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Vedge owners approach the pivot with a positive attitude and fun

Thursday, May 28, 2020

Vedge owners approach the pivot with a positive attitude and fun

A popular Philly husband-and-wife team is re-envisioning their internationally acclaimed eatery, to try to save it.

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A popular Philly husband-and-wife team is re-envisioning their internationally acclaimed eatery to try to save it.

Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby are finally back in the kitchen at Vedge with big smiles and a bigger hustle.

Their approach to staying afloat in the restaurant industry right now? They are embracing the pivot with a positive attitude.

They took the dark and cloudy circumstances and flipped it.

Landau and Jacoby are having fun with this run-and-gun re-invention and doing what they love best: sharing their love of veggies.

"It's just time to give everyone our food again and it's time to get back in the game again," Laundau said. "Most of all, I just missed cooking. I really did."

When the crisis hit, they closed their signature restaurant for six full weeks.

"We took it very seriously and we stayed home," said Laudau. "We didn't want to give people a reason to come out."

Now, the couple is back, packing to-go orders and running them to cars.

"Listen, it's like opening up a whole new business. This is not just Vedge takeout," Landau said. "This is a whole new way of thinking. Not to make a play on vegetables, but we're getting back to our roots."

They're re-imagining the menu with wine sets and themes like "Italian Picnic."

Laundau was just named a finalist for the James Beard Foundation's Best Chef Mid-Atlantic award for the 6th time.

"It's a really nice reassuring lifeline that what we once had was relevant. People noticed it. It was important."

And now, they're fighting to keep it that way.

"We're not in this to make money right now," he says. "We want to keep the businesses alive for the day that comes when we can open our doors."

Safety is the main concern as they explore options in the dining room and outdoors.

"We're just going to keep thinking of ways that we can feed you without reminding you of all the troubles that are going on right now," he says.

And it's that positivity, that solidarity, that's driving them.

"The whole planet is in this together. It's a time for character. It's a time for heroes and leadership among us all, not just the leaders."

Their other eatery, V Street, is open for delivery.

The James Beard Award winners will be announced this fall in Chicago.

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