Send us a text This episode of Give an Ovation features the final interview as part of Table for 10, an e-book focused on technology transformation and collaboration. Kelly MacPherson, former CIO at Burger King, Popeye's, and a current Advisory Council Member at USHG Acquisition Corp, oversaw the creation of the e-book and interviewed 10 different innovators in the restaurant space. She and Zack discuss her main takeaways, which include: Collaboration Data Specialization Flexibility *This conver...
Mar 15, 2021•16 min
Send us a text Christy Lamagna is a dynamic keynote speaker, author, and coach who uses her 30+ years in strategic planning to help people overcome challenges and press forward. She's also the MarCom advisor at ShedWool, a smart scheduling platform that works with many restaurants and other businesses. She and Zack discuss: What strategy means Making it about the guest Cleaning the bathrooms Allowing yourself to be happy More Thanks Christy!...
Mar 06, 2021•26 min
Send us a text Molly McGrath is a culinary innovation leader with over a decade of experience in strategy, menu execution, and operational efficiency. She's worked at The Chopping Block, CSSI Marketing, Roti Modern Mediterranean, and is now teaching how to transform everyday cooking into light work as the Founder and Chef at Light Work Kitchens. On this episode, she and Zack discuss: Tips for simplifying home cooking How to simplify your restaurant menu The psychological benefits of eating healt...
Feb 27, 2021•19 min
Send us a text Not only is Shawn Walchef the owner of the award-winning Cali Comfort BBQ and the larger Cali BBQ Media, he is also the man who beat us to naming a podcast "Digital Hospitality" - a video podcast that he has hosted since 2017. As a pioneer in the digital restaurant space, Shawn brought expertise and insight to this episode of Give an Ovation where he and Zack discuss: How Cali BBQ Media started and grew Persistence in online digital efforts Building friendly ghost kitchens Continu...
Feb 20, 2021•30 min
Send us a text Matthew Smith is what you could call a CMO squared - being the Chief Marketing Officer at The Madera Group and one their brands, Tocaya Organica. Matthew has seen tremendous success in building Madera's brands (Hailey Bieber wears their to-go bag??) and we were lucky to have him on this episode. He and Zack discuss: Importance of branding vs product Matthew's "Every Last Detail" philosophy Keeping a strong brand off-premise Much more Thanks Matthew!...
Feb 15, 2021•22 min
Send us a text Andrew Boryk is the Co-founder and CTO at Lunchbox, a next-gen digital ordering platform for restaurants to improve their relationships and retention, and one of Ovation's favorite partners. Andrew and Zack discuss why restaurants need their own ordering platforms, what loyalty looks like today, and their honest thoughts on if 3rd party DSP's are truly as "evil" as they may seem. Thanks Andrew!...
Feb 04, 2021•22 min
Send us a text Miguel Ortiz is the VP, Marketing Leading Product Management and Marketing at Transact Technologies and the creator of BOHA (Back Of House Automation), a tool that automates time-consuming tasks for restaurants. Miguel brought great insights to this episode that touched on automation, data, the state of the restaurant industry and more that you can't miss. Thanks Miguel!
Jan 21, 2021•19 min
Send us a text Steven Simoni is the CEO of Bbot, a company that started by producing robots that would deliver food and drinks to tables and transitioned to a software service that helps restaurants and hotels run more efficiently with happier staff and guests. With a flourishing company and an highly technical background, Steven brought unique expertise to this episode of Give an Ovation where he and Zack talk QR codes, robots, brand health, and tips for restaurants in 2021. Thanks Steven!...
Jan 13, 2021•19 min
Send us a text Chris Rumpf is the Founder, CEO, and El Conquistador oficial of Flyght, a company that unifies restaurant technologies. He and Zack Oates talk the four must-do's of 3rd party, technology integration, and how your restaurant can unify the guest experience in 2021. Thanks Chris!
Jan 07, 2021•24 min
Send us a text Kevin Seo is the CEO/Co-founder of FoodFest Live, a pandemic-born digital events and media company that helps restaurants thrive. Kevin brought energy, insight, and his absolutely contagious laugh to this episode where he and Zack discuss restaurant social media, data, and what marketing looks like today. And no, unfortunately this episode doesn't touch on S earch E ngine O ptimization for those wondering. Thanks Kevin!...
Dec 19, 2020•20 min
Send us a text Sam Oches is a musician-turned-foodie who is currently the Editorial Director at Food News Media, the company behind the QSR and FSR magazines. As one of the top people to follow in the food and beverage industry and the host of QSR's Fast Forward podcast, he brought so much value to this episode. He and Zack talk about 2021, and what will stick around in the industry post-COVID-19. Thanks Sam!...
Dec 17, 2020•25 min
Send us a text The only thing that may make you hungrier than listening to this podcast would be taking a look at the @utahgrubs Instagram page, which is run by our guest, Olivia Gochnour! Olivia's food photos have attracted over 65K followers, and on this episode she teaches how restaurants can boost their social media feeds with gorgeous pictures, work with influencers, and more. Thanks Olivia!
Dec 13, 2020•22 min
Send us a text What does a conversation between two podcast hosts in the same industry sound like? A lot of energy and well-spoken advice! And good sound quality on both ends. Jen Kern is the current CMO at Qu POS, a company reinventing the POS system for the modern age. She has over 20 years of experience in marketing and tech, and also brought many valuable insights from her podcast, Restaurants Reinvented. Thanks Jen!...
Dec 10, 2020•26 min
Send us a text Christopher Sebes brings 30 years in the hospitality industry and whole lot of expertise to this episode of Give an Ovation. As a board member of Valyant AI, ShiftPixy, ItsaCheckmate, and Results Thru Strategy, advising restaurants is kind of his thing. So don't miss his thoughts on S.A.A.S., P.O.S.'s, and more (not just acronyms). Thanks Christopher!
Dec 05, 2020•24 min
Send us a text Gonca Esendemir is the real deal! She is a co-founder and the Chief Marketing Officer of Flatbread Grill, a fresh casual Mediterranean bakery based in New Jersey. Flatbread was started by Gonca and her two sisters and has gone on to experience wild success and press attention from the New York Times, Inc. Magazine, and others. On this episode she tells her story and gives some thoughts on the "next normal" of the restaurant industry. Thanks Gonca!...
Dec 03, 2020•23 min
Send us a text Devon Harris is one of the founding members of the Jamaican Bob Sled Team (yes, the one you are thinking of ) and a three-time Olympian who is now a published author, accomplished speaker, and the founder of The Keep On Pushing Foundation. You don't want to miss the inspirational stories and advice he shares on this episode of Give an Ovation. Thanks Devon!
Nov 25, 2020•26 min
Send us a text Kevin Tinsley has been helping restaurants with their print and digital media for 23 years. He got his start in the industry working at the Hard Rock Cafe in Chicago (along with Steve Carell) and now specializes in ghost kitchens and online ordering. He and Zack talk all the above and more. Thanks Kevin!
Nov 22, 2020•19 min
Send us a text After he and his wife experienced the frustration and hassle of running fundraisers as Slim Chicken franchisees, Charley Donaldson co-founded DonationScout to make the process seamless. He and Zack Oates talk why restaurant fundraisers are important, some best practices, and how DonationScout can help. Thanks Charley!
Nov 13, 2020•22 min
Send us a text Jordan Mellul is the VP of Operations at Qwick, "an on-demand staffing as a service platform that connects service industry Professionals with food and beverage shifts in real-time" (Qwick.com). He also helped grow Uber for five years during their early stages, so he brings an experienced perspective on the gig economy to this episode of Give an Ovation. Thanks Jordan!
Nov 13, 2020•24 min
Send us a text Marqii is a booming tech company helping restaurants manage their menus and other digital information across all online platforms and free up employees to do what they were hired for. Their co-founder and CEO, Avi Goren came on talk why they've seen success in the pandemic, and give his insights as to how restaurateurs can succiid right now. Tune in for some great content. Thanks Avi!...
Nov 06, 2020•21 min
Send us a text CJ Ramirez is the Executive Vice President and Marketing Director at The Absolute Brands, a flavor-packed collection of off premise brands, powered by the fan-favorite Dog Haus. He and Zack Oates discuss listening to your customers, syncing marketing and operations, and a little bit about Ovation. Thanks CJ!
Nov 04, 2020•31 min
Send us a text President and CEO of Return On Ingredients, author, and educator Mark Kelnhofer is back making his second appearance on Give an Ovation! This time, he and Zack talk innovative ways of lowering expenses on ingredients, labor and more. Thanks Mark!
Oct 31, 2020•21 min
Send us a text Peter Venti, Founder of familymeal.com, and Tom McNeill, Director of Growth at familymeal.com discuss their website and how it can help diners and restaurants during these challenging times. They also talk about what's working and give a slew of creative ideas for restaurants to increase their revenues.
Oct 29, 2020•37 min
Send us a text TJ Schier is the president of SMART restaurant group, a successful Which Wich franchisee, author, and speaker (when it's allowed) with decades of experience in the hospitality industry. He and Zack Oates talk the transition from in-person to off-prem dining, menus, and more. Thanks TJ!
Oct 21, 2020•20 min
Send us a text Ian Christopher, Galley Solution's CEO and co-founder came on this episode of Give an Ovation to talk about how Galley Solutions can help restaurant operators not only understand their food costs, but also gain insights about the inner workings of their restaurant through data and make the digital transition successfully. Thanks Ian!
Oct 12, 2020•19 min
Send us a text This episode features John DiLoreto, the current President of Flipdish North America. He and host Zack Oates discuss Flipdish and showcase the importance of restaurants establishing their own digital presence by looking at what happened to companies that didn't.
Oct 07, 2020•23 min
Send us a text Michael Rolland is one of the co-founders of Lodel, a delivery platform for local business and niche markets. He had some awesome things to say about Lodel, getting the most out of delivery, and more. Thanks Michael!
Sep 18, 2020•20 min
Send us a text Collin Wallace is the co-founder of ZeroStorefront, a purpose-built customer acquisition and retention tool for restaurants and other businesses. He's started many successful companies, and was the former Head of Innovation at Grubhub. As a luminary in the restaurant tech industry, it was a pleasure having him on this episode of Give an Ovation! Thanks Collin. He and Zack talk the importance of communication, how restaurants are now e-commerce businesses, and more....
Sep 16, 2020•18 min
Send us a text Tracey Matney is the founder and CEO of Restaurant Victory, and is a chat marketing & ROI expert who specializes in helping restaurants get more fans and revenue. She and Zack talk how to collect customer data (without invading privacy), using it, tracking ROI, and more. Thanks Tracey!
Sep 09, 2020•28 min
Send us a text Wilson K Lee, a serial entrepreneur, successful restaurateur, prominent YouTuber, and COVID-turned-consultant, came on the show to discuss his four biggest tips for restaurants to survive during the pandemic. He and Zack talk omni-channel approaches, diversifying your revenues, hygiene and signage, and connecting with your customers. Thanks Wilson!
Sep 01, 2020•26 min
