One of the best meals we had in 2022 so far was at Michelin-starred <\/b>Francie<\/a> in Brooklyn\u2014the roast duck was so good that we took home a fatty piece for chief canine officer Artemis (because we didn\u2019t want our little canine critic to miss out), and the ambiance was fancy but not pretentious. Dog dad of two Miniature Schnauzers, Georgie and Kodi, and owner of the brasserie, John Winterman, brought over the duck to our table himself. We spoke to the restaurateur, who splits his time between Brooklyn and Sharon Springs, New York, about what he feeds his dogs (no, not the roast duck), the best wedding gift you could get for your partner, and how to pick the best business partners.<\/b><\/p>\n Did you grow up with dogs?<\/i><\/p>\n There was a dog when I was born\u2014I have very little memory of him. He was around the first couple of years. The dog I remember the most is Lucy. She was a tall mixed breed. A great family dog. She was around from when I was aged three or four to when I was a freshman in high school. We had a couple dogs in between\u2014my stepfather was a hunter, so he did attempt to train a beagle to hunt. We also had one of those little guys, Cocker Spaniel, for a short time when I was growing up. But once I went off to university, I wasn\u2019t really around dogs at all until Kodi in 2015. There was a big gap.<\/p>\n \u201cGive him a piece of deli cheddar and he\u2019ll eat it, but he won\u2019t be pleased. Give him a piece of two-year-old Gruy\u00e8re and he\u2019s insane.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n What made you decide to get Kodi?<\/i><\/p>\n I didn\u2019t decide. My wife decided\u2014she had grown up with dogs, as well. I was going to buy her a wedding gift and the wedding gift turned out to be Kodi. She did some research and found a breeder for Miniature Schnauzers. We got off the waitlist and she got first pick of the next letter. She bonded through the puppy cam with one of the little guys. He was doing just doing his own thing and we knew that was our dog. We picked him up on Valentine\u2019s Day. He fought her for a minute or two, and then he snuggled into her lap. That was pretty much it. She considers Kodi her soulmate. I\u2019m dispensable.<\/p>\n COVID opened the door to Georgie because Georgie wouldn\u2019t have happened if I was at the restaurant all the time and my wife was going to an office.<\/p>\n Definitely. My wife works at home remotely\u2014permanently\u2014which is great.<\/p>\n Lucky dogs!<\/i><\/p>\n They definitely won the Miniature Schnauzer lottery.<\/p>\n Did they get along immediately? Was it love at first sight or was there an adjustment period?<\/i><\/p>\n We picked up Georgie last summer at the airport\u2014and Kodi got jealous right away. There was some growling, but Georgie at nine weeks old wasn\u2019t having it. He did his tiny puppy growl back. Kodi is definitely the alpha of the group, but Georgie\u2019s not backing down. Kodi is now seven and he can be a little shy, especially around new people. But Georgie walks around telling everybody who he is\u2014he talks a lot.<\/p>\n What does a typical day in the life for you and your dogs look like?<\/i><\/p>\n Georgie acts like every morning is Christmas morning, while Kodi takes a little longer to wake up. He\u2019ll wait for his back scratch because only I can scratch his back the way he wants it. He\u2019ll let me know if he\u2019s finished or not. Maybe that gets the blood pumping or something. We have a terrace, so we\u2019ll hang out for a bit. The first thing Georgie does is grab his toys. By the time I\u2019ve had two espressos, we\u2019re ready for our walk. You know as well as I do, dogs are creatures of routine. We like to take the same routes. If they get their harnesses on and into the elevator without a fuss, they get a little treat in the elevator. Sometimes we go to the dog run. Sometimes we get up early enough to go off leash in Prospect Park. We got to Velvette Brew<\/a> for coffee about three times a week. On weekends, we go to a farmer\u2019s market and there\u2019s a fish guy at the farmer\u2019s market who gives them treats. Sometimes they drag me to the wine shop for treats. And then you end up buying a bottle, you know? There\u2019s a little corner bagel shop where there are treats. Our neighborhood is very smart.<\/p>\n When we get back, it\u2019s time for breakfast. We have to guard because Kodi eats fast enough that he wants to finish Georgie\u2019s food. And Georgie\u2019s a polite little guy. Once Georgie\u2019s done, we\u2019ll let them trade bowls and they always check each other\u2019s food bowls to make sure they\u2019ve cleaned them properly. I leave around 12:30 p.m. for the restaurant. Georgie does his own thing, but Kodi needs a specific goodbye\u2014otherwise he\u2019ll sit at the door and cry. So, I have to crouch down, while Kodi comes over and puts his paw on my knee. I tell him goodbye and to take care of everybody while I\u2019m gone.<\/p>\n When I come back, my wife is perfectly happy to see me, but the dogs act like it\u2019s a party when Dad comes home. I spent 10 minutes rolling around on the floor.<\/p>\n As the owner of Francie, you obviously have great taste. So what do you feed your dogs?<\/i><\/p>\n They get Merrick kibble<\/a> in the morning, mixed with bone broth or an unseasoned chicken stock. We usually cook fish for them in the morning\u2014something a little fatty like a mackerel. I put an oily fish in the iron skin-side down and get the skin crispy for them. They can smell it, so they\u2019ll sit there and stare at me while we let it cool down. We mix that into their food. We\u2019ll make enough fish for three days at a time and my wife will make bone broth for them. Last time, we used chicken wings, which comes out like an aspic once you put it in the fridge. We add a little probiotic powder<\/a>. None of this is seasoned, of course. She\u2019s very careful about extra sodium.<\/p>\n Dinners are a bit different. She and her friend Lauren will make big batches together. They go to the local butcher called Fleishers<\/a>. They buy organ meats like kidneys and chicken hearts. They roast everything, dice it up, mix it in with carrots and parsley. Sometimes they add a little squash. They\u2019ll make big batches at a time and bring it back and forth from one apartment to the other. The dogs have dinner dates with each other all the time. They\u2019re constantly socializing.<\/p>\n Out of all the dog parents we\u2019ve conversed with so far, your dogs might be eating the best.<\/i><\/p>\n When the restaurant was shut down in 2020, I would leave in the afternoon and go on long walks. There was nothing else to do. But every evening around 5:30 p.m., I would make a cheese plate for my my wife. Kodi loves cheese and started to pick up on this. When 5:30 rolls around, he sits at the table and he\u2019s ready. If you give him a piece of deli cheese, he\u2019ll eat it\u2014but he\u2019ll kind of judge you for it. He unfortunately likes artisanal cheese.<\/p>\n At one point, my wife and her friend, Lauren, were bringing in super crunchy dehydrated fish skins from Iceland<\/a>. It\u2019s their nightcap. I get home around midnight and make a cocktail, and they get a light satisfying treat.<\/p>\n What about going to restaurants with your dogs?<\/i><\/p>\n It\u2019s a touchy subject because I\u2019m a restaurateur. [In Sharon Springs, New York], there\u2019s a small spot called 204 Main Bar & Bistro<\/a>\u2014a gentleman there will set up a table on his terrace so we can bring the dogs to dinner. And we go to a place called the American Hotel<\/a>, which has a pub area where we can grab a cocktail or bite to eat. In Brooklyn, there\u2019s a place called Stone Park Cafe<\/a> with a large outdoor seating area near a park. But we don\u2019t take them out to eat a lot. We try not to force our dogs onto other businesses unless they\u2019re explicit dog friendly.<\/p>\n How have Kodi and Georgie deepened your relationship with your wife?<\/i><\/p>\n Our conversations have changed. I\u2019ll get texts from her about how Kodi and Georgie pooped twice on their walk.<\/p>\n Do you consider yourself a dog dad?<\/i><\/p>\n Sure, sure.<\/p>\n You\u2019re not embarrassed?<\/i><\/p>\n There\u2019s no shame. I don\u2019t really care what people think.<\/p>\n What is it about Miniature Schnauzers that you two love so much?<\/i><\/p>\n My wife grew up with them and I think they\u2019re extraordinarily smart. They\u2019ve got unbelievable hearing and sense of smell. Kodi\u2019s actually a bit of problem solver. It\u2019s hard to fool him. Not that I go around trying to trick my dogs, but he\u2019s an intelligent creature. He knows a lot of words, commands, and facial expressions. When he gets in trouble, my wife will speak to him in Korean. She doesn\u2019t even yell at me in Korean.<\/p>\n If Georgie and Kodi were people, what would they be like?<\/i><\/p>\n My wife likes to describe Kodi as an English boarding school student\u2014a bit prissy and a little bit snobby. Give him a piece of deli cheddar and he\u2019ll eat it, but he won\u2019t be pleased. Give him a piece of two-year-old Gruy\u00e8re and he\u2019s insane. Georgie is rambunctious and super friendly. He trusts everyone\u2014while Kodi definitely doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Do the dogs sleep in bed with the parents?<\/i><\/p>\n Yes. We\u2019re fastidious about cleaning their paws and wiping their mustaches and bathing them once a week. My wife and Lauren were taking them to the groomer, but it\u2019s extraordinarily expensive. They got proper grooming equipment on their own. A lot of trial and error. We\u2019ve got a friend with a Schnauzer named Zippo, and they\u2019ll go over for a spa session and get groomed together.<\/p>\n Love that they have spa days and dinner dates with their friends. It seems like you have a really great support system for the dogs.<\/i><\/p>\n When I met Chris [Cipollone], my business partner and the chef at Francie, we bonded because he had a French Bulldog named Calvin. At that point, Calvin was almost 10 years old and had special needs. Part of the way you judge a person\u2019s character is how they treat animals. There are always heartbreaking stories about dogs getting old and getting abandoned because people don\u2019t want to deal with them. I could tell right away that Chris and his wife were not those people. They took care of Calvin until the bitter end\u2014however expensive and inconvenient it was. And then we met our main investor, Mark [Norbom]. Mark had brought back rescue dogs from Asia, where he spent a lot of time for work. When we all got together, we just knew. The character of the person you\u2019re looking for is relevant to how they treat their animals.<\/p>\n\n
![\"Miniature](\"https:\/\/argosartemis.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/ArgosArtemis_TaylerSmith_JohnWinterman_2021_FINAL_02-min-scaled.jpg\")
So Georgie was a pandemic puppy?<\/i><\/p>\n![\"Francie](\"https:\/\/argosartemis.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/ArgosArtemis_TaylerSmith_JohnWinterman_2021_FINAL_03-min-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Francie](\"https:\/\/argosartemis.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/ArgosArtemis_TaylerSmith_JohnWinterman_2021_FINAL_04-min-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Francie](\"https:\/\/argosartemis.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/ArgosArtemis_TaylerSmith_JohnWinterman_2021_FINAL_05-min-scaled.jpg\")
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