's do it. We're gonna create that same culture at she what

Jess (40:24):

<laugh> Definitely. Let's do it. And let's eat at Her Place.

Maureen (40:31):

Yes. On my way.

Jess (40:32):

Me Too.

New Speaker (40:33):

She What? comes to you from Real Woman Magazine, A product of capital health. This episode was produced by Leigh Iacobucci with Music by Epidemic Sound.

Maureen (40:43):

Please, please leave us a rating and review. We want the show to be so great and we need you to help us do that. So follow, subscribe, and next time bring your friends too. Until then, I'm Maureen Petrosky.

Jess (40:55):

And I'm Jess Downey.