PODCAST · business
A Deeper Dive
by Restaurant Business Magazine
“A Deeper Dive” is a weekly podcast from Restaurant Business dedicated to going in-depth on the most pressing challenges and opportunities restaurant operators face today. Each Wednesday, our audience will hear from restaurant industry leaders – from Chipotle to Pincho Factory and Firehouse Subs to McDonald’s. Host Jonathan Maze deep dives into hot topics, from delivery to discounting and marketing to menu, giving operators the latest information and solutions to drive their businesses.Subscribe now! Restaurant Business: https://www.restaurantbusinessonlin
Episodes
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What is the future of drone delivery?
Drone delivery is here. But what goes into it? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Kent Ferguson, the head of partnerships with the Alphabet Inc.-owned Wing Drone Delivery. We spoke with Ferguson at the recent FSTEC conference and were able to watch a...
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How Del Taco is faring under its new owner
What has happened with Del Taco since its acquisition? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Anil Yadav and Noah Chillingworth. Yadav is a longtime franchisee who has gotten into the business of buying brands lately and he acquired Del Taco from Jack in the...
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Why independent restaurants are winning right now
Who is winning in the restaurant business right now? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Rich Shank, senior principal with Technomic. We had Shank on the podcast to help us understand the performance of independent restaurants and why they can generate...
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How Black Rock Coffee Bar is doing since its IPO
How does Black Rock Coffee Bar plan to get to 1,000 locations? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Mark Davis, the CEO of the 200-unit coffee chain. Davis on the podcast talks about the brand’s plans to get to 1,000 shops by 2035 and we ask him how the...
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How GLP-1 drugs are, and aren’t, affecting restaurants
GLP-1 medications are increasingly popular among Americans. So how are they influencing restaurant sales? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Lisa Miller, a consumer consultant and author of "The Business of Joy." Miller surveys consumers and talked with...
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How Carl’s Jr. is improving its menu
Can made-to-order burgers lift Carl’s Jr.? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Iwona Alter, the brand president for the fast-food chain. Alter joins the podcast to talk about the chain’s extensive initiatives, including its plans to start making its…
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Can extended hours really improve store profits?
Can more hours generate more profit at restaurant chains? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Mark Wasilefsky, the head of restaurant and franchise finance with TD Bank. Wasilefsky talks a wide range of issues on this episode, including the state of...
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How Topgolf continues to evolve its business
How is Topgolf changing under its new CEO? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features David McKillips, who was named chief executive of the golf-centric eatertainment concept in February. McKillips has hit the ground running and talks with us about the changes...
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Why Teriyaki Madness has kept growing in a tough market
Why have Asian brands such as Teriyaki Madness done so well of late? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Michael Haith, CEO of the 200-unit Asian franchise. Teriyaki Madness’s system sales increased more than 19% last year and the company said it is on…
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How growth chains adapt to a changing restaurant market
How does a growth chain break into a competitive restaurant market? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features John Abdo, the CEO of the 11-unit, Minneapolis-based chain My Burger. We spoke with Abdo at the recent Create conference in California, an event hosted...
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An interview with Sysco CEO Kevin Hourican
Why is Sysco buying Restaurant Depot? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Kevin Hourican, the CEO of the giant distributor Sysco. We asked Hourican to be on the podcast to talk about Sysco’s $29 billion proposal to buy Jetro Restaurant Depot, the...
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An innovative new strategy for financing restaurant growth
How does a restaurant operator get expansion financing without a personal guarantee or selling equity? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Michael Davis, the founder and CEO of Homegrown Financing. Davis has an interesting story. He watched his parents...
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How the Jersey Mike's IPO will affect the M&A market
How will Jersey Mike’s upcoming IPO impact the market for restaurant mergers and acquisitions? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Ashish Seth, founder and managing partner of Harrington Park Advisors, an advisory firm that specializes in multi-unit...
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What is going on with the restaurant labor market?
What the heck is going on with the restaurant labor market right now? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Chad Moutray, chief economist with the National Restaurant Association. We wanted Moutray on the podcast to make some sense of the most recent jobs...
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Why careful growth is vital for restaurant chains
Why is careful growth more important for restaurant chains? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Nick Marsh, the CEO of Founders Table Restaurant Group. This is the second in our series of episodes exploring Founders Table’s recent acquisition of Hopdoddy...
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Inside the sale of Hopdoddy Burger Bar
How did the sale of Hopdoddy come about? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Jeff Chandler, who is stepping aside as CEO of the fast-casual burger chain following its sale to Founders Table Restaurant Group. We wanted to talk with Jeff about the deal and...
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The story of a growing, Midwestern salad chain
Can a salad chain thrive in the ever-changing world of healthy eating? Steele Smiley is betting on it. The founder and executive chairman of the Minneapolis-based salad chain Crisp & Green joins the Restaurant Business podcast to talk about his brand’s strategies. Crisp & Green has 52 locations…
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How restaurants are faring this spring
Why are restaurants having another tough year? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features RJ Hottovy, the head of analytical research for the traffic tracking firm Placer.ai. This is the last in a series of episodes from the National Restaurant Association Show…
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Giordano's is getting ready to grow again
Can Giordano’s grow faster with more thin-crust pizzas? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Nick Scarpino, the CEO of the Chicago-based pizza chain Giordano’s. This is one of a series of episodes we recorded at the National Restaurant Association Show in...
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Why some restaurants face a leadership vacuum
Is there a leadership vacuum in the restaurant business? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Toni Ronayne, the founder of the fractional C-suite firm C Society. C Society provides experienced executives who can work with emerging and other restaurant...
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How restaurants can handle the K-shaped economy
How can restaurants deal with the K-shaped economy? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Michelle Korsmo, the president and CEO of the National Restaurant Association. We typically interview Korsmo at the National Restaurant Association Show every year.…
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What is wrong with the pizza market?
Why are fast-food pizza chains struggling? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Robert Byrne, senior director of consumer research with Technomic. Byrne and I spend the entire time discussing the state of the pizza market. Fast-food pizza chain sales...
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This company is taking Chinese takeout into the modern era
How does a company bring Chinese takeout into the modern era? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Angell Tsang and Min Choe, the founders of the Austin-based Tso Chinese Takeout and Delivery. You may not have heard of Tso but it is a fascinating concept...
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A look at the future of Chuck E. Cheese
Where does Chuck E. Cheese grow from here? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Scott Drake, the CEO of CEC Entertainment, parent company to Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza. This is the first of a couple of episodes recorded at the recent Restaurant...
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Why restaurant chain franchisees are struggling right now
Why are franchisees struggling right now? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Austin Titus, the president of Accurate Franchising. Accurate Franchising is a consulting firm that works with franchisors and franchisees and so we talk about all kinds of…
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Why 2025 was another tough year for restaurant chains
It was another tough year in 2025. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Joe Pawlak, the managing principal with Technomic. Pawlak provides our annual look at the data firm’s annual Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report, which provides the best look at the state…
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How Kilwins is adapting to life under new owners
How is Kilwins adapting to life under new owners? This week’s episode of A Deeper Dive features Brian Britton, CEO of the treat chain Kilwins. Kilwins operates experiential chocolate and ice cream shops, mostly in tourist spots. It has picked up its growth in recent years and finished 2025 with…
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Why consumers don’t think their restaurant visits are worth it
Most customers don’t think their last restaurant visit was worth it. That, at least, is according to Lisa Miller, a consumer insights and innovation strategist and author of The Business of Joy. She joins this week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive to discuss it. We talk...
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How the Sysco-Restaurant Depot deal will affect operators
How will the big Sysco-Restaurant Depot deal affect restaurant operators? It’s a big question, so we brought in Technomic Senior Principal David Henkes to talk about it for this week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive. Henkes is a distribution expert with Technomic and we...
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How rising gas prices will affect restaurant sales
How will gas prices affect restaurants? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Rich Shank, senior principal with the data firm Technomic. We like talking with Shank periodically to get a pulse on where the industry is at and there are all kinds of questions...
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A look at the bankruptcy of Fat Brands
What is the state of Fat Brands? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Hilary Russ, the editor at large of Law 360. Hilary covers bankruptcies for Law 360 and we wanted to talk with her about the bankruptcy of Fat Brands, which runs Twin Peaks, Round Table...
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Why beef costs are increasing so much
What’s going on with beef costs? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features David Maloni, the senior director of commodities with Arrowstream. We wanted to talk with David because beef costs are soaring. Burger King, for instance, said that its beef costs went…
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The secret behind the success of Dave's Hot Chicken
What makes Dave’s Hot Chicken tick? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Jim Bitticks, the CEO of Dave’s Hot Chicken. This is a great conversation with the chief executive of one of the country’s hottest brands, literally and figuratively. Bitticks was...
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Five Guys is making some changes
Five Guys is making some changes. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Molly Catalano, the chief marketing officer for the Washington, D.C.-based fast-casual burger chain. We are talking with Catalano about a lot of things, notably its move into catering.…
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How the restaurant industry will fare in 2026
How will restaurants fare in 2026? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Michelle Korsmo, the president and CEO of the National Restaurant Association, who talks about the trade group’s State of the Industry Report. Korsmo discusses the industry’s annual...
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How Starbucks is changing its coffee shops
What is the status of Starbucks’ turnaround? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Mike Grams, the chief operating officer of the coffee shop giant. Grams joined us from a Starbucks Reserve location in New York City following the company’s Investor Day...
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How convenience stores and supermarkets are gunning for restaurants
What are retailers doing to compete more aggressively with restaurants? This week’s episode of A Deeper Dive looks at the retail sector, specifically convenience stores and grocers. I’m joined this week by Heather Lalley, the managing editor for Restaurant Business as well as sister publications...
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How the Saks Global bankruptcy could affect restaurant real estate
How will the Saks Global bankruptcy affect restaurants? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Stephen Cohen, a real estate attorney who does a lot of work with restaurants. We wanted to speak with Stephen about the real estate implications of the bankruptcy...
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Why consumers' views on value are changing
How do consumers view value these days? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Jen Meyers, growth strategy leader for the restaurant practice with the consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal. The firm recently completed an extensive survey of consumers on a broad...
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How franchisees can find winning restaurant brands
How do franchisees pick winning concepts? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Martha Olmos, chief operating officer with Damm Fine Restaurant Group, a franchisee of Dave’s Hot Chicken and Blaze Pizza. Damm Fine got into both Blaze and Dave’s early in…
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The outlook for restaurants in 2026
What is the outlook for restaurants in 2026? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Technomic Senior Principal David Henkes. We wanted to talk with Henkes about what will happen in 2026. Restaurants are coming off a 2025 in which consumers cut back on dining...
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Restaurant sales and traffic challenges dominated 2025
Restaurant sales and traffic challenges were a huge story in 2025. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive takes a look at the most popular episodes of the year. Perhaps unsurprisingly, each of them dealt with the challenged industry environment. We spoke with…
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How AI will reshape restaurants
How will AI truly change the way restaurants do business? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive concludes our series on the impact of AI on the restaurant industry with a discussion of exactly where the technology will be felt the most. Over the past five weeks…
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How AI is helping restaurants with their marketing
AI is already having a big influence on restaurant marketing. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive continues our examination of the impact artificial intelligence is having on restaurant marketing. The technology is having an impact on marketing for everything from...
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How AI is helping restaurants in the back of the house
Customers may see AI when they order from their favorite restaurant on an app or in the drive-thru, but the technology’s biggest impact may be behind the scenes. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive continues our examination of the impact AI is having on the...
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AI is playing a bigger role in menu development
AI can’t necessarily make a burger, but it can help learn what kind of burger to put on the menu. In this episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive, we continue our examination on the impact AI is having on restaurant menu development. The podcast features Christian Frangiatis, the...
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How AI may, or may not, change the drive-thru
AI is coming for your drive-thru. This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive continues our look at the impact of AI in the restaurant industry. This week, we look at the most visible use of AI in the industry, voice-activated drive-thru ordering. A lot of restaurant…
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AI is everywhere, but how can it help restaurants?
AI is everywhere. Software companies bombard you with promises that their AI-powered programs will revolutionize your business. Prognosticators say it will take over roughly everything. And Wall Street, as ever, is watching. Restaurants are certainly no exception. Companies are testing and...
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How El Pollo Loco is winning the value-profitability battle
How is El Pollo Loco giving customers value without giving up profits? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Liz Williams, CEO of the fast-food chicken chain. El Pollo Loco just reported a decline in same-store sales with an increase in traffic and...
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What is driving consumer weakness right now
Why are consumers less responsive to restaurant marketing right now? This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Robert Byrne, director of consumer and industry insights with Technomic and a regular podcast guest. We wanted to talk with Byrne about the general...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
“A Deeper Dive” is a weekly podcast from Restaurant Business dedicated to going in-depth on the most pressing challenges and opportunities restaurant operators face today. Each Wednesday, our audience will hear from restaurant industry leaders – from Chipotle to Pincho Factory and Firehouse Subs to McDonald’s. Host Jonathan Maze deep dives into hot topics, from delivery to discounting and marketing to menu, giving operators the latest information and solutions to drive their businesses.Subscribe now! Restaurant Business: https://www.restaurantbusinessonlin
HOSTED BY
Restaurant Business Magazine
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does A Deeper Dive have?
A Deeper Dive currently has 429 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is A Deeper Dive about?
“A Deeper Dive” is a weekly podcast from Restaurant Business dedicated to going in-depth on the most pressing challenges and opportunities restaurant operators face today. Each Wednesday, our audience will hear from restaurant industry leaders – from Chipotle to Pincho Factory and Firehouse Subs to...
How often does A Deeper Dive release new episodes?
A Deeper Dive publishes regularly with 429 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to A Deeper Dive?
You can listen to A Deeper Dive on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts A Deeper Dive?
A Deeper Dive is created and hosted by Restaurant Business Magazine.
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