Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Price's Chef's Jeff Dolson given industry honor

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Tuesday, June 15, 1999

Price's Chef's Jeff Dolson given industry honor
Restaurateur honored for service to industry, community
By Jeffrey Tomich
Caller-Times

   Businessman Jeff Dolson of Price's Chef can explain his philosophy of restaurant management in one sentence.
   "The secret for me is finding the right people, paying them and then getting out of the way and letting them do their jobs," he said from a booth at his Six Points diner.
   The management style must be working. Price's Chef continues to draw a faithful following and Dolson was just named Outstanding Restaurateur for 1998-99 by the Coastal Bend chapter of the Texas Restaurant Association.
   Dolson is one of 20 award recipients across Texas chosen by local restaurant association chapters. They will be honored at the association's Board & Awards Dinner at the Southwest Foodservice Expo in Dallas later this month.
   The Outstanding Restaurateur award is given based on a restaurateur's contributions to the industry, the association and his or her community.
   Dolson's first restaurant job was busing tables at a Sizzler restaurant. He also worked at other restaurants, including Whataburger. But his interest in the business was sparked as a small child, when he tagged along with his father, who distributed groceries to various restaurants around Corpus Christi.
   After graduating from Flour Bluff High School in 1979, Dolson enrolled in restaurant management courses at Del Mar College, but only stayed a year. He left to try new endeavors, including several years spent as an electrician.
   Dolson came back to restaurants in 1990 as manager of Price's Chef, the well-known Alameda Street dining spot that his family had purchased two years earlier. The family also owns Andy's Kitchen, which is managed by Dolson's father and brother-in-law.
   Dolson wasn't involved with the Texas Restaurant Association until several years later, when the City Council considered an ordinance that would have completely banned smoking at restaurants. He said the law would have devastated his business, so he fought it.
   Since then, he has been active in the organization. He has served four years as a board member of the Texas Restaurant Association and was president of the local chapter in 1997-98. Dolson has also chaired the chapter's annual fund-raiser, the Taste of Corpus Christi.

Hechinger Co. will immediately begin liquidating the 89 home improvement stores that the chain plans to close, including the 107,000 square-foot Builders Square II store at Moore Plaza, spokeswoman Lauri Rice said. The store will be closed within 90 days.
   The struggling home improvement chain announced the store closings Friday, the same day the company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization.
   Builders Square moved to Moore Plaza in 1989 and expanded the store in 1992.

Five Star Quality Car Care has opened a second location at 11321 Leopard St. in Annaville. The full-service car wash offers hand washes starting at $9.95 and detail packages starting at $80. The business' first location is 2806 Santa Fe.



On Retailing is published every other Tuesday in the Caller-Times business section. The column includes news of new, relocated and expanded businesses in the Coastal Bend, plus retailing trends and profiles. Ideas may be submitted to: On Retailing, Corpus Christi Caller-Times, P.O. Box 9136, Corpus Christi, Texas 78469; e-mail Jeffrey Tomich at tomichj@caller.com; fax items to (361) 886-3732; or call, (361) 886-4316.