Martha's Way or The Highway
A peek behind the curtain at Chef Ryan Beck’s scratch-made operation in Cleveland
Chef Ryan Beck | Photos: Will BLunt
Plenty of folks fantasize about opening a restaurant—what it’ll look like, smell like, feel like. But far fewer actually want to crunch the numbers. Chef Ryan Beck is proudly in the minority. His Cleveland micro-diner, Martha On The Fly, has a simple solution to keeping food costs between twenty and twenty-five percent: make everything that you possibly can from scratch.
From the beef baloney to the milk buns, just about everything is made in-house to guarantee the freshest ingredients and highest quality control possible. Whatever can’t be made in-house, like eggs, Beck sources from local purveyors who can keep up with their demand while keeping costs low. “We want you to feel like you're in a diner in a way—so recognizable, approachable,” Beck says. “There's improvement to be had by being able to control the ingredients yourself and the final product.” That improvement, of course, comes to the forefront in flavor and consistency, especially considering the volume the restaurant does. Beck’s team goes through their biggest push during the warmer months, when Martha On The Fly, which is open seven days a week, does 300 covers on the weekend.
That sort of demand means the breakfast and lunch joint is cranking out about 900 buns and going through 2,400 eggs per week, among other ingredients. In the winter, even when business is slower, prep projects still need to get done. “In the summer, we are able to make a decent amount of money, and then that gets us through the winter.” Despite the high volume, the brick-and-mortar only seats eight to nine people. The fix for the low capacity? The majority of the restaurant’s sales are takeout orders, and ninety percent of the cooking is steered to the griddle.
House Corned Beef, Sauerkraut, Black Garlic Aïoli, Chives, English Muffin
Shirley: Egg Patty, House Bologna, American Cheese, Caramelized Onions, Tomato Jam, Sunshine Sauce, Toasted Milk Bun
Although Beck’s house-made mindset no doubt comes along with some labor sinks here and there, it also allows him to save money while investing in a team of skilled, intrinsically bought-in cooks. He says job openings are rare. “The majority of our staff has been with us since we opened. Part of that is because we found the right people who wanted to be challenged. There's a lot of learning and education involved,” Beck says. “Instead of buying our buns, roast beef, or steak from Sysco, they're going through that entire process themselves.”
With no overhead debt, lower food costs, consistent business, and labor that demands trainable skills, Beck is able to offer a rather competitive wage for foodservice in Cleveland. When it opened in 2022, starting pay at Martha On The Fly was 16 bucks an hour, plus tips distributed evenly across the house. “During the summer, people are averaging 30 dollars an hour. We’re giving them paid time off.”
“This well-oiled machine runs how it does because of our space, but it’s an organizational mountain. Low entry, low risk made sense, but now it’s time to make it a full-service diner, as it was intended,” Beck says as he looks to the future of his business—a future that requires the dedication of many more people. “It takes time to build that trust and make sure that you've got the right people with the right intentions. So, I make it worth their while. I'm going to help them and guide them in any way I can.”
