Checking in with the Class of 2020

If you ever come into the shop on busy afternoon, you might notice a fresh-faced teenager or two buzzing around. You'll see them pop out of the kitchen with tray full of goodies to stock the case, scoop up some trays that need to be washed, or maybe take your order at the register.

What you probably don't see is them in the kitchen, working their way through amountain of dishes right as it gets to closing time. We're fortunate to have them because their hard work and enthusiam keeps us going at the end of some long days.

The summer after high school graduation is usually when they leave us, but we love hearing about what they're up to when they're back in town. In June of 2020 we posted about three of our graduates, so we figured now's as good a time as any to check in to see what they're up to.

We caught up Aidan, Stephen and Will on LinkedIn (obviously), and found each of them looking very profesh.

-----

Aidan Starkes

Five years ago Aidan was getting ready to hang up his lacrosse stick at Basking Ridge to make his way to Virginia Tech to study marketing management.

Last year he earned his bachelors degree in marketing management before moving to Chicago. Today he's a writer for Bectran, a financial services tech company. He cooks most of his meals these days and enjoys making it out downtown on the riverfront.

We asked if there was anything about his time working at the shop that stuck with him, and here's what he said: "It was my first real job, and I worked there for around 3-4 years all through Highschool. I learned a lot about myself but more importantly it instilled a lasting work-ethic that has served me well through college and this past year."

Stephen Portas

In 2020 Stephen was a scrappy member of Ridge's basketball team, a chicken parm aficionado, and one heck of an asset to the squad at Perrotti's. He was planning to study finance at Virginia Tech, and he graduated with a degree in finance last year. In August he joined Burlington Stores as an allocation analyst where he works today.

Somewhere in between, he popped into the New York Stock Exchange for this baller photo op. Stephen is the the far left, rocking the blazer, looking like a proper gentleman.

Will Kendall

At the end of high school you could find Will Kendall ripping one of our breaded chicken sandwiches, getting ready to ship off to Villanova.

These days Will is a Villanova graduate, prefers the HEB sandwich at Perrotti's, and lives in New York City where he's an investment banking analyst. When he has the time to step away from the office he'll pop into Toastie's, a sandwich shop a few blocks away.

What did he learn working at Perrotti's? "Learning how to be a consistent and diligent worker," he said. "Dishwashing shifts were occasionally pretty brutal on busy days, but the ability to stay motivated to get through them and finish the job has carried over into my current job."

-----

It was fun catching up with these guys, and we're psyched to continue watching them guys bring their work ethic and enthusiasm wherever they go.

If you've got a graduation to celebrate, we can help! Check out our catering menu and give us a call at 908-306-8806.