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PODCAST

Take-Away with Sam Oches

Nation"s Restaurant News

Hosted by Nation’s Restaurant News’ editor in chief, Take-Away with Sam Oches features interviews with CEOs and founders of restaurant companies big and small, sharing their stories and ideas for the future but also real, tangible insights for how to innovate in our foodservice future. Each episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches provides key take-aways from Oches’ interviews, with on-the-go observations about how each leader’s strategy fits within the broader foodservice context and what actionable

business entrepreneurship

All Episodes

59:29

Denny’s CEO Kelli Valade on building a successful...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/05/27

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithKelli Valade, CEO of Denny’s and Keke’s Breakfast Cafe. This is the second edition in NRN’s new Signature Series, which are conversations with some of the biggest CEOs in the restaurant industry, powered by The Coca-Cola Company. This interview is rolling out in two parts, and in this episode Kelli talks about her career, her leadership style, and the lessons she imparts to young and upcoming leaders in the restaurant industry —particularly

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40:42

Pluckers Wing Bar cofounder on how a $12 lunch deal...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/05/21

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithDave Paul, cofounder of Pluckers Wing Bar, a beloved sports bar concept in Texas with 32 locations in the Lone Star State. Pluckers is celebrating its 30thanniversary this year and has seen plenty of change in the chicken category as competitors like Raising Cane’s, Chick-fil-A, and Wingstop have come to dominate the space. But Dave and his business partners are happy with their slow pace of growth as they double down on a high-quality,

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46:50

Clutch Coffee CEO Darren Spicer on how to stand out...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/05/13

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithDarren Spicer, cofounder and CEO of Clutch Coffee, a drive-thru coffee shop that has grown to 15 locations across the Carolinas since debuting in 2018. Darren grew up in Oregon and worked as a broista at Dutch Bros before going into medical device sales, and while he travelled the country for that job, he realized there were parts of the country that had no access to the burgeoning drive-thru coffee scene —meaning there was plenty of white

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28:30

Taco John’s CEO Heather Neary on recapturing...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/05/06

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithHeather Neary, CEO of Taco John’s, in-person at the Restaurant Leadership Conference in Phoenix. Heather took the reins at Taco John’s a little over a year ago, shortly after the brand experienced the bright spotlight of the Taco Tuesday trademark battle with Taco Bell. Her strategy at the chain has been to tap into Taco John’s roots as a 56-year-old Mexican QSR that has a presence in a lot of small communities across America, and to remind

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54:33

Grown founder Shannon Allen on the franchise model...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/04/29

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithShannon Allen and Zach Cohen, the founder and CFO of the Miami-based fast-casual concept Grown. Shannon opened this concept with her husband, NBA Hall of Famer Ray Allen, in 2016, driven by the fact that their son Walker was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when he was a toddler and Shannon struggled to find healthy foods served fast that she could feed him. Grown aims to disrupt the restaurant industry by serving fresh, nutrient-dense foods

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38:31

Philly Pretzel Factory and the power of bulk orders

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/04/22

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithDan DiZio, cofounder and CEO of Philly Pretzel Factory, a Philadelphia-based snack concept with more than 170 locations primarily in the East Coast. Philly Pretzel Factory has achieved broad appeal with its paperclip shaped pretzels and wide variety of dips, and it’s especially found success with its Party Trays, which have been hugely impactful in getting the word out about the brand at parties, sporting activities, meetings, and more. Dan

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42:10

Jamba’s chief brand officer on the art and science of...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/04/15

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithNathan Louer, chief brand officer at Jamba, the legacy smoothie bowl concept that is one of seven brands in the GoTo Foods portfolio. Nathan declares that Jamba is on the comeback trail, and a big part of that comeback is the just-announced new store prototype called Hello Sunshine, which updates the Jamba aesthetic but also the experience leveraging self-order kiosks, digital marketing screens, and streamlined store layouts. It also provides

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43:39

Talkin’ Tacos’ cofounder on the keys to this South...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/04/08

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithMohammad Faraj, cofounder and chief marketing officer for Talkin’ Tacos, a fast-casual taco joint out of South Florida that has grown to 22 locations in less than five years in operation. Mohammad and his childhood friend Omar Al-Massalkhi opened Talkin’ Tacos as a food truck in the early days of the pandemic, one of the first concepts to bring birria tacos to the east coast. That menu focus plus an early pivot to halal meat helped catapult

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21:05

How restaurants can take advantage of all this...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/04/01

In this special episode of Take-Away—guest-hosted by Restaurant Business editor-in-chief and A Deeper Dive host Jonathan Maze —Bob Vergidis, the founder ofpointofsale.cloud, joins to talk about the future of restaurants and restaurant technology and equipment.We wanted to talk with Bob simply about the future of restaurant technology and how restaurants can take the next step.A lot of technology has been brought into restaurants in the past several years and equipment is more advanced than it’s ever

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51:03

Houston TX Hot Chicken’s Edmond Barseghian on...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/03/25

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithEdmond Barseghian and Brian Simowitz, the founder and president, respectively, of Houston TX Hot Chicken, aka HHC. This brand has opened 24 locations in less than four years, and a big reason why is Edmond and his massive social media following. From the jump Edmond had big plans for the brand, and with strategic executive hires like Brian —along with an investment from Savory Fund —HHC is well on its way to opening potentially hundreds of

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40:01

Tony Roma’s CEO Mina Haque on how her law background...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/03/18

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithMohaimina “Mina” Haque, the CEO of Tony Roma’s, a legacy casual dining chain specializing in ribs that once had hundreds of locations, but which is now is in rebuild mode with a few dozen open locations, only 6 of which are in the U.S. Mina is a lawyer by trade, and she was brought on by Equity Investors of New England when it bought the chain in 2021 to do due diligence on the brand and serve as general counsel. Recognizing her potential,

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50:56

Wendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner on leadership lessons, vision...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/03/11

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithWendy’s president and CEO Kirk Tanner as part of a brand new series at NRN called Signature: A CEO Series with Sam Oches, powered by The Coca-Cola Company. We’re hosting 6 Signature episodes throughout 2025, and they’re designed to introduce you to the leaders of some of the nation’s biggest restaurant companies —what has shaped their approach to leadership, how they’ve maintained balance and wellbeing, and how they’re applying their life

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52:40

Sucré CEO James Vitrano on the challenges of scaling...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/03/04

Happy Mardi Gras! In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talkswithJames Vitrano, the CEO of Sucré, a French patisserie concept out of New Orleans that has eight locations across the Southeast. James and his pastry chef wife Abney HarperboughtSucréin 2023, looking to scale the luxury patisserie concept that specializes in macrons, gelato, and a range of handmade French desserts. James joined the podcast to talk about the challenges of scaling an emerging brand and particularly building

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44:55

Currito cofounders Joe and John Lanni on adapting a...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/02/25

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talksJoe and John Lanni, the brother cofounders of Thunderdome Restaurant Group, a Cincinnati-based outfit that is among the 10 largest restaurant groups in the U.S., and which counts the 23-unit fast casual Currito among its portfolio. Currito is celebrating its 20thanniversary this year, and the Lanni brothers are looking to rapidly expand through franchising. Joe and John joined the podcast to talk about what it was like to grow up in the

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37:02

Wahlburgers CEO Randy Sharpe on building a brand...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/02/18

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talksRandy Sharpe, CEO of Wahlburgers, the upscale burger chain founded by renowned actor Mark Wahlberg and his family. Wahlburgers has roughly 30 units around the U.S. alongside a handful of international locations, with plans to continue growing globally with a flexible format that includes both limited-service and full-service models. Randy joined the podcast to explain why Wahlburgers is all about finding the right partner in the right place at

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43:04

Sip Fresh founder Sharon Arthofer on building a...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/02/11

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks withSharon Arthofer, founder and CEO of Sip Fresh, an emerging beverage franchise out of Southern California that is serving high-quality, fresh fruit juices in small-footprint locations. Sharon has been in the foodservice business for 30 years, having been one of the first hires by Rick Wetzel and Bill Phelps when they launched Wetzel’s Pretzels in the mid-90s. She later became Wetzel’s first franchisee, and before launching Sip Fresh in 2017,

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45:23

Donatos CEO Kevin King on the intersection of...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/02/05

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks withKevin King, president and CEO of Donatos Pizza. Kevin recently took over the chief executive position after former CEO Tom Krouse retired, and he’s now overseeing a new franchise expansion effort. Leading the way in this growth is Donatos’ commitment to innovation and consistency —and particularly where those two traits intersect, as they have with new automated kitchen equipment that Donatos is rolling out across its system. Kevin joined

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52:33

Fogo de Chão CEO Barry McGowan on building one of...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/01/28

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks withBarry McGowan, CEO of Fogo deChão, a Brazilian steakhouse chain that has grown to more than 100 locations globally, including 80 in the U.S. The brand specializes in churrasco, or high-quality, fire-roasted meats, and it’s using its quality positioning in the full-service space to build incredible momentum —including being named one of America’s Favorite Chains from NRN and Technomic. Barry is a 40-year veteran of the restaurantindustry

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49:40

The Granola Bar cofounders on falling forward into...

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/01/21

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks withJulie Mountain and DanaNoorily, cofounders of The Granola Bar, a breakfast-and-lunch, modern diner concept with eight locations across Connecticut and New York. These long-time friends initially started a granola business out of one of their kitchens in 2010, and in 2013 opened their first restaurant essentially just to give them a commercial kitchen to manufacture granola. But customers in their Westport, Conn., hometown had different

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53:19

Twin Peaks CEO Joe Hummel on taking your brand seriously

Take-Away with Sam Oches ·

2025/01/14

In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks withJoe Hummel, the CEO of Twin Peaks, a sports-bar franchise with more than 100 locations across the U.S. The company is maniacal about food and beverage quality, and its corporate team is intent on rolling up their sleeves and getting into the stores so they can be experts at every facet of what they do. Joe joined the podcast to talk about why Twin Peaks takes its guests and its restaurants so seriously and how his experience as a franchisee

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133 results

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