Why every successful restaurant has a story

In one of my earlier posts I referred to the show Chefs Table, a documentary web series released on Netflix.  In each episode an in depth profile of a world-renowned chef is told, chronicling the rise to their status, highlighting their trials and tribulations to the present day.  Each season, the show picks 6 Chefs and has currently featured:

Season 1

Massimo Bottura (Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy)
Dan Barber (Blue Hill Restaurant at Stone Barns and in New York City, United States)
Francis Mallmann (El Restaurante Patagonia Sur in Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Niki Nakayama (N/Naka Restaurant in Los Angeles, USA)
Ben Shewry (Attica in Melbourne, Australia)
Magnus Nilsson (Fäviken in Järpen, Sweden)

Season 2

Grant Achatz (Alinea, Next, and The Aviary in Chicago, United States)
Alex Atala (D. O. M. in São Paulo, Brazil)
Dominique Crenn (Atelier Crenn in San Francisco, United States)
Enrique Olvera (Pujol in Mexico City, Mexico)
Ana Roš (Hiša Franko in Kobarid, Slovenia)
Gaggan Anand (Gaggan in Bangkok, Thailand)

The very first episode is the embodiment of the show with Massimo Bottura whose restaurant is in Modena, Italy.  It also closely ties into my previous blog about the pursuit of Michelin stars.  Massimo did not follow the tried and true tradition of following the grandmother's Italian cooking.  He instead personally wanted to combine and experiment with re-inventing traditional dishes with an application of classical French training.  Not to go too much into detail, but needless to say many were not happy with his idea in the beginning.  He struggled and eventually through perseverance won people over and now has three Michelin stars.  Why is this important you might ask?  Because Massimo did his own thing.  He made his restaurant not by the structure of the safe route yet instead made it what all Chefs hope to achieve: an extension of themselves and being rewarded for it.  He believed in what he was doing and because of who he is created a restaurant like no other.

I can't think of a better example of how having a story is the building blocks for creating a brand

and all that defines it to everyone who has the luck of reserving a seat at Osteria Francescana.