Mitali Kasliwal’s (SHA’22) Summer Internship at The Envoy Hotel’s New Pop-up Restaurant
Mitali Kasliwal (SHA’22) works as an intern at The Envoy Hotel‘s new pop-up restaurant: Para Maria. It is a Latin American-inspired restaurant with tacos, street corn, and some amazing paletas (popsicles). She works with Chef Tatiana Rosana, the Executive Chef at Hersha Hospitality. In addition to her internship, Kasliwal works with the Student Government Events Department for a Back-to-School event and enjoys seeing her friends whenever she has the chance. Continue reading to learn more about Kasliwal’s experience at SHA and at Para Maria.
Where are you originally from and what made you decide to come to BU?
I am from Queens, NY and I came to BU because I wanted to be at a school in another city. I liked that BU was close enough to home where I could go back whenever I wanted/needed to but it wasn’t too far where I would have to fly to get there. I also liked the fact that BU is a big school so I knew I would meet new people and friends in whatever I did.
What are you studying here in SHA and could you discuss your extracurricular activities?
I am studying Hospitality Administration with a concentration in Event Planning! Within SHA, I am the president of NACE and AHLA and also the senator for SHAGOV. Outside of SHA, I am the Events Director for Kappa Alpha Theta and on e-board for a dance team. I also picked up a position as Vice Chair for the Student Government Events Department for the 2021-2022 school year.
How has your time at SHA helped you to achieve your goals in the restaurant industry?
I actually did not have any goals in the restaurant industry. Prior to getting this job, I was primarily focused on event management and didn’t think working in the restaurant industry would be for me. Now that I have been working as a hostess, it is definitely growing on me and I am open to working in the industry as a future career path.
Where have you worked in the past that has helped you get where you are now? Are there any specific positive or negative aspects of those jobs?
This is my first time working in a restaurant, but I have worked at offices and a hotel before where I have had to interact with customers/guests and get to know them past the surface level. Doing those jobs that were focused on customer service has helped me in this job for obvious reasons but besides that, I do not have a lot of other relevant experience. In my opinion, there aren’t any positive/negative aspects of those jobs that are worth mentioning.
How did you find out about Para Maria and what made you decide to apply to be a hostess?
I found out about Para Maria through an informational session The Envoy Hotel did for SHA! Para Maria is a pop-up restaurant at the Envoy and they have had a close working relationship with the General Manager, Joe Mellia. He and his team came in to talk to us and we all got hired from interviews they held the next day so looking back now it’s pretty cool how I got this job. I decided to work as a hostess because I felt it would be easier than serving since this was my first restaurant job.
What is your favorite and least favorite part about the job?
I like working as a hostess at Para Maria because of the work culture and my other coworkers. All of the servers and hostesses are in SHA so we all have a lot of fun working together and we’ve become good friends as well. The Assistant General Manager of the restaurant, Mike Pittman, is also a great person and boss and he doesn’t make us feel like we’re there as employees at all which is why I always enjoy coming into work. Hands down though, my least favorite part of the job is when it’s a rainy day and no one is coming in to eat. It makes the day feel tremendously long and doesn’t give us any work to do and the servers don’t make any money as well.
Have you learned anything interesting from Chef Tatiana Rosana that you can share with us?
Yes! Chef Tatiana is such a beautiful person inside and out, and she has given us so much advice and stories about how she got to where she is and what she did to get there. We asked her what her biggest piece of advice would be for college students and she told us to always stay true to ourselves no matter what we did. It would go a long way and we would feel much happier than if we did something others want us to do.
What do you hope to do after college and how will this job help you reach your goals?
After college, I was thinking about working at an event planning company or hotel venue but now I am not sure. I do want to travel but I know that takes a lot of money and time, so I would have to be realistic about how exactly I would do that after college. I think I would like being a solo traveler more than traveling with friends or family because I like being independent and going out on my own. Professionally, I would like to complete at least one event planning internship before I start looking/working full time for a firm since the pandemic thwarted most of my internship plans.
Can you give any advice to other students looking to break into the restaurant world? What would you recommend students do to jumpstart their careers?
I haven’t been working in the restaurant industry for long (only 3 months) but I would say start at the bottom of the barrel and work as a server or bartender to get the feel of how the front-of-house for a restaurant works. In my opinion, working as a server/bartender will give you a lot more experience with interacting with guests than working as a host/hostess will and it will make you appreciate and respect the hospitality/restaurant industry more as well. I would also recommend trying to find a restaurant where the managers are willing to teach. This allows you a chance to ask questions and maybe even shadow the AGM/GM on your days off to see how they track sales and complete daily reports. Working at a restaurant that is part of a hotel is also such a big perk because you get a little bit of exposure to the hotel side of operations and if you want to switch departments you can do so in-house.
What is your favorite dish on the menu and what do you recommend for a three-course meal for someone that has never been to Para Maria?
I *love* the tostones and guacamole. I would eat tubs of the guacamole if I could and the Chipotle Portobello tacos are always my go-to whenever I want food. Since we are a pop-up restaurant, our menu is limited but if you’re looking for a 3-course meal I would recommend starting off with a heavier appetizer like the tostones, 3-4 tacos, and then finishing off with the Mango Tajin or Coconut Horchata paleta. The paletas are handcrafted popsicles, and the coconut paleta is so creamy and decadent that it feels amazing to eat on a hot summer day. If anyone reading this decides to come in, please mention my name and say hi!! I’d love to meet you and personally give more recommendations.
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