THE leases in gleaming Citibank Tower are all taken now. And so were nearly all the tables at Faces on a recent, rainy afternoon. For the building and the restaurant, total occupancy was not always the case.
Faces opened in October 1992. Life started as a roller-coaster ride, and this one had more downs than ups, not to mention a hell of a whip-lash. The ink was barely dry on the menus when partners Raymond Smith and chef Walter Gloor were hit with the liquor licence migraine. In a spanking new commercial building, barely a third full, no beer/ no wine/no drinks was the brass-knuckle handshake.
But Smith and Gloor hung in and the 80-seat restaurant managed a sad smile for a long time.
By word-of-mouth, proximity of a captive audience, and a financially-draining ad campaign, Faces attracted a few loyalists. And happy hour in the cosy, wood-panelled bar with the spectacular view was never dour. As the building's tenant roster grew, the menu found its footing. And so did the owners.
Much of the survival instinct comes from the steady hand of Gloor and Smith. The alumni of the Jimmy's Kitchen Group (Smith, a former chef, worked at Jimmy's Kitchen in Central, and Gloor, at JK's on the Peak) both believe in hands-on management.
Though Smith's niche is front of the house, he isn't against picking up a saucepan or setting a table. Several months ago (when panic hit the dining room as all tables filled within 20 minutes), Smith was speeding out of control, topping off water glasses, passing menus, delivering breadbaskets and shaking hands. While some might question such a management approach, none of the customers starved for acknowledgement.