When Family Theater Productions premieres its latest YouTube series, Hospitality in Action: Serving With Heart, on Dec. 2, the first episode visits a place enshrined in the hearts (and stomachs) of many entertainment-industry folks ... John O'Groats.
Breakfast With Biscuits
On a recent morning, I dropped by the restaurant, located on Pico Boulevard in West Los Angeles, sat at a gingham-covered table, ordered coffee and a couple of their famous biscuits (one to eat, one to take home) and watched folks come in.
Regulars took their place at the counter; a young family with kids settled into a table near the front window; and NFL player turned TV host Michael Strahan even made an appearance.
Overseeing it all was John O'Groats' second-generation owner, Catholic Paul Tyler, who's continuing his parents' tradition of operating a homey breakfast-and-lunch restaurant just down the street from the famous Fox studios.
Serving the Rich and Famous ... and Everyone Else
In fact, I first visited John O'Groats (named for a famous place in Scotland) at the behest of a longtime pal, TV producer Howard Gordon (24, Homeland, Tyrant, Accused). He has long worked on the Fox lot, the denizens of which -- Gordon included -- treat John O'Groats as almost the adjunct studio commissary..
Asked by text about the restaurant, Gordon writes:
In a time during which great food and friendly service have become increasingly hard to find, Paul has maintained these generational family values that have made John O'Groats a mainstay of the community and a must-see Los Angeles institution.
As for his favorite biscuit, Gordon goes for the one that started it all, writing:
Old school ... OG.
The previous week, after the restaurant closed for the day, Tyler and I sat down to discuss the phenomenon that is John O'Groats, which has been in business since 1982 (and in its current location since 1984).
"Here's what I say," Tyler explains, "I treat everybody the same, and I treat everybody with an open heart. That's essentially, I think, what people feel when they come here.
"Because a guy that worked with me once told me, 'A steak can only taste so good, right? But it's the feeling that you have when you walk through the door.' And it's the feeling that you have when you're able to talk to Jim and Bob and Ken, and all these people.
"This is what I really love about our industry, or my business anyways, is that we have such a great cross-section of people that come in through the door.
"I have billionaires that come here, and truck drivers and grandmas. I have Catholics and Jews and Muslims and Sikhs. So, there's so many people, but I love that so many people come here, because they find comfort here."
In a Town More Known for Failure Than Success ...
Anyone who's watched Gordon Ramsay's Fox series Kitchen Nightmares, or the restaurant dramedy The Bear on FX/Hulu, has gotten a taste of how frenetic and difficult running a restaurant can be. And Los Angeles is no different.
Wrote The Hollywood Reporter on Oct. 2:
In this century’s first two decades, [Los Angeles] had become America’s most relevant and talked-about dining capital — fueled by affordable commercial rents, innovative talent and its access to choice ingredients from local purveyors. Post-pandemic, it’s suffering from an unending gastro-crisis.
But somehow, John O'Groats endures.
"It's about adapting," says Tyler. "It's about adapting to what's going on around us. We've got some really cool stuff that's going to be happening in the next year, and I think it's about evolving.
"My mom and dad started this business, and it was a 20-seat counter. So, my mom and dad went into that space on a month-to-month basis. They didn't even have a lease. It was a leap of faith.
"They built their business within a couple of years. Because it was down the street from Fox, and it has such a unique look to it, that people gravitated. It was cute and cozy, and we've been able to maintain that cozy feel.
"We had a downpour last week, and it was packed. People feel very comfortable in here in the rain. I prefer when the weather's poor, because we're busier. People want to come in for a warm bowl of oatmeal or pancakes."
The Meaning of True Hospitality
Tyler's philosophy fits in with what Hospitality in Action producer Alan Hewitt had in mind.
"Hospitality is the ultimate display of attention," Hewitt says. "By being welcoming to someone, waiting on them, and offering them what is beyond just the necessary, you show them that you notice them and are actively preoccupied with making sure they are cared for, comfortable, and, ultimately, loved."
Tyler is Catholic, and many of the people and institutions featured in the series are connected to the Church. But, for Hewitt, it's larger than that.
He says, "Hospitality is already very 'catholic' in nature, in that it ought to be universal. Mother Teresa once said that we've forgotten that we belong to each other. Hospitality reminds us of this truth.
"While hospitality is practiced in many secular places, and we experience good service in different sectors of the industry, the Catholic worldview adds a transcendent element to it.
"Beyond being gracious for the sake of being nice, Catholic hospitality invites us to recognize the dignity and worth we all possess as children of God, called to union with Him and each other."
Tyler echoes that, saying, "I told people my wealth isn't in my bank account. It's in my relationships, and I feel like I'm the richest guy in town."
Not All Ministries Are in a Church ... And Some Have Biscuits
While John O'Groats welcomes everyone, one wall in the restaurant's larger dining room features Catholic art, much of it from Tyler's mother. Looking at it, he recalls reading Evangelical preacher Rick Warren's book The Purpose-Driven Life and thinking about a question it asked.
Tyler says, "He's talking about what our ministries are, what is that, how we ... And I thought, 'Well, then this is it. This is my ministry, John O'Groats.'"
Future episodes of Hospitality in Action: Serving With Heart (click here for the playlist) premiere on Tuesdays through Jan. 9. Take a look at the series trailer:
And, freshly landed on YouTube, welcome to John O'Groats:
Images: Family Theater Productions/John O'Groats
Kate O’Hare, a longtime entertainment journalist, is Social Media Content Manager and Blog Editor at Family Theater Productions.
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