I heard about this great new restaurant, Market Table, from my friends. Someone read an article in Time Out or New York Magazine, nobody remembers. We had dinner there Friday night and I greatly enjoyed my truffle risotto and the braised lamb shank with gouda gratin, greens and rosemary jus. We had a couple of bottles of wine and discussed everything from Obama to Sarah Palin and The Daily Show, where I get my news from. The restaurant was packed till late after midnight – some obviously great chef work and probably good PR to start with.

I wanted to know what restaurant public relations is all about. Please welcome my friend Shari Bayer from Bayer Public Relations.

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DB: What is "Food PR" in a nutshell?

Basically, public relations is a way for any business to get the word out about their product or brand through the media. As a food and restaurant publicist, my job is to create innovative and effective PR campaigns for my clients that will generate news and recognition. I am pretty much the middleman between my client and the people who have the power to write/talk about them. I founded my company, Bayer Public Relations (BPR) with the goal of creating quality publicity for quality products. I mostly work with restaurants, both new places opening and older establishments, and handle everything from creating press kits and pitching, to planning events, to consulting and marketing strategies. I love what I do as every client is a bit different, and that keeps things fresh and exciting for me.

DB: How did you manage to score a job that involves endless restaurant openings, free food, drinks and parties?

It’s funny; I never thought I would have become a publicist. It’s not something I knew much about growing up or studied in college. After graduating from The University of Michigan with a general liberal arts degree, I moved to Chicago and began working in restaurants, from the front-of-the house to the back. I was the office manager at Rock Bottom Brewery, a server at Charlie Trotter’s and even completed a 6 month culinary program at the Cooking Academy of Chicago (as at that point I thought I wanted to be a chef). Although I enjoyed working in restaurants, I realized that I did not want to be in them the rest of my life. So, I moved to NYC and enrolled in NYU’s Graduate School Food Studies program and began an internship at Food Arts magazine. I also did some recipe testing and assistant food styling. I was then hired as an Account Executive at KB Network News (KBNN), a boutique PR company that handled a lot of high profile chef/restaurant accounts, such as Bobby Flay and Todd English. This was a great fit for me as I realized that I could apply my interest and passion for the hospitality industry through public relations. Following KBNN, I worked at StarChefs for about a year, and then started working for another small PR firm leading its food and beverage division, before I was temporarily laid off after only a few months. At that point, I was pitching new business and decided it was time to launch my own PR company, Bayer Public Relations. I always wanted to have my own business, but again, public relations was not in "the plan." It just sort of happened, and it totally works with my love of the culinary world. BPR will be 5 years old in October, and it’s by far the longest I have ever had the same job, so I know it’s the right career for me.

It is true that I get a lot of perks from representing restaurants, including fabulous meals, but like most others, my job is not as glamorous as it may seem. I spend a lot of time on the computer, writing press releases, pitching, following up for placements, attending meetings, networking, planning events, and so on. So you really only see the fun part, but there’s a lot of office work that I am responsible for.

DB: What makes good public relations versus bad public relations?

I know that it is totally cliché, but I do believe that any press is good press. Negative reviews create as much of a buzz, if not more, than positive ones, as they get people talking and curious to check the places out for themselves. Of course I do not want any of my clients to get bad press, but if they do, it is not the end of the world, as something positive will most likely come out of it. I really think it’s hard to define bad PR, but one thing that I am not a very big fan of is overly gimmicky promotions, like introducing a $2000 caviar, truffle, foie gras lobster sandwich sprinkled with real gold flakes, or pitching the grand opening of a restaurant that is already open. However, these type of publicity stunts have proven to work, so again, I am not sure if bad PR exists.

I think a good PR campaign is diverse and targets many media outlets, as everyone gets information in different ways…some people only read The New York Post or a particular blogger, some watch the morning talk shows, some prefer TimeOut NY or New York Magazine, or trade publications, so I think it’s important to pitch all of these media outlets for coverage. Of course every client has their own goals and ideal placements, but overall, I would say a good PR campaign covers a widespread of media, from print to webzines to TV.

DB: Which New York restaurants do you think are overhyped just because of good PR?

Shake Shack is one example. Danny Meyer is a genius. Is it the best burger? It’s a subjective answer, but I think it’s the location is what makes it so popular. The best situational burger would be my definition. I also think the media cannot get enough of David Chang, especially KO, and from what I understand, David tries to be anti-PR, but it keeps backfiring. His restaurants are in the NYC culinary news practically every day, and sometimes I just wish the media would "spread the love." There are so many other great chefs out there deserving the attention and it can be frustrating when the same handful of chefs always get coverage.

DB: On the flipside, which New York restaurants below the radar could use your skills?

All of them! There are certain chefs/restaurateurs who automatically get the media’s attention, including Mario Batali, Tom Colicchio, Drew Nieoporent, Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and the others mentioned previously, but I think most everyone else really could use some PR support. The restaurant business is extremely tough and competitive, and it is very hard to stay on the media’s radar as new places are always opening (and the press loves new!)

I just started representing a two-year old restaurant called Knife + Fork* that is dealing with this exact situation. The chef/owner Damien Brassel is extremely talented serving modern European food in a quaint, charming setting. He opened with some good buzz and reviews, but has not received much media attention in the past year, so most people do not know about him. I am hoping to help get him back on the map. We just hosted a special beer pairing dinner event with Shmaltz Brewing Company’s Coney Island Lager and HE’BREW Beer, and are planning more unique beer dinners. We are also promoting Damien’s nightly 6-course tasting menu that is only $45/pp and one of the best bargains in the city. Come check it out!

DB: Take us on an after-work tour around NYC on a visit of places to drink and restaurants to dine at?

This is hard because there are endless places to go in NYC and it really depends on what you are in the mood for. But let’s see, I would start at Divine Bar West* for some tapas and martinis on their intimate, outdoor deck on the 2nd floor. Or if it’s really a gorgeous night, I would stop by one of Midtown’s rooftop lounges, such as Ava Lounge in the Dream Hotel. Their view is great, although their drinks are a bit pricey. Or I would go to Crave on 42nd* for Happy Hour specials, plus Dave Martin’s famous Truffle Mac n’ Cheese and my favorite, Sassy Sea Bass. Next, I would head downtown for some oysters at Aquagrill, or piccolini (small plates) at Centro Vinoteca. I like to sit at the bar and eat, and these places are both great options. I would then finish the evening off with something sweet, perhaps gelato at Grom.

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You can find Shari on FoodCandy or on the BPR Website

* Shari's Clients