Vol. 5 No. 1, January 2008
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It’s not the sizzle, it’s the two million steaks
Bertha Stewart, Grill Chef • Virginia City Buffet • Bally’s Atlantic City
McDonald’s has company. The corporation famous for “billions of customers served” inspired Bally’s Virginia City buffet officials to check their unofficial records. Those records revealed that grill chef Bertha Stewart has served more than 2.5 million New York Strip Steaks, by herself, in the last decade.
Can the Guinness World Record be far off?
“You cook thousands and thousands of them and you never keep track,” says Stewart. “But then somebody told me that I had served a couple million or so. To me, that was funny; I could hardly believe it.”
The Camden native and mother of two has been a Bally’s employee since day one (Bally’s is approaching its 30th anniversary). Her remarkable numbers accrued shift by shift, steak by steak, year after year—approximately 1,000 steaks a day and 5,000 per week.
Stewart has seen between 200 and 300 people standing in line for steaks that cook 100 at a time on a massive grill. She enjoys meeting new people, and savors her friendships with senior citizens, many who have become familiar faces. She also appreciates the effect food has on business.
“When people have a full stomach, it’s not growling anymore and they will be happy to stay longer and play,” says Stewart, smiling. “When they see their food cooked right in front of their face, they enjoy the experience even more. Some of them said it was better than their wife’s cooking, or that they can’t chew other steaks as easily as they can chew these.”
Stewart juggles a full lineup. Anticipating the crunch of customers, she starts putting steaks on just before they arrive. Orders pour in, especially during the summer or on double-coupon nights.
Customers don’t have to wait long. A rare steak may take only three minutes to prepare, and a well-done version requires but six minutes. It’s a culinary assembly line. Stewart is a sought-after commodity, with customers choosing her station from the buffet’s abundant offerings.
“We deal more with the public than the restaurant business does,” says Stewart, who worked in a restaurant for more than 20 years before coming here. “We’re dealing in thousands and thousands of steaks. Whatever the customers want and whatever keeps them happy will keep them coming here, and that will keep us open.”
Stewart’s effervescent demeanor caught the eye of superiors. She gained high marks in a customer spotlight program—the casino equivalent of a secret shopper program. One customer noted Stewart’s friendly manner and evaluated her strongly. Fortunately for Stewart, that observation went all the way to the top.
“One of the rewards was getting to have lunch with (outgoing top executive) Ken Condon,” Stewart says. “It was great, but I was so nervous the night before, I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t know what to wear or what to expect. It was wonderful. A group of us had lunch at his office, with him. Ken wanted to know what we needed, if there was anything he could do to help us serve our customers.”
In this case, the best strategy is simply to let Bertha Stewart carry on.
