He was a waiter at La Rural and his food business now serves 10,000 people at a time

In these times of algorithms, robots and social networks that also homogenize the tastes of the palate, the idea came to Daniel Méndez recover traditions and transform the gastronomic service. By the way, he doesn’t lack work.

At the age of ten he began to accompany his father, the “Colo” Méndez, an emblematic waiter of the central restaurant of the Rural Society and always ready to pay attention to the cabañeros who gathered every July at the livestock show to celebrate the champion breeds

Daniel Méndez, now 66, retains that obsession that motivated, from his work with the tray in the same Central restaurant, the creation of ByC.

This gastronomic group serves a twenty seats and has just expanded into Uruguay and Paraguay.

Naturally, logistics are managed that cannot fail sophisticated technological system, with the click of a button.

How did you relate to the powerful?

In the early days, Méndez combined his work at La Rural “always with the tray,” as he points out, with other venues such as the now extinct Mao Mao bar and Palermo Turf. It was the springboard he needed to relate to the “powerful and the jet set of the time”, scroll to Clarion.

And from orders for the organization of parties or the catering service, “step by step and with a few leaps”, as he underlines, he has developed a business of large proportions.

It grew from attention to Boca boxes, Instituto de Córdoba, Ferro and even Racing to name a few clubs, the great River recitals, festivals such as Primavera Sound, the gastronomy of the Movistar Arena and the Cirque de Soleil, Luna Park, North Park and up to Casa FOA.

Your latest challenge is exclusive events in Punta del Este, the club boxes Peñarol and the opening of ByC in Paraguay, where “everything has to be done”.

It has 150 monthly employees which grows to 600 during large events. “We provide services for more than 10,000 people at the same time,” He underlines it with that pride that characterizes self-made men.

He says it’s essential relationship with your suppliers in what is almost a round trip as he buys from them and they open more doors for him.

This is the case of Swift, Nestlé, Arcor, Unilever and McCain.

He confesses that growth in his sector is not so much a question of price but rather the certainty that the service will not be lacking, which implies a great resource mobilization like cold trucks in the case of recitals.

Another secret: “A staff with attitude“, something he tries to convey to his teams through his story: “I never forget it “I am and will be a young man.”

As always we go back to the origins, Méndez recalls that the specialty of those times in Rural was roast with leather and scrambled gramajo, two dishes now out of use.

What was the Cabañeros’ favorite drink?

And the requested drink, the “Tom Collins” which was born in the bars of New York in 1876, in homage to a legend of the nascent city and ten years later the Rural itself founded in 1866. There were cabañeros who had their invariable menu.

This was the case with Barreto. Every year he stopped by the Rural early to place the order with which he honored his guests: a one kilo cut of loin heart. The cook already knew Barreto’s phrase “At 1pm I will be there for lunch”. That loin heart is called Barreto.

And, in fact, he called Barreto, the meat restaurant that has opened the most nerve center of the Podere Rurale of Palermo.

Look for it to be your sign. Invested 400 thousand dollars for the setup and added the renowned Lucas Russo, formerly of Hotel Alvear and LLao Llao, as chef.

Méndez confesses that his strong point is quality, volume management and negotiating pulse in months of high inflation.

-Are you afraid of weak cows? is asked given the expected decline in activity.

-Business involves risk and I like risk, almost recklessly.