Patachou‘s Martha Hoover on surviving the pandemic and prepping to expand (part 1 of 2)

Indianapolis restauranteur Martha Hoover launched her first Cafe Patachou at 49th and Pennsylvania in 1989 and has since expanded her company to 13 eateries spread across several distinct concepts.

Like other restaurants, though, Hoover had to close the doors at all of her Patachou Inc. locations when the pandemic hit, a time she calls "frightening."

But Hoover tells host Mason King — in the first of a two-part interview — that Patachou is now "very healthy," in part because she and her leadership team started making some tough decisions pre-pandemic to streamline and become more efficient.

Now, Patachou is looking to expand.

Tune in next week for part 2 of King's interview with Hoover, when she explains what she thinks the public — and especially the media — don't understand about the restaurant business.

The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.