A restaurant owner who thinks differently

By Ben Trefny,

Todd Whitney

Published March 10, 2015 at 5:36 PM PDT

Jennifer Piallat of Zazie, with some of her employees

Jennifer Piallat has worked in most every aspect of the restaurant industry – dishwasher, waitstaff, chef, manager – and those experiences have informed her decisions as owner of Zazie, a popular bistro in San Francisco's Cole Valley. Her employees receive a living wage, and benefits, and she's testified about her philosophies and process before the U.S. Department of Labor.
"We put in health insurance, established a 401k with a four percent match. We have dental insurance, chiropractic, all those sorts of things I never received in 30 years in the restaurant business." - Jennifer Piallat

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Crosscurrents

Ben Trefny

I joined KALW in 2004. As Executive News Editor and then News Director, I helped our news department win numerous regional and national awards for long- and short-form journalism. I've also helped create numerous training programs — for teenagers, incarcerated people, and early-career journalists — and have taught hundreds of audio producers. I served as interim Executive Director for nearly two years. My work is currently focused on creating original live events, programming, and building partnerships with like-minded organizations.

See stories by Ben Trefny

Todd Whitney

Todd is a radio producer from Chicagoland. Before arriving at KALW in 2013 he produced works for NPR's Tell Me More. He currently roams the Bay Area searching for stories and super sonics.

See stories by Todd Whitney

A restaurant owner who thinks differently

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