Birds of a Feather

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“Some of it was accidentally intentional. We all came from a bar heavy background,” said Scott, explaining how they initially intended to open a bar with a food menu. “It took about three weeks and we realized, ‘Oooh...we own a really busy restaurant.’”

Say hello to Seth Sullivan, Scott Williford, and Chris Varipapa. Just over three years ago, this palsome used their bar experiences to open up The Cardinal. “This was an inevitability,” Scott said. Today they straddle the line between bar joint and burger restaurant.

“There are different populations in Boone. It’s pretty stratified. The ticket here is to cover all of your bases,” Seth explained. “Our aspiration from the very beginning was to be an institution. A place that is around for a long time. I think the best places up here appeal to tourists, students, and the local community.” Because all three of those bases desire different things, @thecardinalboone must be a jack of all trades.

When asked how they field managing staff and being a partnership of three, they shared their Tension-Resolution Model. “When a decision needs to be made, there’s tension, like on a rubber band. So when that tension is formed, everybody has an opinion or feeling or something invested in the solution there,” explained Scott.

So Seth, Chris, and Scott created a set of founding principles: Community, Respect, Fun, and Craft. When they are making a decision, they use those principles to bring them to their solution. “Ideally you set those principles and mission statement at a time when you’re not in conflict so that when you are in conflict you can go back to this objective model to resolve that conflict.” Seth explained. “ It’s been super successful.”

An integral part of their business model is that the three remain friends no matter the difficulties and decisions they face. “There’s nothing that can’t be said. No matter how offensive,” Chris chuckled. The preservation of friendship is a driving force.

The Cardinal recently paired up with Jessica Dale of OASIS to create a training program for bar and restaurant staff to intervene in situations concerning sexual harassment, violence, and consent. “We want to change the culture,” Chris emphasized. “Someone needs to be paying attention.” “The goal is to build a training program that is provided to local bars and restaurants to spearhead an awareness towards those kinds of situations and also hopefully encourage places to build policies around how to deal with that stuff,” Seth explained.

Whether they’re serving up cocktails and burgers or discussing important issues in the service industry, these guys are working to better their Boone community. Make sure to keep an eye out for the opening of Lily’s Snack Bar - their newest local endeavor!

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