Clarity Strategic^TM

I spent an afternoon with Scott Groth, the Chubby Cook, at his headquarters in Beachwood, OH. At the time, at this location Groth offered a limited menu to visitors each day, but now this shop is the home of his catering services and cooking classes. I test-tasted a few of his offerings (more on that later), but I was totally engaged by his business outlook, and not just because his attitudes resonate so well with my own.

Networking is as important as cooking. He works pretty much exclusively with small companies throughout the Cleveland area (though if most of them are near him, he can be excused for that), as suppliers and strategic partners: Cowboy George's salsas, Posh Pierogies, Lucky Penny Creamery, and Holmes Mouthwatering Applesauce (made by a 17-year-old student at Shaker Heights High, and it's "the best applesauce I've ever eaten," says Groth), to name a few.

We're additive, preservative, chemical-free. And it's not easy to get all that. To find exactly what he wanted, and to find it from local vendors, Groth tells me "I spent four months of my life traveling to find them." But he's ecstatic about the results: small companies tend to understand and support each other. And the Chubby Cook sees them all growing together, and leaving him with menu items far from unhealthy.

If you stink at customer service you won't please anybody. Associate chef Michelle has 16 years of catering experience, and Groth indicates "you don't last that long if you don't know how to keep customers happy." But the Chubby Cook takes customer service one step further: he treats everyone walking in the door as a customer. The city inspector found the Chubby Cook's kitchen to be almost pristine, except for a broken sink. The sink was fixed the following morning. Another heart and mind won over.

We're constantly working on ideas. Besides the services mentioned earlier, Groth is contemplating corporate retreats for small business. "We will teach them how to cook, and feed them – it'll be deductible for them as a business expense, and management will have a chance to hear those voices they may not normally hear." Also in the works is a food show, possibly held at Cuyahoga Community College East, involving mostly small suppliers – because so many times existing food shows only get big companies. For his cooking classes, he asks potential instructors "what do you want to do?" Because if you do what gives you the greatest pleasure in cooking, the passion comes through – and it's contagious.

If you're the smartest person working for you, you're in trouble. So Groth surrounds himself with a competent assistant chef, a social media/administrative specialist, and (soon) an event planner. "Because so much of what we do requires a lot of strategic planning, and I want to be available myself for new ideas – and to cook."

While I heard the story of the Chubby Cook's business, I was happily munching on the best potato salad I have ever tasted in the entire course of my life. And waiting for me to eat later is a one-half-pound brownie ("make sure to microwave it just for 20 seconds before you eat it") and a slice of their homemade apple pie ("30 seconds"). :-)