PODCAST

Corner Booth Podcast

Chris Tripoli

Candid Conversations with Today’s Restaurant Entrepreneurs

business entrepreneurship

All Episodes

39:24

Episode 100: Michelle Korsmo with the National...

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/12/17

“My family had a farm in North Dakota,” says Michelle Korsmo, CEO of the National Restaurant Association. “I was raised knowing that helping each other was the best way to help ourselves and that together people really can make a difference.” Korsmo gained early restaurant experience working at TGI Fridays before becoming a state government lobbyist. From there she transitioned to CEO positions with the American Land and Title Association, the National Wine and Spirits Association, and eventually

42:02

Episode 99: Peter Yang with Pokeworks

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/12/03

When Peter Yang’s parents immigrated to San Diego from China, they did not aspire for their children to be employed in food service. “My parents were trained designers in China, and had always hoped their children would graduate college and choose professional careers,” says Yang. Nevertheless, he grew up in the family restaurant and went on to develop Pokeworks, the world's largest fast-casual, premium Poke brand with 70 locations nationwide.After earning a degree in engineering and a brief

55:21

Episode 98: Adam Romo with Eatzi’s Market & Bakery

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/11/19

Eatzi’s Market & Bakery (Eatzi’s) was created by award-winning concept developer Phil Romano in 1996 as a joint venture with casual dining restaurant company Brinker International, Inc. Soon after its launch, Adam Romo joined Eatzi’s as the company’s first CFO. "The initial acceptance was way above expectations," says Romo, adding, "The concept successfully offered something new and different, restaurant-quality cooking in a European market setting." With multiple open kitchens, the aroma of

39:33

Episode 97: Emily Hunt Turner with All Square Cafe

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/11/05

Emily Hunt Turner is the founder and CEO of All Square Enterprises, a Minnesota non-profit organization. A former civil rights attorney, she created a restaurant and food truck business that provides a fresh start for people with a criminal record. Says Emily, “By investing in those recently released [from prison] and those with criminal records and trying to move forward, we provide a sense of purpose and appreciation while receiving a loyal hard-working family of staff members.” The organization’s

45:06

Episode 96: Jackie & Jessica Rodriguez with Grupo Lorena

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/10/23

Sisters Jackie and Jessica Rodriguez started working in the family restaurant business as teenagers. With time and hard work, they have grown into leadership positions in this successful multi-concept hospitality company in El Salvador. What started as a San Salvadorian bakery created by their grandparents, grew into a 20-unit chain under the leadership of their father. Sixteen years ago, the family jumped at the opportunity to purchase a small hotel and their concept diversification plan was

43:14

Episode 95: Cameron Gerber with Pebbles Family Buffet

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/10/08

In 2014, Cameron Gerber bought a hotel and restaurant near his home outside Varney, a small community in Ottawa, Canada. After trying to sell the real estate, he and his brother Andrew opened a casual full-service concept on the property, with no restaurant experience. Their first restaurant struggled until they renovated it into Pebbles Family Buffet, which became a local hit. The success of the buffet, fresh bakery, and gift shop required the brothers to develop operating systems and procedures

50:57

Episode 94: Alex Eagle with Freebirds World Burrito

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/09/24

Alex Eagle was general counsel for Austin, Texas-based fast-casual concept Freebirds World Burrito before becoming its chief executive officer in 2018. Albeit his hands-on restaurant experience was limited, he forged ahead with plans for the concept’s improvement, leaning on his attention to detail and ability to motivate others.Quoting Jim Sullivan, CEO and founder of leadership and development training site Sullivision.com, Eagle says, "Good leaders may not have all the right answers, but they

38:12

Episode 93: Tom O’Keefe with Southern Classic Chicken

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/09/10

Tom O’Keefe is managing director of the 17-unit Louisiana and Texas family-style concept Southern Classic Chicken. O’Keefe says that he was initially drawn to the company by its 35-year customer following that he describes as "cult-like." Says O’Keefe, "Brothers Howard and Leon Fanning had just taken over operations and were placing emphasis on growth when I decided to join. The combination of qualified people, a popular product line, established operating procedures, and great unit-level economics

43:14

Episode 92: Olga Sagan with Piroshky Piroshky Bakery

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/08/27

As immigrants from the Soviet Union and speaking little English, Piroshky Piroshky Bakery’s founders launched the business 32 years ago in a 350-sq.-ft. space at Seattle’s Pikes Peak Market. In this episode, owner Olga Sagan tells how her grandparents created an Eastern European pastry business that is now a nationally recognized brand."Quality never goes out of style," says Olga. "We use the finest ingredients and follow the same traditional family recipes every day when making our sweet and

48:41

Episode 91: Celeste Deal with ARF Financial

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/08/13

Getting "money, money, money" to finance their businesses is always a hot topic of interest for restaurant owners and operators. Meet Celeste Deal, chief sales officer with ARF Financial. She has 24 years of funding experience and has provided more than $120 million in 12,000 different transactions with small-business operators. Here, Celeste shares her knowledge to help us secure funding, manage debt, achieve a return on investment, and prepare for succession planning. In this interview, we can

45:31

Episode 90: Mike Stasko with Sunny Street Café

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/07/30

Mike Stasko, president of Columbia, Ohio-based Sunny Street Café, was influenced by his father’s career in the restaurant equipment and supply business. He eventually went to work with his father at Rise & Dine, a breakfast and lunch concept where Mike learned how to manage its operations and business development. Mike rebranded Rise & Dine to Sunny Street and opened the first of what would become eight Columbus locations. In this episode, we learn what makes Mike’s full-service breakfast

49:45

Episode 89: Giorgia Caporuscio with Don Antonio Pizza

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/07/16

Giorgia Caporuscio was born in the small town of Terracina, Italy, an hour from Naples. In her youth, she dreamed of becoming a flight attendant to pursue her love of travel. At 19, she moved to New York City to work in her father’s pizza restaurant.The experience changed her direction. “It was love at first bite,” says Giorgia, adding “I became intrigued with the process of authentic pizza making and wanted to master the art.” Giorgia traveled back to Italy to study under master pizza maker

37:24

Episode 88: Benson Lau with Fluffy Fluffy Dessert Café

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/07/02

Fuwa Fuwa is Japanese for Fluffy Fluffy, which, in this case, also translates to a successful, fast-growing soufflé pancake concept. Benson Lau started in 2018 with one small cafe in Toronto and has quickly grown his business to 40 locations throughout Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. During the summer of 2024, Benson and his team opened their newest unit in Orange County, California.“It's incredible to experience this. I am overwhelmed by the acceptance of our unique soufflé

42:57

Episode 87: Darren Spicer with Clutch Coffee Bar

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/06/19

Business school graduate Darren Spicer studied the success factors of the growing regional coffee sector while managing a unit of drive-thru coffee chain Dutch Bros. He and his two co-founders developed the drive-thru specialty beverage concept Clutch Coffee Bar, which was launched in 2018 in a second-generation drive-thru location in Mooresville, North Carolina.“We succeed because of our commitment to offering quality and a well-trained staff that remains focused on the guest,” says Darren

48:27

Episode 86: Sarah Johnston with Fat Cat Creamery

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/06/04

As a child, Sarah Johnston, founder of Houston’s Fat Cat Creamery, hand-cranked creative homemade ice creams for family and friends. Following a career as a commercial real estate marketer, she leased space in a neighborhood strip mall to turn her childhood love of craft ice cream into a successful business. Fat Cat Creamery offers quality uniquely flavored frozen desserts and baked goods. “I started working with alcoholic beverages in some of my ice cream creations and it soon became my

54:28

Episode 85: Garrett Reed with Layne's Chicken Fingers

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/05/21

Garrett Reed, CEO of Layne's Chicken Fingers, said he fell in love with the Texas-headquartered concept as a student at Texas A&M University. The original College Station, Texas unit began operations in 1994. In 2015, Garrett approached the concept's owner to express his interest in expanding the brand. He became the concept's owner two years later.In this episode, Garrett tells how he leveraged his passion for the company's products and his respect for its culture with standardization of

36:57

Episode 84: Emeka Onugha and Adenah Bayoh with Brick...

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/05/07

Chef Emeka Onugha’s passion for healthy food predated his meeting with real estate developer Adenah Bayoh when they launched Brick City Vegan in 2021. “From inception, our approach wasn’t to simply present an imitation of meat, but to create new flavors and textures in popular menu items,” says Emeka of his Montclair, New Jersey counter-service concept. Montclair is proximate to Newark, which is known as the “Brick City” for its beautiful brickwork architecture. Emeka’s eponymous concept offers

41:18

Episode 83: Kelli Ferrell with Nana's Chicken-N-Waffles

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/04/23

Kelli Ferrell's dream of a small, limited-menu restaurant serving her favorite Southern dishes started with a vision board, a collage of images that represent and help manifest one’s goals. Eight years later, she purchased a shuttered burger restaurant in her neighborhood and created Nana's Chicken-N-Waffles. “I had no restaurant experience, but I was driven by my passion to serve people, my love for good food, and my marketing ability," says Kelli.Nana's Chicken-N-Waffles became a popular Atlanta

50:12

Episode 82: Seek Hannemann with Seven Brothers

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/04/09

Seek Hannemann is one of two brothers who assumed the operation of their parents' grill on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. One by one their other five brothers joined the business and Seven Brothers was created. The 2,400-square-foot counter service concept offers burgers with a Hawaiian flair, french fries, salads, and coconut macadamia shrimp.The success of Seven Brothers led to additional locations in the Hawaiian Islands and expansion to the U.S. mainland. In this episode, Seek shares the story

45:11

Episode 81: Jason Sobocinski & EtkinTekin with Havens...

Corner Booth Podcast ·

2024/03/26

Co-founders Jason Sobocinski and Etkin Tekin opened the first Haven Hot Chicken in 2020 and have quickly grown to 8 locations throughout Connecticut. They created a unique blend of marination and pressure frying that provides their chicken with what they call a “Crispy Crust Adhesion," which is flavorful and prevents the crust from separating. These efficient 1200 to 1500-square-foot spaces offer very little dine-in seating and post 90 % of revenue from online order pick up, delivery, and walk-in

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