06/28/2024
Our very own Kenadee in Edible OKC Magazine 👏🏼
Kenadee Starr—the utility player at The Brown Bag , a Hal Smith Restaurant concept in Norman—may be the living embodiment of extroversion. At 16, she’s a senior at Norman North High School, is co-chair of the social committee within the Student Council, and she loves her sourdough bread experiments so much that she can’t help but share. “Baking is a science and I love the challenge and patience that’s required, but I talk about it so much that people have to tell me to stop,” she beams.
The Brown Bag serves burgers, chicken tenders, and tacos to the lunch and dinner crowds on Norman’s northwest side. From Sunday’s churchgoers to Monday’s construction workers and Friday’s after-school crowd, Kenadee is frequently the face of operations. She works the register and moonlights at the window, serves meals, cleans, and does refills. “Right now, during summer, I work four to five days a week and will pick up shifts where I’m able,” she explains. “Every day you’re talking to people, and I love talking to the customers. I may have had a hard day at school, but coming to The Brown Bag and seeing our regulars brings me a lot of happiness. It feels like a privilege.”
Kenadee began working at The Brown Bag prior to its early summer 2023 opening, and now she’s training new staff. “I get to see myself in the trainees. The trainees are nervous like I was and are afraid they’re going to mess up. I tell them, ‘Mistakes happen, don’t worry about being perfect.’ Being your best and being perfect are two different things.” This level of clarity and conviction is even more impressive when you discover The Brown Bag is her first job.
What does a 16-year-old high school senior look forward to? Freshman year. “I’ll be applying to the University of Oklahoma and plan to major in nursing,” Kenadee says. “I love taking care of people and there are so many different things you can do as a nurse.” Between now and then you can catch Kenadee on the floor at The Brown Bag, or at the next school dance she plans, or in the Norman North hallways talking about her new sourdough experiment.
