Media Test Kitchen

In this Pitch The Tide session, Lewis Rhys Davies , head of US sales at Nory , tackles a challenge facing restaurant operators: controlling food and labor costs while giving managers more time to focus on guests. He introduces Nory’s AI-powered platform, which brings forecasting, scheduling, inventory and back-office workflows into one system. Restaurant owners put the pitch to the test with quest...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation about collecting relationships, experiences, and ideas so you can connect them when opportunities arise. Inspired by his interview with Danny Meyer , restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders shared stories about turning connections into action. From Mike Bisceglia’s longtime sports radio relationships leading to a barbecue coll...

Dean LaBay and Mike Bisceglia hosted this Rising Tides Live conversation about the importance of gratitude and how it shapes the way we handle challenges and treat people. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders shared stories about finding perspective, learning from failures, and expressing appreciation. From Mike Ungaro’s experience losing a restaurant and treating it as an exp...

Elizabeth Doss led this Rising Tides Live conversation about the hospitality lessons that stay with us and how early experiences shape the way we treat people. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders shared stories about gratitude, leading by example, and making people feel welcome. From Chris Tripoli’s story about a manager turning a restless child’s evening into a special exper...

Laura Wilber led this Rising Tides Live conversation about “Business Partnerships to Friendships” and how trust turns professional connections into lasting relationships. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders shared stories about supporting one another, staying curious, and giving without expecting something in return. From former Jersey Mike’s COO Mike Manzo’s story about inve...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation about “Scrappy vs Spielberg” and why waiting for perfection can hold businesses back. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared stories about creating content, launching catering programs, and learning as they go. From Elizabeth Doss’s advice to document instead of curate to Iano Dovi’s confession that a camera angle d...

Scott Kleckner led this Rising Tides Live conversation on pricing strategy and menu engineering. With restaurant traffic falling and customers feeling the cost of dining out, he challenged operators to look beyond the usual annual price increase. Shawn Walchef and Iano Dovi shared how meal bundles can make ordering easier and give guests more value, while the group discussed menu costs, popular di...

Robert Firpo-Cappiello led this Rising Tides Live conversation about a fall shoulder season that looks different for every restaurant. Operators shared how weather, local events and changing travel patterns affect traffic, along with ways to respond without relying on discounts. Scott Kleckner described speeding up his marketing and website plans during a slowdown, while Iano Dovi explained how a...

Iano Dovi led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on one question: What is actually killing restaurants? Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs and hospitality leaders discussed rising costs, unrealistic rents, declining traffic, complacency and the challenge of staying visible online. From Shawn Walchef’s call for better financial visibility to Elizabeth Doss’ reminder that even a great rest...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation about LinkedIn’s new collaboration feature and how business leaders can use the platform to build stronger communities. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders discussed declining reach, AI-generated content, and the value of mixing personal stories with educational posts. From Richard’s warning about “AI slop” to Ward Olgr...

Laura Wilber filled in for Shawn Walchef to lead this Rising Tides Live conversation on why successful people ask for help. Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how mentors, trusted teams, and professional networks helped them grow. From Katie Socks asking an executive to become her mentor to Chef Lindsay giving her team more responsibility, the group showed that ask...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on one question: What can you do today to start planning for 2027? Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how they set goals, prepare for seasonal changes, review opportunities, and use AI to make better decisions. From Iano Dovi’s “7-7-7” system for planning seven days, seven weeks, and seven months ahead t...

Mick Carr , CEO and founder of Grub Lab , pitched directly to a panel of restaurant operators on Pitch The Tide, sharing how branded kids’ menus, activities, and interactive games help restaurants create better family dining experiences. The pitch led to a conversation about the business value of kids’ meals, from attracting entire families to encouraging repeat visits and giving independent resta...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on a question every entrepreneur faces: How do you take the first step toward something uncomfortable? Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared stories about putting themselves out there, learning new skills, asking for help, and getting involved in their communities. From Iano Dovi’s “get in the van” approach...

Racquel Cable , Product Expert at Soundtrack , pitched directly to a panel of restaurant operators on Pitch The Tide, sharing how the commercially licensed streaming service helps businesses create and manage the right music experience across their locations. The pitch led to a conversation about what operators need from a music platform, including centralized control, playlist curation, schedulin...

Shawn Walchef  led this  Rising Tides Live  conversation focused on how to make weekly meetings more productive, where restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared what makes meetings worth having and what causes them to waste time. From setting clear agendas and keeping the right people in the room to using AI transcripts for accountability and ending with “who does what by...

Keegan Conrey , CEO of Decision Logic , pitched directly to a panel of restaurant operators on Pitch The Tide, sharing how the back-office platform helps multi-unit brands manage inventory, labor, food costs, and operational data. The pitch led to a conversation about what restaurant operators actually need from their technology partners, including clearer ROI, stronger integrations, practical use...

Shawn Walchef  led this  Rising Tides Live   conversation focused on a question every business has to answer: How do you measure quality? Restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how they define quality through consistency, customer expectations, value, relationships, and the overall experience. From asking customers what success looks like before the work begins to unde...

Shawn Walchef led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on what a modern CRM should look like, where restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how they manage customer relationships across their phones, email, social media, and business systems. From bringing disconnected data together and using AI to build better workflows to personalizing communication and turning...

Shawn Walchef  led this  Rising Tides Live  conversation on the power of word-of-mouth sales and marketing, joined by restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders who shared the experiences that turn customers into advocates. The discussion focused on creating remarkable experiences worth talking about, documenting authentic customer stories instead of manufactured case studies, an...

Iano Dovi filled in for Shawn Walchef to lead this Rising Tides Live conversation on the invisible audience every leader creates. Joined by a panel of restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders, Iano guided a discussion on how leadership extends beyond the workplace through the stories employees share with their families and friends. From creating cultures built on empathy and re...

Scott Kleckner led this Rising Tides Live  conversation on the power of saying no. Joined by Shawn Walchef and a panel of restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders, Scott guided a discussion on the difficult decisions that help leaders protect their time, values, and long-term goals. From setting stronger boundaries and using AI as a strategic thinking partner to defining a pers...

Shawn Walchef  led this  Rising Tides Live conversation focused on the value of little improvements over time, where restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how small, consistent changes create lasting results. The discussion explored improving workflows, leadership, storytelling, and business systems while embracing feedback, reducing friction, and publishing before yo...

Iano Dovi led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on building better leaders in the AI era, where restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how technology is changing what leadership looks like. The discussion centered on using AI to make teams more efficient without losing the human connection, strengthening interpersonal skills and empathy, and giving emerging l...

Shawn Walchef  led this Rising Tides Live conversation focused on mid-year planning, where restaurant operators, entrepreneurs, and hospitality leaders shared how they evaluate the first half of the year while preparing for the months ahead. The discussion centered on using AI as a strategic thinking partner, simplifying priorities instead of adding more work, and creating plans that balance busin...