Meet Cierra Andrews
Customer service is Everything!
Hi! My name is Cierra Andrews. First and foremost would like to say how blessed I feel to have this opportunity to share a piece of myself through this article, and I hope that my words find you well. I am 21 years old and I was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. I am a server at a Popular Dallas restaurant, Kitchen and Kocktails. Working here these past 4 months has quickly solidified character traits of mine such as good communication, leadership, and hard work. Through this job, I find that the opportunities for success and elevation are endless.
Growing up I watched my young parents work hard for everything that they had. I remember in third grade my father began the steps toward starting his own trucking company. It was no easy path for him but as a child, the one thing I noticed was even through the storm he continued to get right back on the horse. No minor, or major setback could hold him away from pursuing the success of his company. While my father was out working long distances on his truck my mother looked after my brother and I. Some nights she had to play both roles of mother and father, attending school plays and fundraisers in order to support my father while he was away. During this time they both pushed my brother and I to do well in school and bring home good grades. I was a straight-A student from as young as I can remember all the way through high school. I had always had the goal to try to be good at the things I put my mind to because these were the things that I saw from my parents. I learned very young that no matter how young you are if you put your mind to something it IS achievable. This lesson sparked ambition in a young Cierra.
As I grew older I began to look inward to try to discover what it is that I wanted to contribute to the world. While in high school I enrolled in cosmetology school. My teacher was loving and kind. She was the kind of person that would go out of her way to ensure that every student was heard and understood. That was something that, to this day, resonates with me because I aspire to be like that to everyone I meet. After I obtained my license in cosmetology I knew that I still wanted more. I found myself working a job that I was really good at. I was a trainer and one of the top performers in my area.
I absolutely loved training because that meant I had the ability to not only help the new hires but also help them feel confident in their new roles. After a few months, the love for my job began to diminish. The work environment had become extremely toxic. It was polluted by management sabotaging each other in an environment where they should have been working together. The hours were unbearably long and began to tax my mental health on a daily. It was then that I began to look for a change. My dearest friend from high school and college informed me about Kitchen Kocktails and told me that I should try my hand there. Not even two weeks later, on June 11, I found myself training to be a server. I will admit that I was slightly intimidated upon arrival because it was a fast-paced environment and most of the servers had multiple years of experience. I chose not to let those thoughts hold me back and turned self-doubt into fuel. I made it a goal to master the skill at hand so I could deliver top-tier service to every guest that I encountered.
Working at Kitchen and Kocktails has been a huge stepping stone of opportunity for me. Not only has it enhanced my public speaking skills, but it has also given me newfound confidence. In only four months, I made server lead which has granted me a voice to help better our team. I am also a trainer to the new hires and get to help set a standard of service to our guests. Shortly after taking the lead, I was invited to fly out to Chicago to help with the grand opening of Kitchen and Kocktails—Chicago. To be one of the youngest servers on the team I was absolutely honored to be offered such an opportunity.
I also really enjoy working here because the whole vision behind K+K is to create a space for Black People to really feel good and confident in themselves in a nice environment. This resonates with me because I aspire to write a children's book to help little black girls and boys to feel truly confident in themselves and their unique broad features. I am reminded every day when I step through the door to go to work that I am capable, strong, and able to perform on a high standard. This job offers endless possibilities through the customers I meet and I feel nothing but blessed to be employed by Kitchen and Kocktails.
