Ep 12: FEAST Dialogue – Can AI Meet Aloha? Balancing Innovation and Authenticity

In this episode of FEAST: Dish & Dialogue, chefs and hospitality leaders explore how AI is beginning to reshape both restaurant and hotel operations—and what it means to preserve authenticity along the way.Moderated by Maya Rogers, CEO of Tetris, the panel features Rich Rosendale (Rosendale Collective), Jason Peel (Nami Kaze), Tom Calame (Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts Hawaii), and Kevin Yim (Zippy's Restaurants). Together, they discuss how technology is being integrated across hospitality—from kitchen equipment, menu planning, and forecasting to concierge services, online ordering, and guest communication. Across the discussion, they explore how AI can improve efficiency and support better decision-making to keep human connection at the center of the guest experience.Recorded live at the FEAST Summit during the Hawai‘i Food & Wine Festival, this episode explores how the future of hospitality may depend on using AI not to replace aloha, but to create more space for it.