Explore every episode of the podcast Make Restaurants Profitable
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Why Beautiful Restaurants Go Broke (And Ugly Ones Thrive): With Gerrick Numan from Restaurant Design Academy | 28 Sep 2026 | 01:04:27 | |
How to design a restaurant that actually makes money is a question most owners never ask until it's too late. For restaurant owners, café owners, and anyone in a hospitality business, the design of your space either sets you up for profit or quietly drags you under. Gerrick Numan has been involved in 500+ venue designs through his studio Millé, owned four of his own venues, and now runs Restaurant Design Academy, teaching hospo owners to take control of the process themselves. He's seen it both ways. The stunning fit-out sitting empty while a dingy bar next door is packed and pumping. The two-million-dollar build doing twenty grand a week in sales. A beautiful space that takes fifteen years to pay off and needs renovating in six. Gerrick's point is simple and uncomfortable. Winning a design award means nothing. What matters is whether the space is comfortable to be in, whether it grabs attention from the street, and whether it's laid out to make money instead of forcing an extra two staff on every shift. This one will have you auditing your own venue by the end. Because most of the fixes cost a few hundred dollars, not a few hundred thousand. Key takeaways:
Ready to build a restaurant that makes money and runs without you? Book a Profit Finding Session: https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Check our Restaurant Design Academy: https://www.restaurantdesignacademy.com/ Follow Gerrick: @restaurantdesignacademy Follow Foodie Coaches: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| How to budget your build so the business actually makes money - with Gerrick Numan | 23 Sep 2026 | 00:14:32 | |
If your restaurant build costs $1 million, Gerrick Numan believes the venue should be capable of doing around $2 million a year in turnover. Otherwise, the fitout can take too long to pay itself back. Book a Gameplan Session → https://foodiecoaches.co/yt-bac In this episode, Gerrick breaks down how to budget a restaurant build without spending money customers will never notice. You’ll learn how to think about fitout spend versus expected revenue, where hidden build costs usually appear, and why taking over an existing hospitality site can dramatically reduce setup costs. You’ll also learn how to get most of the visual result for a fraction of the cost through smarter materials, simpler finishes and better design decisions. And Gerrick explains how working with the right contractor early can help keep the build on budget and avoid expensive variations halfway through the project. If you’re opening a new venue or planning a refit, this is how to make sure the build works financially before you start spending. Book a Gameplan Session → https://foodiecoaches.co/yt-bac 00:00 Intro #restaurantdesign #restaurantfitout #restaurantowner #hospitalitybusiness #restaurantprofitability #GerrickNuman #TimKummerfeld | |||
| Layout, seating, lighting: How your venue design impacts efficiency and sales (with Gerrick Numan) | 21 Sep 2026 | 00:12:26 | |
Your venue layout doesn’t just affect how the space looks. It affects how fast your team can work, how many customers you can serve, and how much revenue the room can generate. | |||
| Everything Wrong With Your Restaurant Design: With Gerrick Numan | 16 Sep 2026 | 00:08:50 | |
Gerrick Numan has designed more than 500 hospitality venues, and his biggest lesson is simple: a beautiful fit out means nothing if the business can’t pay for it. | |||
| The Bookkeeping Habit That Fixes A Struggling Restaurant: With Kylie Patch | 08 Sep 2026 | 01:00:13 | |
How to run a profitable restaurant starts with knowing your real numbers. For restaurant owners, café owners, and anyone in a hospitality business, weekly bookkeeping is the difference between guessing and knowing. Kylie Patch runs the bookkeeping division at FC Accounting Co, and she's built the reporting rhythm that gives hospo owners accurate numbers every single week. Most owners are making decisions from numbers that are flat-out wrong. Bank accounts that aren't reconciled. Expenses landing in the wrong week. A P&L pulled on the wrong basis that tells a story that isn't true. Kylie has seen it hundreds of times across the 75 businesses her team services. And she's watched what happens when an owner finally sees their real position for the first time. One client cried happy tears when the report went up on screen, because she could finally see where she actually stood. This one is about confidence. The kind that comes from trusting your numbers enough to act on them. You'll hear: → Why your numbers are almost certainly wrong (and the reconciliation habit that fixes it) Key takeaways:
Ready to get clear on your numbers and build a restaurant that runs without you? Book a Profit Finding Session: https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Foodie Coaches: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| How They Built A Coffee Brand From A Garage To 120 Cafés: With Richard Corney and Nick Clark from Flight Coffee | 01 Sep 2026 | 01:07:10 | |
How to scale a coffee business is one of the hardest questions in hospitality, and few have done it like Flight Coffee. For café owners, roasters, and anyone in a hospitality business, this is a real look at what it takes to grow a brand from a home garage to national distribution. Richard Corney and Nick Clark co-founded Flight Coffee in a garage in Napier back in 2009, and today they supply around 120 cafés across New Zealand plus a growing retail and ready-to-drink range. The story is anything but smooth. A roaster crammed into the middle of a café because there was nowhere else to put it. Six months building out an old car park on the smell of an oily rag. Outgrowing the space before they'd even finished it. Taking on investment in 2018 so the business could grow without their houses on the line. Along the way they learned what actually drives growth. Nick winning the 2013 NZ Barista Championship. Roastery tours that turned into brand goodwill with international guests. Deliberate decisions to diversify products and channels as a new generation of coffee drinkers arrived. If you make coffee, sell coffee, or dream of building a brand that scales beyond your four walls, this one is for you. You'll hear: → How Flight went from a garage roaster to supplying 120 cafés Key takeaways:
Ready to build a hospitality business that makes money and runs without you? Book a Profit Finding Session: https://foodiecoaches.co/fc-bac-yt Follow Flight Coffee: Follow Foodie Coaches: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| How Cooking Classes and Micro-Influencers Built This Top 50 Texas BBQ Restaurant | 26 Aug 2026 | 01:01:55 | |
How to use cooking classes, micro-influencers and founder-led content to build a restaurant people fly across the world to visit. The exact marketing strategy Cooper Abercrombie used to turn Bar-A-BBQ from a tent pop-up into a 2025 Texas Monthly Top 50 restaurant — with a line out the door six days a week and customers flying in from Australia and beyond. Cooper Abercrombie was a sales manager in Texas. Seven years ago he bought a smoker, made "awful, awful, awful" brisket, and refused to be bad at it. Today Bar-A-BBQ in Montgomery, Texas is one of the most talked-about barbecue restaurants in America — 2025 Texas Monthly Top 50, ranked #6 on the 2026 Texas Barbecue Top 50, doing $60,000+ weeks out of a 1,400 sq ft ex-vegan sandwich shop, with a line out the door six days a week and about to move to a building five times the size. None of it was luck. In this episode, Cooper sits down with Tim to break down the exact marketing playbook. Why he treated social media as a craft to master (not an afterthought). The 90-day posting rule that separates the operators who get traction from the ones who stay invisible. Why micro-influencers outperform big ones — and generated two viral videos that took him from $25K to $60K weeks in seven days. How his BBQ classes became both a revenue stream AND his best marketing channel — every attendee becomes an ambassador for life. And why teaching people exactly how to make his product (the thing every operator is scared to do) built the fanatic customer base that keeps them coming back. If you're a restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner who says "I'm too busy for marketing" — this is the episode that changes how you think about it. You'll hear: 00:00 – From "awful brisket" to Texas Monthly Top 50 in seven years Key takeaways:
If you want to build a hospitality business people cross the world to visit, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Cooper and Bar-A-BBQ: Follow along: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| He Makes the Australia's Best Pizza: Lucio De Falco on 17 Years of Building Lucio Pizzeria | 18 Aug 2026 | 00:52:38 | |
How Lucio De Falco built Sydney's most iconic Neapolitan pizzeria from scratch — and the lessons every restaurant owner, café owner or pizza maker needs to hear about consistency, quality and running a hospitality business that lasts. From a 14-year-old kid washing dishes in Naples to one of the best pizza chefs in the world. Lucio De Falco started washing dishes at his aunt and uncle's pizzeria in Naples when he was 14. By the time he was 21, he was in Sydney — recruited to help launch the first Neapolitan-style pizzeria in Australia at a time when nobody here knew what that meant. Four years later, he opened his own. Lucio Pizzeria Darlinghurst, 2008. Within the first year it had been voted Sydney's best pizza by The Sydney Morning Herald, Time Out and The Good Food Guide — back when reviewers showed up unannounced and you didn't know they'd been there until the article ran. Today Lucio Pizzeria has three venues — Darlinghurst, Zetland and Bar Lucio in Kensington — and Lucio is Vice President of AVPN Australasia (the official body for true Neapolitan pizza), an international judge, and the man behind one of only a handful of AVPN-accredited pizzerias in the country. In 2018 he competed at the Campionato Mondiale Della Pizza in Parma against 750 pizzaioli from 44 nations and came home with Best Pizza in Australia and 5th in the world. In this episode, Lucio sits down with Tim to talk through 17 years of running his own pizzeria — the obsessive focus on dough fermentation, the difference between being a great chef and a great operator, why most owners burn out chasing the wrong things, and the one thing he says separates the standout operators from everyone else. It's a conversation about craft, consistency and what it actually takes to make food that's worth coming back for. You'll hear: 00:00 – Washing dishes in Naples at 14 — how it all began 01:40 – Coming to Sydney at 21 to launch the first Neapolitan pizza in Australia 02:20 – Opening Lucio Pizzeria Darlinghurst at 25 — and winning Sydney's best pizza in year one 05:00 – Why fermentation, ingredients and craft are the difference between great pizza and average pizza 06:00 – The difference between being a great chef and being a great operator 07:20 – The numbers most chefs avoid until it's too late 10:00 – Why profit margins are getting tighter (and what the best operators are doing about it) 11:30 – Why you have to watch your business from up high, not from inside the kitchen 14:00 – Burnout: how to spot it before it costs you everything 45:00 – Why staff happiness is the most important thing you can build 46:30 – "It's hard to gain a customer. It's easy to lose one." 48:30 – Why your customer experience matters more than your marketing 49:00 – His advice to anyone thinking about opening a pizzeria right now Key takeaways:
If you want to build a hospitality business with the kind of consistency and craft that lasts 17+ years, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Lucio and Lucio Pizzeria: @luciopizzeria @lucio.defalco Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Michelin Comes to Australia, Surcharge Ban Deadline & Rate Rise Warning: What's Coming for Hospo | August Hospo Update | 17 Aug 2026 | 00:21:28 | |
Michelin is coming to Australia, the surcharge ban deadline is 30 September, and another rate rise is likely before Christmas. Here's what every Australian restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner needs to know this month — and what to do about it before the next round of change hits. The industry has been handed some broken eggs. But as Wes puts it — we're much better at making omelets than letting our eggs go bad. In this month's industry update, Tim sits down with Wes Lambert — CEO of ARCA and the man in Parliament advocating for the entire hospitality industry — to break down the four things that will define fiscal '27 for every operator in the country. The good news first: Payday super has landed and, for most operators, it's been smoother than expected. Michelin Guide is officially coming to South Australia in October — with the rest of Australia to follow — and food tourism is expected to boom in 2027 as a result. The bad news: the surcharge ban lands 1 October and you have to be ready by midnight 30 September, junior rates are officially banned in franchise businesses, another rate rise is likely in November, migration is tightening, and trust tax changes are almost certainly passing Parliament. The takeaway: this is a rebuilding year. The operators who thrive will be the ones planning for what's coming, not reacting to it. You'll hear: 00:00 – ARCA Gala Dinner + Fine Foods on 31 August in Melbourne Key takeaways:
FREE RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE 🎟️ ARCA Gala Dinner + Fine Foods — 31 August, Lakeside Pavilion, Melbourne. Book tickets: https://arca.org.au/events/ Follow along: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| 80% of Restaurant Owners Have This Finance Problem: Here's What They Can Do About It | 11 Aug 2026 | 00:47:28 | |
How to handle restaurant debt, ATO debt, and small business tax problems the legal way — and why every hospitality operator, restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner in Australia needs to hear this conversation. The Small Business Restructure (SBR) framework, explained. In this episode, Tim sits down with Jono Patch — head of Restaurant Revive (Foodie Coaches' debt restructuring arm) — to talk about the elephant in every hospitality boardroom. Why owners end up in tax debt. Why the shame keeps them stuck. And the exact legal framework — a Small Business Restructure (SBR) — that can wipe most of the debt and let the business trade on. Jono's been through it personally. Understands exactly how it feels. And explains it in language every operator can follow. If you've got a five, six or seven-figure tax debt and you haven't been able to bring yourself to talk about it — this is the conversation to start with. You'll hear: 00:00 – The three symptoms that lead to ATO debt in a restaurant Key takeaways:
🔧 Restaurant Revive — debt restructure and pre-insolvency specialists (Jono personally takes the call, not a sales rep): https://foodiecoaches.co/restaurant-revive-yt Follow along: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| How a Third-Generation Restaurant Owner Almost Killed His First Restaurant and Turned It All Around | 04 Aug 2026 | 01:03:31 | |
How a third-generation Italian restaurant owner nearly killed his first restaurant — and the mistake every new restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner makes when they try to copy a concept that worked elsewhere. The lesson Matteo Galletto learned the hard way after 75 years of family hospitality. Matteo Galletto grew up around restaurants on two continents. His grandparents started a family restaurant in Liguria, Italy in the 1950s — the business that pulled the family out of post-war poverty. His father Lucio brought a sliver of that experience to Sydney in 1977 and opened Lucio's in Paddington in 1983 — one of the most iconic Italian restaurants in Sydney for 40 years. Matteo went the other way. Went to university. Studied commerce. Did everything his dad spent a fortune making sure he could do. Then he came back to restaurants anyway. His first solo attempt in Sydney failed. Not because the food was bad. Because he'd been insulated from the backend his entire life — his parents kept all the hard stuff to themselves — so when he opened his own doors he discovered that "looking after the customers is the easy part" and "making sure you can open the doors at 12 o'clock is the hard part." He went back to work with his dad. Then years later he moved to Noosa to open Lucio's Marina in Tewantin — and almost made the exact same mistake again. Same concept that worked in Sydney's east. Different town. Different demographic. Wrong fit. In this episode, Matteo sits down with Tim to talk about the lesson it took two restaurants and 75 years of family hospitality to teach him: a great concept in the wrong place is still a bad business. It's the conversation every operator opening, expanding or relocating needs to hear. You'll hear: 00:00 – Three generations across two countries — the family that started it all in 1950s Italy 03:30 – Lucio's Paddington: 40 years as one of Sydney's most iconic Italian restaurants 05:20 – Why his dad spent a fortune trying to keep him out of restaurants 05:50 – The first solo restaurant — and why it failed 06:30 – "Looking after the customers is the easy part. Opening the doors is the hard part." 08:00 – Why hospitality isn't as fun as it used to be (and what's changed) 10:00 – Coming back to work with his dad and modernising the business 14:00 – Moving to Noosa and the second mistake he almost made 18:00 – Right concept, wrong town: the lesson every operator learns the hard way 22:00 – What 75 years of family restaurants actually teaches you about longevity Key takeaways:
If you're opening or relocating a venue and want to make sure the concept matches the market, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Matteo and Lucio's Marina: @luciosmarina Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Brisbane's Biggest Hospitality Group Founder Talks the Real Cost of Scaling to 12 Restaurants: Meet Michel Tassis | 28 Jul 2026 | 00:48:25 | |
How to scale a hospitality business from one restaurant to twelve, how to build systems that let you run 750 staff across every cuisine imaginable, and the mindset shifts every restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner has to make to break through the multi-venue ceiling. Michael Tassis of the Tassis Group on 16 years of building Brisbane's biggest independent hospitality group. Michael Tassis started with one seafood restaurant in Brisbane in 2010. 16 years later, the Tassis Group runs 12 restaurants, employs 750 staff, and covers Greek, Italian, French, Spanish, Asian, seafood, steakhouse and modern Australian — with more venues opening at The Star Brisbane and the Kangaroo Point Green Bridge. He grew up in his family's iconic Sydney seafood restaurant George's Paragon. Broke away in 2010. Opened his own George's Paragon at Eagle Street Pier and spent two hard years grinding to break through. Once he did, he was running the busiest restaurant in Brisbane doing 5,000+ customers a week with over 100 staff. Then he did what most owners can't — went from one venue to two, from two to three, then kept going. In this episode, Michael sits down with Tim to break down the exact playbook. How he learned the back-office side after a career on the floor and in the kitchen. Why he refuses to carbon-copy the same concept. How his brother Peter runs the internal broker for every new site. The systems and internal contracts that let him hand every hiring decision back to venue GMs. And why the multi-venue ceiling isn't a marketing problem — it's a systems and trust problem. This is one of the most operationally generous conversations we've had on the show. You'll hear: 00:00 – From one restaurant to 12 in 16 years — the whole journey Key takeaways:
If you're stuck at your first, second or third venue and you want to know how to break through, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Michael and the Tassis Group: Follow along: New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| He Sold Most of His Restaurants and Says It Was the Best Decision He Ever Made | 21 Jul 2026 | 00:55:53 | |
How to scale down a hospitality business without losing what you built, why doing less can make you more profitable, and the lessons every restaurant owner, bar owner and café owner needs to hear about growth. For anyone running a venue (or thinking about opening one) who thinks bigger is always better. Scott Imlach moved from Queenstown, New Zealand to London in 1994 — and ended up running 48 venues across the UK as Operations Manager of the Outback Inn Group. He's been on the Gold Coast for 20 years. At one point he was running 11-12 venues at once. Today he runs three — Bine in Nobby Beach, Hideaway in Broadbeach, and Precinct Brewing in Miami. And he says it was the best decision he ever made. In this episode, Scott sits down with Tim to break down everything he's learned over two decades of building, opening, selling and scaling hospitality businesses on the Gold Coast. He's famously never bought an existing business — he takes over closed venues and rebuilds them. He does the numbers before he even visits the site. He campaigned to legislate the Small Bar Licence on the Gold Coast. And he had his second kid at 50, which forced him to confront the cost of carrying everything alone. This is the conversation for anyone who's chasing growth without asking what it's actually costing them. You'll hear: 00:00 – From 11 venues down to 3 — and why life got better 01:30 – Why kids at 50 forced the slowdown 01:40 – Why Scott rebuilds closed venues instead of buying running ones 04:50 – How to walk a site (and the second visit that saved him from a bad lease) 06:20 – Why location is community, not foot traffic 07:40 – How community-building beats marketing every time 09:00 – The contrarian rule: do the numbers before you visit the site 11:30 – The break-even point conversation every owner needs to have 12:00 – Why the 30/30/30 rule is dead 13:30 – How your fit-out determines your labour cost 14:30 – When architects and designers ruin a venue Key takeaways:
If you're carrying too much and wondering whether you should scale back to scale up — book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Scott's venues: @binebeerbar @hideawaykitchenandbar @precinctbrewing Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Cash Comes Back, Tourism Rebounds & the Acquisition Market Heats Up: What's Coming for Hospo | July Hospo Update | 20 Jul 2026 | 00:25:03 | |
Cash is back, tourism is rebounding and the hospitality acquisition market is heating up. Here's what's coming for hospo this month — for restaurant owners, café owners and bar owners across Australia trying to stay ahead of the changes. | |||
| He Was Ready to Sell. Now He's at 267% Profit Growth: Brad Fitzgibbons on Saving His Own Pub | 14 Jul 2026 | 00:41:28 | |
Brad Fitzgibbons is the fourth generation of Fitzgibbons in the family pub trade. | |||
| He's Spent 41 Years in Hospitality. Here's What Simon Sandall Wishes Every Owner Knew. | 07 Jul 2026 | 00:54:06 | |
How to last 41 years in hospitality, build a career across the world's most iconic restaurants, and learn the lessons every restaurant owner wishes they'd been told earlier. Simon Sandall on consistency, ownership, hospitality and the standards that built one of Australia's most respected culinary careers. Simon Sandall came to Australia from Rugby, UK, 31 years ago for a six-month working holiday. He never went home. For 41 years he's been in hospitality. 17 of those as Matt Moran's Group Executive Chef — running Aria Sydney, Aria Brisbane, Chiswick, Chiswick at the Gallery, Opera Bar, North Bondi Fish, River Bar and Aria Catering. 21 New Year's Eves at the Sydney Opera House. Hat-rated kitchens, three-figure covers a night, every level of the industry. Then he walked away to build his own. His restaurant Boronia Kitchen in Hunters Hill. A catering company. A consultancy. And a quieter, deeper relationship with the craft. In this episode, Simon sits down with Tim and gives away the kind of hard-won wisdom you usually only get from someone who's done four decades at the top. Consistency. Ownership. Standards. Vulnerability as leadership. And why — after losing 20% of his pancreas, 9 years sober, and one year off the cigarettes — he believes the only thing that matters in hospitality is how you make people feel. This is one of the most generous masterclasses on hospitality longevity we've ever recorded. You'll hear: 00:00 – Rugby to Sydney via Sweden, Boston and Paris 06:00 – 17 years as Matt Moran's right-hand man 14:00 – Why losing a chef's hat became one of the best things that ever happened 22:00 – Consistency: the biggest killer in hospitality (and the one thing he wishes more owners protected) 30:00 – The night he signed the Boronia Kitchen lease from intensive care 38:00 – Tell people you love them — and why that's a leadership skill, not a soft one 46:00 – How to walk into someone else's business and actually help them 54:00 – The standards that separate the operators who last from the ones who burn out 1:02:00 – What 41 years in hospitality taught him about himself Key takeaways:
If you're building a hospitality career — or running a venue and wondering how to make it last — book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Simon and Boronia Kitchen: @simonsandall @boroniakitchen Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Inside One of the World's Best Bars: How Stefano Catino Builds World-Class Hospitality | 30 Jun 2026 | 00:56:01 | |
How to build world-class hospitality, train a restaurant or bar team that wins awards, and run a hospitality business that gets onto The World's 50 Best Bars list. If you're a restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner who wants to understand what separates the best in the world from everyone else — this is the episode. Maybe Sammy isn't just one of the best bars in Sydney. It's one of the best bars on the planet. Seven years running on The World's 50 Best Bars list. Five-time winner of Best Bar in Australasia. The inaugural winner of the Michter's Art of Hospitality Award — a category that exists solely to recognise the world's single greatest service experience. In this episode, co-founder Stefano Catino sits down with Tim to talk about how he and business partner Vince Lombardo actually built Maybe Sammy — plus Maybe Frank (their pizzeria), El Primo Sanchez (tequila bar in Surry Hills), the Maybe Sammy Cocktail bottled cocktail company (now on Qantas flights), and consultancy work with Dina Group and Accor Hotels. Stefano grew up in a small touristy town in Cinque Terre, north Italy. He treats his team like a football squad. He refuses to sit down in his own bar. And he says hospitality isn't a word — it's the centre of everything he does. This is one of the most generous masterclasses on hospitality culture and team-building we've ever recorded. You'll hear: 00:00 – Three venues, a cocktail company, and a Maybe Group empire 03:00 – How Stefano and Vince split roles to run multiple venues without burning out 06:00 – Why he treats his team like a football team — players, coaches, fans, the lot 09:00 – The two-way trial: "I want to see if I like you. I also want to see if you like me." 15:00 – Why he'll never sit down in his own venue 22:00 – The hospitality philosophy that won the Michter's Art of Hospitality Award 30:00 – Working with hotel groups: why most hotels under five stars get F&B completely wrong 40:00 – The cocktail bottle business: making world-class cocktails accessible at home and in pubs 48:00 – Building Maybe Sammy in the middle of a quiet Sydney street — and why location wasn't the issue Key takeaways:
If you want to build a hospitality business with culture this strong, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Stefano and the Maybe Group: @maybesammy @maybefrank @elprimosanchez_ Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Burnout, Modernising the Family Business & Scared to Raise Prices (Q&A Special) | 23 Jun 2026 | 00:22:51 | |
How to handle restaurant owner burnout, modernise a family restaurant business without losing what made it special, and raise your prices when you're scared people won't pay them. Four real restaurant owners. Four totally different problems. Honest answers, fast. | |||
| Wage Hike Confirmed, Payday Super Looms & Trust Tax Changes: What's Coming for Hospo | June Hospo Update | 14 Jun 2026 | 00:21:48 | |
What's coming for hospo in June: the 4.75% award wage hike confirmed, payday super landing on 1 July, and the looming trust tax changes that could double-tax small business owners. If you're a restaurant owner, café owner or bar owner in Australia, here's exactly what's coming and what to do about it. Three things landed on hospitality this month, and all three need action. In this month's industry update, Tim sits down with Wes Lambert — CEO of ARCA and the man in Parliament advocating for every café and restaurant in Australia — to break down the confirmed 4.75% award wage rise (third-largest since the GFC), the payday super deadline on 1 July, and the trust tax changes that could quietly cost small business owners a fortune in fiscal 27. Plus the small business CGT carve-out (good news, for once), where the surcharge ban stands as it approaches end of year, and what's happening with the phase-out of junior rates. If you haven't lifted your prices yet this year, this is your last warning. You'll hear: 00:00 – The 4.75% award wage hike: confirmed, predicted months ago Key takeaways:
Checkout the Payday Super Webinar Replay: https://learn.foodiecoaches.com.au/payday-super-replay If you're not on top of your pricing, your labour costs and your margins right now, book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Join ARCA at arca.org.au The people advocating for your industry need your support. Follow along: New updates every month | |||
| "I Wouldn't Open a Burger Shop Today": James Hurlston on 11 Years Running Melbourne's Most Iconic Burger Joint | 09 Jun 2026 | 00:55:29 | |
James "Jimmy" Hurlston was studying intellectual property law when he decided he'd had enough. So he quit, ate over 800 burgers in a year, wrote The Burger Book, and three years later opened Easey's — the now-iconic Collingwood burger joint with a train carriage on the roof, graffiti walls, and a rotating cast of Melbourne's hospitality and street art scene. Eleven years on, Easey's is still standing. But James says he wouldn't open a burger shop today. In this episode, he sits down with Tim to talk about how Easey's actually survived, the failed Sydney expansion that nearly broke him, the ego he had to lose to grow, and why the train carriage on the roof has been both his biggest strength and his most expensive lease. He's also brutally honest about what he got wrong, why the next venue wouldn't be in Victoria or Sydney, and the one achievement he's most proud of after 11 years. This is the kind of conversation you only get from someone who's been in the trenches long enough to tell the truth. You'll hear: 00:00 – From law school to 800 burgers a year 08:30 – How Easey's actually survived the early years 14:30 – The Sydney expansion that failed (and the ego that caused it) 30:00 – Why he wouldn't open a burger shop today 50:00 – Building a community in burgers and what 11 years has really taught him Key takeaways:
If you're serious about building a hospo business that lasts — without burning yourself out chasing a trend — book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow James and Easey's: @jimmysburgers @easeysburgers Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| He Has 8 Locations & 1000+ Staff: How Rob Comiskey Runs Australia's Most Iconic Pub Empire | 02 Jun 2026 | 00:50:58 | |
Rob Comiskey runs one of the biggest hospitality groups in Australia. 8 venues. 1,000+ staff. And another 6-7 venues under construction, including a $250 million expansion at Sandstone Point that will bring the area's first 5-star resort. The Comiskey Group's portfolio reads like a who's who of iconic Queensland venues — Eatons Hill Hotel (where Prince, Ice Cube and Post Malone have all played), Sandstone Point Hotel, the BIG4 holiday resort that's the highest selling in Australia, plus the Dakabin, Mundy, Samford, Doonan and Eumundi. But the real story isn't the scale. It's what Rob, his brother and his father — still working at 83 — built from three pubs they took over decades ago, and the operating rhythms that keep it consistent across every venue. In this episode, Rob sits down with Tim to talk through how he actually runs a business this big — the monthly 6-hour finance meetings where every GM reviews every line of every P&L, the $500K butchery they built purely for quality, why food and beverage matters more than gaming in every pub they own, and the family decision-making style that's seen them invest tens of millions on gut feel. It's the most operationally generous conversation we've ever had on this show. You'll hear: 00:00 – Inside the Comiskey Group: 8 venues and what's coming 05:00 – The monthly 6-hour open-book finance meeting every GM attends 07:30 – The $500K butchery that sometimes loses money — and why he'd still vote for it every time 10:30 – Why every pub is 5 businesses in one (and why you can't rely on gaming) 14:00 – How they built Eatons Hill: 15,000 capacity, 5 levels, $80M, and everyone said it was crazy 20:00 – How to make calculated decisions without losing momentum 22:30 – Maintaining culture and consistency across 1,000+ staff 28:00 – Why every venue needs its own personality (and one hero product) 29:00 – Weekly on-site management meetings and how Rob splits his time 35:00 – The brutal truth about hiring: you can't change personality Key takeaways:
If you're ready to build a hospitality business that runs at this level — or even just the next level up from where you are now — book a free Profit Finding Session with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow Rob and the Comiskey Group: @comiskeygroup @sandstonepointhotel @eatonshillhotel Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday | |||
| He Runs His Café From 1,700km Away: Cam Henderson on Building The Winey Cow | 26 May 2026 | 00:52:39 | |
Cam Henderson and his wife Jill opened The Winey Cow in Mornington, Victoria in 2014. | |||
| Food Truck Trouble, Empty Sports Bars & Teams That Don't Care (Q&A Special) | 19 May 2026 | 00:14:53 | |
You asked. Tim answered. Four real owners. Four totally different problems. And the kind of straight-up answers that come from someone who's worked with over 2,000 venues across the world. In this Q&A special, Tim breaks down what's actually broken — and exactly what to do about it. This episode covers: 00:00 – How do you build consistent revenue when your fixed location is unpredictable? If you've got a question you want Tim to answer on the show, send it through — details in the comments. If you're stuck, plateaued, or on a growth trajectory and you need someone in your corner, book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Federal Budget, Surcharge Ban Update & Wage Rises Ahead: What's Coming for Hospo | May Hospo Update | 17 May 2026 | 00:21:29 | |
The federal budget just dropped. The surcharge ban is creeping closer. And the next round of wage rises is about to land. In this month's industry update, Tim sits down with Wes Lambert — CEO of ARCA and the man in Parliament advocating for every café and restaurant in Australia — to break down what's just happened, what's coming, and what you need to be doing about it right now. It's the most direct conversation we've had yet. If you're already break-even, you need to hear this. You'll hear: 00:00 – Wes is back from the US — what he saw in New York and why credit card surcharges are on every menu there 03:00 – The federal budget: tax, spend, broken promises and the one tiny piece of good news for small business 04:30 – Instant asset write-off made permanent at $20K — what it means for you before EOFY 05:30 – The surcharge ban update: why the banks have gone silent (and what it might mean on 1 October) 07:00 – The fear nobody's talking about: you could end up paying the same merchant fees with nothing in return 08:30 – Why you must be planning a menu price increase before 1 October 09:00 – The next interest rate rise expected before 1 July 09:30 – Award wages likely up mid-5% — and how the Fair Work Commission calculates the jump 10:00 – Payday super lands on 1 July: what it actually means for your weekly cash flow 12:00 – Why operators already at break-even are the ones most at risk 13:00 – "If your only excuse for not raising prices is 'I'll lose customers,' you'll say that until the day you close" 14:30 – What ARCA is fighting for right now: rent renegotiation, tourism spend, red tape reduction 16:00 – Why rent should be 8-10% in restaurants — and what to do if yours has crept beyond that 17:00 – The case for doubling tourism advertising and bringing Michelin Guide to Australia 19:00 – Why fiscal 2027 needs to be a reset period for the industry Key takeaways:
If you're already at break-even and worried about what's coming, this is the moment to book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Join ARCA at arca.org.au — the more members ARCA has, the louder the voice in Parliament. Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| You Don't Own Your Business. The Community Does: Rabih Yanni on 33 Years in Hospitality | 12 May 2026 | 00:54:04 | |
Rabih Yanni has spent 33 years in hospitality. | |||
| Fried Chicken, Champagne and Wu-Tang: How Julian Cincotta Built Sydney's Most Unique Restaurant | 05 May 2026 | 00:48:57 | |
Julian Cincotta grew up cooking at his family's café in Western Sydney. He went on to train under Neil Perry at Rockpool, won Young Chef of the Year, staged at some of the best restaurants in the world — and then opened a fried chicken and champagne bar in Surry Hills with a sneaker wall and a Wu-Tang soundtrack. Two weeks after they opened, Wu-Tang Clan walked in. That was ten years ago. In this episode, Julian sits down with Tim to talk through the whole decade — the concept nobody believed in, the three venues COVID stripped back to one, the emotional weight of closing something you built, and why he's now one of the loudest voices on sustainability in the Australian hospitality industry. It's a conversation about what it takes to stay relevant, stay true to what you built, and still be standing after ten years in one of the hardest industries in the world. You'll hear: 00:00 – Fried chicken, champagne, sneakers and hip hop — where the idea came from 03:00 – Training at Rockpool and what fine dining teaches you about everything else 06:00 – Winning Young Chef of the Year and what happened next 08:00 – Opening Butter and why nobody thought it would work 10:00 – Wu-Tang walked in two weeks after they opened 13:00 – Scaling to three venues — and why one to three nearly broke them 18:00 – COVID, leases and the decision to close three venues down to one 22:00 – Why closing felt like failure — and why it wasn't 25:00 – Staying relevant after ten years and through a generation of change 28:00 – The partnership lessons nobody tells you upfront 32:00 – How Julian got obsessed with sustainability 36:00 – Compostable packaging, PFAS and why it's more complicated than it looks 42:00 – Turning Mayo buckets into reusable containers 45:00 – The one thing every owner can do today to reduce waste and save money 47:00 – What ten years at Butter actually taught him If you want to go further on sustainability in your venue, Julian is part of HospoDECLARE — a movement connecting hospitality operators across Australia to share practical strategies for reducing waste, electrifying operations, and building more responsible supply chains. It's industry-wide collaboration built for people who actually want to make changes that stick. Check out https://www.hospodeclare.com/ Book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at foodiecoaches.com Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| From Food Truck to Full Restaurant: The Kings of the Wings Share 13 Years of Hard Lessons | 28 Apr 2026 | 00:47:16 | |
Dylan and Katrina started King of the Wings from a little food trailer in 2013. They were among the first food trucks doing wings in Australia. No blueprint. No safety net. Just a gap in the market and a bet on themselves. Thirteen years later they're running a restaurant, a food truck, popups and an interstate operation. But the road there was anything but straight. A collab that went sideways on opening day. A food court concept that COVID killed two weeks in. A Commonwealth Games that turned Surfers Paradise into a ghost town. And a moment where they had to roll up in the middle of the night and take back what was theirs. In this episode, Dylan and Katrina share the real story — the hard lessons, the partnership mistakes, the pivot to bricks and mortar, and why after all of it they'd still do it again. You'll hear: 00:00 – From food trailer to one of Brisbane's most recognised wing brands 03:00 – The collab that looked like a no-brainer — and fell apart on opening day 06:00 – Rolling up in the middle of the night to take back their equipment 08:00 – COVID, a food court concept and pulling the pin after 12 months 09:00 – Going all in on their own — signing the Stafford lease 12:00 – Food truck vs bricks and mortar: what nobody tells you about the switch 18:00 – Why the food truck makes in 2 hours what the restaurant makes in 10 22:00 – The menu engineering lesson that changed everything 28:00 – How JobKeeper changed the labour landscape and why they're still salty about it 35:00 – How to find and keep staff for a food truck operation 42:00 – Hire on attitude, train everything else 45:00 – Their advice for anyone thinking about opening a food truck today If you're ready to build something that actually works — food truck, restaurant or both — book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at foodiecoaches.com Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| The Man Behind Brisbane's Best Bars on What It Actually Takes to Build Them with Martin Lange | 21 Apr 2026 | 01:02:52 | |
Martin Lange has opened eight bars in Brisbane since 2006. He currently runs four. Takes three and a half months off a year. And has trained bartenders now working in some of the best bars in Paris and London. He didn't do it by cutting corners or chasing trends. He did it by committing to a 10-year minimum on every lease, never taking over another venue's location, spending hundreds of thousands on R&D, and building a team culture so strong that the staff who leave for bigger money keep coming back. In this episode, Martin sits down with Tim to talk through what it actually takes to build bars that last — the landlord lessons, the location rules, the obsessive craft standards, and how he built a business that runs without him for months at a time. You'll hear: 00:00 – From Argentina to Brisbane — how Martin ended up in bars 02:00 – The 10-year lease rule and why most operators think too small 05:00 – Paying a year's rent upfront on his first bar (and what it taught him) 08:00 – Why you should never take over an existing venue's location 12:00 – Building a specialty cocktail bar in a city that wasn't ready for it 14:00 – How knowledge trickles down through a team without Chinese whispers 16:00 – Staff who left for bigger pay — and came back within a year 18:00 – The R&D warehouse, the $15K ice machine and why craft is the business model 25:00 – Finding the right landlord (and why it matters more than the location) 35:00 – The block ice business nobody saw coming 53:00 – Cutting ice, losing fingers and taking safety seriously 56:00 – Three and a half months off a year — and why the bars thrive because of it Book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at foodiecoaches.com Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| How John Rivera Built His Dream Restaurant Without Sacrificing Time With His Kids | 14 Apr 2026 | 00:48:21 | |
John Rivera spent his twenties in fine dining kitchens. Working every Saturday. Missing birthdays. Missing weddings. Then he opened his own restaurant — and found himself video-calling his kids from the pass just to see them awake. Something had to change. In this episode, John — chef and owner of Ascal Restaurant, Inman bar, and Filipino gelato concept Carton — talks about the decision that shifted everything. The boundaries he set, the systems he built, and how he went from working every day on the tools to dropping his kids at kinder before heading into work at midday. He didn't give up the craft. He just refused to let it cost him everything else. You'll hear: 00:00 – Born in the Philippines, raised in New Zealand, built in Melbourne 02:00 – 10 years in fine dining and what it conditions you to accept 05:00 – The viral dish that was costing more than it made 08:00 – Why your numbers are scarier to avoid than to face 13:00 – Two turbulent years and what the growing pains taught him 15:00 – Three days without seeing his kids awake 17:00 – The decision: set the boundary before the burnout 25:00 – Letting staff take risks and why protecting your ego costs more 30:00 – Partnership lessons the hard way 40:00 – Building community vs chasing foot traffic 45:00 – What's coming and how to get ahead of it Book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at foodiecoaches.com Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Pricing Problems, Lazy Staff & Delivery Apps Killing Profit (Q&A Special) | 07 Apr 2026 | 00:23:51 | |
You asked. Tim answered. | |||
| Surcharges Banned, Junior Rates Scrapped & Wages Rising Again: What's Coming for Hospo | April Hospo Update | 07 Apr 2026 | 00:24:12 | |
On the 31st of March, two major blows landed on the hospitality industry. And most owners didn't see them coming. In this month's industry update, Tim sits down with Wes Lambert — CEO of ARCA and the man in Parliament having these conversations on behalf of every café and restaurant owner in Australia — to break down exactly what's changed, what's coming, and what you need to do about it right now . This isn't doom and gloom for the sake of it. It's the information you need to make the right moves before the next wave hits. You'll hear: 00:00 – What just happened on March 31 (and why it matters) 02:30 – The surcharge ban explained: what it actually means for your margins 05:30 – You can't pass on merchant fees anymore — here's the real cost 07:00 – Junior wage rates getting scrapped: who it affects and when 09:30 – Why this will almost certainly roll out across all of hospo 11:00 – Rate rises coming in May, June and August 12:30 – Award wages rising 4.5–6%: how to budget for it now 13:30 – Payday super hitting 1 July — are you ready for the cash flow hit? 14:30 – Fuel levies up 30% and tourism down: the full picture 15:00 – Wes's headline for 2026: the great reset 16:00 – Why you must put your prices up this year (and how to do it right) 19:00 – What separates the operators who survive from the ones who don't 21:00 – Why joining an industry association matters more than ever right now Key takeaways:
If you're not on top of your pricing, your labour costs, and your margins right now — this is your signal. Book a free call with the Foodie Coaches team at https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/bac Join ARCA at https://www.arca.org.au/ Follow along: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| From Single Mum to 140 Staff: How Jenna Sanders Built Kenilworth Bakery | 02 Apr 2026 | 00:56:02 | |
Jenna Sanders was 21 years old, a single mum with two kids…
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| Restaurants Closing, Supply Chain Disruptions & Rising Costs: What's Coming for Hospo | March Update | 02 Apr 2026 | 00:17:38 | |
Welcome back to our monthly Hospitality Industry Update, where Tim sits down with Wes Lambert from ARCA to break down what’s happening behind the scenes in Canberra — and what it means for restaurant, cafe and bar owners across Australia. | |||
| He Closed His Restaurant After 10 Years: How to Know It’s Time with Peter Gunn | 02 Apr 2026 | 01:04:19 | |
After 10 years running one of Melbourne’s most respected restaurants, Peter Gunn made a decision most owners struggle to make:
In this episode, Peter shares the full story behind Ides — from starting as a monthly popup, to building a decade-long restaurant brand, to the moment he realised the business he built was no longer the one he wanted to run. This is one of the most honest conversations we’ve had on the show about ownership, ego, and knowing when to walk away. Follow behind the scenes: | |||
| Fired, Broke & Starting Again: How Tony Kelly Rebuilt from Scratch | 02 Apr 2026 | 01:06:05 | |
Tony Kelly had multiple restaurants across three states.
If you’ve ever felt stretched, betrayed, burnt out, or one bad month away from disaster… This one will hit home.
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| How AI Is Reshaping Hospitality (And What You Need to Change) with Bianca Brady | 02 Apr 2026 | 01:00:24 | |
AI isn’t coming for hospitality. | |||
| From Broke Bouncer to Michelin-Recognized Restaurateur: How CK Chin Built a Hospitality Empire | 02 Apr 2026 | 01:11:53 | |
CK Chin didn’t plan on becoming a hospitality powerhouse. He just needed a night job. But what started as bouncing at a nightclub became the beginning of a remarkable journey—one that now includes Michelin recognition, multi-million dollar businesses, a 6-seat restaurant with a waitlist, a community art park, and a dance studio built with his wife. | |||
| Toxic Staff, Weekend Roster Drama & Broken Training Systems (Q&A Special) | 02 Apr 2026 | 00:07:20 | |
Staff showing up late (or not at all), demanding flexibility but giving none back, forgetting everything you trained last week—and that one toxic "rockstar" who's quietly destroying your team? | |||
| Wage Hikes, Surcharge Bans & Rate Rises: What's Coming for Hospo | February Hospo Update | 02 Apr 2026 | 00:29:37 | |
This is the first of our new monthly hospitality industry updates-where Tim sits down with Wes Lambert from ARCA to break down what's happening behind the scenes that every venue owner needs to know. | |||
| How Justin Newton Came Back From Burnout to Build His Most Profitable Venue Yet | 02 Apr 2026 | 01:06:47 | |
Justin Newton had it all on paper—multiple venues, awards, a booming reputation—but behind the scenes, he was burned out, emotionally exhausted, and quietly unraveling. In this brutally honest episode, Justin shares what finally broke him, how he got clear on what really matters, and why walking away from two venues helped him build a leaner, stronger, more profitable business than ever before. If you've ever felt trapped by your own success, this is the episode you need. You’ll hear:
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| How 1 Viral TikTok Nearly Destroyed Their Business (And What Saved It) | 02 Apr 2026 | 00:40:10 | |
Watch the full CHEFS HAT CALCULATOR TRAINING here: https://discover.foodiecoaches.com/chefs-hat-calculator-v1
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| From Kicked Out of School at 15 to a 3-Star Michelin Kitchen: How Luke Mangan Built a Restaurant Empire | 01 Apr 2026 | 00:51:57 | |
Luke Mangan got asked to leave school at 15. No HSC. No plan. No backup. Just a two-week work experience at one of Australia's best restaurants — and a quiet feeling that maybe this was something he could do. What followed was a career that took him from washing dishes in Melbourne, to a cold call that landed him a stage at a 3-star Michelin kitchen in London, to opening Salt in Sydney the year of the Olympics, to restaurants in Tokyo, Singapore, Indonesia, and cruise ships across the Pacific. But it wasn't a straight line. Three restaurants went broke around him before he ever opened his own. He believed his own press, expanded too fast, and nearly lost everything. Then a Japanese investor walked through the door at exactly the right moment. In this episode, Tim sits down with Luke to talk through all of it — the graft, the mistakes, the moments of luck, and what it actually takes to build something that lasts in this industry. You'll hear: 00:00 – Kicked out of school at 15 — and what happened next 03:30 – Two weeks washing dishes at one of Australia's best restaurants 05:00 – The cold call to a Michelin chef that changed everything 09:00 – Coming back from London and watching three restaurants go broke 12:00 – How a stranger's card in a jacket pocket led to his biggest break 16:00 – Opening Salt at 29 — $5M first year and the Sydney Olympics 20:00 – Believing your own press: how success nearly destroyed him 24:00 – The Japanese investor who showed up at exactly the right time 28:00 – Expanding to Tokyo, Singapore, Indonesia and cruise ships 33:00 – What a restaurant is actually about (hint: it's not the food) 37:00 – Holding great staff in a tough labour market 41:00 – Finding talent when nobody's applying 44:00 – Luke's take on AI in hospitality 46:00 – What he'd tell a young chef starting out today Key takeaways:
If you're serious about building a profitable, sustainable restaurant — without risking everything you've built — book a call with the Foodie Coaches team at foodiecoaches.com Find out more about Luke at his website: https://www.lukemangan.com/ Follow along behind the scenes: @foodie_coaches @tim.kummerfeld New episodes every Wednesday. | |||
| Lessons in Ownership and Leadership: How Vanessa Walker Made Money On Her First Pub Without Operating It | 20 Jan 2026 | 00:42:20 | |
Vanessa went from corporate HR executive to pub owner. She joins us today to discuss the lessons she’s learned, and the structures she put in place to turn a failing business around in less than 24 months. We discuss how to lead staff as a team rather than just managing them, get everyone onboard with making the business as successful as possible, and when necessary, make the hard decisions.You’ll hear:00:00 - 70% staff quit in month one06:29 - Why throwing out corporate structures was a big mistake10:16 - How the break even point removed all stress14:08 - Numbers over feelings: The number one rule in business19:43 - Delaying staff decisions costs tens of thousands of dollars28:19 - The importance of sharing data with the team36:59 - Young manager's nightclub idea gets approved39:19 - Advice for new business ownersAnd so much more…You can find more from Vanessa on LinkedInWatch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| How to Manage Quiet Periods, Promoting Staff to Supervisory Positions, and Being Fully Booked But Broke (Q&A Special) | 13 Jan 2026 | 00:11:19 | |
From dealing with staff not respecting their friend turned superviser, to having a fully packed restaurant that still isn’t making money, today we’re answering YOUR questions in this special Q&A episode of Make Restaurants Profitable.You’ll hear:00:00 - There are good problems to have, and bad problems: This is a good one02:43 - How to know when to exit vs fix06:02 - Don’t repeat history, make a plan06:43 - Maximize profit while you're busy 08:30 - Promoted best worker to supervisor, but the team won't listen to them09:03 - Being great ≠ wanting to lead09:35 - How to reframe relationships when someone gets promoted10:11 - Training plan for new leadersAnd so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| From Rock Bottom to $300K Months: How You Can Turn It All Around in 6 Months, with Mack Bowers | 06 Jan 2026 | 00:52:16 | |
Mack went from depression, substance abuse, and losing $10K per month, to completely turning both his life and sandwich shop around in JUST 6 MONTHS. He shares how he fixed his numbers, went viral on TikTok, and now does $300K+ months while selling out daily.You’ll hear:01:41 - The Reality of Depression & Substance Abuse in Hospitality04:29 - Hemorrhaging $10K Per Month While Living a Lie to Everyone05:33 - The Couples Counseling Session That Changed Everything09:07 - "My Entire Team Had Left Because They Didn't Like Me"12:20 - The Excel Spreadsheet That Saved His Business (Getting Numbers Sorted)16:04 - How a $7 Menu Price Increase Changed His Life Forever16:59 - The $5,000 Cheese Hack That Printed Money 32:21 - One TikTok Video Hit 400K Views & Customers FLOODED In (The Presentation Change That Went Viral)33:04 - From $90K Months to $300K Months: Insane GrowthAnd so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. You can find more from Mack on LinkedIn Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| 3 Things Every Business Owner Needs To Do Coming into 2026 | 30 Dec 2025 | 00:15:29 | |
80% of people quit their New Years resolutions by January 19th. Don’t become another statistic. Let’s lay out the framework to make sure that by the end of 2026, you’re looking at the exponential growth you’ve had since TODAY. Thanks to everyone who’s come along for the 2025 Make Restaurants Profitable journey. Comment LET’S CRUSH IT if you’re ready to commit to making 2026 your best year yet!You’ll hear:00:00 - "I can't keep going like this" The feeling underneath every struggling restaurant owner03:15 - Case study: $300K extra profit, same business, different version of herself05:37 - Using the KPI calculator: Breaking down $100K profit goals into weekly actions08:01 - Don’t be afraid of your numbers09:00 - Your brain is addicted to chaos: Why you keep reverting to old patterns13:57 - 52 weeks at 60% beats 3 weeks crushing it then nothingAnd so much more…You can find the free KPI calculator here.Sign up for the Foodie Coaches 2026 Workshop here. Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| Running a 93 Year Old Business: How To Honor Tradition While Looking Forward, with Barrett Black | 23 Dec 2025 | 00:41:21 | |
Barrett Black, fourth generation pitmaster at Black's Barbecue (est. 1932), joins us to discuss managing a family business across 4 locations with his dad and brother, how a $30 beef rib they thought would fail became a bestseller, how they predict price increases on meat products, and the challenges of honoring 93 years of tradition while staying relevant in an increasingly competitive BBQ market.You’ll hear:00:00 - 1932 Great Depression origins: How it started as a meat market with no refrigeration12:46 - "You must make a profit - it's your responsibility, not a nice-to-have"13:10 - From 1 to 3 restaurants in a month: "I had to learn to run a company, not just a restaurant"15:17 - Hiring process: Why they take 3-4 weeks minimum (even when it's painful)19:07 - Family business dynamics - “Are you asking as my father or as my boss?”34:03 - Trading beef futures: Why they watch what fast food chains do with brisket38:49 - The struggle to define your ideal customer 44:17 - The $30 beef rib gamble: "We thought we'd sell a few a day - it became our biggest seller"And so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| How McDonald's Went From Bottom 5% To #1 In The World In Just 5 Years (The Training Secret) | 16 Dec 2025 | 00:43:27 | |
Peter Richie, the first CEO of McDonald's Australia, shares the origin story of losing $15 million over 7 years before turning profitable. From opening the first McDonald’s Australia using a generator, to taking it from the bottom 5% globally to #1 in just 5 years. He reveals why he spent 30% of corporate profits on training, the exact scripts used to build confidence in 15-year-olds, and how McDonald's now sells 1 in 4 coffees in Australia. This episode is jam packed with information for anyone from a 15-year-old starting out in hospitality to veteran managers, franchisees and franchisers. You’ll hear:00:00 - Opening the first McDonald's: "Projections were double what we actually did”04:21 - The $15 million lesson: Why Peter refused to franchise for 7-8 years 08:12 - Dealing with self-doubt while burning HQ cash09:06 - It took 6 years to avoid bankruptcy 09:54 - We had to open the store with NO ELECTRICITY16:57 - The 30% gamble: How Peter convinced HQ to spend 30% of bottom line on training18:08 - From bottom 5% to #1 globally in 5 years: The productivity metric that changed everything20:03 - The confidence breakthrough: Why 15-year-olds became amazing decision makers with proper training28:03 - Creating 19-year-olds who can run $10M businesses: The detailed training system explained36:40 - McDonald's coffee dominance: Sells 1 in 4 coffees in Australia (20 hours to train each barista)41:25 - The Magic of McDonald’sAnd so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereTo claim your free copy of The Magic of McDonald's, head here. Limited to the first 50 people only.OR if you missed out, you can buy your copy online at The Book Advisor while stocks last.If you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| The Fastest Way To Double (Or Triple) Your Revenue, with Eric Gladstone | 09 Dec 2025 | 00:55:25 | |
Las Vegas marketing expert Eric Gladstone reveals why most restaurant owners are leaving massive money on the table and shares the important secrets behind social media, influencer marketing, and community building that actually move the needle. If you think marketing is just posting food photos and chasing viral moments, this episode will completely change how you approach growing your restaurant business.You’ll hear:00:00 - The FIRST Thing You Need To Do In Marketing06:07 - The Groundhog Day Effect: Why People Have NEVER Heard of Your RestaurantRetry08:43 - Why Your Social Media Strategy Is Completely Wrong (And What to Do Instead)18:38 - The Vanity Metrics Trap: Why Big Numbers Mean Nothing for Your Bottom Line32:03 - The One Question That Reveals If Your Marketing Agency Is Scamming You37:03 - Stop Doing This on Your Menu: It's Killing Your Check Average42:18 - The Community Secret That's Making Vegas Restaurants MILLIONS50:00 - Why That Million-Follower Influencer Won't Fill Your TablesAnd so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. To find more from Eric Gladstone, check out Feast of Friends on Instagram, or email info@thefeastoffriends.com Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||
| How To End and Prevent Burnout in Hospitality, with Vesna Hrsto | 02 Dec 2025 | 00:53:00 | |
Restaurant owners are working themselves to death while their businesses suffer—but burnout expert Vesna Hrsto reveals it's not about working harder. Learn the simple morning habit, sleep strategy, and mental shifts that can pull you out of the hospitality burnout canyon and actually make your business profitable again.You’ll hear:00:00 - The Redline Effect: Why Hospitality Owners Are Shells Of Their Former Selves07:14 - The 20-Minute Morning Rule That Changes EVERYTHING (Stop Drinking Coffee Like This!)18:08 - The Billion Dollar Secret: Why Bill Gates Takes A Full Week Off To Just THINK27:03 - The Magic Bullet Revealed: YOU Are The Secret Ingredient (And You're Rotting)32:22 - The Grand Canyon Of Despair: Why You Can't See The Way Out38:43 - "I've Never Seen Anyone Work So Hard And Not Make Money"42:15 - The Year Everything Changed: "I Stopped Doing ANYTHING I Didn't Want To Do"49:33 - The Three Burnout Symptoms You're Ignoring Right Now (And Why They're Destroying You)And so much more…Watch the YouTube Version of the Podcast hereYou can find more from Vesna at https://vesnahrsto.com/Link to Vesna’s Energy Reboot KitIf you're currently struggling or you want to build a business you love and get more time back, book a Call with our team here so we can help you work through your biggest problem right now. Check out the behind the scenes over at @foodie_coaches and @tim.kummerfeld | |||