To Thai for

Lolita Harper

The air was thick with excitement. A tropical storm was brewing.

Dozens of staffers and stakeholders braced themselves for the

unleashing of Thaifoon.

The restaurant, rooted in the exotic cuisine of Asia, will make

its public debut at Fashion Island on Monday.

Thaifoon hosted a pre-opening charity dinner Saturday night -- the

first test for the new eatery, its youthful staff and Newport Beach

location. In less than an hour, about 400 members and guests of the

Sophisticates -- a support group of the Assessment and Treatment

Services Center of Orange County -- would file in for a taste of the

Far East.

Dozens of servers, bartenders, cooks and hostesses moved swiftly

around the empty restaurant, making sure every candle was lighted,

the tables were set, the napkins were folded, the bar was stocked,

the rice was steamed, the woks were hot and their attitudes were

cool.

The owner, president, director of training, executive chef and

general manager also worked at an invigorating pace to ensure

stations were properly assigned, ingredients were fresh, last-minute

questions were answered and their team of 100 was ready to serve.

Randy Schoch, the owner, founder and chief executive of parent

company Desert Island Restaurants, called for a halt to the hustle

and gathered his staff for a deep and extremely significant moment of

reflection: the blessing of the restaurant.

Schoch spent years in Hawaii, celebrating his marriage and the

birth of his children there. He holds the spirit of the island, its

traditions and customs in the highest regard.

“Our roots are in Hawaii and it is a big part of our culture,” he

told the dozens of employees gathered for the ceremony. “It’s that

aloha spirit and all the things that are so special about the island

that we try to portray here on the mainland.”

Hawaiian spiritual leader Randy Chang, who wore traditional

ceremonial attire, native beads and no shoes, blessed the restaurant

with Hawaiian salt water, leaves and prayers. Hawaiians traditionally

grow the leaves around homes to protect from evil, he said. The salt

has medicinal purposes and heals and cleanses the body.

Everyone was forced to leave the building to represent a thorough

cleansing, so Chang performed the ceremony on a busy corner of

Fashion Island, surrounded by about 100 employees. His melodic

prayers and chants garnered curious stares from onlookers. The

sincerity of the blessing was taken to heart by the staff, whose

members stared solemnly at the religious leader.

Chang then moved indoors to sanctify the interior, while the rest

of the staff waited outside.

“Of all the years that I have done this, I have only missed one

blessing and that restaurant failed,” said Schoch, who also owns two

other Thaifoons, three Roy’s and three Ruth’s Chris Steakhouses. “So

we don’t miss any more blessings.”

Once the ceremony was finished, everyone moved back inside for

last-minute instructions and review of the night’s event.

Schoch addressed his crew and infused in them a sense of pride for

the great work they had done so far and would continue to do.

“Anyone can come in and build a structure and open a restaurant,

but it’s the people that work here that make the difference,” Schoch

said. “We have a practice of hiring people with high levels of warmth

and spirit and dedication and that is what each of you possess.”

Brent Rumph, the director of training, broke down the tiny details

of the evening, from appropriate responses to customers’ questions to

menu items. He made sure each person knew their assignment, the

restaurant, the layout, the teamwork. Everything.

“Everything you do on the floor tonight affects everyone else,”

Rumph said. “It affects the whole restaurant because it is a team

effort to get this all done.”

While the staff pays attention to details, Rumph said it must also

use its instinct and overall personality when things get busy.

“It’s a restaurant, not a piano,” he said. “We can’t fine tune

it.”

Above all, have fun and share your enthusiasm with the clientele

to create a matchless dining ambience, restaurant leaders emphasized.

Employees were again delegated to their areas and the prepping

took on a more feverish pace. Obvious details, such as the placement

of tables and chairs, were taken care of. As were the most subtle

details, such as trimming of tiny fresh mint leaves for drink

garnishes.

Servers, sharply dressed in all black, scouted their posts and

ensured their stations were stocked. They reviewed the menu and

quietly tested their knowledge of the food.

Emily Allan, who is new to the company but not the restaurant

industry, said she enjoyed the intense training and looked forward to

the night’s test.

“I think it’s a lot of fun,” she said. “I think the people are way

cool. I’m really excited.”

Hostesses analyzed the floor plan and prepared the front desk for

the throng of people who would flood the restaurant within minutes.

While the velocity in the front of the restaurant was swift, the

kitchen was busy.

Executive Chef Garrett Cho took charge of his domain and

double-checked every last detail. His cooks manned each of the six

cooking stations and readied themselves to prepare signature dishes,

such as pad tai, spicy jewel beef, peanut chicken and chopsticks

chicken salad.

About 15 homemade sauces were neatly organized and easily

accessible to add bold and accentuating taste to dozens of fresh

ingredients. The heat from the woks on one side of the six-man line

system was contrasted by the coolness of the opposite facing counter,

which held crisp culinary components such as sliced carrots, snow

peas, red pepper and broccoli.

Tantalizing aromas mixed with an air of enthusiasm to create an

exhilarating scene behind a decorative waterfall designed to shield

customers from the activity.

As the hungry crowd anxiously gather outside, restaurant officials

gave the place a final once-over. The dark wood tables were spotless.

The indigenous wall hangings and decorations were perfectly placed.

The staff was ready. The lighting was dimmed to perfection. It was

time.

The doors were opened and the storm began.

* LOLITA HARPER covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at lolita.harper@latimes.com.