Meet VP OF OPERATIONS Pauline Knighton-Prueter
At Marrow Detroit, our commitment to sustainable, locally sourced dining is brought to life by the vision and dedication of our team. We believe that knowing the people behind your food makes every bite more meaningful!
We recently caught up with Pauline Knighton-Prueter, Marrow's VP of Operations—a leader whose professional purpose centers on leading with intentional direction, fostering curiosity, and creating products and spaces that bring joy. Drawing from her decade of experience at Short's Brewery, where she learned the importance of memorable customer experiences and community stewardship, Pauline brings a passion for operational excellence and cultural development to Marrow's mission. She shared insights into what makes Marrow's culture unique, her role in scaling the team's "secret sauce," and what's on the horizon for our expanding presence across Metro Detroit, including the new Birmingham locations.
Q: What led you to your role as VP of Operations at Marrow?
A: My professional purpose is leading a business with intentional direction, surrounding myself with curious people, and creating products and spaces that bring joy. The hospitality and restaurant world has always been something I was drawn to. My career up to this point involved a lot of customer service and operations, but never fully on the restaurant side of the industry. Ping and I connected a couple of years ago, and I always respected Ping's brand vision and what she was building. We reconnected at a Brand Detroit networking event, and when this position opened up, it felt like the right next step for my career and a great opportunity to fully live my professional purpose.
Q: What was it like spending a decade at Short's Brewery? What did you learn there that you bring to Marrow?
A: What stood out most at Short's was creating memorable moments and really great customer service—the experience is a huge part of the Short's Brewery brand. Joe Short and the whole Short’s team are some of the hardest workers I know, very passionate, and all about doing things to the fullest. Community is also a big part of the brand identity. I was fortunate that my first job out of college really instilled in me how important the customer journey is and also the importance of being a steward for the community through development and sustainability. Many of the Short’s values I see reflected in Marrow’s values too.
Q: How has working at Marrow shaped your experience?
A: What stands out the most so far is the people who work at Marrow. In every department and capacity, at any of our establishments, I get a very strong sense of passion, curiosity, and the desire to learn and grow. The culture is truly a space of learning, creativity, and growth.
It's exciting to come into an organization who has a strong cultural foundation and our next phase is a focus on strengthening the culture and understanding how we can scale it to future projects. I think it is truly the Marrow secret sauce.
Q: What does a typical day look like for you at Marrow?
A: The days are ever-changing. Most days I visit a couple of our establishments, maybe work a shift, communicate with vendors, review restaurant finances, and work on operational efficiencies. Most of my time should be spent ensuring the teams I work with have the resources they need to do their jobs successfully.
Q: What's been the most rewarding part of your journey with Marrow so far?
A: Working with really great people everyday brings me so much joy. What makes me personally happy is when the people I work with find success and fulfillment in their roles. I want to do anything in my power to ensure each of my team members is empowered, feels they are making an impact, and having fun. It is rewarding to feel that I am working at a company where these things are possible.
Q: Marrow on the Go in Birmingham has launched and Marrow in The Market is coming this fall. What's it been like being part of making these expansions happen?
A: For Marrow on the Go, I joined post-launch, but our General Manager, Bree, and Culinary Operations Supervisor, Ricky, have been instrumental in fine-tuning it. It's been exciting digging in and learning what the voice and value proposition is to the customer. I really feel this fast-casual meets butcher shop model is unique and special and I really want us to nail down the business model so we can keep expanding it across Metro-Detroit.
For Marrow in The Market, the exciting part has been that the foundation is great—it is a beautiful space, a unique concept, and a great location with historical significance. Now it is the time where we take this foundation and dig into the details of how the restaurant should feel, how it should sound, how the concept should be executed, and what customer experience looks like. We have a lot of work to do, but it's been exhilarating so far!
Q: What's your favorite dish at Marrow or Marrow on the Go?
A: At Marrow on the Go, it's definitely the ham sandwich. At Marrow, the Michigan Beef dish is always something that looks and tastes delicious.
Q: What do you love most about being part of Detroit's food community?
A: How vivacious it feels—it's grown so much in the past couple of years. It's a small community, and I'm enjoying getting to know people who work in different capacities in the industry. It's made up of passionate and innovative people who want to see the Detroit food community evolve and expand.
Q: Can you share a fun fact about yourself or something unexpected?
A: I was a competitive Irish step dancer for a good chunk of my life. I spent a lot of time in my childhood traveling to competitions across the U.S. and even had the opportunity to travel and compete in Ireland. Give me a shot of Jameson on St. Patrick’s Day, and you may see me break out in a jig!