The Hospitality Hangout | Hospitality Podcast

Michael Schatzberg & Jimmy Frischling - Hospitality Insiders | Expert Strategies & Trends.', Hosts: Michael Schatzberg and Jimmy Frischling | Branded Hospitality Media, Hospitality Insiders | Michael Schatzberg & Jimmy Frischling | Branded Hospitality
  • 5.0 (14)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

The Hospitality Hangout is where the restaurant industry gets real. Hosted by Schatzy, the Restaurant Guy, and Jimmy, the Finance Guy, this funny, unfiltered hospitality podcast dives into restaurant trends, food service innovation, hospitality technology, and the investment strategies shaping the future of the industry. With decades of hands-on experience operating restaurants and structuring capital markets deals, these two bring real-world insight from the kitchen to the boardroom. They connect the biggest operators, boldest founders, and sharpest investors in hospitality for conversations you won’t hear anywhere else. Each week you’ll hear from C-suite restaurant executives, franchise leaders, emerging brand founders, hospitality tech innovators, and private equity investors who are building the next era of food and hospitality. Expect insider stories, sharp opinions, real numbers, and plenty of laughs. No fluff. No corporate spin. Just honest conversations about what is actually happening in restaurants and food service. If you care about scaling restaurants, raising capital, building brands, or staying ahead of hospitality trends, this is your show. Grab a drink, pull up a chair, and let’s talk shop. Welcome to The Hospitality Hangout.

  1. 14h ago

    Tropical Smoothie Cafe’s CMO on Building Awareness, Joy and Purpose

    Deborah von Kutzleben, Chief Marketing Officer of Tropical Smoothie Cafe, joins Hospitality Hangout live from Prosper for a conversation about what happens after a brand has already grown across the map. Tropical Smoothie Cafe has more than 1,700 cafes, but Deborah explains that store count is only part of the story. When she joined the brand, the opportunity was to make awareness catch up with the footprint. In other words, the cafes were already in people’s communities. The next step was making the brand feel familiar, loved and part of everyday life. That work starts with knowing what people already love about Tropical Smoothie Cafe, then giving them more reasons to think of it. Smoothies are the anchor, but Deborah talks about the bigger opportunity around food, wraps, flavor, spice, protein, family occasions and cultural partnerships. From the Tiki Torch Wrap to Disney collaborations with Lilo & Stitch and Moana, the goal is not just to advertise. It is to create moments that feel happy, approachable and worth remembering. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Tropical Smoothie Cafe’s CMO on Building Awareness, Joy and Purpose

  2. 5d ago

    How GOODLES Made Mac and Cheese for Grown-Ups | Foodfluencers

    On this episode of Hospitality Hangout’s Foodfluencers series, Jen Zeszut, co-founder and CEO of GOODLES, joins the show live from Pepsi Studios in New York City to talk about reinventing one of America’s favorite comfort foods: boxed mac and cheese. Jen shares the winding road that led her to GOODLES, from studying psychology and French, working at Cosi in Paris, helping document the operations manual that later helped bring Cosi to the U.S., moving to Mendocino to learn from Cafe Beaujolais, and eventually realizing that the day-to-day of restaurants was not her path. The conversation digs into the origin of GOODLES, the “cherry, cherry, cherry” startup moment, the wall of more than 100 investor nos, and why Jen still believed there was a massive opportunity in mac and cheese. Instead of treating the category as food only for kids, GOODLES set out to bring adults back to the mac aisle with bold packaging, playful branding, premium flavors, protein, fiber, prebiotics, and nutrients from plants. Jen also talks about competing with Kraft and Annie’s, building a mass brand without trying to look like traditional health food, using Hollywood and athlete investors for reach, the Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively cream cheese moment, the Dreamy Creamy flavor, Goodles.com, Amazon, Costco, Whole Foods, Target, and why the brand is gaining millions of new customers. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    How GOODLES Made Mac and Cheese for Grown-Ups | Foodfluencers

  3. Sep 8

    Jo Lambert on Olo’s Big Bet to Give Restaurants Their Guests Back

    Jo Lambert, COO of Olo, joins Hospitality Hangout live from Prosper for a conversation about the future of restaurant technology, online ordering, loyalty, guest data, and the next chapter of digital hospitality. Jo brings a unique background to the restaurant industry, with leadership experience across American Express, PayPal, Venmo, Yahoo, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Sports, TechCrunch, AOL, and global consumer technology. In this episode, she shares why she made the move into restaurant tech, what drew her to Olo founder Noah Glass’ vision, and why the industry still has so much room to grow through better digital tools. The conversation centers on Olo’s big bet: helping restaurants build stronger direct relationships with guests. Jo explains the Olo Network, the upcoming Olo App, and the idea of second-party ordering, a model designed to sit between first-party and third-party while helping restaurants keep guest data, protect margin, and create new demand channels. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Jo Lambert on Olo’s Big Bet to Give Restaurants Their Guests Back

  4. Sep 2

    Hospitality Insiders: Nadeem Bajwa’s Journey From Pizza Delivery to Franchise Empire

    This episode of Hospitality Hangout introduces Hospitality Insiders, a special segment built for deeper operator-to-operator conversations about ownership, capital, structure, people, and what it really costs to own the thing. For this Hospitality Insiders conversation, Jimmy Frischling sits down with Nadeem Bajwa, co-founder and CEO of Bajco Group, one of the largest Papa Johns franchise operators in North America. Nadeem’s story is often told as an American dream story: he came to the United States from Pakistan in 1991, washed dishes, delivered pizzas, and eventually grew into one of the largest Papa Johns franchisees in the system. But this conversation goes deeper than the origin story. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Hospitality Insiders: Nadeem Bajwa’s Journey From Pizza Delivery to Franchise Empire

  5. Sep 1

    The Friday Feeling: Inside TGI Fridays’ Comeback

    On this episode of Hospitality Hangout, Ray joins the show live from The Prosper Forum in Orlando, Florida to talk about capturing the Friday Feeling and rebuilding one of casual dining’s most iconic brands from the inside out. Ray shares how he moved from the kitchen to the boardroom, left Fridays as president, led other major restaurant companies, and returned to a brand he never stopped caring about. He talks about the work behind the comeback, including leadership, franchisee alignment, technology upgrades, off-premise, social media, hospitality, and an 85% menu refresh built around food the team can be proud to serve. The conversation also gets into the bigger Fridays story: potato skins, Jack Daniel’s ribs, bar flair, striped uniforms, big appetizers, mocktails, GLP-1 dining behavior, delivery, Olo, global growth, and the brand’s goal of reaching 1,000-plus restaurants and $2 billion in annual revenue by 2030. From the original singles bar to a global casual dining brand, this episode is about restoring the energy, hospitality, and social connection that made TGI Fridays famous, while building a version of the brand for the next generation. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    The Friday Feeling: Inside TGI Fridays’ Comeback

  6. Aug 27

    The 2 P.M. Snack Brand Taking Over Grocery Shelves

    Jake Karls, co-founder and rainmaker of Mid-Day Squares, joins Hospitality Hangout for The Food Fluencers series to talk about the chocolate bar built for the 2 p.m. crash and the founder-led content strategy that turned a better-for-you snack into one of the most talked-about brands in CPG. Jake shares how Mid-Day Squares started with Lezlie Karls making a cleaner afternoon chocolate snack for Nick Saltarelli, how the three founders began making bars by hand in a condo kitchen, and how they hand-delivered product while documenting the entire journey online. Jake also talks about using social media as a competitive weapon, hiring a videographer before most people thought it made sense, turning a Hershey moment into a viral diss-track-style music video, building fans who fix shelves in grocery stores, and why the future belongs to brands that can earn attention and get customers to come back. From functional chocolate and protein-packed snacks to Target, Whole Foods, Costco, offices, coffee shops, nostalgia flavors, food influencers, and the future of midday snacking, this episode is a look at how Mid-Day Squares turned a chocolate bar into a movement. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  7. Aug 25

    The SONIC Way: Custom Drinks, Drive-Ins and Doing It Their Way

    John Kelly, Brand President of SONIC Drive-In, joins Hospitality Hangout for a conversation about drinks, drive-in culture, nostalgia, technology, and why SONIC still feels different. John talks about the power of SONIC’s beverage platform, from cherry limeades and Refreshers to dirty soda, SONIC ice, and more than a million drink combinations. He also gets into the SONIC Smasher, value, mobile ordering, SONIC Rewards, third-party delivery, and the role of drive-in stalls in creating a guest experience that still feels personal. The episode also explores how SONIC is thinking about AI and restaurant technology. John’s focus is on helping general managers make better decisions, improve speed of service, and run stronger restaurants without letting technology get in the way of hospitality. From “newstalgia” to custom drinks, this is a look at how SONIC is keeping its brand fun, familiar, and different. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    The SONIC Way: Custom Drinks, Drive-Ins and Doing It Their Way

  8. Aug 18

    Why Busy Restaurants Still Fail: Bruce Nelson on the Math Behind Profit

    Bruce Nelson has seen the restaurant business from almost every angle: dishwasher, cook, chef instructor, restaurant owner, operator, author, and fractional CFO. On this episode of Hospitality Hangout, Bruce joins the show live from SpotOn Studios at the National Restaurant Association Show to talk about the financial side of hospitality and why great food, great service, and a busy dining room are not always enough to build a profitable restaurant. Bruce shares how he opened his first restaurant at 22, copied a competitor’s menu, priced everything one dollar cheaper, and learned the hard way that restaurant math matters. He also discusses the failure that shaped his book, Restaurant Management: The Myth, the Magic, the Math, and why many operators understand the magic of hospitality before they fully understand the math behind profit. The conversation explores menu pricing, restaurant profitability, debt restructuring, cash flow, POS systems, cloud-based restaurant technology, AI analytics, and the role of a fractional CFO in helping restaurants make better decisions. Bruce also explains why AI can be powerful for reporting, auditing, and analytics, but should never get between the operator and the guest. Episode Credits: Produced by: Branded Hospitality MediaHosted by: Michael Schatzberg, Jimmy FrischlingProducer: Julie ZuckerCreative Director: Adam LevineShow Runner: Drewe RaimiPost Production: Three Cheers Creativewww.thehospitalityhangout.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Why Busy Restaurants Still Fail: Bruce Nelson on the Math Behind Profit
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5
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

The Hospitality Hangout is where the restaurant industry gets real. Hosted by Schatzy, the Restaurant Guy, and Jimmy, the Finance Guy, this funny, unfiltered hospitality podcast dives into restaurant trends, food service innovation, hospitality technology, and the investment strategies shaping the future of the industry. With decades of hands-on experience operating restaurants and structuring capital markets deals, these two bring real-world insight from the kitchen to the boardroom. They connect the biggest operators, boldest founders, and sharpest investors in hospitality for conversations you won’t hear anywhere else. Each week you’ll hear from C-suite restaurant executives, franchise leaders, emerging brand founders, hospitality tech innovators, and private equity investors who are building the next era of food and hospitality. Expect insider stories, sharp opinions, real numbers, and plenty of laughs. No fluff. No corporate spin. Just honest conversations about what is actually happening in restaurants and food service. If you care about scaling restaurants, raising capital, building brands, or staying ahead of hospitality trends, this is your show. Grab a drink, pull up a chair, and let’s talk shop. Welcome to The Hospitality Hangout.

Information

  • Creator
    Michael Schatzberg & Jimmy Frischling - Hospitality Insiders | Expert Strategies & Trends.', Hosts: Michael Schatzberg and Jimmy Frischling | Branded Hospitality Media, Hospitality Insiders | Michael Schatzberg & Jimmy Frischling | Branded Hospitality
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    315
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © A Branded Media Experience
  • Show Website
    The Hospitality Hangout | Hospitality Podcast

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