by Judith Grenkowicz
“Oh, by the way, let me explain partner. Bernie and I are happily married to others. He, has a wife and I, have a husband. We are just partners in business. I thought, I had better let you know that in advance, in case,you might think something else,” said Katrina McDonald, co-owner of Manzana’s restaurant of Onaway, Michigan. This dialogue, though short, gave me a sense of the flexibility and enthusiasm Katrina and her partner, Bernie Kolasa had for the restaurant business. Bernie and Katrina met when both were employees of a local furniture company, Brewbakers. The two of them are true examples of the American adage “Hard work pays off”. Together they have survived many ups and downs in the restaurant business and their perseverance has paid-off. They first got into the restaurant business after the local furniture store, Brewbaker’s, sold and they were left unemployed.
“ I am so excited” exclaimed Katrina, “Just two-weeks from today, my partner, Bernie Kolasa, and I are off to visit friends in Sweden 
and Switzerland while simultaneously studying local recipes. This is how we pick up new recipes and ideas for Manzanas.” Indeed, Bernie and Katrina have found a way to travel the world while bringing back recipes and new ideas for their own restaurant, Manzana’s.
They called their first restaurant the ‘Food Factory’ only to find themselves in a legal suit. The ‘Food Factory’ name and logo was held by another restaurant on the West coast. They changed the name to ‘Grill 33’. It resembled a small market similar to a small whole foods store. They sold ‘Grill 33’ only to get it back nine months later in 2001. They decided on a name that Katrina had seen on a poster for pepper – Manzana’s.
Starting with a new menu that focused on homemade meals and pastries Manzana’s was soon booming. Unexpectedly, tragedy struck again. An older gentleman ran into the front of Manzana’s with his 1982 Oldsmobile, Bernie had an unexpected stroke while trademark issues would again plague them. They persevered by building an addition to Manzana’s, securing a liquor license, adding on a bar, updating their menu and having a healthy and recuperated Bernie.
Manzana’s has become a year round Northern Michigan destination. Their famous pizza is made with the freshest toppings, homemade dough, and a secret zesty sauce. Their sandwiches, grinders, wraps, burgers and panini are also trendy and coupled with the latest in homemade side dishes, and soups. They also offer homemade comfort foods such as pasta, pierogi, meatloaf, and mashed potatoes. They use only fresh berries, fruit, veggies, nuts, and meats to create the finest salads around. Locals dining at Manzana’s tell me their two favorite dishes would be Manzana’s par-baked pizzas and famous homemade apple pie.
“Manzana’s is the best” stated Judy Bancroft, an Onaway native as she elaborated,”Our favorite item on the menu is their Specialty Pizza which is the best in the area. We absolutely love it.”
A gourmet cook herself, Julie McEwan of Canada Creek Ranch shared, “ We have had the Chicken Parmesan Alfredo,
Manzana’s Pierogi, Shrimp Scampi and other pasta dishes and have never been disappointed or walked away hungry. Some of the portion sizes are large and the small salad easily serves two. The waitstaff is very helpful in providing information on menu items. “
Upon sharing several of these compliments with Barry and Katrina, I asked them both, “Just how do you do it?
How do you create such a popular restaurant with great food in Northern Michigan while simultaneously having fun doing what you do and making a nice living at it?
They responded jointly, “ It’s teamwork”. We have a team of employees that have been with us for years and through all the bumps on the road. We cross train so everyone can do everyone else’s’ job duties. We also have lists. These lists are called, work lists, and our employees automatically do what is on the list which hey have created with the help of Katrina
We trust our employees to know what they have to do to get the job done and this approach works for us.” Katrina furthered, “ For example, everyone knows fresh dough is made every day at 4 p.m. and whoever is on duty that day will make sure the dough is made. We go through 200 pounds of potatoes a week and somehow those potatoes get peeled and cooked. The person(s) on duty will see the potatoes get done. Bernie and I, are so confident in our staff, we make a point of leaving the restaurant at 4 p.m. every day while the staff takes over as the second shift comes on at 4 p.m.”
Bernie shared with me information about their operations, letting me know “Our staff has been with us for many years. In fact, one of our cooks has been with us for twenty years. We do have and use an Operations Manual, we pay them well and have a quarterly bonus system which is discretionary. If the restaurant is doing well the employees know they will share in that increased business. Our employees are flexible and so are we as their employer. If we have a rush, employees are often called in randomly and they come in willingly. They know their behavior can contribute to them getting a quarterly bonus.”
Bernie then stressed, “ All of our food is home made. Everyone is involved with the cooking up to a point. If they are not cooking food , they will be serving it or cleaning up the area. In addition to home made foods, he suggested, “ I am a bit of a micro manager and pay close attention to such factors as keeping track of our daily traffic, number and kind of food dishes purchased, number and kind of pizza’s purchased along with bar activities. I look at the margins and try to predict the better sellers. For example, I try to keep our food costs around 30%; labor costs around 28%. If we start to exceed these margins, I go in and look further at the items to see if we can get ourselves back to the respective 30%s and 28%. Liquor is tough because it is more like a drawing card for our clientele so we only focus on ‘top shelf’ liquors so our margins are less on liquor. Our appeal is to the middle-class or beyond. We have interesting events throughout the year, such as; karaoke and comedy night with open microphones. Presently, we are thinking of having a ‘wine sampler’ for invited guests.”
When asked about foods on the menu, Katrina responded, “ We see or hear about a recipe and try it. If we like it, we put it on the menu and see how it sells for 3 months. If it is popular we keep it. If not, we simply move it to our recipe catalogue for future reference. I guess, we are our own test kitchen.
As Bernie left for the kitchen to make the 4 p.m. dough making, Katrina summarized their success, stating, “ Our success formulas works for us. I don’t guarantee it will work for others. But there is a strong work ethic in our area and we seem to have captivated that work ethic. Our employee turnover is very low. Our employees share in our vision which is flexibility, open to change, educate your customers and be patient. “
In terms of best sellers, Bernie suggested, “It is probably our par-baked pizza. The dough is prepared each day around 4 p.m. in the afternoon, wrapped in cellophane, placed in the fridge, and brought out and kneaded just before putting the toppings on the pizza. They then par-bake the pizza so the baking of the pizza can be finished off by the purchaser at their home. This is also a courtesy for customers. Many of these customers go shopping in communities about 30 miles from Onaway. They either call or stop in on their way out of town and order their par-baked pizza to be picked up later in the day. We have it ready for them by the time they pass trough on their way home. They take it home and stick it in the oven for whatever time and now have fresh homemade pizza for their evening meal. 
Oh so delicious!
Katrina added, “ I think our favorite is my own recipe for Gourmet Macaroni & Cheese. We make it usually in a large baking dish First we create a homemade cheddar-smoked provolone sauce, then toss it with penne pasts and, finally top it with grilled tomatoes and crumbled bleu cheese. I have to admit I don’t measure, I just use my eye to measure and it is very tempting for both the eye and the tongue.
weberwoods 