This is the first novel that I’ve read by this author. While I’m typically a sucker for a good character-driven novel – especially a family saga – I struggled with this one. I didn’t hate it, but I also didn’t love it. Much of that had to do with the fact that I never fully connected with the main character and the lack of focus on the restaurant’s history.

This novel follows Jack Schmidt, a man who has dedicated his entire life to running Schmidt’s – his family’s beachfront restaurant. Jack is just past middle age, still single, and wondering if he really wants to dedicate the rest of his life to running the restaurant – especially since he has no one to pass the torch to once he’s gone. It’s pretty obvious that once Jack passes away, the Schmidt family legacy will go with him, so when the DelDine group comes knocking with a tempting offer to buy the restaurant, Jack is faced with an important decision: Does he stay, or does he sell and allow himself the chance to finally go out and live his life?

The novel takes place over the course of a few months, and we get the idea that the restaurant is essential to the community. This makes Jack’s decision to sell all the more difficult because we all know what will happen if a chain restaurant were to take over.

While we’re told that Schmidts is an essential part of the town, I wish we’d gotten to see more of the history of the restaurant. The lack of a deeper exploration of the restaurant’s past, the Schmidts who came before Jack, and what made the restaurant such an institution left me feeling a bit disappointed. I wanted to know more about the restaurant’s early days, the Schmidts who came before Jack, the ups and downs of the restaurant, and how it became such a staple. We did get a few flashback chapters, but they were all focused on Jack, and honestly, they barely scratched the surface. This felt like a missed opportunity. It could have made the story more engaging by making the restaurant a major character. It would have raised the stakes, and I would have been more emotionally invested in Jack’s decision.

Throughout the novel, we meet the restaurant staff. Even though Jack has no blood family anymore, the staff has become his chosen family, and Jack is great at taking care of them. While I found Jack to be incredibly kind, he was almost too nice, which made his character seem a little flat. The staff at the restaurant and a few of the other side characters all had more personality than Jack, and I found them to be far more interesting. As I said before, I would have been more invested in his story if Jack had had more layers.

While this had the potential to be a compelling and emotionally resonant read, it slightly missed the mark for me. It was fine, but not great. I felt it could have been so much better had the author really fleshed out the restaurant’s history and had he taken time to give Jack a few more layers than simply “all around great guy”. It’s an OK read; I just wanted more from it.