Working for Will Guidara, co-owner of Eleven Madison Park and author of Unreasonable Hospitality, redefined my understanding of exceptional service. Guidara’s philosophy of exceeding expectations through unexpected acts of kindness was truly inspiring. However, my travels in Georgia revealed a different facet of hospitality – one woven into the fabric of daily life, far beyond the culinary sphere.
Arriving in villages, often exhausted and covered in mud, I consistently found myself welcomed by Georgian families. Each guesthouse stay felt like a friendly competition, with hosts vying to fill my plate with abundant variations of khinkali, pkhali, and lobio. Every meal transformed into a feast, showcasing dishes whose names I struggled to pronounce and desserts I couldn’t resist – all crafted with a heartfelt care that made me feel more like a member of the family than a passing traveler. It felt as if extending kindness brought these people a profound, personal joy, illustrating the core principle Guidara championed at Eleven Madison Park: the intrinsic satisfaction derived from making others feel valued and appreciated.
The culture of hitchhiking further exemplified this spirit. Hiking through rain and hail, desperate to stay dry and control my rising fever, I discovered that in Svaneti, sticking out your thumb isn’t a sign of desperation, but an invitation for adventure. On four separate occasions that week, I was picked up by strangers who spoke no English and asked for nothing in return. It was as though providing rides to random travelers was a normal part of their day. I’d climb into their aged sedans—sometimes in the passenger seat, other times in the back of a pickup—and we’d embark on journeys along unpaved roads, sharing smiles, exchanging names of Georgian cities and dishes I had come to learn, and always ending with a warm hug.
Everyone seemed to have embraced the role of Georgia’s ambassador, determined to showcase their country as a place of unparalleled warmth and hospitality. This demonstrated a broader, more profound understanding of service that extended far beyond the lessons learned from Will Guidara. It was a national ethos built upon genuine generosity and a deep-seated desire to create positive experiences for others.
