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I got an inside look at Google's newest restaurant tools
Your 2026 Google Playbook
* Own Your Google Business Profile: Maximize every relevant field and respond to every review. Consistency across platforms is what prevents AI confusion.
* Geo-Tag Everything: Ensure creators and your own team are geolocation tagging your restaurant in every video.
* Video is Data: High-quality video isn’t just “content.” It’s the primary way multimodal search understands your “vibe.” Having a variety of short and long videos will help you show up better.
* Hyper-Local Analysis: Use Google’s BigQuery and Place Insights to score new locations based on real-world vibrancy metrics before signing a lease.
In New York City during the Holidays (between the Rockefeller crowds and the chaos of Times Square) you’re either moving with the current or getting swept away.
Either way, what a ride.
This month, I found myself back in Manhattan for my third Google Restaurant Influencer Summit. The “Digital Front Door” isn’t just a metaphor anymore. It’s a living, breathing ecosystem where hospitality and technology have finally merged.
Big Ideas at St. John’s Terminal
The event was at the iconic St. John’s Terminal, hosted by Lisa Landsman. The energy in the room was electric—big ideas were everywhere. Before the summit even started, I met up with the Cali BBQ Media crew at a café that was perfectly designed for our needs thanks to AI.
Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence program picked the spot for us to eat as well as all the other restaurants we ate at during our trip (it also helped me find spots my kids loved, which is never easy).
It was a practical reminder of the first big takeaway from the summit: The Future of Search is Multimodal.
People are moving beyond simple text; they are using image, voice, and video for complex, longer search queries.
If your restaurant isn’t “readable” by these tools, you are essentially invisible to the AI-powered diner.
Feeding 100,000 People (The Ultimate Scale)
One of the most profound moments was sitting down with Helen Wechsler. Helen manages a hospitality operation that would make most owners’ heads spin: she is responsible for feeding 100,000 Googlers worldwide.
It was one of my favorite interviews ever. We talked about how she uses global systems to ensure that every individual feels cared for through food.
It reinforced a core Cali BBQ Media belief: whether you’re serving brisket in San Diego or healthy bowls in a global tech hub, the goal of technology should always be to amplify the human connection.
YouTube: The New “Actionable” Menu
I spent the afternoon diving deep into the intersection of YouTube and Search with Farah Shirzadi. We got a hands-on look at Google’s newest tools. The reality is that search is evolving from just giving answers to Agentic AI—where the system actually makes bookings and turns plans into reality.
To succeed here, your content strategy is critical:
* Be the Primary Source: You must provide rich, fresh content in your Google Business Profile (GBP).
* Support Text with Rich Media: Use high-quality images and video to feed the AI what it needs.
* YouTube is Essential: Restaurants should have dedicated YouTube channels linked directly to their GBP.
* The Power of Shorts: 22% of Gen Z users on YouTube Shorts do not use TikTok or Instagram Reels. If you aren’t on Shorts, you’re missing a massive, unique audience.
* Place Pivot Pages: This is where mentioned Shorts about your restaurant are displayed, creating a “geographic hub” for your brand.
Google has lots of ways to help restaurants run. At my restaurant Cali BBQ in San Diego, we are now using Nano Banana Pro on Gemini to design and fine-tune design for promotions and signs.
Our restaurant staff now has the ability to design without having to wait for a graphics team to get back to them.
We also explored Place Insights, which is a game-changer for expansion. By combining Google’s Places data with your own in BigQuery, restaurant owners can make smarter decisions about where to open.
We saw how you can move from a state-wide view down to hyper-local grids to score sites based on “vibrancy,” amenities, and competitor density.
This isn’t guesswork. It’s calculating your Total Addressable Market (TAM) with surgical precision.
Between sessions, I traded stories with the people who keep this industry moving: Zack Oates, Rev Ciancio, Loycent Gordon, and more. These are hospitality lifers who understand that while the tools change, the mission of service remains the same.
The trip ended in true NYC fashion. My family the Walchef Wolfpack showed up to watch me work at the Google offices before we pulled a movie-style sprint to LaGuardia. We barely made our flight, but we got back just in time for Steven & Amanda’s wedding.
New York gave us a lifetime of memories—from Central Park squirrels to a front-row seat at the next wave of Google innovation.
The message is clear: Good SEO is largely having great content for people. The technology is ready. The question is, are you ready to run with it?
Check out my recap from our first trip to the Google NYC Summit: What Restaurants Can Learn from Google’s NYC Influencer Summit
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restauranttechnology.substack.com
View all episodes
By Cali BBQ MediaYour 2026 Google Playbook
* Own Your Google Business Profile: Maximize every relevant field and respond to every review. Consistency across platforms is what prevents AI confusion.
* Geo-Tag Everything: Ensure creators and your own team are geolocation tagging your restaurant in every video.
* Video is Data: High-quality video isn’t just “content.” It’s the primary way multimodal search understands your “vibe.” Having a variety of short and long videos will help you show up better.
* Hyper-Local Analysis: Use Google’s BigQuery and Place Insights to score new locations based on real-world vibrancy metrics before signing a lease.
In New York City during the Holidays (between the Rockefeller crowds and the chaos of Times Square) you’re either moving with the current or getting swept away.
Either way, what a ride.
This month, I found myself back in Manhattan for my third Google Restaurant Influencer Summit. The “Digital Front Door” isn’t just a metaphor anymore. It’s a living, breathing ecosystem where hospitality and technology have finally merged.
Big Ideas at St. John’s Terminal
The event was at the iconic St. John’s Terminal, hosted by Lisa Landsman. The energy in the room was electric—big ideas were everywhere. Before the summit even started, I met up with the Cali BBQ Media crew at a café that was perfectly designed for our needs thanks to AI.
Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence program picked the spot for us to eat as well as all the other restaurants we ate at during our trip (it also helped me find spots my kids loved, which is never easy).
It was a practical reminder of the first big takeaway from the summit: The Future of Search is Multimodal.
People are moving beyond simple text; they are using image, voice, and video for complex, longer search queries.
If your restaurant isn’t “readable” by these tools, you are essentially invisible to the AI-powered diner.
Feeding 100,000 People (The Ultimate Scale)
One of the most profound moments was sitting down with Helen Wechsler. Helen manages a hospitality operation that would make most owners’ heads spin: she is responsible for feeding 100,000 Googlers worldwide.
It was one of my favorite interviews ever. We talked about how she uses global systems to ensure that every individual feels cared for through food.
It reinforced a core Cali BBQ Media belief: whether you’re serving brisket in San Diego or healthy bowls in a global tech hub, the goal of technology should always be to amplify the human connection.
YouTube: The New “Actionable” Menu
I spent the afternoon diving deep into the intersection of YouTube and Search with Farah Shirzadi. We got a hands-on look at Google’s newest tools. The reality is that search is evolving from just giving answers to Agentic AI—where the system actually makes bookings and turns plans into reality.
To succeed here, your content strategy is critical:
* Be the Primary Source: You must provide rich, fresh content in your Google Business Profile (GBP).
* Support Text with Rich Media: Use high-quality images and video to feed the AI what it needs.
* YouTube is Essential: Restaurants should have dedicated YouTube channels linked directly to their GBP.
* The Power of Shorts: 22% of Gen Z users on YouTube Shorts do not use TikTok or Instagram Reels. If you aren’t on Shorts, you’re missing a massive, unique audience.
* Place Pivot Pages: This is where mentioned Shorts about your restaurant are displayed, creating a “geographic hub” for your brand.
Google has lots of ways to help restaurants run. At my restaurant Cali BBQ in San Diego, we are now using Nano Banana Pro on Gemini to design and fine-tune design for promotions and signs.
Our restaurant staff now has the ability to design without having to wait for a graphics team to get back to them.
We also explored Place Insights, which is a game-changer for expansion. By combining Google’s Places data with your own in BigQuery, restaurant owners can make smarter decisions about where to open.
We saw how you can move from a state-wide view down to hyper-local grids to score sites based on “vibrancy,” amenities, and competitor density.
This isn’t guesswork. It’s calculating your Total Addressable Market (TAM) with surgical precision.
Between sessions, I traded stories with the people who keep this industry moving: Zack Oates, Rev Ciancio, Loycent Gordon, and more. These are hospitality lifers who understand that while the tools change, the mission of service remains the same.
The trip ended in true NYC fashion. My family the Walchef Wolfpack showed up to watch me work at the Google offices before we pulled a movie-style sprint to LaGuardia. We barely made our flight, but we got back just in time for Steven & Amanda’s wedding.
New York gave us a lifetime of memories—from Central Park squirrels to a front-row seat at the next wave of Google innovation.
The message is clear: Good SEO is largely having great content for people. The technology is ready. The question is, are you ready to run with it?
Check out my recap from our first trip to the Google NYC Summit: What Restaurants Can Learn from Google’s NYC Influencer Summit
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restauranttechnology.substack.com