Behind the Tab

What do you do when national craft beer volume is down 4% and the number of operating breweries is shrinking? If you're Silver Branch Brewing, you open a fourth location anyway. Brett Robison, co-founder and COO of Silver Branch Brewing, joins host Adam Howe live from the Virginia Brewers Conference in Richmond to break down the philosophy behind the brewery's growth from one taproom in Si...

The best restaurant technology pitch isn't a pitch at all — it's a recommendation from someone who already has your trust and nothing to gain. Carrie Collins is the corporate director of the HOST program at Ben E. Keith, the country's fifth-largest broadline foodservice distributor and a privately owned, family-run company based in Fort Worth, Texas. On this episode, Carrie joins host...

Most multi-attraction venues run a different system for every attraction — and pay for it in guest experience, not just in software fees. Jacob Schulman is fifth-generation ownership of Schulman Theatres, the 100-year-old family business behind Film Alley — eight combined movie, bowling, arcade, and dining venues across Texas and Arkansas. On episode 29, Jacob joins host Adam Howe to talk about th...

We're back after a brief hiatus with the latest Behind the Tab. this ones for our anyone who cares about the craft beer industry and one of the key cost drivers that could make a meaningful impact in their financial performance. Most bars and breweries don't know how much draft beer they're losing — and when they guess, they usually guess low. Brent Reynard found that out the hard way....

One hot dog, eight flavor profiles, zero extra staff — that's how Detroit Shipping Company solved the hardest math in food hall operations. Jonathan Hartzell didn't set out to build Detroit's top-rated food hall. He and a group of childhood friends pledged a "soft yes" to investing in Detroit at a bachelor party — and eight years later, their 21-shipping-container space in Midtown is home to eight...

Zach Sipherd keeps four Denver restaurant brands running in sync — without adding a single layer of management. As Director of IT Operations and Network Infrastructure at Atomic Provisions, Zach oversees Denver Biscuit Co., Fat Sully's, Atomic Cowboy, and Frozen Gold: four concepts sharing kitchens, staff, and a point-of-sale system across Colorado, Kansas, and a new outpost inside Denver Inte...

Wil Brawley started recording customer interviews on a $35 microphone in 2010 because he couldn't outspend his competitors on marketing. Nineteen years later, Schedulefly — his restaurant scheduling company — has never taken outside funding, never raised its prices, and still wins back customers who leave for flashier, better-funded competitors. In this episode, Wil tells Patricia Mejia how st...

Ever wonder why your drink takes ten minutes to arrive at a packed bar? Will Costello has an answer — and it's not what you'd expect from a Master Sommelier. Will passed one of hospitality's hardest exams (the Master Sommelier exam has roughly a 3% pass rate) and spent years working service in Michelin-level restaurants before becoming National Sales Director at SmartBar USA, which mak...

James Passafaro, VP of Restaurant Operations and Strategy at GoTab, joins Behind the Tab to explore how chefs and restaurant leaders can unintentionally become bottlenecks—and what it takes to build systems that help their teams operate with greater confidence and autonomy. Drawing on his experience in restaurant kitchens, operations and technology, James discusses the difference between documenti...

Labor is one of hospitality’s largest expenses, but even operators with detailed data can miss the patterns affecting profitability. Travis Kohlmeyer, U.S. General Manager at Workforce.com, joins Behind the Tab to share how one multi-location hospitality group discovered that some locations were spending approximately 22% to 25% of revenue on wages, while others exceeded 50%—and even 60%. The conv...

In this episode of Behind the Tab , GoTab's Patricia Mejia sits down with Wayne Newton, VP of Sales at GoZone WiFi , to explore why guest Wi-Fi has evolved from a basic utility into one of hospitality's most powerful first-party data channels. Wayne explains how restaurants, breweries, stadiums, entertainment venues, and resorts are using Wi-Fi to create better guest experiences while buil...

What happens when great food and drinks are no longer enough to bring people together? In this episode of Behind the Tab, GoTab's Patricia Mejia sits down with Michael Motz, founder of Full House Group, one of Europe's most innovative hospitality operators. Michael oversees food halls, bars, restaurants, live music venues, and entertainment concepts across Poland and Central Europe. The co...

Brewery operators are constantly being pitched new technology. QR codes. AI tools. Loyalty platforms. Digital signage. Marketing software. Analytics dashboards. But how do you know which solutions actually help your business and which ones are simply adding cost and complexity? In this episode of Behind the Tab, Patricia Mejia sits down with Mike Wakerly, founder of Taplist, to discuss how brewery...

In Part 2 of Behind the Tab, Adam Howe sits down with Jim Matthes, owner of Aloma Cinema & Grill in Winter Park, Florida, to explore how a 50-year-old dine-in movie theater successfully transformed its operations through mobile ordering. Jim shares a fascinating side-by-side comparison of serving the 2023 Super Mario Bros. Movie versus the 2026 release, revealing how QR code ordering helped Al...

What does it take to build a profitable large-format pickleball and eatertainment venue in today’s market? In this episode of Behind the Tab, Adam Howe sits down with Joe De La Torre, General Manager of Crushyard, to unpack the operational playbook behind one of the fastest-growing pickleball entertainment brands in the country. From converting big box retail spaces into high-energy social venues...

The craft beer industry may be flat — but that doesn’t mean breweries can’t grow smarter. In this episode of Behind the Tab, Patricia Mejia sits down with: Kevin Irvin (“Swirv”) of Atlantucky Andrew Coplon of Craft Beer Professionals Chris Farmand of Small Batch Standard Together, they unpack one of the biggest themes coming out of the 2026 Craft Brewers Conference in Philadelphia: Is flat the new...

Can self-pour technology help you increase revenue while reducing labor costs? In this episode of Behind the Tab, Patricia Mejia sits down with Darren Nicholson, CEO of iPourIt , to discuss how self-pour beverage systems are helping breweries, hotels, food halls, theaters, and entertainment venues serve guests faster while improving margins. Darren shares how operators are using self-pour to: Redu...

What does it take for a nearly 50-year-old dine-in movie theater to evolve without losing what made it special in the first place? In this episode of Behind the Tab, host Adam Howe sits down with Jim Matthes of Aloma Cinema and Grill to talk about the changing world of dine-in cinema, hospitality, and guest expectations. Jim shares how Aloma navigated the post-COVID theater landscape by leaning ha...

What actually happens in the first 30 days after a guest visits your restaurant? In this episode of Behind the Tab , we sit down with Joe Pino from Clutch to unpack one of the most overlooked—and most valuable—windows in hospitality: the period right after a guest’s first visit. Joe shares how leading operators are rethinking guest engagement beyond the transaction, using data and timing to turn f...

In this episode of Behind the Tab , Patricia sits down with Ryan Gromfin , founder of The Restaurant Boss , to talk about the systems, leadership habits, and operational discipline that help independent restaurant operators grow without creating more chaos. Ryan shares why labor is still one of the biggest blind spots in hospitality, how operators unintentionally create friction in the guest exper...

In this episode of Behind the Tab , Patricia Mejia sits down with Grant Pierce, founder of Live Tap List, to explore how a simple problem inside a small-town brewery turned into a powerful tool for operators everywhere. What started as a way to help his brother manage constantly changing menus at a brewery quickly evolved into a platform designed to eliminate one of hospitality’s most frustrating...

Sales tax isn’t the most exciting part of running a hospitality business—but it might be one of the riskiest. In this episode of Behind the Tab , we sit down with Cristine Vickery from DAVO by Avalara to unpack why sales tax compliance continues to trip up even the most experienced operators. From cash flow surprises to audit exposure, Cristine shares what’s really happening behind the scenes—and...

Food halls are evolving from quick dining stops into full-scale cultural destinations. In this episode of Behind the Tab , GoTab’s Adam Howe sits down with Andrew Colicchio of Colicchio Consulting to discuss how intentional design and programming can dramatically increase dwell time, guest engagement, and food hall profitability. Andrew shares insights from working with more than 100 food hall pro...

Social media used to be the easiest way for breweries to connect with their guests. Today, those platforms control who actually sees your posts. In this episode of Behind the Tab , Patricia Mejia sits down with Ross Stensrud of TapWyse to talk about how breweries can reclaim their customer relationships. Ross shares why the idea that “people won’t download brewery apps” is largely a myth, how soci...

Food halls are no longer just trendy dining destinations—they’re becoming powerful anchors for modern real estate development. In this episode of Behind the Tab , we sit down with Megan Flanagan from Urban Land Institute Minneapolis to explore why developers, operators, and investors are increasingly turning to food halls to activate underutilized properties, drive foot traffic, and create communi...