ServiceOffice & Admin
Sava Farah
CEO | The Pulpo Group
Experience
2011 - 2017
Owner
Babo (a market by Sava)Ann Arbor, MI
1996 - 2007
BOH & FOH Positions
Various Diners and RestaurantsNew York, NY & Detroit, MI
Education
Advice from Sava Farah
Quotes about career path, skills, and teamwork from an industry leader.
Being a female restaurateur has its unique challenges but it also gives me a unique vantage point from the boys club, which this industry is well known for.
Common female traits in business are compassion, communication and collaboration; while historically men are known for bringing the traits of action, assertion and aggression to business. The intersection of these worlds is where I think we do our best work, and I personally love the play of male and female energies merging and slowly transforming the industry. We still have a long way to go here.
The number one thing I look for when hiring someone is evidence of a positively programmed mindset.
It’s an absolute must in dealing with the challenging landscape of this work. A mind programmed to negativity, fear, doubt and skepticism will only create more of that, and is a recipe for disaster and burnout.
As a leader I think it's really important to model the behaviors you wish to see in your team.
If you want your team to be more inspired, motivated and educated, show them what that looks like with consistency. Encourage those behaviors while continuously weeding out that which doesn't align. It’s culture.
I find inspiration in nature, in books I read to my children, in learning, cooking and traveling, the list goes on.
Inspiration can be found literally anywhere and everywhere if you are open to it.
Cultivating healthy outlets and habits has helped me counteract the seemingly never ending chaos, hard labor and long hours that come with the job.
For me that means a healthy diet, resting regularly, daily meditation and exercise, continuous learning and many other forms of self care that help me be a more effective leader, for myself and my organization. In this work I also like to stress the importance of monitoring consumption of alcohol and other coping mechanisms that are so synonymous with the biz. Overall it's important to set boundaries for yourself.
I started early and fast.
After emigrating from Albania to The Bronx at age 5, having crossed what was then the Yugoslavian border on foot with my family, I immediately connected with my inner hustle. Reinforced by my Albanian roots, I blended opportunity, work ethic, trust and gratitude into an enthusiasm for hospitality—a combination that organically sent me straight into my first restaurant job at age 13.
It was at that Greek diner, washing and bussing dishes alongside my short order cook uncles, that I further developed the self-reliance and love of challenge that belied my age.
By 23, after working every position in the business, I set my entrepreneurial sights on Ann Arbor, for the vibe, the people, and as always... the opportunity.
My first restaurant in Ann Arbor, Sava’s State Street Cafe, has since grown from its original 20-seat lunch counter to the full-service, 250-seat institution it is today.
On the shoulders of the original restaurant and a great deal of hustle and hospitality, my team and I now run three unique concepts: Sava’s, Aventura and The Dixboro Project - all under the organizational umbrella of my management company, THE PULPO GROUP.
Roles in Service
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