From the boardroom to the prep line: How Stonefire Grill's CEO is fueling legacy growth

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Stonefire Grill CEO David Youngberg joins the Restaurant Operator Podcast to share how his hands-on leadership, people-first culture and strategic use of guest…

Accuracy is the New Loyalty

Order accuracy directly impacts restaurant profitability, customer trust and repeat business. In this webinar, Star Micronics explores where costly errors…

Presented by Star Micronics America

AI and the Future of Restaurants: From Foot Traffic to Predictive Insight

As consumer behavior and privacy expectations evolve, restaurants need smarter ways to understand diners and drive growth. Gladys Kong of Azira and Isabelle…

Presented by Azira

Real talk, damn good biscuits and growing a national chain

by Kathleen Wood — Founder, K. Wood Partners

Lauren Coulter is co-Founder and chief biscuit eater of Biscuit Belly, the Louisville, Kentucky, brunch brand she built with her husband and co-Founder, Chad…

How Urban Bird Hot Chicken turned a bad lease into a fast-growing brand

Brandon and Chantel Gawthorp built 32 Wingstop franchises across three states over 20 years, then let it all go to bet on themselves. They opened the first…

Why Taco Cabana is expanding its franchise beyond the Lone Star State

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

In this episode of the Restaurant Operator Podcast, host Mandy Detwiler chats with Taco Cabana's director of franchise sales and development, John Ramsay…

Toastique Founder Brianna Keefe details growth from single toast bar to national franchise

Toastique founder Brianna Keefe opened her first location at 24 with no investors, a personal guarantee, and a vision for a concept that didn't yet exist. In…

The 1:1 Personalization Playbook: Using AI to send every guest their own offer

In this session, Hang CEO Matt Smolin, whose platform powers millions of AI-personalized offers a month for restaurant brands, and Rev Ciancio, CMO of Salad…

Presented by Hang

Dodo Pizza’s playbook for international success

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

In this Pizza Marketplace podcast, executives from Dodo Brands discuss how the company uses its proprietary technology platform and a balance of global…

Wonder, Dave’s Hot Chicken Real Estate VPs reveal growth strategies

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Real estate strategy is central to growth for restaurant brands, and Wonder and Dave's Hot Chicken are taking different approaches to scale. In a podcast…

How Jae Kim is Scaling Chi’Lantro

Jae Kim emptied his $30,000 in savings and maxed out his credit cards to launch a Korean food truck in Austin in 2010. Now he is leading 13 Chi'Lantro…

70 years old and 'restarting': Shakey’s Pizza VP outlines fresh strategy for expansion

In this episode of the Pizza Marketplace podcast, host Mandy Detwiler, editor of Pizza Marketplace, chats with Sonia Barajas-Najera, vice president of…

Inside the tech stack: How Mattenga’s Pizzeria mastered SEO, 8-second reordering

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

In this podcast episode, Mattenga’s Pizzeria co-owner Enga Stanfield explains how partnering with owner.com and leveraging technology helped her independent…

Presented by Owner.com

How CORE provides financial lifeline for food, beverage workers in crisis

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

This episode of the Restaurant Operator Podcast features CORE’s Jill Chapman, who explains how the growing non-profit provides critical financial assistance to…

Presented by CORE

Mellow Mushroom VP shares secrets to long-term franchise success

In this episode of the Pizza Marketplace podcast, Mellow Mushroom VP of Franchise Development Jamie Cecil discusses the brand's 50-year history of "unicorn…

How R&R Brands scaled from a single brand to a multi-brand platform

I sat down with Scott Taylor, Founder and CEO of R&R Brands, a visionary and an industry icon whose fingerprints are on some of the most important…

Rethinking Peak Performance in the Digital Restaurant Era

Traditional performance metrics such as ticket time and drive-thru speed measure efficiency but fail to capture the full guest experience. Many organizations…

Presented by FastCasual.com

Be featured: Help us build the ultimate resource for prospective franchise operators

April 15, 2026

Get your franchise brand in front of qualified leads—on us. We're embarking on a new franchise industry initiative and want your input.

The 4:30 am grind: How a cotton-field startup turned into an artisan pizza empire

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

In this episode of the Pizza Marketplace Podcast, host Mandy Detwiler, editor of Pizza Marketplace, talks to Joe Carlucci, founder and owner of Valentina's…

Strategic sizzle: Why Houston TX Hot Chicken prioritizes smart growth over rapid expansion

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Houston TX Hot Chicken is leveraging its "electric" brand energy and massive social media following to drive organic franchise leads and fuel a strategic…