Nourishing others feeds restaurateur
Each month ``Transitions" profiles an individual who has made significant changes in his or her work life and highlights the techniques used to make the changes.
While splitting firewood one summer afternoon at a family place in Vermont, Wyeth Lynch and his father decided to experiment with smoking ribs on the grill. Using stones from the driveway, they partitioned the flame from the meat and let it smoke for several hours.
The experiment was a success, yielding not just an evening meal but, unexpectedly, a new career path for Lynch.
Lynch had worked for three years as a market researcher for Boston-based high technology research firm Aberdeen Group. An English major and former standout football player at Williams College, Lynch had been hired for his ability to turn technical jargon into readily understandable prose for executives.
``I thought it was something I should be doing," Lynch said. But over time he grew disenchanted with the work. When the company downsized and he got laid off in early 2003, he was ``relieved. I wasn't getting anything out of it. I was in the wrong place."
Lynch remembers thinking , ``Now do I go out and do what I should be doing? Because if I do, I have no idea what that means."
Lynch also pointed to the death of his older sister Katie, who had been severely disabled from birth, as precipitating his loss of interest in work. She died six months before Lynch was laid off.
When the layoff came, Lynch drew unemployment and took time off to consider his options. He thought about writing a book about his sister. He had ``a couple of interviews" with venture capitalists his father, who is in the business, had put him in touch with. But his heart wasn't in it. He considered pursuing music, ``always a huge passion of mine," citing blues jams with his brother and father and times in high school bands.
But mostly Lynch recalled the time after Katie's death as ``extremely hard. I was totally numb. . Life had no excitement."
But the afternoon splitting wood and barbecuing lit a spark in Lynch. ``Barbecue gave me a reason to get out of bed in the morning," he recalled.
Cooking is in his genes. Lynch said his father is a ``huge cook. He was always the one who cooked the family meals, not my mother."
Lynch bought four books on barbecue and started trying larger dishes. The notion of ``scalability and efficiency" appealed to him. ``It's the same amount of time and fuel for larger quantities. You just need more space," Lynch said.
Soon he was producing too much for his family to consume. ``When I get into something, I really get into it," Lynch said. He started vacuum-packing the food, taking it back to his apartment in the North End and inviting friends over to watch the Patriots and eat barbecue on weekends.
``I might have had 35 people coming through in the course of a day," Lynch recalled. ``We even had two different couples announce their engagements there. I just enjoyed it. I felt like I was being of use to somebody."
One night a friend said : ``I really think you should start a restaurant. And I'd like to invest in it." Although he initially thought ``it was a crazy idea," it started the wheels turning for Lynch.
``I started thinking that maybe this is something worth doing, taking on a career path where I believe in the product, which is more than just barbecue. You're offering an experience," he said.
Lynch then plunged into extensive first-hand research, meeting with several local restaurateurs and chefs, traveling to Kansas City, Memphis, and Texas, and spending a week working at a barbecue restaurant in New York City.
He also worked with several experienced consultants in the restaurant business, one of whom helped him set up the PC-based accounting system that Lynch now uses.
Lynch took over the lease last New Year's Day and opened for business at the end of June. The restaurant is a unique reflection of Lynch's passions and past. It combines southern-style barbecue, soul music, and an open, 75-seat design that is unusually disabled-friendly, with extra wide aisles and two handicapped accessible doors. ``Katie always loved to eat out," Lynch recalled.
And football -- the Patriots are on a huge flat screen on the wall.
The restaurant, situated roughly halfway between BU and BC and just off the Commonwealth Avenue Green Line, picks up the youthful market and foot traffic.
The firewood stacked neatly in the basement work area is separated into red oak, hickory, and maple. ``We usually cook with a blend," Lynch said, explaining that barbecue, or smoking, is indirect cooking, versus grilling, which is cooking over direct heat. Barbecue is done at low heat and for a long time, up to 14 hours for some dishes. ``Low and slow" is the catch phrase, Lynch said.
He currently puts in 12-16 hours a day, 7 days a week. ``It doesn't bother me," he said, ``I'm eager to come in every day."
While business is ``good but needing to grow," he is clearly pleased about having a ``top day of 200 tickets," or receipts.
Lynch said it takes at least $500,000 to get a restaurant of his size launched. SoulFire's backing is all private, including some of his own money. While drawing a salary ``as small as I can," he expects the restaurant to run at a loss for one to two years, which he said is standard in the business. He acknowledges that it is a ``huge risk."
But Lynch is confident the restaurant will succeed ``if the quality of the food is there, the systems are in place, and we stick with the plan," he said.
With no spouse or significant other to encourage him, Lynch's primary personal support comes from his family, which he says is ``absolutely" behind him.
``It's not where I am today," Lynch said. ``It's more important that I am growing toward something."
Do you have a career transition story you would be willing to share? If so, e-mail transitions@bostonworks.com. Please give your name, number, and a brief description of your change. 
