ROBERT J Falls’ journey from Huntington Beach in California to Phuket started with a stint as a waiter while he studied for a degree in business administration.

He dabbled in the theatre and starred in a number of amateur theatrical productions, and set his sights on career as a movie actor.

When he was 25, he moved to Los Angeles and joined the local army of out-of -work thespians.

He scored a few bit parts, such as ‘policeman number 2’ or paramedic number 1’or ‘waiter number 3’.

“Throughout my movie career, I never had a name, only a number,” he said.

Robert eventually landed some major speaking roles and appeared as Lieutenant in the film We’re No Angels.

He also did theatre work and appeared in a MacDonald’s commercial.

But his best job, by far, was when he worked as a part-time barman at Hugh Heffner’s Playboy Mansion.

“That really was a whole lot of fun,” he said.

He spent another six and a half frustrating years trying to be an actor and struggled to make ends meet.

“The only way I could earn any money was to wait on tables,” he said.

“I didn’t realise it at the time, but I was serving my apprenticeship in the food and beverage business.”

Robert worked at the Twin Palms restaurant owned by actor Kevin Costner in Pasadena before moving to the Ritz Carlton where he became operations manager.

From there, he moved to McCormick and Schmicks Seafood Restaurant in San Francisco, where he became general manager of a new restaurant called Aqua in San Francisco.

He learned a lot about the leisure business and honed his wine skills.

He was then offered a job in Hong Kong with a wine company which needed a native English speaker who knew a bit about wines, and in 1998, Robert arrived in Asia for the first time.

He spent three years in Hong Kong, where he managed the American Bostonian Restaurant which is part of the Langham Hotel chain, and the La Placita Mexican restaurant.

When the Asia slump started to take its toll and trade slowed, Robert headed back to San Francisco where he scored a job as food and beverage manager at the Hotel Nikko, in the city’s main theatre area.

He took cooking classes, renovated the restaurant at the Nikko, and started the still-popular Anzu restaurant, specialising in Euro-Japanese cuisine.

Things were going well for him – until September 11, 2001.

After the attack on the Twin Towers, people were, understandably, reluctant to travel, and the leisure and travel industries took a dive.

Things were looking grim.

But Robert came up with a plan to keep the hotel ticking over by offering theatre packages.

Clients could come to the hotel for dinner, park their cars and walk to the theatre.

He also persuaded the ‘Table For Six’ dating agency to use his restaurant for their social gatherings.

Robert stayed in San Francisco for another three and a half years, but he was missing Asia and wanted to come back.

The man who first hired him in Hong Kong was now in Phuket, and when he invited Robert to run the Red Room Restaurant in Cherngtalay, he jumped at the chance.

He stayed there for ten months until he was appointed general manager of Allan Zeman’s new Silk restaurant.

“I can vividly remember Christmas 2004,” he said.

“I was dressed up as Santa Claus, sitting on the stage taking to some kids.

The restaurant was packed with happy people having a great time, and life was great for me.

The next morning, the tsunami hit the west coast.”

“Most of the eating places along the beachfront were wiped out so there was nowhere to go.

“People couldn’t leave Phuket because of the travel disruptions and they were stuck on the island.

“Our restaurant was almost full every night.

“Naturally, we did what we could for those who were in need of help.”

Robert stayed at Silk for eleven months, but he needed something new to stimulate him.
Tom McNamara asked him to oversee the opening of Joe’s Downstairs and, again, Robert took up the challenge.

“That was exciting, and it is an excellent restaurant, but once it was up and running, there was nothing for me to do except to be a host.

“That’s not what I am, so I opened up a sandwich shop, the Siam Deli in Laguna, and started doing a bit of consultancy work for the Manathai Resorts.”

Robert presided over the opening of Weaves restaurant in Surin and then went to Chiang Mai to open a Weaves restaurant there.

“I had to travel up to Bangkok to get my work permit and visas sorted out, and one day when I was in one of the company’s law firms, I met a very attractive lady named Kun,” he said.

“She dealt, very efficiently, with my visa problems and, to thank her, I asked her out.

“One thing led to another and we are now happily married and living on Phuket.”

Kun now works for a local law firm on Surin Beach road.

The Manathai Group took over The Playhouse in Patong and Robert is currently developing a cooking school on the top floor.

For further information, email Robert at Robert@manathai.com