New Santa Fe manager Vijay Nagpal says it is his team at the restaurant that will make the business able to improve and thrive as he seeks to help oversee the future.

“As a team, we will make it happen,” Nagpal said. “That is our new motto … Our four managers are the four pillars, the foundation of our restaurant.”

Owner C.P. Pittman said he is excited to have Nagpal as the leader of that team.

“I met Vijay about 10 years ago, and he already knew everybody back then,” Pittman said. “We kept in contact and before I purchased Santa Fe a year ago, I talked to him about coming to work for us. He’s come in and really taken charge.”

Nagpal said the first important thing to focus on is providing a quality food product.

“(Pittman) brought me a very experienced kitchen manager who has been with the company 13 years in Oklahoma City,” Nagpal said. “He has very much had a big hand into this; without him I could not do this. He has really increased the quality of the food and the back side is so clean and organized.”

Another important focus for the Santa Fe team moving forward is community service.

“We want to be involved in community like never before,” Pittman said. “We’re looking at possibly getting the catering truck back up … To me, it’s all about giving back, I had literally nothing in it but hard work to get where I am now. I want to bless others the way I’ve been blessed big. The focus of 2019 is what charities can we get involved with? We want go out to festivals and have fun and show our food. The community supports us and we need to support the community.”

Nagpal said that the team also wants to give to the community by providing the best customer service possible.

“When people come, we want to give them the best guest indulgence, hospitality like nobody has ever experienced,”Nagpal said. “We’re going to be trusted and we promise to deliver good food.”

Other new changes include bringing out more live music to the restaurant, featuring specifically local talent and engage the community that way.