Ricky and Josh Miller sit down with Las Vegas restaurateur Tony Lee — owner of Smash & Slice, former owner of Smoke & Fire, and part owner of Giddy Up, the breakfast burrito concept opening in October. Tony signed his first restaurant lease in December 2019 and opened straight into a shutdown, and that six-month crash course is exactly what built the playbook he's running today.
This one goes deep on the stuff every small business owner is dealing with right now: influencer marketing before it was a budget line item, using AI to build systems instead of art, scaling a second location without losing consistency, and why Vegas locals still won't drive to the Strip.
In this episode of the Born to Tint Podcast, the guys cover:
🍕 Opening a restaurant during COVID — and why Tony says it's the reason he's where he is now
📈 The influencer marketing playbook: why you say yes to every creator who wants to shoot your food
⭐ The Keith Lee 10/10 that sent Smash & Slice over the top — and what it taught Tony about betting early on people
🏪 Scaling to a second location: prepping everything at store #1 and the commissary plan for store #3
🤖 Where AI actually earns its keep — employee handbooks, sorting 300 resumes, and answering reviews without getting emotional
🎨 The one thing Tony refuses to use AI for (and why he still pays local artists)
🏆 How Green Valley used AI to design a championship decorative tint entry in 90 minutes flat
🔍 SEO is becoming AIO — why YouTube content is quietly the cheapest way to get named by ChatGPT and Gemini
🌯 Inside Giddy Up: housemade tortillas, premium steak, pasture-raised eggs, beef tallow tots, zero seed oils
💰 Real Vegas commercial rent numbers — $3–4/sq ft off-Strip vs $20–50 on it
🚗 Why paid parking is costing the Strip its local customers
🍗 What's next: gelato, fried chicken, the Arts District, and 4–5 Smash & Slice locations
Whether you run a restaurant, a tint shop, or any local business trying to grow past one location, this is a straight-talk masterclass on marketing, systems, and building something people actually drive across town for.
Follow Tony @fulltimetony and @fulltimeeats — and check out his restaurants @smashandsliceco and @eatgiddyup
Follow us on Instagram @greenvalleywindowtint
New episodes of the Born to Tint Podcast drop every week — subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss a business breakdown or shop-floor story from Ricky and Josh Miller.
#BornToTint #SmashAndSlice #LasVegasFood #VegasEats #Entrepreneurship #RestaurantBusiness #SmallBusiness #BreakfastBurrito #WindowTint #TintShop
00:19 — Intro: Ricky and Josh welcome Tony Lee of Smash & Slice
04:22 — Smoke & Fire: signing a lease in December 2019 and opening into a shutdown
05:06 — Smash & Slice opens November 11, 2024 in the old Mount Palms space
06:36 — Why pizza and smash burgers? The Italian grandma dough story
09:34 — The marketing degree, and controlling the product from start to finish
10:36 — Keith Lee, a catered wedding, and the 10/10 that blew up Smash & Slice
13:54 — Scaling to location #2 without letting consistency slip
15:19 — The commissary plan: why location #3 is a 2,000 sq ft kitchen
17:37 — Using AI for employee handbooks, SOPs, and sorting 300 resumes
21:05 — The one thing Tony won't use AI for: artwork and local artists
22:17 — Josh breaks down how Green Valley AI-designed a championship tint entry
28:41 — Giddy Up revealed: the Darkmoon Coffee partnership and the October opening
31:55 — Housemade tortillas, wagyu steak, beef tallow tots, and no seed oils
36:45 — SEO vs AIO: why YouTube content is getting cited by Gemini and ChatGPT
52:05 — Real numbers: $3–4/sq ft off-Strip vs $20–50 on it
54:27 — Why paid parking is killing Strip traffic for Vegas locals
