Business: Allegory
Address: 224 S. Main St., Naperville
Phone/website: 630-536-8862; www.allegorynaperville.com
Owner/chef: Chris Mason, 56, Burlington, Wisconsin
Years in business: 7
What does this business do? “We are modern American comfort elevated. Essentially, this is gourmet comfort food. When I say that, it feels cliché, but there’s no better way to explain our food,” Mason said. “We make our own ice cream here. We make our own hot sauce. We make pretty much everything except the bread. The kitchen is too small for bread production.”
How long have you been a chef? “I started washing dishes in 1985. A couple months later, the chef in that tiny kitchen put me to work cutting celery. That’s how it started. I knew I wanted to be a chef when I was 8 or 9 years old. … My parents couldn’t cook. My dad, Ben, passed away three years ago. He helped me do the build out on this place. … I got my work ethic from that guy. He owned a construction company.”
Did you work for him? “I did. Weekends. Holidays. Summer vacations. … I built everything here, these booths, the tabletops, I installed the bar. The beams overhead. The shelving.”
Why did you open this business? “Every executive chef wants their own place. I was a consultant for 17 years before I opened this restaurant. My clients were guys with money, successful in their fields. None in hospitality. Doctors. Brokers. Attorneys. A car dealership owner. They sought me out because they wanted to open a restaurant. But invariably, in a couple months, they were the expert and I somehow didn’t know what I was doing. That’s a big part of the reason why I opened my own place. … I’ve been fired a lot. I joke with my staff that I’ve been fired more than everyone in the building.”
Is running a restaurant like “The Bear”? “Anything on TV is dramatized. The olden days are closer. The crazy screaming chef throwing (stuff)? That’s real. 100 percent real. I had a volatile temper as a younger man. Most chefs are passionate. And you are working really hard to make it happen. When people don’t want to contribute or get in the way, it’s super frustrating.”
What’s your signature dish? “Blackened shrimp and grits. The best in the world.”
How do you decide what’s on the menu? “It can come from me having a dinner that could’ve been great, but they missed a mark. Made me mad and I decided to make my own better. Or, my team here has an idea. I still read cookbooks for leisure. Sometimes, I’m driving home at three in the morning and something pops into my head.
“We’ll talk about a dish, take a stab at it. Very rarely it’s a hit out of the gate. A chef who tells you that is lying to your face. Usually it takes four, five, eight, 10 tries. … Sometimes it starts one way and winds up completely different. … When you have a good crew in the kitchen and they all have good palates and good ideas, that’s why I do this is, the collaboration.”
Why is Allegory in Naperville? “It’s a great location. A great town. Lots of foot traffic. A good community.”
Why do you live in Wisconsin? “I like trees. I like rolling hills. I like nature. … My wife Martha and I found a place in Burlington. It’s gorgeous, peaceful, in the country. It was meant to be”
Isn’t it a long commute? “I sleep here quite a few nights each week.”
Any future plans? “I have a couple things I’m working on, but I can’t share yet.”
What’s the secret to success? “Everybody in this building is enthusiastic and excited. They all like being here. That’s the biggest thing that makes us better than everybody else. Our people really care.”
What challenges do you face? “Because there are so many options in this town and I’m the little guy, it’s still hard for me. I’m a chef, not a marketing person. That’s the biggest challenge. As far as competition, I don’t really have any because we’re unique. In my career, I’ve never worried about competition.”
What do you eat here? “Chef’s don’t eat off the menu. You get tired of it. … Today, I said, ‘I want some rice, but I don’t want the rice on the menu. And a piece of blackened chicken on it.’ … It’s called a chef’s salad because the salad has all kinds of stuff in it.”
What’s your advice for someone starting a business? “Despite your best efforts of research, you’ll have no idea what you’re in for. I mean it. I don’t say that lightly.”
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun. If you know of a business you’d like to see profiled in Down to Business, contact him at metschmsfl@yahoo.com.
