Fries & Grind is a podcast featuring owners from 3 of the fastest-growing restaurant technology companies in the US, including Zack Oates, CEO of Ovation, Abhinav Kapur, CEO of Bikky, Jason Abelkop Co-CEO of Plein Air, and Paul McEnany, Co-CEO of Plein Air.
Each episode features leaders from across the restaurant industry joining the group to discuss key industry issues and news, the challenges of growth, and what it takes to thrive in one of the most competitive industries in the world.
Ahsan Jiva, EVP Strategy & Transformation at Mellow Mushroom joins the crew.
23 Jan 2026
Predictions
VP, Editorial Director of QSR and FSR Magazines Danny Klein joins the show.
13 Jan 2026
How to Win Everywhere
How do you go from nearly no digital presence to more than 40% of sales in just a few years? Tracy Kim, CEO of Dig Inn, joins the crew to discuss.
30 Dec 2025
Engineering Value
The great Jessica Serrano joins the gang to talk value, nostalgia, insight, and menu innovation.
17 Dec 2025
3PD to 1P
Can you drive your 3PD guests to 1P? It's complicated.
19 Nov 2025
The Transformation of Full Service
The gang is back. This time with Scott Lawton, Chairman of bartaco.
19 Aug 2024
Episode 12 - The Article
The gang takes on the restaurant-nerd-famous NYT article from Peter Wells. Have we ruined the restaurant experience? You're about to find out.
13 Jun 2024
Episode 11 - Is this the future of restaurants?
Wonder? City Storage Systems? Is this the future of restaurants? The gang discusses.
23 May 2024
Episode 10 - Value
This week, the gang talks value. Do we need all the fancy stuff?
17 Apr 2024
Episode 9 - Noah Glass
Noah Glass, Founder and CEO of Olo, joins the gang to talk about the organization he built over the past nearly 20 years, and they again dip into the build vs. buy debate.
2 Apr 2024
Episode 8 - Niko Papademetriou
This week, Niko Papademetriou, Co-Founder of Qu, joins the gang to talk through their buzzy moves over the last few months. They became the first POS provider to bring Olo pay into the restaurant, announced an investment from Danny Meyer's Enlightened Hospitality, and were selected as POS across all GoTo Foods brands. Enjoy!
21 Mar 2024
Episode 7 - Dynamic Pricing
This week, the gang gets together to debate dynamic pricing. Can it work? Listen now to find out.
28 Feb 2024
Episode 6 - Build or Buy
This week, the gang gets together to debate Wingstop's shift to homegrown tech, and the broader implications for the restaurant community.
8 Feb 2024
Episode 5 - Gregg Majewski
Gregg Majewski, the founder and CEO of Craveworthy Brands, joins the gang to talk about the unique organization he's created. They've now built a portfolio of brands like Ghengis Grill, Wing It On!, BD's, Krafted, and Dirty Dough, among many others. In a previous life, Gregg was the CEO of Jimmy John's and helped them scale from 30 to more than 300 locations before the sale to Inspire. Enjoy!
22 Dec 2023
Episode 4 - The Holiday Episode
In a very special Holiday episode, the gang reflects on the year and talks about what we expect for our companies in the year ahead.
14 Dec 2023
Episode 3 - Wade Allen
Wade Allen joins the gang. Wade held several senior leadership roles at Brinker International including CDO, CIO, Head of Innovation, and VP of Marketing. Wade is now EVP, Strategic Growth for Costa Vida, leading marketing, IT, and off-premise.
1 Dec 2023
Episode 2 - Kelly Macpherson
Kelly Macpherson, Chief Technology & Supply Chain Officer of Union Square Hospitality, joins Zack, Abhi, Jason, and Paul to talk 3PD, budgeting for technology, hiring well, and the future for virtual restaurants.
30 Nov 2023
Episode 1 - Origins
The gang talks about why they got started and how they got to where they are.
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Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
2 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
1 ratings
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