Toni Reece: Hi there. This is Toni Reece, and welcome to the Get Inspired! Project for Berks County Living magazine. Today I have Jeromy Curry with me. Hi, Jeromy.
Jeromy Curry: Hi, how are you?
Toni: I’m great. How are you?
Jeromy: I’m doing good.
Toni: Fantastic. Sun’s out. Life is good, right?
Jeromy: Yes.
Toni: So, Jeromy, take a moment and tell us a little bit about yourself.
Jeromy: Okay. I own the K’Town Pub Tap House and Barbeque in Kutztown near the University. I’m originally born and raised in Delaware, and met my wife in college. Her parents bought the bar in 2004, and she and I took over, it will be two years in July.
Toni: Oh, okay.
Jeromy: So we’ve been there for quite a while. We just did a major renovation last summer, completely gutted the entire place. Lots of craft beer, great food. Everything’s pretty much made from scratch. We do real wood-smoked barbeque. We have a huge smoker on the trailer out behind the building, so that’s kind of been our focus. It’s been an incredible year since we’ve done that remodel. The growth has just been incredible. We’re super excited and lots of things going on. It’s very busy.
Toni: It sounds it, and you’re making me really hungry. Oh my goodness. We’ll have to check this out. Alright. Let’s go into the Project.
Jeromy: Sure.
Toni: So what does inspiration mean to you?
Jeromy: As I was thinking about this, it was difficult for me to differentiate between inspiration, motivation. I think from a business perspective, we have a lot of new faces that come in, people who would never think to come into our place. My motivation or inspiration is seeing their face when they come in for the first time and they’re a little apprehensive because it’s kind of a college bar, but it’s not. Things are kind of new. To see them sit down and have a great meal, great service, great food, and just be like, “Wow. We can't imagine. We can't believe this place is here.” That’s my motivation every day. That’s why we work so hard, me and my staff, just to get that look on people’s face. Inspiration in general is what you can do to make someone’s life better, whether it be a great plate of food or a beer or charities, donations.
Toni: Do you do a lot of that as well?
Jeromy: We are involved in as much in the community as possible. Any type of events we have in town we’re involved in. We donate to Kutztown Community Partnership, both with our time and money. Relay For Life is a big fundraiser in Kutztown, so we’re always involved in that. If there’s something we can do to contribute to our community…and some of that is self-serving, because the more you can put your name out there, but it’s also the right thing to do. You can't just kind of boast about being part of the community, but not back that up by not doing anything.
Toni: So what inspiration means to you is basically you being able to see a happy customer or someone that has enjoyed something that you have done or participated in. It’s actually being able to see that person be happy.
Jeromy: Right, and a lot of that is seeing all the hard work that we do, that we’re actually doing the right things and we’re doing good stuff. It’s not all for naught.
Toni: How do you take all of that – now, the obvious is is that you have the restaurant – but how do you take, when you are inspired by seeing the joy on a customer’s face or a happy customer or maybe a charity that you participated in, how do you take that inspiration and put it into practice, whether it’s in Kutztown, Berks County, wherever it is? How else do you put that inspiration into practice?
Jeromy: I really think it’s a snowball effect, because I think once you get that experience, you want to have it again and again. It makes you want to do more. “Let’s do this next week. Let’s participate in this. Let’s go do this function.” What can we do better on a daily basis that will make it better? A lot of that, we’re fulfilling our ego, but it’s also good for somebody else, too.
Toni: To keep it moving. It’s interesting. Do you talk about that with your staff, that it does feed itself, that when you’re inspired, as you said, for you it’s inspiration and motivation…do you also pass that along to staff that it inspires them and motivates them, too?
Jeromy: Absolutely. I have a really great staff. Most of them have been with me for a very long time. I realize how hard they work for me, so I want to make sure they get the feedback that this customer came up and said that they had a great experience with you today. I want to make sure that they know that, because I know it makes me feel good, and I want to make sure that I share that with them, because I know how hard they work.
Toni: How do you keep your staff inspired?
Jeromy: We just work really hard and really fast, and we don’t have time to stop and think about it.
Toni: Think that maybe you’re not. That’s great. Okay, that works. Just keep moving, just keep moving!
Jeromy: I think a lot of it has to do with you have a great relationship with the people that work with you. You just keep them motivated and keep them happy. I’m not a dictator by any stretch of the imagination, so as long as you’re working hard for me, I’m going to work hard for you, and we’re going to have fun while we’re making money.
Toni: What inspired you for the barbeque business and/or the craft beer business?
Jeromy: That was purely selfish. Years ago when my in-laws bought the place, it was a beer and shot kind of place. It got to the point where I wanted to drink something better, so I convinced my father-in-law to buy five craft beers. That was probably five or six years ago. That has evolved into over 100 now.
Toni: Oh my goodness.
Jeromy: Twenty of them on tap. The barbeque thing was just something I liked doing in the backyard. We don’t have a full-size kitchen. Basically, our kitchen is behind the bar, and it’s just a flattop, so it was kind of a way for us to do some more creative things, and it has snowballed beyond my wildest dreams to the point where we’re always talking about expansion.
Toni: Oh, that’s fantastic.
Jeromy: Yes. It’s exciting.
Toni: So who in Berks County inspires you?Jeromy: This was tough. This is the question I thought about the most. I mean, there’s community leaders that I’m close with in town, that their passion for the community is just unwavering. I think Joe and Diane Piscitelli, who are the mainstays in Kutztown, every time I see them, they have been the biggest supporter for me. I just see how hard they work. They’re retired. They’re in their eighties, and they are the hardest working people that I know. They don’t have a job. Joe is a pastor and a minister on the side, and Diane does so much within the community and Relay For Life that every time I talk to them it’s like I’m motivated to go do more, because I see how hard they work when they don’t have to at this point in their life. It’s just so inspirational, because they’re the happiest people. They’re the nicest people. They will do anything for you.
Toni: Oh, that’s fantastic. Anybody else?
Jeromy: I’m going to go with the cheesy answer and say my wife. She’s a pediatric nurse at Reading Hospital, and being in this business, how many hours I work, and to see her take care of our kids when I’m not around, run our household, and still be dedicated to the nursing profession. I go home and night and I’m ready to complain about how many hours I just worked and then I stop and think, she’s at least worked as hard as I have today, probably harder. I just try to live up to her work ethic.
Toni: It’s really you are inspired by people who work hard.
Jeromy: Yes.
Toni: That is what is coming through this entire interview is that inspires you, that motivates you, and at the end of the day whether it’s your wife having a healthy child, the people in the community that are doing work when they don’t have to and they are happy, and seeing happy customers.
Jeromy: Yeah. Very much so.
Toni: That’s really interesting. What would you like your legacy to be?
Jeromy: First, I want to be known as a great dad and father. That’s foremost on my mind at all times. I think I want to be known as someone who was passionate about what they did, was good at their job, treated their employees well, and was just of benefit to the community. That’s kind of what I want. It’s not money and cars and houses. That’s the kind of stuff that makes you feel good, knowing that you were part of something.
Toni: Fantastic. Thank you for coming down here as well.
Jeromy: Thank you so much for having me.
Toni: Absolutely. Thank you for being part of the Get Inspired! Project.
Jeromy: Thank you.
Toni Reece: Hi there. This is Toni Reece, and welcome to the Get Inspired! Project for Berks County Living magazine. Today I have Jeromy Curry with me. Hi, Jeromy.
Jeromy Curry: Hi, how are you?
Toni: I’m great. How are you?
Jeromy: I’m doing good.
Toni: Fantastic. Sun’s out. Life is good, right?
Jeromy: Yes.
Toni: So, Jeromy, take a moment and tell us a little bit about yourself.
Jeromy: Okay. I own the K’Town Pub Tap House and Barbeque in Kutztown near the University. I’m originally born and raised in Delaware, and met my wife in college. Her parents bought the bar in 2004, and she and I took over, it will be two years in July.
Toni: Oh, okay.
Jeromy: So we’ve been there for quite a while. We just did a major renovation last summer, completely gutted the entire place. Lots of craft beer, great food. Everything’s pretty much made from scratch. We do real wood-smoked barbeque. We have a huge smoker on the trailer out behind the building, so that’s kind of been our focus. It’s been an incredible year since we’ve done that remodel. The growth has just been incredible. We’re super excited and lots of things going on. It’s very busy.
Toni: It sounds it, and you’re making me really hungry. Oh my goodness. We’ll have to check this out. Alright. Let’s go into the Project.
Jeromy: Sure.
Toni: So what does inspiration mean to you?
Jeromy: As I was thinking about this, it was difficult for me to differentiate between inspiration, motivation. I think from a business perspective, we have a lot of new faces that come in, people who would never think to come into our place. My motivation or inspiration is seeing their face when they come in for the first time and they’re a little apprehensive because it’s kind of a college bar, but it’s not. Things are kind of new. To see them sit down and have a great meal, great service, great food, and just be like, “Wow. We can't imagine. We can't believe this place is here.” That’s my motivation every day. That’s why we work so hard, me and my staff, just to get that look on people’s face. Inspiration in general is what you can do to make someone’s life better, whether it be a great plate of food or a beer or charities, donations.
Toni: Do you do a lot of that as well?
Jeromy: We are involved in as much in the community as possible. Any type of events we have in town we’re involved in. We donate to Kutztown Community Partnership, both with our time and money. Relay For Life is a big fundraiser in Kutztown, so we’re always involved in that. If there’s something we can do to contribute to our community…and some of that is self-serving, because the more you can put your name out there, but it’s also the right thing to do. You can't just kind of boast about being part of the community, but not back that up by not doing anything.
Toni: So what inspiration means to you is basically you being able to see a happy customer or someone that has enjoyed something that you have done or participated in. It’s actually being able to see that person be happy.
Jeromy: Right, and a lot of that is seeing all the hard work that we do, that we’re actually doing the right things and we’re doing good stuff. It’s not all for naught.
Toni: How do you take all of that – now, the obvious is is that you have the restaurant – but how do you take, when you are inspired by seeing the joy on a customer’s face or a happy customer or maybe a charity that you participated in, how do you take that inspiration and put it into practice, whether it’s in Kutztown, Berks County, wherever it is? How else do you put that inspiration into practice?
Jeromy: I really think it’s a snowball effect, because I think once you get that experience, you want to have it again and again. It makes you want to do more. “Let’s do this next week. Let’s participate in this. Let’s go do this function.” What can we do better on a daily basis that will make it better? A lot of that, we’re fulfilling our ego, but it’s also good for somebody else, too.
Toni: To keep it moving. It’s interesting. Do you talk about that with your staff, that it does feed itself, that when you’re inspired, as you said, for you it’s inspiration and motivation…do you also pass that along to staff that it inspires them and motivates them, too?
Jeromy: Absolutely. I have a really great staff. Most of them have been with me for a very long time. I realize how hard they work for me, so I want to make sure they get the feedback that this customer came up and said that they had a great experience with you today. I want to make sure that they know that, because I know it makes me feel good, and I want to make sure that I share that with them, because I know how hard they work.
Toni: How do you keep your staff inspired?
Jeromy: We just work really hard and really fast, and we don’t have time to stop and think about it.
Toni: Think that maybe you’re not. That’s great. Okay, that works. Just keep moving, just keep moving!
Jeromy: I think a lot of it has to do with you have a great relationship with the people that work with you. You just keep them motivated and keep them happy. I’m not a dictator by any stretch of the imagination, so as long as you’re working hard for me, I’m going to work hard for you, and we’re going to have fun while we’re making money.
Toni: What inspired you for the barbeque business and/or the craft beer business?
Jeromy: That was purely selfish. Years ago when my in-laws bought the place, it was a beer and shot kind of place. It got to the point where I wanted to drink something better, so I convinced my father-in-law to buy five craft beers. That was probably five or six years ago. That has evolved into over 100 now.
Toni: Oh my goodness.
Jeromy: Twenty of them on tap. The barbeque thing was just something I liked doing in the backyard. We don’t have a full-size kitchen. Basically, our kitchen is behind the bar, and it’s just a flattop, so it was kind of a way for us to do some more creative things, and it has snowballed beyond my wildest dreams to the point where we’re always talking about expansion.
Toni: Oh, that’s fantastic.
Jeromy: Yes. It’s exciting.
Toni: So who in Berks County inspires you?Jeromy: This was tough. This is the question I thought about the most. I mean, there’s community leaders that I’m close with in town, that their passion for the community is just unwavering. I think Joe and Diane Piscitelli, who are the mainstays in Kutztown, every time I see them, they have been the biggest supporter for me. I just see how hard they work. They’re retired. They’re in their eighties, and they are the hardest working people that I know. They don’t have a job. Joe is a pastor and a minister on the side, and Diane does so much within the community and Relay For Life that every time I talk to them it’s like I’m motivated to go do more, because I see how hard they work when they don’t have to at this point in their life. It’s just so inspirational, because they’re the happiest people. They’re the nicest people. They will do anything for you.
Toni: Oh, that’s fantastic. Anybody else?
Jeromy: I’m going to go with the cheesy answer and say my wife. She’s a pediatric nurse at Reading Hospital, and being in this business, how many hours I work, and to see her take care of our kids when I’m not around, run our household, and still be dedicated to the nursing profession. I go home and night and I’m ready to complain about how many hours I just worked and then I stop and think, she’s at least worked as hard as I have today, probably harder. I just try to live up to her work ethic.
Toni: It’s really you are inspired by people who work hard.
Jeromy: Yes.
Toni: That is what is coming through this entire interview is that inspires you, that motivates you, and at the end of the day whether it’s your wife having a healthy child, the people in the community that are doing work when they don’t have to and they are happy, and seeing happy customers.
Jeromy: Yeah. Very much so.
Toni: That’s really interesting. What would you like your legacy to be?
Jeromy: First, I want to be known as a great dad and father. That’s foremost on my mind at all times. I think I want to be known as someone who was passionate about what they did, was good at their job, treated their employees well, and was just of benefit to the community. That’s kind of what I want. It’s not money and cars and houses. That’s the kind of stuff that makes you feel good, knowing that you were part of something.
Toni: Fantastic. Thank you for coming down here as well.
Jeromy: Thank you so much for having me.
Toni: Absolutely. Thank you for being part of the Get Inspired! Project.
Jeromy: Thank you.
