If it’s not going great now, why would you want more of not-great? My brother once asked me, “Has anyone ever opened a restaurant in Dallas they didn’t intend to be a prototype for expansion?” Well, yes, but he made his point. For many restaurateurs, growth is inspiration. Most would view having one restaurant – … Continued
I have new clients in the startup phase complaining that not all their new managers are getting the job done. I also have longtime clients worried their best people may leave for that hot new brand. The best strategy for both these clients is the same: Keep the good people you already have. There is … Continued
Break old habits. Start new ones. That first day back from vacation offers you an incredible opportunity to do both – to adopt new behaviors and see breakthrough ideas and initiatives you definitely want to take advantage of. If you tend to rush into a skyscraper-sized group of e-mails, and don’t stop and think about … Continued
At the recent Texas Restaurant Show – the biggest event of the year for the Texas Restaurant Association – I saw a lot of positive, confident, talented, and resilient restaurateurs from our state and the surrounding states. That’s a change from other times when the industry was facing challenges. Then, many show attendees seemed like a bunch … Continued
At the end of last month, while you worked your five-day week, I meditated in near-complete silence for five days with 90 other people. Voluntarily. So far, 2025 has been a very busy, successful, productive (and frankly, sometimes overwhelming) year. I needed a reset to keep my balance and filter out the noise that bombards … Continued
At Texas Restaurant Show this weekend at the George R. Brown convention center in Houston – on Sunday, July 20, I’ve been asked to speak on two different topics. First, “Increasing Your Restaurants Performance”, presented by restaurantowner.com where I will talk about the most powerful basic strategies now – addressing people, numbers, menu, tech and growth related issues. … Continued
The “10,000-hour rule” has been debunked. Thankfully – I mean, who has that much time? But there’s another “rule” that still rings true: If you publish almost 1,200 episodes of your podcast and people continue to listen, that nails your credibility. I’m talking about Eric Cacciatore and “Restaurant Unstoppable,” where I recently made my second appearance, … Continued
In the past couple of weeks, I have had two different successful operators with exciting brands contact me because their growth plans only existed in their head. Neither one could figure out where to begin to take action. So we figured it out together. Focus on Four Things If this story seems familiar, focus on … Continued
What are the fastest and best ways to increase your restaurant’s performance these days? How do you grow your company in a flat market? What’s your plan for continuing to grow your net worth and making your successful restaurant company even more successful? We can figure out the answers to these questions together when I speak at the Texas … Continued
It’s June…already! People don’t have to wake up early to take the kids to school, they struggle to keep them doing anything other than looking at a screen, and your Q2 has just a few weeks to go. 2025 has thrown some challenges the industry’s way, with consumer confidence falling due to economic uncertainty. Still, … Continued