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

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 'Slutty' Empire: How Pinky Cole turned vegan burgers into a national brand

Slutty Vegan founder and CEO Pinky Cole Hayes joins Fast Casual Nation hosts Paul Barron and Cherryh Cansler to share her journey from television producer to…

How Mendocino Farms is winning the 'Sandwich Wars'

Mendocino Farms CMO Alicia Mowder joins Fast Casual Nation to break down how the fast-casual chain hit its 100th location while staying true to chef-driven…

Presented by LoopAI

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…

Moe's Southwest Grill, Schlotzsky's execs discuss AI usage, new prototypes, growth plans

GoTo Foods CBOs Mike Smith (Moe's Southwest Grill) and Donna Varner (Schlotzsky's) join Fast Casual Nation host Cherryh Cansler to discuss how a shared brand…

Chipotle COO Jason Kidd reveals strategy behind tech-driven back-of-house overhaul

Chipotle COO Jason Kidd joins Fast Casual Nation hosts Paul Barron and Cherryh Cansler to break down how the 4,100-unit brand is winning and retaining the…

Presented by Star Micronics America

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…

The 'anti-burger' blueprint: How Teriyaki Madness is out-scaling the giants

In this episode of Fast Casual Nation, hosts Paul Barron and Cherryh Cansler sit down with Jodi Boyce, CMO of Teriyaki Madness, and John Smolen, SVP of Sales…

Presented by Atmosphere

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

2026 Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers

Welcome to the 2026 edition of the Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers. Each year, this report serves as a pulse check for the industry, celebrating the…

Presented by Elo Touch Solutions, Inc.

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 Service Management Group

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April 15, 2026

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How Tarka Indian Kitchen scaled fast casual Indian cuisine

In this episode of Fast Casual Nation, hosts Paul Barron and Cherryh Cansler sit down with Tinku Saini, CEO and co-founder of Tarka Indian Kitchen, to explore…