Restaurateur, Entrepreneur, Coach, and Speaker

Barry Jessurun is restaurateur, entrepreneur, coach, author, and speaker, who specializes in helping people develop their narrative and take actionable steps to develop themselves, their career, and their business.

As a Restaurateur and Entrepreneur Barry’s main role is that of a Storyteller. Barry works to create stories within which people feel compelled to interact, both as employees and customers. Like all good storytellers, Barry values sustainability along with the continuation and redundancy of stories.

“Entrepreneurs are artists who create with words” – BJ

Entrepreneurs are artists who create with words. They help to invent reality. All entrepreneurs are storytellers. They all create and generate a narrative that produces excitement in other people. This translates into a product and/or service in the marketplace – the better the story, the more compelling the product or service.

Barry is currently President of Green Valley Hospitality and co-owner and founding partner of four restaurants in Northeastern Connecticut. These restaurants are The Vanilla Bean Café in Pomfret, 85 Main in Putnam, Dog Lane Café in Storrs, and Fenton River Grill in Mansfield.

Barry is the main founder and lead designer of all the locations in the group, from the kitchen and bar design to the overall look and feel of each location. He works with his partners and employees to create comfortable places of hospitality, for not only guests, but employees and vendors. To him, everyone is a customer and needs to be treated as such.

Barry is a graduate of the Business Professionals Course (now aji.com) based in Sunnyvale California, and participated in their LEIP Program (Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Power) for three years after graduation. Through his education he was able to design more effective ways of educating and training his employees, as well as the design of new offers and creating a compelling narrative.

Barry draws from over four decades in the hospitality industry

Part of Barry’s narrative is helping others to succeed. He knows that the restaurant industry is just a steppingstone in many young people’s career, and he works to educate them and expose them to new thinking, philosophies, and practices that will help to propel them into a career of their choosing. Therefore, he refers to his restaurants as ‘young person development agencies.’

“Barry draws from his own experiences to craft the perfect recipe to succeed as an employee or boss in any professional setting.”

~ Megan Feragne, U.S. Fulbright Scholar and Bilingual Children’s Book Author

Drawing from over four decades in the hospitality industry, Barry has taken his experience of working with, educating, and coaching young people and complied it into a self-help/career advice book. His book, The Drunkard’s Path, is immensely helpful for anyone who is looking to learn the thinking, practices and skills that can help them advance in whatever career they choose.