Brooke’s Bread and Butter: Her UnLost Cause = 2 Restaurants
Burnout is real. And the worst kind isn’t just mental—it’s physical. Tight shoulders. Pinched nerves. Sleepless nights. Even boarding a plane for vacation feels impossible.
That’s where Brooke St. Sauver found herself. Despite hitting her peak in the corporate retail world—max bonuses, top-tier performance, a team she loved—her body was waving the white flag.
She was supposed to be flying to Mexico for a well-earned vacation. Instead, she stayed home, exhausted.
What she did next changed her life.
With the encouragement of her partner, Kurt, she sat at her dining room table to pen the business plan that launched her first restaurant.
It wasn’t the first time food had been a spark. At 16, Brooke had gone against her mom’s advice and tried baking herb bread. “It’s too hard,” her mom warned. But Brooke nailed it. The smell, the texture, the pride—it stuck with her. Even through decades of corporate hustle, that memory lingered.
In her 40s, it resurfaced. This time, she listened.
The Coupe & Flute, their first restaurant in Seattle’s Beacon Hill, was born from that plan. But nothing about the launch was smooth.
They signed the lease in December 2019.
COVID hit months later.
The buildout ran 7x over budget. SBA loans weren’t an option—at first.
Most people would’ve walked away. Brooke and Kurt didn’t.
They adapted. They persisted. They found creative ways to fund the dream. And in June 2022, they opened their doors.
Now they’ve opened their second spot, The Dandy, in Pioneer Square. It’s a cozy, cocktail-forward sibling to The Coupe & Flute, with Brooke bringing her signature warmth, creativity, and “let’s-make-a-dream” mindset to every detail.
She says the stress is still there—running a business is no spa day—but it’s different now. She’s not chasing someone else’s vision. She’s living her own.
💡 5 Lessons from Brooke’s Journey:
Stress is a signal, not just a symptom. Your body often knows it’s time to change before your brain does. We just need to slow down enough to listen to it, or it’ll force us to slow down by shutting down.
Don’t give up—even when the plan breaks. Brooke faced delay after delay, blew past the original budget, and opened the doors years later than expected. Most people would’ve walked away. But persistence, not perfection, is what brought the dream to life. Flexibility, grit, and tiny forward steps made the impossible possible.
Write the plan—even if it feels far off. Putting dreams on paper gives them structure and power. Journaling and physically writing is incredibly powerful. I know I can use a keyboard, but there is something about slowing down (since I can’t write as fast as I can type) that forces more genuine and reflective thoughts.
You don’t need to be young to start. Brooke opened her first restaurant in her 40s. I know that I get tired easier now that I’m in my 50’s, but I also know that I’m wiser, have a larger network, and have more time with my children being older. Here’s a video rundown of the positives of pursuing a dream when you are older.
It’s never too late to bet on yourself. She didn’t want to look back in her 70s and wonder what if—so she acted. It’s never too late. As we’ve seen in the UnLost Cause community, people even 70+ are turning lost causes into UnLost Causes. It takes courage and planning before taking that brave leap.
If this resonates, forward it to a friend—or reply with your own "herb bread" moment. What’s that thing you’ve been holding back from trying? Please share in the comments.