ShandeeLand

We were honored to be joined by Anita Roach, Vice President of Community Programs and Education at Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE). She joined Shandee to talk a bit about the background and history of FARE and the vital work FARE is doing. Listeners will get to hear her perspective on the importance of patient advocacy and its role in developing research and education. Anita shares wh...

Mark Retz is the Managing Director of Systems Evolution, Inc. (SEI), a business and technology management consulting firm.   He built his expertise from working across many industries and has a diverse career and dynamic background.  His goal is to help clients define the problem, identify solutions, implement plans, and get things done.  He drives his clients to determine the obstacles and barrie...

Dr. Nikhila Schroeder is certified in Allergy & Immunology, and Pediatrics. Dr. Schroeder and her husband James founded Allergenuity Health to build an ideal care community for people affected by allergies while specializing in Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT). SLIT is a safe process by which you and your allergist can work together to train your immune system to be more tolerant of your allerg...

Diane Neville is the Chief People Officer for Shake Shack Enterprises and has over twenty years of human resource experience. She is responsible for the national development and oversight of all human resources workforce strategies and functions. Diane tells her journey that led her to human resources and the hospitality industry in particular. Diane joins Shandee, and they discuss the current iss...

Wendy Gordon Pake, Founder, President, and Volunteer Executive Director of FOODiversity, focuses on health equity by providing a direct link to resources for those with food allergies and celiac disease. FOODiversity aims to provide access to safe food, which is often an unmet medical need. The organization works directly with physicians, social workers, dietitians, schools, and community non-prof...

Alanna Zingano founded “Travel the World A to Z” and is a full-time travel content creator and vlogger. She was bit by the travel bug while studying abroad and was determined to make a career by doing what she loves. Alanna gets vulnerable as she shares with Shandee how she overcame her self-consciousness and the obstacles from learning as she worked. Alanna talks about maximizing your travel expe...

Gina Mennett Lee, M. Ed is a food allergy mom that works nationally and internationally as a food allergy consultant and educator through her business, Mennett Lee Food Allergy Consulting. She holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Bachelor’s degrees in Elementary and Special Education. Through consulting and education, she creates safe and inclusive school environments for those wi...

He knew he wanted to work in the hospitality industry at 11 years old when he started cleaning bathrooms for a neighborhood restaurant.   And now Dave Dittenber has 30 years of experience in restaurant operations.  He shares his journey from scrubbing floors to founding the technology company BOYD.  His company is the answer to disparaging systems in our restaurants that don’t utilize the fast-gro...

Sonia Hunt is a food allergy activist, TEDx speaker, and best-selling author. She joins Shandee to share her food allergy journey. She tells her story of taking risks with her food allergies that led to her rock-bottom experience. She dedicated herself to "changing everything," advocating for herself, and drove herself to change her mindset. This journey led her to create Three to Be , a...

Wade Allen is the Senior Vice President and Head of Innovation for Brinker International and has extensive knowledge in restaurant and hospitality innovation. Brinker International is the company behind Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant brands and has recently launched a virtual-only brand called It’s Just Wings. Wade joined Shandee to converse about drone delivery, gh...

Although currently there is no known cure for food allergies, Dr. Inderpal Randhawa, Founder and CEO of Southern California Food Allergy Institute, discusses true food freedom through his Tolerance Induction Program (TIP™).   TIP™ is entirely dependent on a patient's data and is uniquely tailored to their needs. The ultimate goal is for all food anaphylaxis sufferers to safely eat whatever th...

Ken Whiting is President of Whiting’s Food Concessions and also leads the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) as its chair. Mr. Whiting has spent his entire career working for his family’s business, and in the attractions industry starting from an ice cream stand on the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and his first job at 10 years old peeling bananas. IAAPA is the globa...

An eighth-grade project set in motion numerous food allergy advocacy enterprises by this impressive young woman, Katherine Schug.  The project grew into Teen FAAB (Food Allergies and Anti-Bullying), a website that provided resources, blog posts, tips, and more for teens living with food allergies.  This led to a TEDx Talk at her high school. As her platform grew, she spoke at Food Allergy and Rese...

Food allergy negligence can be a precarious, risky, and costly mistake for the hospitality industry.  A young girl's family is suing Panera Bread for negligence in regards to her food allergy, and a Massachusetts judge ruled the lawsuit may go to trial.  This week's guest is Laurel Francoeur, the litigator representing the family.  Laurel, named a "Top Woman of Law" in Massachu...

Chef Martha Morgan is Founder of Allergy Dragon YouTube Channel (Awarded Top 15 Allergy YouTube Channel) and she recently started a website of the same name.  She is a specialty diet and food allergy chef. She started cooking in restaurants with her first job at 16 years of age and has been cooking professionally for almost 30 years. In 2003 she became a reluctant food allergy chef due to her chil...

There is nothing common about these two guests and their journey from a 15-year friendship to founders and partners in Common Hospitality.  Neither Justin Hege nor Luke Detraz attended culinary school but are bringing a creative and artistic flair to food and service.  They discuss the journey that led them to do what they love and the relationship that led to the idea of Common Hospitality.  Thei...

Cooking was her creative outlet, and the kitchen was her safe place.  After her two daughters were diagnosed with environmental and anaphylactic food allergies, food was not only for sustenance and joy but also as a means of keeping her girls safe.  Shahla Rashid tells the story about how two weeks completely changed her world, both personally and professionally.  Shahla is a food allergy mom, hol...

We celebrate our 100th episode honoring and exploring ProStart, a program of the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation (NRAEF).  ProStart is a career and technical education program that unites the foodservice industry and the classroom to teach high school students culinary techniques and restaurant management principles through real-life experiences, as well as practical skills su...

Were you aware that Milton Hershey's success came from a profound sense of moral responsibility and benevolence, and his legacy is carried on by the fantastic people at Hershey Entertainment and Resorts (HE&R)?  Executive Chef Benjamin Bedard shares many core values with Milton and listening to this episode, you will concur.  Chef Ben waxes nostalgic about the history of this magical plac...

David Stukus, MD, is an associate professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Allergy and Immunology and is Director of the Food Allergy Treatment Center at Nationwide Children's Hospital.  He is very active on social media and uses his popular Twitter and Instagram accounts @AllergyKidsDoc to dispel myths and combat misinformation and misconceptions.  Twitter made him a better doctor.  On thi...

Executive Chef David Fhima is a fascinating guest who will capture your heart with his passionate words and inspired cooking.  He is Chef / Owner of Fhima’s Minneapolis and has partnered with Levy Restaurants at the Target Center to oversee Food and Beverage Operations. He tells the story of his life and childhood influences. He shares with us the important lessons taught by his parents and how he...

Pediatric Allergist and Immunologist Dr. Nana Mireku has a passion. That passion is evident in everything she says and everything she does, and it certainly shines through every word of this conversation. Her mission is about reaching her patients’ goals through her food allergy knowledge.  She is in love with the ever-changing science of allergy but loves it more when her patients experience the...

Dena Roché is a wine consultant and founder of Vin Roché, a private wine services business. She worked as a travel writer, and having experienced 35 wine regions around the world for over 10 years, she developed an expertise in wine. With changes in the business and Covid-19 creating havoc for the industry, Dena decided to make a career change centered around her love and knowledge of wine and est...

Riya Miglani is a Food Allergy Advocate that is doing incredible things. Most recently, she co-authored an illustrated children’s book titled “The Hidden Hero.”  She shares the journey, from inspiration through publication and beyond.  Her goal in writing this book was to empower kids to be their own heroes.  She hosts the podcast “Less Panic, More Peace.” which shares food allergies stories, insi...

Chef Brian Hay is Instructional Dean of Culinary, Pastry, and Hospitality at Dallas College. He is a Level Two Certified Sommelier and a Certified Specialist in Wine and Spirits. Pairing food and beverages is an art that Chef Brian loves to share with others, and he founded "Art of the Pair" to do just this. He was always drawn to food and cooking from an early age. His mother taught him...