She proceeded back to the kitchen and spent the next hour expediting orders to the cooks, inspecting plates to clean off anysmudges, and adding final seasonings and garnishes. Service ran smoothly, and plates bussed from tables came back empty. Thecooks began to clean their stations as last calls for dessert were made throughout the dining room.
Kendra fist-bumped each of them. “Y’all did your thing tonight! You should be really proud of yourselves. There are goingto be a ton of repeat customers!”
Logan peeked into the kitchen and beckoned for Kendra to come out to the front.
“Hey, I’ll be right back.” The cooks nodded, and she joined her brother. “Everything okay?”
“Oh yeah! We just had some guests getting ready to leave who asked to speak with you.” Logan’s sneaky expression made Kendrafrown.
“Huh? Who?”
“Over at table 8.”
Kendra’s eyes traveled to the table, where a couple she didn’t recognized waved to her. “What do they want with me?” she askedthrough her teeth as she smiled and waved in response.
“Just go over there,” Logan insisted, nudging her over in their direction.
“Fine,” she sighed, fixing her face as she moved into the dining room. “Hi, folks.” She smiled brightly. “I’m Kendra, Logan’ssister. I heard you wanted to speak with me?”
The woman nodded, her gorgeous 4C curls were shaped into a beautiful bob that fell to one side with the other side tapered. “We tried a few of your cocktails, and I absolutely loved your take on an espresso martini—I hadn’t had one with chai syrup added before!”
Kendra beamed. “Well, I can’t take credit for it. I’m not the first to make one, but I’m hoping my take on it goes over well.”
“I would definitely order that again! And my husband had your special Manhattan with the red wine floater.”
He nodded. “We’re getting a little ahead of ourselves though. I’m Duke and this is my wife, Kelly. And yes, the drink wasjust right.” He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and relaxed back in his chair, an easy smile curving his lips.
Kendra smiled, shaking each of their hands. “It’s so lovely to meet the both of you, and thank you—I’m so glad the drinkswere to your liking!”
“They definitely were, but that’s not the only reason we were hoping to talk to you,” Duke gestured to an empty seat at thetable nearest theirs. Many patrons had already started to head out once the last call was announced.
Kendra frowned slightly. “Oh?” She pulled over a chair and sat tentatively.
Duke bobbed his head and gestured toward the bar. “I’ve known your brother for a while and we have talked about a couple ofdifferent business projects that he has earmarked for the future. When we complimented him for the cocktails, he mentionedthat these were yours and that you were looking to get a business off the ground?”
Kendra looked quizzically from Logan to Duke, her stomach flip-flopping with nerves. Her brother remained by the bar observingtheir exchange. “Yes, I am. It’s a Prohibition-style lounge with a hidden supper-club dining experience in the back.”
Duke smiled widely. “That sounds like such an interesting concept. You may not know this, but I’m a commercial loan specialist at a local bank down the street, and I primarily focus on small businesses.” He pulled a slim leather card case out of his jacket pocket and handed Kendra a card. “I’d be happy to hear a pitch when you’re ready to start looking for funding.”
Kendra accepted the card, her jaw on the floor. “Really?” Her eyes ping-ponged from the couple to her brother, who watchedwith amusement.
Kelly grinned. “If the cocktails were any indication of what’s to come, I would be at your establishment with my girls ona weekly basis.”
“Hey, girls’ nights are self-care!” Kendra high-fived Kelly.
“Exactly. What kind of cuisine do you envision for your supper club?”
“I want it to be fusion comfort foods from around the world.” She gestured toward her brother. “Logan and I have a multiculturalbackground, and both of us have a love for travel and trying new foods wherever we go. I recently came back from two yearsof extended travel, visiting family members and also exploring different areas of cuisine, so I intend to fuse some of ourfamily recipes with other things I’ve learned while wandering.”
“Wow, two years,” Kelly gushed. “That must have been incredible. What made you take that leap?”
“I used to work in the tech industry, and my employer got acquired by a larger business, so I was let go. I’d saved a lotand they were generous in terms of severance, so I just decided to take the leap to give myself time to consider what I wantedto do next. I’m good at data, but this is the project of my heart.” Kendra smiled. Truth be told, her desire to open an establishmentpredated her brother’s. He’d just been in a better position to make the jump first.
“Having the data background is good though. An important skill set when starting a business.” Duke nodded, his gaze sincere. “I’m really looking forward to hearing more about your project.”
Kelly beamed, bobbing her head in agreement. “Let us know if you do a pop-up somewhere!”
“I sure will.” Kendra waved the card, shaking Duke’s hand again earnestly before offering her hand to his wife as well. “Wow,thank you so much. I am researching some locations right now, and then I’ll be in touch to schedule a meeting very soon.”
