Whether it’s on the front lawn or in the cozy indoor space, the Prairie Whale invites customers to sit, stay, and relax a while. Photo courtesy Prairie Whale. “Local foods, beer, stews, live music, ping pong. What’s not to love?” —Justin Soffer, CEO of Travel Zoo and frequent Prairie Whale visitor As anyone in the restaurant business can tell you, one of the most significant challenges is sustainability—keeping the food moving (nothing wasted), keeping business up, and still giving staff time off to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Few career choices have as many built-in occupational difficulties—grueling hours, intense demands, ramped-up weekends, and shifting staff and clientele, to name just a few. So when an owner/operator stays in business for more than two decades, as Mark Firth has—and two chefs with the creativity and credentials to go anywhere remain loyal for an equally impressive amount of time, as Steve Browning and Dan Studwell have—there’s got to be a reason. Schwartz and Firth with their children after moving to their Berkshire farm. Photo by Mark Mahaney. Leaving an empire for a country farm Mark Firth and Bettina Schwartz, co-owners of Prairie Whale in Great Barrington, clearly have the right stock […]
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