Kerry Sinsky jokes that she came with the building. When you see her in the dining room at Buckley’s, where she’s worked off and on (mostly on) since the restaurant opened in 2007, it’s like some invisible “zero turbulence” button has been switched on. It’s a quality honed, no doubt, during Sinsky’s first career as a flight attendant in the 1980s.
“Hospitality was always first and foremost,” she says. It still is for Sinsky, who has performed different roles at Buckley’s – a family-run establishment where she feels “so supported” by the owners that they are “like family” – before settling in as front-of-house manager, the liaison between the dining room and kitchen.
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When did the notion of service take root for you?
When I got out of college, I wanted to be a social worker. At home, “the door is always open” is something my father always said to me. You need a place to go? You come here. [Owners] Mike and Pam Buckley echoed that sentiment, so it felt very natural for me to come work with them.
Was there any better training for the demands of a restaurant than working as a flight attendant?
I really had no idea what I was getting into. We used to know everything about who our guests were when they were getting on the plane. We would get a whole printout of who was going to be sitting in what seat [in first class]. Sometimes it would even say “Scotch drinker.” And everybody got a drink in first class before we went anywhere. So that was part of the service, and then to go through the whole cooking the prime rib, the ice cream sundaes – oh my God, everything. It showed me you really have to love what you’re doing, and that’ll come through in the way you take care of people.
Can you explain what’s kept you not just working in this industry but at this restaurant for almost 17 years?
There’s something about being so comfortable in that building, knowing that [the Buckley] family is with me. We have this tremendous amount of admiration and respect for each other. And that’s the way they want people to feel when they walk in the door. We’ll do everything we can to make you feel welcome here … and welcome back.
You have to keep the lines of communication running efficiently between the front and back of the house. How do you do that?
I know when there are crunches because I’ve just welcomed all these people in [to the restaurant]. And I know these people have theater tickets, so they need to get moving. Or these [other] people will be here for a while. And I can let the bartenders know this is a celebration, we’re going to need more bubbles up from the basement. We always have a pre-shift meeting that I run and let [the staff] know what’s happening. And then of course making sure we greet people when they walk in the door as soon as possible … and as they’re leaving, make sure that we just let them know, thanks so much for being with us tonight.
I’ve made the mistake of confusing you with Pam Buckley. Does that happen periodically?
It does, especially when [Pam and Mike’s son] Taylor is standing next to me. I still do have [diners] compliment me on her carrot cake. It is a compliment to me if someone thinks I’m Pam Buckley.
