Owning a restaurant isn’t for everyone, but for Michaila Cowles…it’s everything.

3/28/2018

Most sixteen year olds are thinking about a weekend date or what to wear on Monday. But when Michaila Cowles was sixteen she was thinking business and she was not thinking small!

It doesn’t take long chatting with Michaila to know that she is goal and career driven. At 23 years old she’s already made a success of Huckleberry’s, a casual-dining restaurant, in downtown Tryon.

Michaila and her family moved to Polk County from New England for a lot of reasons and like a lot of area transplants…escaping the long and cold winters of New England and those occasional “nor’easters” was one deciding factor. She entered Polk County High and graduated early at age 16. Michaila always knew she wanted to cook and even as a young girl was experimenting in her grandmother’s kitchen. She remembers one time choosing special spices based on the “pretty” color of the jar tops and enjoyed concocting a meatloaf and cinnamon dish that to this day she does NOT serve in her restaurant. That was Michaila’s start in the food business and she’s never looked back.

Michaila started running a bakery in Lake Lure (also called Huckleberry’s) while in high school and at age 16 she could smell success. She enrolled in Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte concentrating in several disciplines including culinary arts, food service, hospitality & tourism, and bakery & pastry. Michaila finished a six-year program in four…and that doesn’t surprise me one bit. All of that added to her already solid experience with her own bakery and on New Year’s Eve 2014 she opened the current Huckleberry’s.

Michaila wears all the hats in the business but she’s not alone. A staff of nearly 15 takes care of running the restaurant open seven days a week. Her family is also involved; her mom handles marketing, sister helps everywhere, and dad even designed and built the woodstove that cooks all the wood-fired specialties. She says she has the best staff and keeping a good staff is one of the challenges for any business owner.

One of Huckleberry’s unique touches is the placement of a spiral-bound notebook on each table. Each notebook, complete with attached ballpoint pen, is meant for customers to fill in the “life” of that table. It’s a great way to spend wait time reading comments from others and adding your own. Michaila saves all the filled notebooks. This author is thinking there’s a book coming out of those notebooks one day!

Owning a restaurant isn’t for everyone, but for Michaila it’s everything. She enjoys being her own boss but it has its downfalls including the long hours. Michaila wears all hats and some days floats between front of house duties and kitchen work. “Some days I don’t have a set job, other days I’m dedicated to the chef whites and am working on the line. Some days I get to dress like the girls and wait tables, and there are days I’m staying late washing dishes. It’s all good.”

She does offer a bit of advice to anyone thinking of starting a business like hers…try it first! It’s not an easy life. In fact it’s hard. Long hours, every day, all year. It takes a lot to open a restaurant and even more to keep it going. Huckleberry’s is successful for several reasons including Michaila’s drive and hard work and the dedication of her staff. Of course having great food helps!

More to Know: Huckleberry’s is open seven days a week and is located at 62 North Trade Street (the main drag) in downtown Tryon. 828/ 436-0025. The restaurant seats about 120 counting indoor and outdoor patio seating. Boots & breeches are always welcome and dogs can join their people parents on the patio. Beer and wine are available now and a new full bar will have a grand opening on May 5 with 19 North Carolina distilleries offering tastings. In fact, it’s going to be a big celebration with a small section of Trade Street closed for a block party featuring craft vendors, two live bands, and food. Check the website for more info at www.huckleberrystryon.com.

The spelling of Michaila is itself an interesting story. She says she was born during a hailstorm and that’s how the name came about. You’ll need to ask her yourself if this is true.