Alexcia Smith

Details

Assistant General Manager, Restaurant Associates, Cafe57 at Hearst Tower
New York, NY
Age: 26
Education: B.P.S. in culinary arts management, The Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, N.Y.
Years at organization: 3

Why Selected?

Rupa Rao, general manager, Restaurant Associates, Hearst Tower, says: Alexcia oversees a team of 20 associates and is responsible for the daily café operations, which includes managing a robust marketing program. Her passion for food and hospitality along with her positive energy and innovative style set her apart from others in her field.

Get to know

Q. What has been your proudest accomplishment?

Being broken in as a marketing manager as well as a café manager. I have learned the importance of marketing ourselves. I am proud of what we’ve been able to do with social media. We have more than 200 fans on Facebook and more than 400 followers on Twitter.

Q. What's the best career advice you've been given?

You know when you make a mistake and you just beat yourself up over it? My current supervisor, Rupa, would always tell me if you make a mistake you can’t really dwell on it, you have to learn from it.

Q. What's been the biggest challenge you've had to overcome?

Learning how to deal effectively with guests, my staff and co-workers. I’m proud to say it’s an area I’ve done well in. I’ve grown a lot over the past three years. I’ve learned to become more approachable because I used to be very shy. I stress the importance of open communication, it's works out best when everyone has a clear understanding of all things and we're all on the same page.

Q. What's been your most rewarding moment?

I have to say it was my radio interview with Gayle King [editor-at-large for O, The Oprah Magazine]. She came in and asked if we could have a day that focused on peaches, like we had done with blueberries. We had a spicy peach barbecue chicken sandwich at the sandwich station. We did a peach and watermelon gazpacho soup. And we served Gayle King's own peach polenta upside down cake at the dessert station. She was so excited about it she invited me on her radio show to talk about the café. It was pretty awesome.

Q. What can you look back at now and laugh at?

I’ve really come a long way. I used to be very shy and very nervous and now you can’t get me to shut up. I guess because it’s a media company I’ve learned to come out of my shell and interact with anyone. It’s a really nice culture here. You are forced to come out of your comfort zone.