Table Talks

Source: Lansing State Journal
Movers and Shakers hash it out over meals.

Forget cell phones and e-mail. The world still works in old-fashioned ways for some folks.

They meet over pancakes or catfish. They exchange ideas, build consensus and create a sense of community - all in the name of breakfast, lunch and dinner. In restaurants as diverse as the Flap Jack Restaurant, the Parthenon and Gregory’s, decision-makers meet and greet and stay in the know.

“We’re networking,” says Larry Johnston, who regularly eats breakfast with Charles Dobis at the Flap Jack Restaurant, 3000 E. Grand River Ave.

The two are chief administrators for different groups of physicians in the Lansing area.

“We come here to support each other,” Dobis says. They bounce ideas off each other and commiserate over things they cannot change. They ditch telephones and interruptions for the aroma of coffee, clinking dishes and anonymity.

While they talked, files of business papers covered other tables at the Flap Jack until the pancakes arrived.

The board of directors from Child and Family Services Capital Area met in one corner. The deputy directors of the Michigan Secretary of State’s office were at another. And two groups representing the city of East Lansing and Michigan State University met at a third.

The jokes of many of the tables centered on whose turn it was to pick up the tab.

“It’s about relationships,” says Jean Gobles assistant city manager for East Lansing. “Power is about relationships. Breakfast is the essence of power.”

City and university representatives meet regularly to talk about housing issues before they become problems, says Ginny Haas, MSU government affairs specialist.

Business, government and university leaders say they meet over food to get to know people they have to rely on at the workplace.

“You don’t talk a lot of business,” says Kelly Rossman of Rossman, Martin and Associates public relations firm. “You talk about your family.”

She meets clients wherever they want to go. Government workers end up frequently at the Parthenon Restaurant, 227 S. Washington Square, which, like Flap Jack, is an authentic Lansing landmark. “It rocks,” Rossman says.

State Rep. Mike Murphy, D-Lansing, invited other freshman representatives to the Parthenon for lunch after their first few weeks in office. About a dozen came.

“We talked about what it was like this first month,” Murphy says. “They called me. Some are looking for housing.”

Restaurants offer a chance to get to know people, Murphy says. “A lot of what I do is about relationships, networking.”

The Parthenon has private rooms and a large table on the first floor, which is often filled with politicians at breakfast and lawyers at lunch, owner George Kafantaris says.

“They talk to each other,” Kafantaris says. “They want another opinion.”

At Gregory’s, 2510 N. Martin Luther King Blvd., the emphasis is on friendships and community-building. It’s an after-work place with a bar atmosphere and music.

Hugh Clarke, and attorney in private practice, goes there sometimes to run into people he doesn’t see at work.

“In the African-American community, it’s Cheers,” Clarke says, comparing Gregory’s to the bar on television where everybody knows your name.

“You discuss politics, your golf game,” Clarke says. “You discuss ideas and get different ideas.”

Places such as Gregory’s can serve the same need barbershops used to fill on Saturdays, Clarke says, honing attitudes and unifying communities.

Bob Brown, retired state Corrections Department director, goes to Gregory’s with his wife and granddaughter sometimes to eat catfish and chicken dinners and to stay in touch. The three sat on barstools one recent Friday night, eating and catching up on the news of friends.

“It’s like family,” says Joy G. Brown, his wife of 38 years.

Their granddaughter, Merritta Proctor, who works for the state, says Gregory’s offers a place to socialize with people of color.

“We discuss events of the week gone by,” she says. “It’s an opportunity to discuss current events and the things we need to do to enhance the African-American community.

The academic community at MSU sometimes meets at the University Club, 3435 Forest Road, says Karen Grannemann, the club’s business manager. The club, a modern building with big windows and a full menu, has 2,126 family memberships.

“Our strongest business is at lunch, and it’s predominantly business and academic community meetings,” Grannemann says. “It’s a group of peers getting together for a meeting on a specific subject, academic colleagues, development directors, and potential donors. Something different is going on at every table.”

The upscale menu, servers who know members’ names and the opportunity to sign the check instead of fussing with money or credit cards is a way to impress clients, Grannemann says.

High-end clients are also impressed by the Golden Rose Restaurant in Mason and the Lansing Country Club, Rossman says, but each client is impressed by different things.

One likes Sparty’s Coney Island on South Pennsylvania Avenue, she says.

Some clients are reluctant to go out to dinner, Rossman says, and so is she.

“It’s a lifestyle issue,” she says. “Most of us have families, and we don’t want to do dinner away from home.”

The atmosphere in restaurants contributes to a relaxed and informal feeling, but meeting over food also takes time, Murphy says. Since he took his seat in the House in January, he has had many invitations from associations and lobbyists for coffee and lunch.

“I prefer them to come to my office,” Murphy says. He serves coffee in his office. “You can spend most of your time at breakfast, lunch and dinner, and receptions. It’s become an issue of time.”
Source: Lansing State Journal