Montgomery Advertiser

Business Q & A

Charlie Philippou
Business: Flip’s Uptown Grill
Title: Co-owner with brother’s Philip and Michael Philippou
Address: 3900 Atlanta Highway and 7900 Vaughn Road
Age: 34
Employees: Approximately 35 to 45 for the two restaurants
Family: Single
Interests: Playing pool and golf

Charlie Philippou and his brothers, Philip and Michael, grew up in the restaurant business in Michigan and opened their own restaurant, Flip’s Uptown Grill on Atlanta Highway in 1993. They added a Taylor Road restaurant in 1997.

How did you get started in business?
We grew up in our parents’ restaurant on the outskirts of Ann Arbor Michigan. Our parents raised us working. From the time we were tall enough to see over the top of a table, we were bussing it. We learned every aspect of a business, and that’s all we’ve ever done. My parent’s restaurant is still there. It has been there going on 40 years. My parents are retired; I have two brothers in Michigan who are still running the restaurant.

How are your restaurants here different from the Michigan one?
We have kind of the 50’s theme; theirs is closer to the real thing because it was there back then. It’s like an old coffee shop, family diner kind of place. My mom was always in the kitchen making the specials and all the soups and the gravies and pies.

What brought you and your brothers to Montgomery?
My father had some other business interests down here originally. We came down and found the corner on the Atlanta Highway.

How did your business get its name?
Flip’s is kind of a spoof off our last name. Growing up in the public schools, they always just called us Flippo or Flip for short.

How do you balance your work and your personal life?
I rely a lot on my staff. That wasn’t always the case. The first several years, we were here day and night. We’ve brought in some good managers who free up some of our afternoon and evening time.

What personal attributes are needed for success in the restaurant business?
You have got to be willing to work. The customers have got to see your face. Most of the time when somebody comes into one of the stores, there will be one of us there. I think that makes a difference.

What are your long-term plans?
We’d like to open more restaurants. We think it’s a good concept.

What part of your work gives you the most satisfaction?
Dealing with the customers. We have a lot of fun with our customers. A huge percentage of our business is the regulars. They know us, and hopefully we give them some satisfaction with the food and the service. We’ve made a lot of good friends down here through our customers.

Do you have any advice for others interested in going into the restaurant business?
You’ve go to be willing to work. I’m at work when I’m at home. We’re always on the phone.

What community activities do you support?
We sponsored 11 Little League teams last year alone. We’re Partners in Education with a couple of elementary schools. We do a lot of giveaways with the schools, such as good conduct certificates. We also do a lot of work with the churches around here.

How has the menu changed over the past decade?
As we try different things, if there’s something that the customers like, we leave it on there. We put a Lone Star Chicken Sandwich on special about four years ago and a lot of people like to be able to come in and have a meat and three.

THE MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER
Monday, December 8, 2003
Business Section, 6B