All-Female Team At Princeton Restaurant Lead Post Pandemic Recovery

PRINCETON, NJ — The restaurant industry is still feeling the impact of the two-year pandemic. With inflation at a 40-year high, the industry is being plagued by staff shortages, supply issues and closures.

To lead its post-pandemic recovery, Princeton’s Salt Creek Grille has appointed a number of women at the helm of its operations. The team is led by Chef Erica Hernandez, the restaurant’s first female executive chef.

“This was a great opportunity. I know their environment, the setup of the restaurant and the people that were here. It was a really good fit from the first moment that I interview with them,” Hernandez said.

After working in Florida for many tears, Hernandez who is originally from Puerto Rico said she was looking for a “new home.”

“I was looking for a new home for me - somewhere I could be creative. Somewhere I can use all my past experiences in the kitchen to bring whatever I had to the table,” she said. “The transition has been smooth and made me feel very comfortable.”

Currently, the biggest challenge for the restaurant is labor shortage. “Just like any other business, right now the biggest challenge is finding and hiring talent, making sure that we're staffed. I don't know why is it so difficult to get people in, but that's the biggest challenge," she said.

The new team has been working hard to bring in more diners. With inflation at an all-time high, consumers are feeling the pinch. According to a report by the National Restaurant Association, food, labor, and occupancy costs are expected to remain high, blunting restaurant profit margins in 2022.

But Hernandez has found a way to work around high food costs. "What we've tried to do is minimize items on the menu to make sure that what we have are quality items. In fact, we've added a few more items to the menu to make sure we work with all the produce we have and utilize them 100 percent."

Over the next few months, Hernandez plans to bring fun and exciting dishes. "My plan is to make sure that our menus are relevant and that we continue to bring flavors of the season. We will continue to work with local vendors with local farmers to make sure that we have the best products that Princeton has to offer," she said.

Hernandez is all-praise for the strong female management staff that is leading the restaurant's recovery. "We're like the Amazons - dominating an environment. As women working together, everything is organized, and everything is where it needs to be. We work very, very well together." The executive chef said it was fun to see women lead the charge and "shine in a male-dominated world."

The team recently added a sushi station to help balance workflow in the kitchen. The vision of this female-forward team is simple - keep things fresh and diverse, but also reasonable.

To check out the latest menu at Salt Creek Grille, click here.

Salt Creek Grille is located at 1 Rockingham Row, Princeton, NJ 08540.

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