May 8, 2017

Meet Laura Potter of Gulu-Gulu Cafe in North Shore

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Potter.

Laura, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started at Gulu-Gulu Cafe as a server about a month after the Salem location opened. I was in graduate school and also freelancing in higher education publishing which had been my career for 10 years. Freelancing is feast or famine, so I was looking for some work waiting tables to fill the gaps, and I figured the cool new restaurant in town might need some staff. About a month after I started the owner asked me to be a manager. It wasn’t what I had in mind, but I liked the restaurant concept and the owners so much I said yes. I’ve been the General Manager here for almost 10 years. At present, I’m also playing a hand in cultivating and developing a young management staff at our sister restaurant, Flying Saucer Pizza Company, right next door. In addition, the manager of our soon-to-be-opening third restaurant, Smokin’ Betty’s BBQ, uses me as a resource, and I’m happy to provide consultation. Gulu-Gulu is a special business. It’s more of a community meeting place than a restaurant concept. I’m honored and proud to be a part of it.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Balancing work and home life is always a challenge for restaurant professionals. Gulu is open from 8am to 1am every day of the week, so while I don’t spend all hours we’re open physically at the restaurant, I can be called upon anywhere from 7am to 2am. My daughter has spent countless hours here either hanging out or helping out. That makes a difference.

Professionally, you’re always challenged. Salem has become a dining destination with many more restaurants opening their doors here as compared to when we had our start in 2007. Staying interesting, relevant and fun is so important. Making sure your loyal customers know how much you value them is paramount.

Speaking of regular customers, Salem is also a tourist town. Tourism propels us for much of the year, but our regulars are what keep us going year round. You need to be flexible and adapt to balancing a varied clientele.

Keeping prices affordable while still making a profit requires constant monitoring. Food cost has increased and so has the minimum wage. Since the majority of our food is sandwiches and crepes, there’s not much room for a big markup. Making sure your establishment is running efficiently and is as lean as possible is a must.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Gulu-Gulu Cafe – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Gulu-Gulu Cafe is modeled after the Cafe Gulu-Gulu in Prague, Czech Republic, where the owners met and fell in love. Marie is Czech and was working there while Steve was visiting. When they returned to America they wanted to recreate the types of places they spent so much time in while in Prague. European cafes do more than serve coffee and light fare, most offer beer & wine and specialty food. They’re open long hours and are the type of places you don’t feel rushed to leave.

Gulu is special for that reason. We are a community meeting place, not a restaurant concept. That said, the food and drink are not an afterthought. We have won North Shore Magazine’s Best Beer Menu for 7 of the 9 years we’ve been here. We have 24 draft beers that are always changing plus about 30 bottles. Our coffee is roasted locally, and our cold brew iced coffee is a huge favorite. We serve a simple brunch on the weekends consisting of breakfast sandwiches, breakfast crepes and Belgian waffles. The rest of the menu consists of appetizers, salads, sweet & savory crepes, grilled sandwiches & wraps. Plus there are a few Czech items peppered throughout the menu including our Czech goulash.

We offer live music with no cover charge Thursday through Sunday. On Wednesdays we host an open mic. On Tuesdays we host a Drink & Draw night. We feature a different local artist monthly and offer their work for sale.

The staff gives our guests the feeling that they love it here and want our guests to love it too. I’m most proud of the sense of community that our restaurant helps establish.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m staying here! We just implemented a menu change last week which has resulted in more diversity, more choice & more value. We’re really excited about it. Aside from that we’re looking to expand our catering side of the business. We have brought crepe stations, similar to omelette stations you see in hotels, to birthday parties, showers, and other events. We also offer gourmet salads, wraps, appetizers, and a few entrees for catering events.

Pricing: