Peter and Tara Madden opened their first restaurant four years ago in the midst of major changes in downtown Bryan.
Madden's Casual Gourmet began with 15 employees and now has 25, a development Tara Madden calls the result of quality trumping quantity.
"We haven't had to grow as far as our staff," Tara Madden said. "It's just that the business has grown a lot. Our name is on the sign, but everything that we've created here comes from the teamwork with our staff. Just with the camaraderie and the cohesiveness we have here, without them we wouldn't be able to pull it off.
On Thursday, Peter and Tara Madden were awarded the ninth annual Mayor's Downtown Impact Award for their efforts to improve the area.
"Tara and Peter are kind and hospitable," Mayor Mark Conlee said during a ceremony at the Bryan Justice Center. "They bring some unique upscale dining to the downtown area. ... They are about making downtown a great place."
Shawn Andaya-Pulliam also received the award from Conlee, for the work she has done over the past six years as executive director of the Children's Museum of the Brazos Valley . She was not able to attend the ceremony.
"Shawn Andaya-Pulliam has enthusiastically fostered a partnership with the city of Bryan and the downtown community," Conlee said. "This is a lady who gets things done, whether it's begging for donations or planning major downtown events. We are fortunate to have her in our community."
Andaya-Pulliam was a three-time All-American softball player at Texas A&M University and was the winning pitcher in the team's 1987 national championship game.
Conlee said the Downtown Impact Award is close to his heart.
"I am passionate about downtown, and I want it to be the best it can be," he said.
Sponsored by First National Bank of Bryan, the award provides a $500 donation to the Boys and Girls Club of Brazos Valley in the names of the winners.
Peter Madden has been in the restaurant business for 20 years. Both Peter and Tara Madden gave credit to Kay Conlee, the mayor's sister, for the vision and support she has provided to help Madden's Casual Gourmet evolve into what it has become.
"We love the old buildings down here, and we're happy to be a part of the revitalization effort that is going on here," Peter Madden said.
"This whole [downtown] creation is kind of the creation of Kay Conlee, who we rent space from here. We've just been able to add our own personality to the space in the last three years, and we've really been able to embrace it and turn it into something else than what it was before we got here."
The 2007 recipients of the Mayor's Downtown Impact Award were Papa Perez and Cindy Peaslee.
Other previous winners include Russell Bradley, Greta Watkins, John Hendry, Zane Anderson, Michael Schaefer, John Clayton, W.J. Bryan Partnership LP, Caffé Capri, Ramu Cerone, Earth Art, the Old Bryan Marketplace and Kay Conlee.
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