As “a classic hippie from La Honda” who once lived on a commune, Jesse Cool has always cared deeply about the environment and being a good steward of all resources, both human and natural.

The proprietor of Flea Street Café in Menlo Park, and before that Late For the Train, has always been committed to working only with chemical- and preservative-free food in her restaurants. As early as 1980, she got to know the farmers at the market in Palo Alto.

“Farmers have always been my best teachers,” says Cool. “You have to know where your food comes from and how it’s grown.”

Healthy food served simply and beautifully has always been her mantra, and it disturbs her greatly to see so many people in America suffering from “maladies that are food and environmentally related.” She points to diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure as part of the epidemic that stems from the fast food nation we’ve become.

“The level of obesity among those who cannot afford good food is mind-boggling,” she says. “We have to be more conscientious about the ethics of growing food, and how the people who grow it are treated. Food feeds our bodies. What goes into our food should be of utmost concern.”

Cool believes the entire food ecosystem deserves more understanding and respect from consumers.

“You have to treat people right, from beginning to end. Every person in the food chain is important,” she says. “The general public has to realize that you have to pay them a real living wage. The Western world decided that big cheap food was valuable. One of the good things that came out of COVID is all the focus on why people left industry: They were not paid enough and were treated poorly.”

Which leads to the current model of tipping at Flea Street, called Heart of the House. This novel byproduct of the pandemic shares gratuities equitably throughout the restaurant.

Cool and Chef Bryan Thuerk, who started working at Flea Street just prior to the pandemic, came up with the idea of splitting gratuities between the front of the house (waitstaff) and back of the house (kitchen staff). With nobody dining out and takeout suddenly the norm, she and Thuerk wanted to take care of their staff and keep as many people fed as possible.

“It was important to retain kitchen staff and keep their families fed,” says Thuerk. “We did not lose a single kitchen person, but we did lose service staff. They did not like the concept of sharing tips.”

Flea Street started adding a 20% gratuity to all to-go orders, just as they do to in-house dining experiences.

“We wanted our customers to have a special feeling when they opened their meals at home,” Thuerk says. “We put that that same level of effort putting that food in the box beautifully as we do plating in the restaurant. “

Cool says most of their service staff chose not to return when in-person dining resumed. “Some places started giving the kitchen staff 10% of the tips, but we thought sharing equally would be best. Our core value is that we treat everyone with respect. If you take care of the grower, the food preparers and the waitstaff, then the customer will be properly cared for.”

For Flea Street, the whole experience has been one of constant adjustment and tweaking. Is it working? “Yes!” says Cool enthusiastically. “We are fully staffed now and have really good people who we’ve trained over the last year in the ethics of thoughtful service. I looked up toward the end of December and I started seeing a new structure of consistency. We finally had enough staff to handle buyouts and events. During the pandemic, we could only handle parties of four.”

Thanks to finding enthusiastic young people she calls “rising young stars,” they now have a team that is willing to work hard and support each other.

“For a time, nobody could find service help,” says Cool. “We realized that we had to invest in people and invest in kindness. I went to hardware stores (to recruit staff) and found smart and assertive people who wanted a change.”

Thuerk encountered a smart and welcoming young woman while picking up produce at a local market. “I asked her if she would be interested in being that first face that people see when they walk in the door. She is now our hostess.”

For Cool, witnessing the evolution is gratifying. “I go to every table and thank people; I ask if they feel cared for. Maybe they can overlook some of the technical aspects of service that simply come with experience, but the incredible kindness that everyone feels toward each other is just a beautiful thing. I have not been this happy in my business ever. I feel this model could change the industry.”

Flea Street Café, 3607 Alameda de las Pulgas, Menlo Park. https://www.cooleatz.com