It’s A Woman's World: Business Superstar, Gina Luari of Place 2 Be

Gina Luari is a force to be reckoned with. Young, driven, and armed with a clear vision and talented staff, at just 30 years old, she has created an experience in Place 2 Be that should be on everyone’s To Do list. It is loud, vibrant, and flashy, and the food gives bigger is better a run for its money. Cue Chef Xavier Santiago, also a force in CT’s restaurant scene; he has recently taken over as Executive Chef of the wildly popular, rapidly growing phenomenon.With wall to wall bottles of Veuve Clicquot and plates of sweet and savory treats like mini-mountains, Place 2 Be oozes pleasure party.  When Boss Lady (Stephanie Webster) and I completed our experience, we were most certainly in a delicious daze from the massive treats, drinks, and sensory overload. 

They know branding. Their social media presence is bubbly, to say the least, with taglines like “Go Bottomless,” “Thirst Trap,” and “Everyone in the Tub.” They serve giant cocktails served in bathtubs with rubber duckies or big booty-shaped glasses; the plates of pancakes, waffles, sandwiches or “bennys” are bigger than your head; couple that with pumping club music, and the experience is F.U.N. Luari just might be flipping former business models on its head. At time of print, she was literally bouncing between the two construction sites on new locations, in New Haven and nearby Massachusetts and prepping for a speaking engagement at UConn’s “Be Fearless” Summit. She hopes Place 2 Be will soon really be the place to be, nationwide.

Tell us about an early food memory.

My earliest food memory was in my dad’s restaurant in Albania. He opened it when we were fairly young, so I can’t remember a time not being in a restaurant with my parents. He built it from the ground up; I still to this day remember the entire process from the construction to his first time prepping food in the space.

What did you do before The Place 2 Be?

I was Executive Director of the Rocky Hill Chamber of Commerce. I first joined at age 19 while working at my parents’ diner and, after being really active with them, was named to the position when I was 23. Having worked at the chamber, the importance of building community and contributing to the town’s or city’s economy is always present for me. And having worked in every position imaginable at the diner – from dishwasher to website designer and everything in between – I gained an invaluable education in the restaurant and hospitality business.

Where did the idea for The Place 2 Be come from?

One day, I was driving through the South End of Hartford and noticed a vacancy at a former breakfast place. I knew that so many Millennials were moving downtown while so many places were leaving Hartford. Where were they going to go? I saw a need there and decided to go for it.

[Gasp! And Go for it, you did!]

What are you most proud of?

Throughout this pandemic, The Place 2 Be has grown both in number of locations and brand recognition. We went from one restaurant to what will soon be five (south

end of Hartford, downtown Hartford, West Hartford, soon-to-open in Springfield, MA, and New Haven. We’ve created over 100 jobs with more to come with the new openings, and our team is amazing! Our guests have shown us so much love, and we’re

so grateful because we really do try each and every day to deliver the best experiences for them. From the dishes and drinks we create to the atmosphere and service, we strive to make sure everyone has a blast.

Which is your favorite dish on the menu?

My Favorite dish on our menu is the Franklin Stuffed French Toast. It’s one of the first menu items that I came up with and have continually evolved through out the 6 years that we’ve been in business. It the perfect balance of sweet and savory and there’s nothing like it especially because we make our own challah bread and the recipe is specifically made to compliment all the ingredients in the stuffed French toast.

How are you a pioneer?

I wouldn’t want to overstate anything here by calling myself a pioneer! What I’ve always tried to do is value my employees and make the restaurant as efficient as possible. That being said, at The Place 2 Be we have a different way of compensating our team. We pay minimum wage ($12) plus shared tips. This basically means that the average hourly salary is $25, even for dishwashers. We have employed a different type of order and pay system as well, in working with Toast. Guests order and pay through their phones, reducing human error and eliminating that annoying and potentially awkward “split the check” moment. Freeing up this space for the servers changed their experience as well. They can focus on the hospitality part of the guest experience – which is why we call them Hosts and not Servers. When I first learned of this system, I could see it working, even though most restaurants didn’t want to take the chance. We went all in on the technology, and it’s been a hit both with guests and with our team.

What’s left on your bucket list for life? For The Place 2 Be?

My Bucket list for life is fairly long but for The Place 2 Be I’d like to grow it to a national brand.

Who inspires you? Whom do you admire in the food industry?

In the food industry brands like Sweet Green and the Barteca group inspire me.

Sweet green is an incredibly innovative brand that has advanced QSR way past the initial boom that took over the industry and used technology to bridge the gap of convenience to the customer. Something that we are constantly looking to do for our customers and our products. Barteca is a Connecticut based brand that went national. Their Bartaco concept uses an order and pay system similar to our brand and we’ve learned a lot through going through the different versions of the order and pay model at the same time during the pandemic.

And, any advice for other young women?

Don’t be afraid to go after what you want in life because you feel like you don’t have it all figured out. No one starts off with all the answers. You just have to start and you’ll find them along the way.