Restaurant Misfits

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In this episode, we sit down with Melissa to discuss the nuances of running a venue outside the corporate playbook. We explore the unfiltered truth behind the decisions that keep a business afloat and the lessons learned from the front lines of the industry. This conversation is essential for independent restaurant owners looking to carve out their own path.

Whether you are managing staff or refining your guest experience, understanding these operational challenges is vital for long-term survival. We focus on the practical steps you can take to build a brand that reflects your personal vision rather than just following industry trends.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/yt

Improve your restaurant management strategy by hearing from those navigating the daily realities of the hospitality business.

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In this episode, we sit down to discuss the realities of the restaurant industry from an unconventional perspective. Whether you are struggling with standard operational norms or looking to build a brand that stands apart from the competition, this conversation offers an honest look at what it takes to succeed on your own terms.

We break down the strategies that define effective restaurant management for those who prefer to challenge the status quo rather than follow the crowd. By embracing your specific identity, you can create a more authentic guest experience that builds lasting loyalty.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/yt

Are you one of the restaurant misfits? We explore the unique challenges of running a business when you don't fit the mold.

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🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/yt

Join us for a restaurant management podcast interview with Cherryh Cansler. See how industry leaders tackle daily operations.

In this episode of Restaurant Misfits, Cherrysh Cansler shares her perspective on the evolving restaurant industry. We discuss the practical strategies needed to keep operations running smoothly while maintaining quality standards.

Whether you are just starting or looking to optimize your existing workflow, this conversation highlights the essential pillars of the hospitality business. Learn how to better align your team and focus on the metrics that truly impact your bottom line.

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This episode is different. Not only did we sit down with the man who literally brought birria from Mexico to the US — but I also did a live marketing breakdown of his business on the second half of the episode. First time we've ever done this on the show.

Raul Luis is the owner of Birrieria Chalio. His family started selling birria out of their house in East LA in the 1970s (yes, the SWAT team showed up once — you'll hear that story). 50+ years later, they're running four locations, doing $4.5M/year at their Texas store alone, and are known as the kings of birria in America.

We got into the real stuff — how his dad brought live goats over during the Bracero program, why they didn't have a menu for the first decade, how they figured out to steam-cook birria for 8-10 hours after the fire department shut down their traditional underground method, and the lesson from Ricardo Diaz that kept Raul up at night for three days.

Then I flipped the script. I pulled up his website live, walked him through what's broken, showed him exactly why he's flying blind on his $800/mo ad spend, and reverse-engineered what it'll take to hit his $8M goal.

If you own a restaurant — especially a legacy one — this is the episode.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/growth/watch/Youtube

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If you're a restaurant owner running ads right now, you need to hear this one before you spend another dollar.

I sat down with my co-founder Jace Kovacevich — the guy actually running the ad strategy across every restaurant we work with at Dineline. $65M+ in ad spend managed. 2,500+ restaurant concepts. He's in the ad accounts every single day. This dude has seen what works and what doesn't across every category, every market, every price point.

Jace gets brutally direct about what's really working in restaurant paid media right now — why boosting posts isn't a strategy, what your CPA should actually look like, and the math most operators are getting completely wrong when they try to judge if their ads are working.

This isn't theory. This is the guy sitting behind the wheel of hundreds of restaurant ad accounts, telling you exactly what he sees every day.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/growth/watch/Youtube

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This is the episode I'll be recommending to every restaurant owner I talk to this year.

I sat down with Craig Susser, founder of Craig's Restaurant in LA and Nashville. 35 years in the industry. Waiter, bartender, maitre d' for 22 years, and now one of the most respected names in fine dining. This guy has seen it all.

Craig gets brutally transparent about what it actually takes to survive and scale in this business right now — margins, labor costs, the online review nightmare, what hospitality really means, and why most operators are one bad decision away from losing the regulars they worked years to build.

This isn't theory. This is someone who's been in the trenches for three decades and figured out what works.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co/growth/watch/Youtube

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Babak Bina didn’t just survive the restaurant industry. He bent an entire city around his vision.

After landing in Boston as an immigrant, washing dishes to stay alive, he spent the next 30 years building concepts that defined the city’s dining scene. 

Babak talks about the moments operators never admit publicly:
 – The lowest point where he almost walked away
 – Flooding an entire dining room and owning the fallout
 – Reinventing concepts while everyone else plays it safe
 – Investing in people instead of chasing shiny ideas
 – The pandemic moments that could’ve erased everything
 – What immigrants understand about hospitality that others don’t
 – The belief he holds that most operators will disagree with

The market is shifting again. The operators who grow from here will be the ones who think like Babak — conviction, adaptability, and brutal honesty.

This is one of the strongest interviews we’ve ever released.
 If you’re tired of surface-level advice, press play.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co

📲 Grow your restaurant the SMART way with our proprietary restaurant software, Dishio: https://get.dish.io/

🎓 Take a look at our FREE Restaurant Marketing Course: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL403WqY9pN16aGIQc02X1nXFQLg0ThWuF 

Follow us on Instagram for tips to grow your restaurant: https://www.instagram.com/dinelineco/

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Jordan Boesch didn’t wait for a better solution to manage staff schedules. He built it.

He was just a kid when he saw his dad struggling to manage his team's schedule. Spreadsheets, paper, chaos—you know the drill.

 So what did he do?

He coded a tool to help his dad out. Fast forward a few years… and that tool became 7shifts—now used by over 50,000 restaurants to manage their teams, schedules, and payroll.

 I sat down with Jordan on the latest episode of Restaurant Misfits and got the full story:

• How he scaled a side project into a restaurant tech powerhouse
• What he’s seeing across thousands of operators right now
• His take on AI, retention, labor costs—and what’s next for restaurants
• The biggest mistakes owners still make with their staff

Whether you're running one location or scaling a group, this one’s packed with gold.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co

📲 Grow your restaurant the SMART way with our proprietary restaurant software, Dishio: https://get.dish.io/

🎓 Take a look at our FREE Restaurant Marketing Course: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL403WqY9pN16aGIQc02X1nXFQLg0ThWuF 

Follow us on Instagram for tips to grow your restaurant: https://www.instagram.com/dinelineco/

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Ever wonder what it takes to make people fall in love with sushi? Chef Cheng Lin has the answer.

In this new episode, I interview Chef Cheng Lin, the mastermind behind Brooklyn’s Michelin-starred Shota Omakase. And let me tell you... he doesn’t just make sushi—he LIVES it. For him, Japanese cuisine is an art, and every detail matters.

We dive into the omakase bubble in NY, the hidden costs of a cancelled reservation, and how it took him a YEAR to find the perfect location. Plus, the future of AI in restaurants, Google vs. ChatGPT, and the secret to making anyone fall in love with sushi.

Whether you run a restaurant or just love next-level food, this episode will be quite the treat!

If you’re in the restaurant or hospitality space, this is one episode you can’t afford to miss.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co

📲 Grow your restaurant the SMART way with our proprietary restaurant software, Dishio: https://get.dish.io/

🎓 Take a look at our FREE Restaurant Marketing Course: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL403WqY9pN16aGIQc02X1nXFQLg0ThWuF 

Follow us on Instagram for tips to grow your restaurant: https://www.instagram.com/dinelineco/

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Dr. Cheng isn’t just the Dean of FIU’s Chaplin School of Hospitality—he’s a major force behind SOBEWFF (South Beach Wine & Food Festival), one of the largest food festivals in the world, drawing over 120,000 attendees and raising more than $40 million for hospitality education just this year alone! That’s beyond impressive—it’s changing the landscape of hospitality and education forever!

In this episode, Dr. Cheng shares exclusive insights on:
✔️ How SOBEWFF went from a small event to one of the biggest food festivals in the world
✔️ What it takes to manage 500+ chefs at once
✔️ The latest trends in hospitality, from AI-driven guest experiences to hyper-personalized menus
✔️ And last, but not least, how restaurant owners can and should be using data to drive more revenue! (I was so happy to hear him say this!)

If you’re in the restaurant or hospitality space, this is one episode you can’t afford to miss.

🍽️ Learn more about how to scale your restaurant through Dineline’s done-for-you marketing program: https://dineline.co

📲 Grow your restaurant the SMART way with our proprietary restaurant software, Dishio: https://get.dish.io/

🎓 Take a look at our FREE Restaurant Marketing Course: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL403WqY9pN16aGIQc02X1nXFQLg0ThWuF 

Follow us on Instagram for tips to grow your restaurant: https://www.instagram.com/dinelineco/