Tag Archives: creole

Business

He’s hardly a magician, but Kevin Walters has pulled off a noteworthy sleight of hand: Growing revenues for his East Harlem-based restaurant and jazz club when many dining and nightlife establishments in the city are struggling.

He’s done it through a savvy word-of-mouth marketing campaign that’s attracted artists, tourists and jazz lovers from all over the world to dine on the restaurant’s gumbo and hear such musicians as trombonist Clifton Anderson and drummer Grady Tate.

Mr. Walters never expected to be running his own restaurant. A former investment banker and small-business adviser, he was the majority investor in Creole Restaurant and Music Supper Club when, shortly before its 2004 opening, the chef and general manager had to quit after becoming too ill to carry on. Mr. Walters decided the only course of action was to step in and run operations himself. “Before I knew it, this was taking up 100% of my time,” he says.

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