guY BARSTAD ▲ Long experience leads to great service—and stories B Barstad probably has worked the longest a premiere waiter. From there everywhere he wenttwenty-one he discovered the front of the house, andgravitated toward bartending, hosting and becomingorn and raised on Elm Street in Napa(where his parents still live), Guy of anyone in the Napa Valley hospitality industry. turned to gold, with the magic touch he brought to He’s seen it all and knows just about everyone. A each establishment. He credits his stint at Piatti (now history buff, he is filled with tidbits of just about Redd) in Yountville as the “best time of his life.” He everything “Napa Valley.” He started working in wandered from the restaurant business for seven years restaurants at age fourteen when his uncle landed while he ran Melissa Teaff Catering, but couldn’t him a job at the original Carriage House, behind stay away with a brief stay at the late ZinsValley. Noyes Mansion. “That’s back when they didn’t have Now you can find him at Angèle doing what he does an age restriction to work,” laughed Barstad. He best—treating his customers as if they were family stayed on for ten years, watching then-owner/chef and sharing his stories when he can. Others he keeps Gloria Edwards work and becoming fascinated by discreetly tucked away in the back of his head for use the cooking side of the business. By age seventeen he as character builders in a possible novel about the food was running the kitchen. Between ages nineteen and industry—sure to be a bestseller. photo by ART & CLARITY YuSuF TOPAL OLIVIA EVERETT From Turkey to Napa’s Tarla Arts dynamo looks ahead Y The Turkish-born and -raised business owner has traveled C well as appreciation? That’sould Napa Valley be a centerfor arts employment asusuf Topal, the owner of Tarla Restaurant, believes theNapa Valley is the best place to live and have a business. extensively—by his estimation, over one-third of the world, including part of the goal of Olivia Everett, the Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South America—and is chief executive officer of Arts Council completely in love with the Napa Valley. Surprisingly, Topal feels the Napa Valley. Though the Arts Council United States is inexpensive to live in compared to other developed is primarily known for coordinating, countries. “Napa Valley is heaven. It’s small and clean, and fresh produce is marketing and promoting the arts and art everywhere.” The soil and the land of the Valley were particularly attractive education, Everett would like to create to Topal. Tarla, meaning “field” in Turkish, implies the fertile expanse of jobs for artists, too. That’s all artists, from earth that can nourish the people around it. painters and performers to poets and arts Topal met his wife, Breanna, a longtime Napa resident, while working technicians. on a cruise ship. He fell in love, not only with her, but also with her “There’s no longer any need to go to Italian-American family, who have the philosophy of working hard and San Francisco or Los Angeles,” she says. also living well. Just over “We have plenty of talent here, and three years ago Topal moved people want to live in Napa Valley.” to Napa Valley with Breanna. Before joining the Arts Council in He knew he wanted to open March, Everett spent two years as a board a restaurant, but he waited member. She also co-founded Wandering until he could find the perfect Rose, a volunteer organization in Napa location for his sophisticated photo by ART & CLARITYfocused on developing opportunities in menu of Greek and Turkish the arts, particularly in the alternative fusion cuisine. He chose arts and for younger artists. Wandering Rose created the Battle of the Bands for the revitalizing First Street musicians, the InDIY Culture Fair attended by more than a thousand people, and Tarla became an instant and also published an online magazine. It also spawned Slate Collective Studios favorite hotspot. A year later, and Art Galley downtown, which supports local traditional artists, digital artists, he’s already dabbling with illustrators, graphic designers, musicians and other creative individuals. the idea of expanding. Topal Everett graduated from high school in Napa and has a bachelor’s degree said his priority right now is from the University of Southern California in Cinematic Arts, and Honors in his restaurant, but he looks Multimedia Scholarship from the Institute for Multimedia Literacy. forward to traveling again and sharing Napa Valley Funding has been one of the biggest issues for the Arts Council, but recent stories with the world. changes have guaranteed it part of Transient Occupancy Tax cultural funds. N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 2 17
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