Today we’d like to introduce you to Mitchell Dorsey.
Mitchell, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started my hospitality career in New York City at the Intercontinental Barclay Hotel as a front desk agent and worked my way up to duty manager. I then moved to the Carlyle Hotel in the upper east side where I worked as the assistant front office manager. I got to learn from the absolute best hospitality professionals working at these hotels and this is where my love for hospitality truly blossomed. Knowing that at some point I wanted to work in food service I decided to go to culinary school at the Institute of Culinary Education where i received a degree in both the culinary arts and management programs. After stage work at ABC kitchen I was hired as Garde Manger and continued this for about a year. I was able to gain very valuable back of house experience but realized I did not want to do this full time. I decided to then work for a restaurant group called The Meatball Shop where I started as their special projects manager and then eventually headed their catering and events department. I helped grow their catering & events department significantly and assisted with new restaurants. During this time I met my wonderful husband Roni and after 12 years in NYC we decided to move back to my hometown Richmond, VA. At first we thought we wanted to try and open our own event space but after searching with a realtor realized these types of properties were hard to find. Eventually our realtor heard through the grapevine that the owners of The One Bed and Breakfast were interested in maybe selling as they had been running the business for almost 10 years while having full time jobs on top of it. We ended up meeting the owners and we hit it off right away! They could tell that we were going to take care of the property and give it as much love as they had. We ended up buying the building at the end of 2019 and then it took two years of renovation to get it to where we are today. We just celebrated our 4 year anniversary on June 8th. We couldn’t be more proud and thankful!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The two year renovation was definitely quite difficult as it took place during the COVID pandemic. The city was closed for six months and we couldn’t get the permits to start major work until they reopened. Once we got the permits just finding materials, furniture, and labor was very challenging. In retrospect this honestly gave us the time to think through all of the details and we were able to get everything just right before opening in June 2022. Of course running a bed and breakfast itself is quite a big undertaking and it took a lot of adjusting to get used to this lifestyle. We eventually found a couple of great employees and got into the groove. Working with your spouse on a daily also presents it’s challenges from time to time 🙂
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about The Boulevard Inn?
The Boulevard Inn is a Bed & Breakfast located at 1 North Arthur Ashe Blvd in the heart of Richmond, Virginia. Our business will provide travelers with comfortable and stylish overnight accommodations paired with impeccable service and first-class hospitality in the heart of Richmond within walking distance of many of its attractions.
The Boulevard has many advantages over our competition including but not limited to:
Detailed & highly personalized service and hospitality
High-end amenities and complimentary breakfast offered
Location, Location, Location
Guests will feel like they are staying at a home rather than a cookie cutter hotel.
Pricing:
- Ranges from $256-$500 depending on room type and time of week / year
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.boulevardinn.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theboulevardinn/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheBoulevardInnRVA
