Women in Hospo: Meet Hailey Waraich

We’re getting up close and personal with some of the clients we work with, and we love a strong woman working behind the scenes and in their business, so who better to kick off this series with than our friend Hailey from Honey Bang Bang.

Over the next few months, we’re going to focus and showcase ALL of the clients we work with, sharing with you the people behind the scenes we get to connect, work with and just love – They are all part of our CLS team.  The foreword will be by me, but my team will facilitate the interviews and articles because I don’t want it to be skewed. Working on this piece with me is the wonderful Natalie.  But  now.. lets chat about one of our SA friends from the Honey Bang Bang restaurant. We spoke with one of the co -founders, Hailey Waraich who I swear is my long-lost soul sister lol. I have a way of connecting with people, and I bloody love it. Chrissy

We’ve had the pleasure of working with Hailey and her husband Montie, over the last few months helping them to showcase the amazing South-East Asian inspired flavours they offer in their vibrant Little Hampton restaurant.  We connected with them via the Rural Business Support Organisation who we have mentored and coached a number of small businesses with over the past 6 months. It’s been an awesome experience and quite humbling to connect, coach and mentor small businesses having a good hard crack and for no fault of their own, have had to deal with the pandemic sweeping thru. There has really been a lot going on!

The venue hasn’t been yet open 12 months and you bet, they had plans to open pre pandemic and next minute 2020 is what happened!! Like starting a new venue isn’t hard enough, throwing an actual pandemic into the mix was A LOT, but these legends persevered, and EVERYONE needs to know about them IMO!

On my recent trip back to SA I also had the pleasure of dining there with my fam and if you were fortunate enough to catch my Insta Stories, you’ll have been no doubt drooling along with us!

Hailey has all of us at CLS wondering how she does it all. With a busy restaurant to run and two young kids to chase, we found her story so inspirational that we just had to share it.

How long have you been working in hospitality? What inspired you to open your own restaurant?

I have been working in hospo for 19 years. My husband inspired me to open our own restaurant because his food is that bloody delicious that everyone should try it! We love food, breathe food, need food and everything is about food in our family, so it was only fitting that we opened our own place together.

Honey Bang Bang opened during 2020, amidst the chaos and uncertainty of the pandemic. Can you tell us what it was like opening a restaurant during these unprecedented times? What were some of the impacts your business experienced because of the restrictions?

SO HARD but rewarding. We couldn’t think of anything else we would want to do other than sharing our food with others. We knew that once the world settled down, food would still be a thing and still be around, it would just mean that business models would need to be modified to fit the future situation.

I think a lot of successful restaurant models now also include takeaway / delivery or pre-packed services which gives a second boost or side income into restaurants and can also be flagged and used as a marketing tool. 

The hardest part was setbacks from banks and consumers being so cautious and forgetting to rally behind their local restaurant or food business.  

Another challenge for us is staff. Before Covid, we’d already noticed that there was a limited pool of kitchen staff in SA. A heap then left the industry, and now the restrictions on international students is heavily impacting on filling gaps. THERE IS JUST NO ONE!!! So it is definitely frustrating and hard to grow your business when you have no one to work alongside you.

How has it been working with our founder, Chrissy from Creative Little Soul? Did you have a connection with Chrissy before you became a client of hers?

NO CONNECTION. But I feel like we absolutely did have a connection. She is my NSW inner soul. DREAM JOB #WORKFORCHRISSYINSA

You run your restaurant with your husband Montie. Tell us, what’s it ‘really’ like working with your husband? Can you share both the pros and cons (asking for a friend!!).

We actually wouldn’t have it any other way! I would never work for another kitchen now without him, and he would say the same about me (Well, I’m telling you he would!). No, we honestly love working together because we both have the same goals, vision, ambition and work ethics, so it’s actually really nice. 

Of course, we have our moments, but we find it very easy. The hardest part is having to juggle our babies around the same working hours. That’s actually the hardest part and constantly having to rely on other people to help us with our kids.

How many kids do you have? And how do you manage to balance your business/family life? Do you have any words of wisdom/secrets to share with our readers?

We have two of the most beautiful kids, a four-year-old and a one-year-old.

It’s a struggle every day and a lot of mum/ dad guilt. We have a very strict routine of who has them. We invest A LOT of time into staff training to ensure that in the absolute emergency situation when one of us can’t be at the restaurant that it can survive without us. We also make sure that our time is 100% with them and focused on them.   Lots of cuddles and love in our house.

ADVICE: Sink or swim! There is NEVER a good time to have them, and life will never be perfect enough to bring them into it. But you will love them, and they will love you and your new “norm” is them.

Since opening your own business, have you had any memorable moments with customers who have simply made your day?  

Everyday! Every time we get a booking, we are incredibly grateful to that person or group who chooses our restaurant over everyone else’s! We love and embrace everyone that comes into Honey Bang Bang and hope that we always fulfil their expectations.  

Can you share any advice with our readers who may be contemplating opening their own restaurant? Be prepared to work really, really, really hard and be very confident in your product. You will have bad days, but back yourself and do not question yourself. We are our own worst critic, and we know when it’s right or wrong, so sometimes you need to cancel out the white noise and focus on pushing through the rough patches. Always stay on your toes – you should never be comfortable in hospitality.

See bloody epic.. and their food and drinks are AMAZING!! Just a short drive from Adelaide and near Hahndorf, do yourselves a favour and visit soon and my pro tip is go hungry and let Hailey select from the menu for you!!

Honey Bang Bang

82 Princes Highway, Littlehampton South Australia 5250

08 8398 3396

www.honeybangbang.com.au

Opening Hours

Friday 11:30am – 2pm & 5:30pm – 9:30pm | Saturday 5:30pm – 9:30pm

Closed Sunday & Monday

Tuesday  5:30pm – 8:30pm

Wednesday 11:30am – 2pm & 5:30pm – 8:30pm

Thursday 11:30am – 2pm & 5:30pm – 8:30pm

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