Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Quaisser.
Nicole, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’m from Hamburg Germany where my parents managed several restaurants – I grew up in the kitchen and front of house. I knew that I wanted to make a career in hospitality so I apprenticed at the Grand Elysée Hotel in Hamburg while completing coursework in hotel and restaurant management.
I left Hamburg for London in the early 90’s to work for Hilton International. I worked for Hilton properties in New York and Guam before coming to The Drake Hotel in Chicago. From 1993 to 2002 I was The Drake’s Director of Catering and Convention Services. After leaving The Drake I was the GM at the Mid-America Club and then the GM of First & Fresh Catering followed by GM of The Clare at Water Tower.
In 2009, my husband Stephan and I opened our first restaurant, LM in Lincoln Square, named after our two children, Luc and Mary. That’s how LM Restaurant Group began, with one restaurant. After that we went on to open Troquet Ravenswood, Brasserie by LM in the South Loop, Brasserie 54 in Andersonville and Troquet River North. During that time, we also began to focus more attention on LM Catering & Events, our catering company. We are now the exclusive caterer and on-site event management team at three of Chicago’s top venues; City View Loft, Lacuna Artist Lofts and The Zhou B Art Center in addition to operating as a full-service catering company.
On the restaurant side, we’ll be opening a new restaurant in the LondonHouse Hotel this Summer and will be going back into Chicago’s Essex Inn (where Brasserie by LM was located) when renovations are complete in 2019.
Outside of work I’m very involved with Lawrence Hall, a Chicago non-profit who has been delivering high quality care to abused and neglected youth and their families for 150 years. I also love to ride horses-I try to make an effort to ride at least once a week.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Anytime you embark on an opening your own business, no matter the industry, there are definitely going to be some challenges. Our biggest challenge I would say came when we started to grow our catering business. People in Chicago knew our restaurants and we were known as restaurant operators but no one knew us as a caterer. It definitely took some time to grow our market share in catering and for people to start recognizing us as a competitor in the field.
We had to spend a lot of time attending networking events, marketing, growing our social media and online presence in order to change the perception of being just a restaurant group.
Since we grew so quickly, we added all three venues to our portfolio in about a year and a half, we also experienced some operational challenges associated with such large growth.
LM Catering & Events – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
LM Restaurant Group is a family-owned hospitality company that specializes in creating intimate local gathering places that deliver great food and down-to-the- last detail service. Our portfolio includes an eclectic assortment of hotel restaurants, catering venues and investments that all share a common goal: making people feel cared for.
Founded in 2009 by Nicole and Stephan Outrequin Quaisser, LM Restaurant Group is the unifying brand behind LM Catering & Events, Troquet River North, City View Loft, Lacuna Events by LM and The Zhou B Art Center as well as the forthcoming restaurants at the Essex Inn and LondonHouse Hotel.
LM Catering & Events is the team people turn to when they want a different take on catering. We’re cool and artsy and we show people how to think outside the ballroom. Our customers love us because on the one hand we’re a touch unconventional, but on the other we’re completely professional. We pay attention to every last detail. LM Catering & Events is a part of LM Restaurant Group and provides full service catering to the Chicagoland area.
I’m so proud of the level of service we provide our guests and clients. In Chicago people have so many excellent dining options and it’s a great feeling when they choose to go to one of our restaurants and have a wonderful time. It’s the same thing for catering-our team has the opportunity to make someone’s special event or wedding a truly one of a kind experience and we always do everything we can to make their day unforgettable.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
In Germany, healthcare is universal, everyone is covered. In the US that obviously isn’t the case, so it was a great day when we were able to offer our staff health insurance.
Pricing:
- Wedding catering package pricing starts at $95 per person at City View; $105 per person at Lacuna; and $90 per person at Zhou B *prices don’t include venue rental fee
Contact Info:
- Address: 1932 W Lake St. Chicago, IL 60612
- Website: http://www.lmcateringchicago.com/
- Phone: 312-344-1398
- Email: sales@lmrestaurant.com
- Instagram: @lmcateringchi
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lmcateringchicago/
Image Credit:
Pat Furey Photography (At Zhou B Art Center)
ASD Photography (View from City View Loft)
Ed & Aileen Photography (Rooftop at Lacuna)
N Photography (Roasted Salmon with potato puree, haricots verts, roasted tomato vinaigrette)
Laura Witherow Photography (salads on the table at Lacuna)
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
