WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – After 57 years in the food industry, Kevin Crary is retiring from his job as Johnny D’s cook.
“It’s a job that either you love it or it will probably kill you,” he said.
Working in the food business is probably one of the toughest jobs.
“I’ve covered every job that there is to be done from dishwasher, server, bartender, chef, accountant,” he said.
Crary first joined the food industry when he was 14 years old and fell in love with it, working in Ithaca, Alexandria Bay, and Fort Drum.
He began working at Johnny D’s in Watertown in 2009 and quickly became well-known for his homemade soup, so much so that his coworkers gave him a nickname.
“He is the unofficial Sultan of Soup! All handcrafted, nothing frozen out of the bag,” said David Bartlett, co-owner of Johnny D’s.
Crary says he knows up to 300 soup recipes off the top of his head.
David Bartlett has worked with Crary for the past 16 years and says he’s never had an employee like him.
“He’s always got a good attitude, ready to go to work and get the job done, and that’s not the easiest thing to do in this industry anymore,” said Bartlett.
Crary says his work ethic is so strong that not even a SWAT team can stop him from getting into the kitchen. These morals were taught to him at a young age.
“My mother said to me, when you go to work, you do whatever they tell you to do, and I went to work,” he said.
Crary’s last day will be late next week, right around his 58th work anniversary.
He says he can’t wait to see what his next course will be.
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