From playing professional basketball to owning a successful multi-unit foodservice management company, George Tinsley is committed to excellence.  “Life was difficult for me as a child growing up in Louisville, KY. My stepmother died when I was 13 and I was having a difficult time in school. One teacher recommended I quit but it was another very special instructor that mentored me and introduced me to sports that turned my life around.”

Standing at 6’5’’, Tinsley was a basketball standout in high school and was heavily recruited by universities. “I was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1969 and although I had a short, exciting professional career, it is my life’s work with restaurants that I am most proud of,” says Tinsley. 

He started his restaurant career as a trainer with Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) in Louisville and even worked with founder Colonel Sanders on the company's first train-the-trainer program. Tinsley later supervised of 50 units and eventually became a franchisee. By purchasing franchises, Tinsley expanded the business to 12 locations.

In 1995, Tinsley partnered with management concessionaires to own and operate airport restaurants and launched Tinsley Family Concessions. The company now operates several concepts in airports in Kentucky and Florida

In this episode, Tinsley explains how  independent operators can open units at airports and other non-traditional locations, including the selection process and the advantages and challenges.

Today, Tinsley Family Concessions operates over 30 locations with brands that include KFC, Starbucks, Chilis, Pizza Hut, Burger King, PF Changs, and Pei Wei.

Penn Station East Coast Subs celebrates its 40th anniversary this year! Lance Vaught joined founder Jeffrey Osterfeld in 2002 as a franchise adviser charged with improving unit performance. “I really connected with the challenges and concerns of small business operators and saw our franchisees more as brand ambassadors," Lance tells us. What started in 1985 as a small bagel shop and delicatessen in Dayton Ohio has grown into a 320-unit group of businesses located in 14 states.

"I like to think our continued success and growth is due to the respect we show our guests and franchisees every day," says Vaught. Penn Station East Coast Subs demonstrates its respect for its guests by its commitment to value. Lance explains “A value experience is offering really good quality, consistently served by a friendly staff at a reasonable price.” Penn Station values its large group of franchisees and demonstrates that by respecting their return on investment (ROI). "We continue to review the capital investment requirements and work tirelessly to improve our franchisee’s unit profit, says Vaught. 

In this episode, we learn how to properly structure a franchise advisory council (FAC) and how engaging with the Penn Station FAC has led to improvements in concept size and efficiency, purveyor selection and marketing as well as the integration of technology. The menu has grown slightly from the original four sandwiches, hand-cut french fries and freshly made lemonade to include salads, wraps and specials….but ownership's commitment to a valuable experience remains the same. 

“Our franchisees are carefully selected," Lance tells us, "we take our time to be certain they are compatible with our vision and values...after all, we aren't building a business, but growing a family of brand ambassadors!" 

At 21, Troy Guard left community college in San Diego to return to Hawaii, his birthplace, where he mentored under Roy Yamaguchi, celebrity chef. Guard recounts, “I started in the pantry, worked my way through the kitchen, and over the next eight years opened restaurants with him [Yamaguchi] in Tokyo and New York City.”

At 38, Guard opened his first restaurant in Denver. “I knew the culinary side of the business pretty well,” says Guard, “but I had to quickly learn financial management and people development.”

Today, Guard is the owner and chef of the 12-restaurant TAG Restaurant Group. The company describes its eight concepts as ranging “from a bubbly breakfast joint, HashTAG, to the quick-casual Bubu, to the show-stopping modern steakhouse, Guard and Grace, and everything in between.”

In this episode, Guard explains how building the right team and delegating responsibilities became the foundation of his business expansion. "Today we successfully operate TAG Burger Bar, TAG Raw Bar, Sugar Mill Bakery, Los Chingonas Taqueria, and Guard & Grace Steakhouse because of the team we developed and the modifications I made to my role.”

Guard recommends that operators who wish to grow their concepts follow three steps: First, place yourself in the role that fits you best. Second, fire yourself from other responsibilities to allow the right person room to perform them. And third, implement systems and procedures for consistency.  Trust your people but place your faith in the systems.

Guard envisions a bright future for the TAG Restaurant Group. "Our short-term priorities include a focus on implementing appropriate technologies that improve operations while continuing to emphasize the guest experience."

“My family had a farm in North Dakota,” says Michelle Korsmo, CEO of the National Restaurant Association. “I was raised knowing that helping each other was the best way to help ourselves and that together people really can make a difference.”

Korsmo gained early restaurant experience working at TGI Fridays before becoming a state government lobbyist. From there she transitioned to CEO positions with the American Land and Title Association, the National Wine and Spirits Association, and eventually the National Restaurant Association.

Korsmo discusses her responsibilities as CEO which go beyond member representation and lobbying. “Watching the growth of education among students is particularly satisfying,” says Korsmo, adding, “The food safety, culinary skills and management development provided through our Pro Start program is successfully training our future leaders."

According to Korsmo, the association’s acquisition of RestaurantOwner.com increased its engagement with independent restaurant owners and operators via education and support. “I believe it is the absolute best collection of information and education for the hands-on restaurant owner available on the web today.”

As for the future of the restaurant industry, Korsmo envisions employment and sales growth, increased competition, and additional use of technology. “The National Restaurant Association will continue to use its efforts to best represent our interests while supporting the membership with the rapidly evolving industry we are a part of."

When Peter Yang’s parents immigrated to San Diego from China, they did not aspire for their children to be employed in food service. “My parents were trained designers in China, and had always hoped their children would graduate college and choose professional careers,” says Yang. Nevertheless, he grew up in the family restaurant and went on to develop Pokeworks, the world's largest fast-casual, premium Poke brand with 70 locations nationwide.

After earning a degree in engineering and a brief corporate internship, Yang joined his father and brother to open a full-service Chinese restaurant in Flushing, New York. “My interest was always in restaurants, and my passion to create is what led my brother and I to develop our own concept.”

Yang credits the growing healthful dining trend and his childhood visits to Hawaii as inspirations for the inaugural Pokeworks location in 2015, a 700-square-foot counter-service unit. Pokeworks’ fresh, healthy, and crave-able take on traditional poke bowls, burritos, salads, and sides was an immediate success. “Our initial thought was to expand slowly; but we received over one million views on Insider Food [a social media food network], creating tremendous interest in growth.”

Here, Yang details his business development process from concept ideation to expansion to franchise development. He also explains how cross-utilization of fresh seafood contributes to interesting menu offerings and managing food costs. Pokeworks’ current 1,200-square-foot counter and limited on-site dining units operate with relatively few staff and produce more than 30% of the concept’s sales from online guest pick-up orders.

Eatzi’s Market & Bakery (Eatzi’s) was created by award-winning concept developer Phil Romano in 1996 as a joint venture with casual dining restaurant company Brinker International, Inc. Soon after its launch, Adam Romo joined Eatzi’s as the company’s first CFO. 

"The initial acceptance was way above expectations," says Romo, adding, "The concept successfully offered something new and different, restaurant-quality cooking in a European market setting." With multiple open kitchens, the aroma of fresh baked goods, and opera playing in the background, Eatzi’s entertained customers and quickly developed a loyal following.

Eatzi’s successful Dallas debut led to expansion in Atlanta, the District of Columbia, Houston, and New York City. However, says Romo, "Expansion was not successful, and the profit drain led to a sale to a profit equity firm that had difficulty with continued operation and eventually went into bankruptcy."

In this episode, Romo explains how Eatzi’s was revived when Phil Romano purchased it out of bankruptcy in 2006 and Adam rejoined the group as its CEO. "We learned from our mistakes with location, size of facility, and operational challenges," says Romo. Extensive customer research was the foundation of their new business model. "We learned that our guests look to us for quality, convenience, theatre, price, and value so every decision made must enhance those five branding principles." 

Today Eatzi’s operates seven successful Texas locations in Dallas, Ft. Worth, Plano, and Grapevine. The units are 5,500 square feet, trimmed down from the concept’s earlier 10,000-square-foot locations. Off-premises dining accounts for 90% of Eatzi’s sales with on-premises business accounting for the remaining 10%. 

Eatzi’s appears poised for future growth with its commitment to quality and personal guest service. The concept continues to provide convenient online ordering, delivery, and "grab-and-go" sales for which it is famous.

Emily Hunt Turner is the founder and CEO of All Square Enterprises, a Minnesota non-profit organization. A former civil rights attorney, she created a restaurant and food truck business that provides a fresh start for people with a criminal record.

Says Emily, “By investing in those recently released [from prison] and those with criminal records and trying to move forward, we provide a sense of purpose and appreciation while receiving a loyal hard-working family of staff members.” The organization’s name suggests being “all square” with society.

She launched All Square Enterprises six years ago as a small cafe seating 50 people and operating five days a week from 11 am to 8 pm. Its specialty grilled cheese sandwiches are served in four squares, each representing four steps of entering society from incarceration -- space, light, open, and free. The sandwich varieties include basil pesto, Jamaica jerk, and jalapeño popper with fries, soup, and salad as sides.

In this episode, Emily shares how she learned to overcome her lack of restaurant experience and how her unusual opening promotion succeeded in raising startup capital. "This truly took a village to open,” she says. “We had assistance from community members to assist with design, construction, and equipment. She adds,” But my offering free grilled cheese sandwiches for life promotion for [a donation of] $1,000 was miraculous. We had 62 responses allowing me to have the necessary funds to open.”

Emily spends time with staff and management at the restaurant and attends food truck promotions, but she works primarily on the organization’s fellowship program. "We offer family services and legal assistance. We also teach entrepreneurship as a way of preparing our staff members for the rest of their lives." 

Sisters Jackie and Jessica Rodriguez started working in the family restaurant business as teenagers. With time and hard work, they have grown into leadership positions in this successful multi-concept hospitality company in El Salvador. What started as a San Salvadorian bakery created by their grandparents, grew into a 20-unit chain under the leadership of their father. 

Sixteen years ago, the family jumped at the opportunity to purchase a small hotel and their concept diversification plan was underway… Today Grupo Lorena consists of Hotel Villa, 16 Lorena bakeries as well as Don Beto Cafe, Fontana Bar and Restaurant, and La Tartaleta. The family decided to become a franchisee of the Japanese seafood concept, Sushi Koi as a way of continuing its multi-concept expansion. 

"We believe it is important to pioneer concepts, becoming the first in the San Salvadorian market helps us create impact, further our growth and increase our brand value" says Jessica, who heads up Marketing and Brand Management.

In this episode, we learn the distinction between a family operating restaurants and a restaurant business that happens to employ family members. Jackie, who leads operations, purchasing and Human Resources explains, "You don’t simply get a position in the company because you are family…you must qualify and get selected based on education and experience."

This is a story of successful concept development, profitable operations and strategic expansion by a family that has created a culture of responsibility, accountability and reward.

In 2014, Cameron Gerber bought a hotel and restaurant near his home outside Varney, a small community in Ottawa, Canada. After trying to sell the real estate, he and his brother Andrew opened a casual full-service concept on the property, with no restaurant experience. Their first restaurant struggled until they renovated it into Pebbles Family Buffet, which became a local hit. 

The success of the buffet, fresh bakery, and gift shop required the brothers to develop operating systems and procedures to improve efficiency and profitability. "We learned so much from the information and operating materials we found on www.restaurantowner.com, it remains our go-to reference to this day," says Cameron. 

In 2019, Pebbles Family Buffet increased its guest capacity to more than 250 seats and expanded its food-to-go program. They built a 10,000-square-foot commercial kitchen for the Pebbles Pantry, which delivers seven popular dinner offerings to more than 100 community grocery stores. 

In this episode, Cameron explains the importance of the business’s relationship with its staff and how his vision of Pebbles as a family became a reality. Says Cameron, "We show our care by involving our staff members in our daily operations, menu planning, and community marketing."

Over the next few years, Cameron and Andrew say they plan to continue their commitment to expansion, marketing, and staff. "We see Pebbles with an expanded bakery and gift shop and a pantry that has doubled in its production," says Cameron.

Alex Eagle was general counsel for Austin, Texas-based fast-casual concept Freebirds World Burrito before becoming its chief executive officer in 2018. Albeit his hands-on restaurant experience was limited, he forged ahead with plans for the concept’s improvement, leaning on his attention to detail and ability to motivate others.

Quoting Jim Sullivan, CEO and founder of leadership and development training site Sullivision.com, Eagle says, "Good leaders may not have all the right answers, but they have all the right questions." He adds, "And I had plenty of questions."

Eagle had no question that Freebirds was an exciting concept with great quality and an energetic team, but he found many of the units were underperforming. "Previous leadership may have spent too much time on brand expansion and not enough on consistent operations," says Eagle.

Thus, Eagle spent time with unit managers and staff to discover opportunities for improvement. He gained confidence to implement a three-step program. The first step was improving both operating consistency and kitchen efficiency. Step two was keeping staff members happy. Says Eagle, "Going above and beyond staff expectations in the areas of quality of work, compensation and quality of life became our mantra." Step three involved marketing product quality and promoting successful limited-time offerings.

His efforts paid off. Freebirds World Burrito completed its past fiscal year with increased sales, improved margins, and 64 profitable Texas units.

Since this recording in August 2024, Freebirds World Burrito was purchased by Texas-based Sun Holdings, Inc.