By Tracy Dietlin
Kevin Henry and his beautiful wife Dodi are the owners of the popular restaurant/nightclub, The Nest in Indian Wells.
Kevin, 62, hails from Detroit, MI, while Dodi, 60, was born in Sarajevo. They have been married for 32 years and have 3 sons: Kevin Jr., 28, a graduate of Notre Dame; Tyler, 25, a graduate of USC; and Nicholas, 21, a senior at UCLA.
“We met at the Palm Tree Restaurant on El Paseo (now Il Corso) where Dodi worked,” shared Kevin. “I stopped in to see one of my favorite performer’s, Mike Costley, and Dodi immediately impressed me with her beauty and outgoing nature.”
Kevin shared how they became owners of The Nest.
“Dodi had previously worked at The Nest for 18 years as a hostess/manager. After leaving for 8 years to manage Arnold Palmer’s Restaurant in La Quinta, the owners of The Nest called to offer an opportunity to purchase the restaurant. We put together a business plan, found 2 great investors; Peter Murphy and George O’Connell and opened in a matter of weeks.”
“The business has grown 4 fold since we took over and it continues to grow through 4 to 5 star ratings on Open Table, Yelp, Trip Advisor and Facebook,” shared Dodi.
“Our goal remains to provide the highest possible level of food, service and entertainment. Our menu reflects a combination of old Nest favorites, family recipes, and popular new dishes, including several gluten free items. We provide live and DJ music, 7 nights a week, year round,” shared Kevin, who also performs on a regular basis at the club, singing and playing piano. Kevin recently performed at jimi Fitz’s show at The McCallum and was one of the highlight performers of the night with his rendition of Prince’s “Purple Rain” and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk”.
The Nest has received the honor of “Open Table Award for Top 100 Hottest Restaurants in America” 3 times and the “Destination Award” from The Palm Springs Convention Bureau.
The couple insists that “mutual respect for each other’s skill sets and a willingness to listen,” is what allows them to be able to work together so successfully. They admit that it can be a bit difficult sometimes turning off the stress of any given day once they are home. “One of our favorite things to do when not working is sleep,” shared Kevin.
Dodi enjoys watching Kevin singing to the crowd nightly and Kevin is proud to watch Dodi making their guests feel comfortable. If they didn’t own The Nest, Kevin says they would be doing the same thing somewhere else.
Kevin says that they are usually too busy to have any hobbies, but date night consists of dinner out and a movie.
They have also worked hard to keep a balance in their lives with raising their sons.
“We try our best not to miss important dates and events in our kid’s lives. Although all 3 are living in Los Angeles now, we try to get there once a week to stay connected,” shared Dodi.
Their favorite vacation spots are Bosnia, Croatia and Lake Tahoe. Dodi’s favorite gift from Kevin is a watch he bought her and Kevin’s favorite gift from Dodi is a ring she gave him.
When asked what they feel is their partner’s best traits?
“Kevin has a great work ethic,” shared Dodi. Kevin replied, “Dodi genuinely attempts to please each and every guest.”
What do they feel is the most important thing that keeps their relationship solid after 32 years?
They both answered, “Mutual love, respect and trust!”
