How the family of Prince Lebanese Grill founder hopes to honor his legacy in Arlington
For the first two years he worked at the family restaurant, Aziz Kobty was not allowed anywhere near the kitchen.
His father, Francis “Prince” Kobty, let him clean or bus tables, but did not want his son handling food until he was sure Aziz loved that aspect of working at Prince Lebanese Grill.
“The restaurant was one of his children, too, you know?” Aziz said in a phone interview Thursday. “He spent so much time in there and worked so hard to build it up. He was very careful with it.”
Francis died in his sleep May 25, to the shock of family and friends of the 63-year-old restaurateur who built his business from the ground up in the late 1980s to become a local mainstay, a national human interest story and community gathering spot.
Aziz and his sister Elizabeth Kobty said they hope to honor Francis’ legacy by keeping the restaurant — and their work ethic — to his standards.
“You always knew what he wanted, you always knew how he wanted it, you always knew he wasn’t going to take anything but your best,” Aziz recalled.
From one-man show to local mainstay
The Kobty family and restaurant staff had their hands full after the grill made its big break on Food Network.
Aziz returned home from college after the restaurant’s 2009 appearance on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” to what felt like a new restaurant. Instead of chatting up tables like he had planned, he was thrown back into work.
“People were starting to hear about what kind of food dad’s doing and what kind of business he’s doing and how he’s treating people and all that stuff, so I came back to a restaurant I didn’t even recognize,” Aziz said.
The restaurant, fashioned out of a former Sonic Drive-In at 502 W. Randol Mill Road, was even less recognizable from its previous incarnation of a buffet-style eatery and one-man show.
Francis, who moved to the United States from Nazareth, Israel, in 1979, opened his business in 1989 with no restaurant experience or guidance on how to run the business. He just knew he loved to bring people together through the power of cooking.
His staff realized Francis was new to running a restaurant, Aziz recalled, and figured out how to operate it themselves. Eventually, Francis fired his entire staff and ran a buffet-style restaurant by himself. He later rehired several of the same employees, many of whom had since apologized and developed a newfound respect for him.
Several of Francis Kobty’s children, nieces and nephews joined the restaurant crew over the years. Aziz and Elizabeth eventually made the restaurant their full-time gig.
“We just figured, man, if we’re going to work this hard, we might as well do it with our family and for our family,” Aziz said.
He and Elizabeth eventually began taking over more roles around the grill. Elizabeth said she and her brother wanted to take on more roles and take the weight off their father, whose tenacity had not dwindled over the years.
“He never asked for help — he always wanted to do everything himself,” Elizabeth said. “When we got in there, it was just like, ‘Let’s keep growing it, make it a little easier on dad.’”
Francis took on a more “corporate” role as he became more comfortable handing his children the reins. Around most days for lunch and dinner, he would audit the restaurant, help coach staff and rally employees. It was an easy job for Francis, Aziz said, because his father did not shy away from firm advice and high standards. Francis was known best for his catchphrase, ‘What the hell is this?’ and everyone stood a little taller every time Francis pulled up to the restaurant in his truck.
“He’d walk in the kitchen and he’d just rile everybody up. ‘What’s going on? Good morning.’ Everybody loved him, even when he’s calling you out and telling you you did something wrong,” Aziz said.
Remembering Francis “Prince”
Condolences and memories poured in from around over following Francis Kobty’s passing late last month. Family flew in from Israel and the East Coast or drove in to pay respects to the man known for his big heart and tough love.
The restaurant has remained busy, Aziz said, having closed only one day for memorial services. A portrait of Francis, as well as a table full of flowers, watched over customers and employees during the lunch rush June 5. Customers have lamented the absence of a man who made a habit of hanging out with those who dropped in for a meal.
Aziz said his family and the staff hope to honor his legacy by keeping the restaurant and living their lives to his standards.
“We don’t want anyone to expect that I’m going to replace him or Elizabeth’s going to replace him,” he said. “We’re going to come together ... and do things the way that we know he would have wanted them done and treat people well. That’s going to be the legacy.”
After all, people are quicker to remember how they felt while hanging out in the restaurant than the cuisine.
“The food was a plus, but really, the heart and soul of that place was my dad,” Aziz said.
