Mystery Concord Restaurant Owner in Ayotte’s Speech is Barley House’s Shea

U.S. Sen.  at the  was considered by some to be a stellar moment in her political career, so far.

But a remark in her speech about a Concord restaurateur concerned about penalties if the owner of the business expanded with a second location had everyone wondering, who is the restaurant owner?

For days, Ayotte and her staff kept mum, not revealing the name of the owner to the press or even callers to a recent Howie Carr show appearance on WRKO out of Boston.

However, after giving it some thought, , owner of , decided on Aug. 31 to let people know that he is the owner Ayotte was talking about.

Shea met with Ayotte after an appearance of the radio program “Pints & Politics,” a political roundtable show hosted by Chris Ryan that has been interviewing political notables since the start of the New Hampshire First-in-the-Nation primary season.

The restaurant has been a regular haunt for all kinds of business and political customers during the last 12-plus years, Shea said, adding that “The Barley House has always been about the people, not the debate or policy.”

“We cater to the other side of politics – the personalities, the media, the campaign staffers … we are in the hospitality business,” he said. “Our mission is to provide an outstanding experience for our guests.”

According to Shea, many politicos come into the business to talk shop and ask how things are going and he regularly offers his two cents about the challenges that many small businesses face. He never really knows though if politicians are listening to him when he shares his experiences. Shea said he was surprised – and pleased – to hear his concerns revealed to a national audience by Ayotte at the convention.

About halfway through her speech, the senator spoke about a “successful restaurant owner in Concord” who was considering opening another restaurant but was concerned because if he did, he might “trigger penalties in ObamaCare” that he couldn’t afford.

“So he never opened up that restaurant,” Ayotte said. “Is that what we want for small businesses in America? To be afraid to grow because of the government? To face penalties to create more jobs? To be told you’re earning too much?”

Shea said that he hasn’t given up on the idea of expanding. But with historically thin margins and economic uncertainty, he is wondering if he should bother taking the risk, which was the point he was making to Ayotte.

“The restaurant business is a passion of mine,” he said. “I’m going to take every opportunity I can to grow the business. But I want to makes sure the variables are more predictable. Once I can be more comfortable with how things are, I can adjust, and, hopefully, I can figure out how to navigate these challenges.”

Some of the challenges go beyond health care. It’s the economy, in general, he said. It’s also the volatility of commodity, food, and transportation costs which all get added into the cost of the products he needs to serve his customers, he said. Shea said when he goes into a bank to get a loan to possibly expand or open a new location, he needs some amount of certainty that he will be able to pay the money back.

“That’s what’s going on for all businesses whether you’re an independent restaurant or a Fortune 500 company,” he said. “You’re going to take a risk … but it’s a challenge.”

Shea said the issue isn’t about politics, or being a Democrat or a Republican, it’s about having a successful business and providing for employees too.

In the end, there may be an expanded Barley House in Concord or another one somewhere else in New Hampshire. The question will be, when, or, if ever.

“We’re more like in a holding pattern and taking our time to figure it out,” he said.