Tastemakers Podcast

This is a conversation with Christina Dorobek. She is the Chief Sales Officer for LevelUp.LevelUp connects restaurant brands with digital consumers where they live work, and play to drive transactions, increase guest frequency, and build loyalty. They process orders in over 50,000 locations and their clients include Zaxby's Potbelly, Sweetgreen, Fives Guys and more. LevelUp was acquired by Grubhub earlier this year. This episode was recorded at the Restaurant Leadership conference last April.

This is a conversation with Ben Nemo. Ben started his career as a financial analyst before finding his way to marketing and restaurants. He was a Senior Director of Product Marketing at Burger King, a VP at Marriott, and ran his own consultancy called Scorpio Ventures that helped shape brands like Popeyes, Sonic, Dunkin' and Focus Brands. He then became the Industry Manager, Global Marketing Solutions for Facebook and is now an operating partner at Argonne Capital Group which owns Krystal and On the Border. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Sloane Perras. She is the Chief Administrative and Legal Officer at Krystal and On the Border. Sloane has led legal teams at Expeditors International, Americold, and Aaron's before moving into the restaurant business. I got her perspective on changes in the industry at the Restaurant Leadership Conference last April. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Mike Lukianoff. He is the Chief Analytics Officer at Fishbowl Analytics and a Society of Fellows Member at the Culinary Institute of America. He is also our first two time guest. We had Mike back on to talk Artificial Intelligence after his presentation at the Restaurant Leadership Conference. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Keith Kitsis, the founder of Crazy Bowls & Wraps. Founded in 1994, they were a values-driven fast casual before either of those trends existed. This episode was recorded at the NRA show from the Restaurant365 booth. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Steve Heeley, the CEO of Veggie Grill. Before that, Steve led Operations for Baja Fresh, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Collector's Cafe, and Au Bon Pain. He was also the CEO of Earl of Sandwich. Veggie Grill is a fast-growing fast-casual vegan restaurant serving only plant-based food. Forbes called them one of the 25 most innovative consumer brands in 2016. Enjoy!

This a conversation with the great Joe Essa, CEO & Board Member of Wolfgang Puck Worldwide and the Vice Chairman of the National Restaurant Association. We chatted about the massive growth of the Wolfgang Puck business and the unique challenges of running such a vast organization at the NRA Show in May. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Lee Zucker, the Head of Industry, Food Service at Yext. Lee was the Director of Enterprise Sales at SinglePlaform and the VP of Sales and Partnerships at Slice before taking on his current role. Yext is the leading digital knowledge management platform with a mission to give brands control over their brand experiences across search, maps, apps, voice, and other intelligent services. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Alison Glenn Delaney, the CMO of Huddle House. Alison has been leading marketing organizations for more than 25 years, with head of marketing roles for Ruby Tuesday, Taco Cabana, Rubio's, Marie Callender's, and Fridays. Enjoy!

This is a conversation with Mike Speck, the COO of the Halal Guys. Mike has held operations and HR leadership roles with brands like Qdoba, Cici's, Red Robin, Boston Market, and Einstein Bagels. He was also the chairman of the National Restaurant Association Human Resources Executive Group. Enjoy!