La Salle grad Michael Bissanti ’85 is an entrepreneur in one of the toughest and most competitive industries in the world – the restaurant business – and he is “wildly” and “naturally” and conventionally successful.

Michael owns two thriving restaurants in the greater Boston area.  One is in the Beacon Hill area of Boston and the other in Central Square in Cambridge between MIT and Harvard and, as he said in a recent email note to La Salle Director of Alumni Affairs Brother Kevin Junk, “I can only imagine how things would have turned out had I not attended La Salle.”

In a telephone interview, Michael told the story of his booming businesses.

“After La Salle, I graduated from Stonehill College in North Easton, Massachusetts with a degree in sociology.  I am not sure how that translates into being in the food business but I have started five restaurants since 1992, the most recent being Four Burgers, an all natural food restaurant that open in June of this year in Cambridge and is succeeding well beyond my expectations,” said Michael.  “After watching with great interest the tremendous success of Whole Foods Grocery Stores in the eastern U.S., I went to California to see what was happening with all natural beef burger cafes.  I was amazed at their success.”

That California trip convinced Michael that East Coast Americans’ love affair with burgers would only be enhanced if the burgers were made with all natural beef but at an affordable price (about $9 for burger, house cut waffle fries and a drink at Four Burgers).  But he didn’t stop there.  He took the idea three steps further by deciding that he would offer four different types of burgers – the original natural beef, ground wild salmon, ground natural turkey and the Blue Mango vegan veggie burger made from organic black beans.

“Things are going so well that we plan to open two or three more in the greater Boston area and one in Providence,” said Michael.  “Ultimately, I would like to open several more in New York City and Washington, DC.  My brother Christopher (La Salle class of 1987) is joining me as a partner to help move the project along.”

The other restaurant that Michael owns, along with two college buddies, is The Paramount, a well-established, seven-day-a-week eatery that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner – breakfast and lunch are self-serve while dinner employs a well-trained wait staff.  The Paramount is known for excellent food at a very reasonable price.

“My philosophy about employees has always been to hire them on personality rather than experience.  I want employees who are friendly, who smile and can laugh at a joke with customers,” said Michael.  “We can train them to be waiters but we cannot force them to be personable and friendly with the customers – that has to be their natural disposition.  I am very happy with my staff – we work as a team and we have respect for one another.”

In the area of his basic business approach, this “burger king” said that his philosophy about business is to exceed the customer’s expectation and hire managers who can create a culture that is customer focused.

“Our customers are a cross-section of society – all ages, all professions, single people and big families,” said Michael.  “We have not seen an effect of the economic downturn.  In my view, a good restaurant is almost recession proof.  People are going to go out to eat – they may watch how much they spend but they will go out and they certainly have kept coming to The Paramount and Four Burgers.”

Then the conversation turned to La Salle.

“I remember so many people from La Salle.  Brother Gerard, who helped me with Algebra when I had no confidence in math but beyond math, he brought out the best in me and had a huge impact on my life and I will never forget him,” said Michael.  “Lou Cimini taught me geometry and made me do push-ups in class.  Don Kavanagh and Ted Quigley coached me in cross country and although I was not very good, it was the foundation for my future as a competitor in Iron Man competitions.”

Michael concluded with a tip of his hat to his mother who he said “was smart enough to know that I needed the direction in life that I could only get at La Salle.”

(editor’s note:  We will be writing and publishing profiles about Alums on a regular basis.  If you would like to be the subject of a profile or want to recommend a fellow Alum to be profiled, please contact us at jdennard@lasalle-academy.org or send a note to Jeff Dennard at La Salle Academy, 612 Academy Avenue, Providence, RI 02908 or call 401-351-7750  ext. 188)