Jensen Huang’s recent revelation about his time working at Denny’s struck a chord with me. As someone who has spent years in the food service industry, I couldn’t help but smile at the NVIDIA founder’s candid memories of his pre-tech days. His simple anecdote about “pigs in a blanket” and his hatred for making milkshakes reveals something we rarely see from tech titans – the humble beginnings that shaped them.
Huang’s confession that he still eats pancakes the same way he learned at Denny’s “to this very day” humanizes a man worth billions. It’s refreshing to see that even someone who revolutionized computing technology carries these small, ordinary experiences with him.
The Relatable Side of Tech Visionaries
What struck me most about Huang’s comments was his authentic disdain for making shakes. “Nothing kills me more than when somebody orders a shake,” he admitted, revealing he would try to talk customers out of ordering them. I’ve been there – every food service worker has that one menu item they dread making.
This glimpse into Huang’s past offers valuable perspective. Before he was developing GPUs and steering NVIDIA toward AI dominance, he was trying to convince Denny’s customers to “just get a Coke” instead of ordering complicated shakes. There’s something powerful about this connection between mundane service jobs and future success.
What Early Jobs Teach Future Leaders
I believe these formative work experiences shape leadership styles in ways we don’t always recognize. Consider what Huang might have learned from his Denny’s days:
- Customer service fundamentals that later translated to understanding tech users’ needs
- Efficiency and process optimization (likely why he hated time-consuming shakes)
- The value of simplicity – sometimes a Coke is better than a complicated shake
These lessons appear throughout NVIDIA’s approach to business. The company consistently focuses on user experience while pushing technological boundaries.
The Shared Experience of Service Work
There’s something universal about food service work. When Huang mentions his pancake-eating technique or his distaste for making shakes, millions of people who’ve worked similar jobs instantly connect with him. This shared experience bridges gaps between different worlds.
I find it fascinating that someone who now shapes the future of AI and computing still carries these small behavioral patterns from an entry-level job. It suggests that our formative work experiences stay with us, regardless of how far we travel from them professionally.
Why These Stories Matter
We need more of these humanizing glimpses into the lives of tech leaders. When we only see the polished, successful versions of innovators, we miss the messy, relatable journeys that brought them there. These small stories remind us that even the most successful people started somewhere ordinary.
Huang’s Denny’s anecdote might seem trivial, but it offers an important counterbalance to the myth of the tech genius who emerges fully formed. His path included taking orders, making pancakes, and yes, reluctantly mixing shakes when he couldn’t talk customers out of them.
Next time you hear about NVIDIA’s latest breakthrough or see Huang on stage announcing new technology, remember the Denny’s worker trying to avoid making shakes. There’s something wonderfully human about that connection between past and present – between ordinary beginnings and extraordinary achievements.
Perhaps that’s the most valuable takeaway from Huang’s brief walk down memory lane: success doesn’t erase our past experiences; it builds upon them in ways we might not expect. And sometimes, the habits we form in our earliest jobs – like how to properly eat pancakes – stay with us for a lifetime.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What restaurant did Jensen Huang work at before founding NVIDIA?
Jensen Huang worked at Denny’s restaurant before his tech career and founding NVIDIA. In his comments, he mentions learning about “pigs in a blanket” there and developing his pancake-eating technique that he still uses today.
Q: Why did Jensen Huang dislike making milkshakes?
While Huang doesn’t explicitly state why he hated making shakes, he mentions that “nothing kills me more than when somebody orders a shake.” Many food service workers dislike making shakes because they’re time-consuming and interrupt workflow during busy periods.
Q: What can we learn from tech leaders’ early job experiences?
Early job experiences, especially in service industries, often teach future leaders valuable skills like customer service, efficiency, problem-solving, and adaptability. These formative experiences can shape leadership styles and business approaches in unexpected ways throughout their careers.
Q: How did Jensen Huang go from working at Denny’s to founding NVIDIA?
While the transcript doesn’t detail Huang’s full career path, we know he went from humble beginnings working at Denny’s to eventually co-founding NVIDIA in 1993. Before NVIDIA, he earned an electrical engineering degree and worked at AMD and LSI Logic. His journey demonstrates how early work experiences can be stepping stones to greater achievements.
