WITH FOUR LOCATIONS and two more restaurants opening this year, the owners of Bistro Byronz have worked hard to create a concept that is not only successful, but also scalable. That’s a tall task in the highly competitive and ever-changing restaurant industry. 

“It is interesting and unique, but approachable,” says CEO Emelie Kantrow Alton, who leads the development, growth and overall performance of the group along with her brother, COO Brock Kantrow, who heads up the operational side of the expanding
business. “There’s a breadth of the menu, but it all fits under Bistro, which is our core point of difference.”

Bistro Byronz opened its doors in Baton Rouge Mid City 11 years ago. Since then, the concept has proven successful in Shreveport, Mandeville and a second Baton Rouge location inside The Settlement at Willow Grove. A fifth Bistro Byronz is coming soon to Zachary as part of the contemporary neighborhood development, Americana.

Additionally, the group has plans to offer another unique, French-inspired dining experience with Flambée Café, opening inside Willow Grove in May. The new concept features the Tarte Flambée, the “hot French cousin of pizza,” as the menu’s signature centerpiece. The new Flambée Café will take a French-inspired approach to the current artisanal pizza craze.

With all the success and expansion happening right now, the company is also rebranding its restaurant group as Byronz Restaurant Family. “To us, an  important word is family,” says Alton. “The values and approach of our restaurant and hospitality group are driven by the notion of family. Our bistros are an innovative take on the ‘neighborhood restaurants’ of France, and our new concept will take that same approach but in a smaller footprint, café experience with an entirely different menu. They’re all in the same ‘family’ of experiences and all have some inspiration from our French and Louisiana roots.”

Alton points to four things that the company considers the key to Byronz Restaurant Family’s success today: product, process, place and people. 

“The pinnacle of it all is the ‘product,’ our menu and food,” Alton says. 

Bistro Byronz provides French- and Louisiana-inspired bistro fare, with the kind of quality and consistency that today’s consumers require. “You can come for lunch on Tuesday and have a Bistro salad and can come back on Thursday night and eat a Steak Frite without thinking twice about being in the same place.”

The group has also put best-in-industry “processes” in place to ensure the entire experience, from service to food to the intangibles are not only meeting, but exceeding, customers’ and the business’s expectations. 

“We spend a tremendous amount of time paying attention to the back office—the systems we put in place and technologies used to implement them—to ensure we are running a business that creates value for our customers and therefore for our organization and investors,” explains Kantrow. “It is something the general public doesn’t always think about, but today’s high-performing restaurant groups are quite dependent on process, systems and technology to drive value on both levels. The operating system is part of what is allowing us to begin to scale and grow our group in terms of bistros in new markets—and new concepts like Flambée Café.”

The “place,” as Alton describes it, is a distinct focus on high-opportunity locations, where these types of bistros and cafes can create community through food and experience. “We didn’t create the bistros to be destination restaurants, but we’ve benefited from the best of both worlds.”

The attention to detail goes far beyond the location. The music, the unique décor and other interior finishes create a charming but also an exciting setting. Whether a business lunch, a family dinner or a first date, everyone seems to find their place at Bistro Byronz. 

The restaurant group also provides a great workplace for its “people.” “We work extremely hard to create an environment that our team is happy to work in and that provides opportunity for personal and career growth,” Kantrow says. “In return we find that our employees create an experience that makes our customers happy.”