For nearly 30 years, Mark Bado, MCM, CCE, General Manager/COO of Mizner Country Club (Delray Beach, Fla.), has been a steady force in club management, supporting chefs as they shape the future of food and beverage operations at some of the nation’s most prestigious clubs. His approach is simple yet profound: build deep relationships with chefs, not just as colleagues, but as trusted partners.   

Mark Bado, MCM, CCE, General Manager/COO, Mizner Country Club (Delray Beach, Fla.)

From raising the bar at Kansas City Country Club (Mission Hills, Kan.) to leading Myers Park Country Club (Charlotte, N.C.) through the pandemic to overseeing a massive renovation at Houston Country Club and now guiding Mizner CC into its next chapter, Bado has worked hand-in-hand with culinary heavyweights like Andrew Kneessy, Scott Craig, Zeb Hartline, and Daniel Montano, redefining what true collaboration means. In this exclusive interview, Bado opens up about the grit, the grace, and the lessons learned in forging chef-GM alliances that stand the test of time.

Club + Resort Chef (C+RC): Thank you for taking the time to speak with us, Mark. Let’s jump into it. You’ve worked at a number of high-profile clubs. What led you to make the move from Myers Park to Houston Country Club?

Mark Bado (MB): At the time, Houston Country Club was undergoing a massive construction project. They were looking for a change agent, someone to help rebuild the team as they emerged from construction. That opportunity intrigued me, and I felt good about the management team we built there. We had a chef who was an Olympic chef and a mentor to many, but he was ready to retire. We hired Zeb Hartline, who had the energy and resilience to handle the challenges that came with such a large and impressive food and beverage program.

C+RC: [Chef Hartline] has made a huge impact at HCC. What stood out to you about him during the hiring process?

MB: [Hartline’s] background was mostly in hotels, which was a bit of a risk for us, as the club world operates differently. But his work at Marriott showed that he could handle the kind of high-volume, high-expectation environment we had at HCC. What really impressed me was his resilience. We were still under construction when he joined, and we didn’t have a fully functioning banquet kitchen. [Hartline] took it in stride and managed to pull off large-scale events out of our a la carte kitchen.

C+RC: That must have been a huge challenge for him and his team.

MB: It was. There were times when we were doing two or three banquets a night, serving hundreds of people, all while working out of just the a la carte kitchen. It was a tough situation, but Chef and his team made it work. “Can’t” just wasn’t part of our vocabulary.

C+RC: You’ve also worked closely with Scott Craig, who is now at Cullasaja Club (Highlands, N.C.). Can you talk about your relationship with him, especially during the pandemic?

MB: [Craig] and I go way back, and we’ve shared some really tough times together. During COVID, he helped lead the industry by creating a reopening playbook that ended up with hundreds of downloads. We didn’t have a blueprint, but we just jumped in and figured it out.

At Mizner, when our Executive Chef resigned to take a job in the Midwest and we were heading into the holiday season, I reached out to [Craig]. It was his son, Mason, who said, “Dad, your friend needs help,” and [Craig] didn’t hesitate. He left his family at home, came to Florida, and stayed for weeks to help us get through the holidays. That’s what you do for your friends. I’m forever indebted to him for that.

C+RC: That kind of loyalty is rare. What do you think other GMs can learn from the relationships you’ve built with your chefs, like [Craig], [Hartline], and now Daniel Montano at Mizner?

MB: It’s all about having a supportive, accountable relationship. You have to be there for each other, especially when things get tough. There are always going to be disagreements, but when you’re in the trenches together, that’s where real trust is built.

I want to have a deeper emotional relationship with the chefs I work with because we spend more time with these people than we do with our own families. It’s not just about being the boss—it’s about creating a partnership where we’re all pulling in the same direction.

C+RC: That’s a powerful approach. Speaking of [Montano], how is he settling in at Mizner?

MB: [Montano] is doing great, though he’ll tell you he’s not fully up to speed yet—none of us ever are! But he’s a strong leader and has the support of an amazing team.

We’ve also hired an AGM who understands the culture here in Southeast Florida and will work closely with him. It’s been a learning curve, but he’s handling it well.

C+RC: It’s clear you have a real knack for fostering relationships with chefs. What advice would you give to other GMs who might not have that kind of connection with their culinary team?

MB: It starts with setting clear goals and expectations, but it’s deeper than that. You need to be in the trenches together, sharing those hard experiences. That’s where real bonds are formed. You also have to let them do their job, be there to support them, provide the tools to be successful and hold them accountable.

When you have those bonds, you can hold each other accountable in a way that’s constructive, not destructive. It’s about building a shared foundation of values and working toward the same goals as a team.