Restaurant Rockstars Podcast

Episode #131 -Restaurants are fickle!  Some are wildly successful for a variety of reasons.  Others fail miserably in a short period of time for different reasons.   This is a high-risk business, perhaps the riskiest and most challenging. If you’ve committed tremendous time and money to your dream, don’t increase your risk by neglecting what’s really important. Instead, give yourself every advanta...

Episode #130 - We all eat out in a variety of restaurants from time to time and being in the business, its only natural to form strong objective opinions of how well the other guys do it. We critique everything from our fresh perspective.. the food, the service, the atmosphere and curb appeal. Funny thing, this doesn’t always happen in evaluating our own operation. Its so easy to get so close to o...

EPISODE #129 - Of the thousand details in running your restaurant, beware of your customers Pet Peeves This episode is all about the details.. the important impressions each member of your staff and every detail make with your customer. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and dine in your restaurant… do this often, sit in different sections and even visit the bar as a customer. Then get together...

Episode #128 - I’m betting you’re a “beer fan”. Just about everyone loves beer! Well today I’m talking with a certified beer judge, internationally acclaimed beer writer and just plain expert and connoisseur of all things beer. Mr. Don Tse has literally tasted his way around the world sampling 20,000 different beers. We’ll talk about that. You’re also going to learn how to curate a great beer list...

I’m not kidding, close your eyes and Imagine an Iceberg… now Imagine Doubling your restaurant’s sales! Now that I’ve got your attention, give this episode a listen. I’m sharing one of my most powerful Sales & Service teqniques that you can execute immediately to deliver amazing dining experiences while dramatically increasing sales! I’ve always believed that “Order Takers” in restaurants deliver O...

Episode #126 - 100% no B.S....this is an absolute must listen... From pitfalls and major struggles to straight out theft & fraud, you'll learn how I built my successful restaurants from a bold dream and no practical experience to a wildly successful multi-million dollar exit. In this action-packed episode, my friend and fellow industry pro Jaime Oikle of www.runningrestaurants.com interviews me fo...

EPISODE #125 - Social Media may possibly be your restaurants Most Powerful Marketing Strategy.. There’s Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and by the end of the day there’ll be a couple more.. which ones are important? All of them… You can be sure that your customers are spending lots of time posting, tweeting, snapping or whatever, and if you ‘re not on these platforms, you’ll miss out on lot...

Episode #124 - My guest today is a real Restaurant Rock Star. After 9 short years with virtually no restaurant industry experience, Mr. Roger Perry of the Datz Group in Tampa Florida is now turning the restaurant scene upside down with several exciting concepts. Listen as Roger tells us how opening a bakery solved a critical problem and future threat to that first restaurant. We speak about cuttin...

Episode #123 - Scorpions? Listen to the episode to find out why! If you’re running a restaurant, you have to stay relevant your loyal audience and always be reaching ahead of the curve. Today I’m talking with Mr. Lee Zucker and Mr. Rev Ciancio from Yext.com who are Digital Knowledge Management Experts. Forget the fancy title for a moment, they’re all about Maximizing your brand presence and messag...

Episode #122 - Mr. Ian Maksik is a true hospitality “legend” and tireless industry innovator. He’s been called “America’s Service Guru & Professor of Service”. Imagine rising from the kitchen of his family’s humble Brooklyn restaurant at age 4 to professional waiter, manager, event planner, caterer and restaurateur. Remarkably Ian will share how his family transformed their early hot dog stand int...

Episode #121 - One simple word can transform your staff and your business, creating sales and service magic! This one idea may be the most powerful change you make that creates an unstoppable brand and culture within your restaurant. Give today’s episode a listen as Thea and I share the “key” to truly dominating your competition. All it takes is a game plan, consistency and a passion to deliver am...

Episode #120 - The Help Wanted Sign is Dead! There I’ve said it. I’ve always believed that the Help Wanteds are a great way to find someone else’s problems and just because you need a new hire, the wrong person won’t be doing your business any favors. I learned long ago that a C-Player can absolutely sabotage your customer’s experience and your business. Don’t let it happen to you. So here’s a par...

Episode #119 - Why would you spend money on traditional advertising when you can build an unstoppable brand from the inside out? Heres a TWIST many restaurants miss. There are so many ways you can leverage your restaurant’s LOGO while promoting everything that’s special about your place… and don’t forget your restaurant’s unique “Hooks”. Give a listen to today’s episode as Thea and I riff on the p...

Episode #118 - It's rare that a restaurant training idea really blows me away, but this one is pretty AMAZING. Today’s episode is all about Innovation & Empowerment… This powerful combination is helping a Massachusetts restaurant energize its staff, drive new business and take teamwork to a whole new dimension. Your team represent your brand and make or break your operation. Once you hire a great...

Episode #117 - Most restaurants want to turn their tables over and over, but again this one has so much space, they just keep packing them in and keeping them.  So what keeps them busy? EXPERIENCES!   On top of a James Beard Award-Winning Chef and lots of menu variety for both food and drink, this place serves up lots of FUN! Check this out. Here’s a place taking major cities by storm and growing...

I’ve started multiple concepts… some Rock N Rolled right from the get-go. Another needed a total about face and re-branding, while yet another never really got legs and I had to sell it. Point is, there are thousands of details that play into the concept of a restaurant. These details determine whether you catch the public’s imagination, their dining dollar and repeat business, tread water or poss...

Episode #115 - This critical ingredient of any successful long-term brand is something found in every restaurant, but it just comes down to whether we choose to maximize its potential or Not! This decision either leads to stellar success or in some cases, dismal failure. Give this episode a listen. I’m talking about the perfect synergy between building your brand, fostering an unstoppable company...

Epsidode #114 - The headlines today are all too common… Declining Sales and Profits, Labor hard to come by, heavy Competition. The restaurant business is difficult and getting harder every day. But its not just about survival, its about creating and sustaining a lasting legacy. Doing that means building a powerful brand, but more importantly staying relevant in a changing industry and changing wor...

Inspiration and Opportunity are always around the next corner. Imagine you’re living in a foreign country and suddenly the lightbulb goes off. “I love this food, everyone loves this food… I could sell this anywhere”! Next thing you know, you’re setting up shop to test your concept and you’ve got a line around the corner.. Is your idea a temporary trend or a unique new cuisine you can take across t...

Episode #112 - Today’s episode brings you powerhouse Chef, Television Personality, Consultant and Industry Innovator Chef David Burke who needs no introduction. Chef Burke has cooked around the globe in countless countries, has been influenced and mentored by some of the most talented and highly recognized chefs and has opened numerous restaurants in major cities. He continues to push the envelope...

Episode #111 - The restaurant business is never static. To be truly successful, you need to be ever-vigilant for new opportunities and have the ability to instantly capture this opportunity before its gone forever. Case in point: When you’re running restaurants you’re worried about cash flow, training your people, marketing, service & sales and 1000 other critical details to not only succeed, but...

Episode #110 - There are many ways to manage a team. There are leaders, there are managers and everything in between. Successful operators know instinctively that our people are the cornerstone of our business and determine the ultimate customer experience. This in turn determines our success or potential failure. It all begins with how we hire, nurture and develop our team. Once this is in place,...

Staying ahead of the competition, having a vision and finding new ways to increase customer excitement, loyalty and sales is why we’re in business. Its what keeps us going everyday in a highly competitive industry. Unless your place is Rockin and Rolling, what’s the point? Talking about vision, some ideas have great potential and others may never fly, but the one’s that do may launch your restaura...

Episode #108 - I’m all about building a “Brand” and not running a restaurant… going a bit further. I advocate being an entrepreneur, not a restaurant owner. With that said, one of the most powerful brand-builders I know (not to mention staff pleasers) is creating several “Big Events” throughout the year around holidays and big sports events. Whether you have a food truck or a full-serve restaurant...

Episode #107 - Yikes! It's tax crunch time!! What do you need to do throughout the year to put your business in the best tax position before you file. Many of you may be last minute filers and you can still get the job done. But if not, no worries… know that you have until September to file an extension. If you do, you can still take full advantage of all the advice in today’s episode. Listen to M...