Give an Ovation: The Restaurant Guest Experience Podcast with Zack Oates
Give an Ovation: The Restaurant Guest Experience Podcast is your backstage pass to the minds of hospitality leaders, innovators, and operators who are redefining what it means to serve. Hosted by Zack Oates, founder of Ovation, each episode dives into real-world tactics and inspiring stories from restaurant pros who know how to create five-star guest experiences—both in-store and off-premise.
From fast casual to fine dining, catering to curbside, learn how to drive loyalty, empower your staff, and deliver hospitality that hits home. Whether you're a restaurant owner, operator, marketer, or tech partner, this podcast will leave you with practical insights and plenty of reasons to celebrate and Give an Ovation.
Give an Ovation: The Restaurant Guest Experience Podcast with Zack Oates
Live from the National Restaurant Association Show
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Zach takes the Ovation mic to the streets of Chicago for a special edition of the Two Question Podcast, recorded live at the National Restaurant Association Show. From tech innovators to restaurant operators, leaders across the industry answer two key questions: what should restaurants focus on over the next 12 months, and what tactics can improve the guest experience? You’ll hear quick insights, real-world tips, and recurring themes around data, human connection, and of course—using Ovation.
Thank you to all our amazing guests, including Sean Walchef, Scott Porter, Brandon Barton, and so many more.
The Two-Question Podcast Begins
Speaker 1The National Restaurant Association show is about to begin , and all right here in Chicago , and so what we're doing is we're taking give an ovation on the streets and we are going to be doing a two question podcast . We're going to figure out what are the most important aspects to focus on for the next 12 months and what are some tactics used to improve the guest experience . And you never know who you're going to bump into . For example , right here , let's start a podcast with Sean Walchoff hey , sean . For example , right here , let's start a podcast with Sean Walchef . Hey , oh , hey , sean . Yes , I am here with Sean Walchef , cali Barbecue Media . Okay , sean , what should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Guest retention and what are some tactics to improve the guest experience ? Talk to your guests , boom , sean Walchef , that's a mic drop .
Speaker 1Never know who you're going to bump into at the NRA . And here we go Mic drop Too expensive , dance off . Next time we'll be live streaming . I'm here with Hello and howdy duty folks . This is Justin .
Speaker 3Roundy With Ovation .
Speaker 1All right , we're doing . Man in the street interviews Justin Two question podcast . Number one Focus on it for the next 12 months Guest feedback Give more guest frequency . Get your guests back in the door . What are some tactics you'd recommend to guests to improve the guest experience ? To restaurants to improve the guest experience ? Listen to your guests any way possible , more than your online reviews . There we go Right here . Justin Roundy man on the street Two question podcast . I am here with Troy Hooper Of Hot restaurant brands Buzzing . All right , troy , what should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Ai to make your life easier and more efficient , and what are some tactics used to improve the guest experience ? I use Ovation . Oh , hey , well , he used Ovation . Love you , troy . Two question podcast . I'm here with Brandon Barton Of Bite . What is something restaurant operators ?
Speaker 3should be doing for the next 12 months Adopting kiosk as fast as humanly possible . It's not just because I'm a kiosk guy , but really it saves money and it increases your average check . The only way to have less customers and increase your revenue is to increase average check . It's just math . Do it Bazing . One tactic to improve the guest experience Ooh , smiling . Make sure your team smiles . Everybody communicates with nonverbal cues . Smile Out of the mouth of a Danny Meyer protege .
Speaker 1Thanks , brandon Chots . Two question podcast with Scott Porter Of Sandy Outlaw Churros . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Flavor Ooh , love that . What is something to improve the guest experience ? Always just look to humanize every touch point . Buzzing , here we go . Two question podcast I am here with Ming Tai Ha .
Speaker 7Of Square .
Speaker 1Ming . What is something that restaurant should be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 7Oh well , you got to pay attention to AI . I know it's a buzzword , but it's definitely here as being more accessible than ever before . Really excited for that Square AI released actually just this week .
Speaker 1Hey , there we go . What is a ?
Speaker 7tactic . Look , I think you have to make sure that you're making a human still , that you're making eye contact . Really make the technology invisible . Look , I sell technology or work with technology , use technology every day , but really you got to make sure that human connection is always part of the center core there we go From restaurateur and technologist Ming Bazing .
Speaker 1Thank you , awesome . All right . Two question podcast . I am here with Marcus Fassiti , with Informa Food Service . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Guest frequency and what is a tactic ?
Speaker 3to improve the guest experience Getting more reviews and responding to those reviews . Buzzing .
Speaker 1Marcus . Two-question podcast . I'm here with Derek Rosenbaum Of Crouch House Deli . What is something a restaurant should be focused on for the next 12 months ? Reputation management and what is a tactic to improve the guest experience ? Listening to your customers and taking immediate action . Buzzing , All right . Two-question podcast here with Michael Beck . Is that the first question ? No , it's not . That's not the question technically . Sorry to be neglected everybody . Two-question podcast here with Michael Beck Of Intake GTM . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Guest engagement . What is a tactic to improve the guest experience ? Listen to their feedback , Listen , Buzzing . Two question podcast .
Speaker 9I'm here with Karen Stotts , woohoo Of Of Hawaiian frozen Kuro revolving
AI and Guest Experience Focus
Speaker 9sushi bar .
Speaker 1Amen . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Driving the top line sales . It's a battle for market share .
Speaker 9And what is a tactic to improve the guest experience ? Bring ovation on board Buzzing .
Speaker 1Two question podcast . I'm here with Sam Okas , editor-in-chief of Nation's Restaurant News . There we go . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? How do you get through not knowing what's coming tomorrow ? I don't know . Uncertainty is what everybody says to me so like . How do you find any kind of certainty ? Study , read Nation's Restaurant News Amen . What's the tactic to improve the guest experience ? Collect data on them , understand what they want , based on their consumer behavior , and then act according to the data and what it's telling you . Listen to your customers , give them what they want . Create a great experience . Pay attention to all five senses . If you do that , it's a great experience . Buzzing two-question podcast . I am here with Jim Sheridan of Unfort . What . What is something restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months ? Making sure their guests love their experience , amen . And what can you do to improve the guest experience ? Know how they feel when they walk out the door ? Amen . Buzzing , oh , by the way , bonus question How's Ovation been helpful for you ?
Speaker 5It's really helped us know about the little problems that we wouldn't have known about without Ovation .
Speaker 1Amen , thanks , jim .
Speaker 11Two question podcast here with Sarah Gruenberg of Monteverde Restaurant in Chicago .
Speaker 1What is something restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 11Oh , I think , productivity and finding a way to connect the dots with all the technology that we have . So , information systems inventory reservation POS .
Speaker 1Love that Data unification , and what is a tactic to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 11I think being on the floor more and not being behind the scenes , being able to touch the tables , touch the guests and use the data we have of what the guests like and what they're looking for to help curate a special experience for them .
Speaker 1Buzzing . Thank you , All right , I am here with Sean .
Speaker 12Feeney of Lilia Missy Missy Pasta . Feeney Pizza from Williamsburg , Brooklyn , Holy cow that sounds like a Dr Seuss book .
Speaker 1What is something that restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 12AI just go crazy on AI . Every little thing that you're doing in your restaurant . Think about how you can utilize AI Executive management , hr , financial forecasting , how you're doing currently communications , presentations , partnership pitches absolutely every piece of operational management of your restaurant CRM , guest experience , every little facet of your restaurant . Figure out how you can utilize AI to empower your teams to make it an even more amazing experience for others .
Speaker 1Dude love that , and what's a tactic that you would recommend to improve the guest experience Before they ?
Speaker 12enter your doors . Try to find a way , in the time they make a reservation , until they enter your doors , because that is when the experience starts . Try to find a way to personalize or make them feel like you're reaching out in a personal way to ask them sparkling , or still , would you like a cocktail before you sit down ? Oh , would you like a cocktail before you sit down ? Oh , maybe send them a video of something that you're very excited about at the restaurant at this moment , or have a team member text them something from them who are going to serve them . I would say , focus on the experience of that guest , the experience before they walk in your doors , and try to make them feel more excited and more seen before they're even in your presence . That's what I would say Buzzing . Thanks , sean , all right , thank you .
Speaker 1Two question podcast with James Bonanno Upstream Hospitality what should restaurants be focusing on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 2Using ovation . Obviously you know it's cliche , but it's all about the guest experience , right , that's what we do in the restaurant industry and just having a conversation right here on the side been using Ovation for years and it allows us to really especially a multi-unit operator when , as a founder , I'm not in the stores every day gives me an understanding and visibility of what's going on in my stores , which is different in all different stores . Right , I was just saying one store needs to focus on X , that store needs to focus on Y . Ovation definitely gives us that visibility into those stores and kind of what we need to pay attention to .
Speaker 4Awesome , you rock . Thanks , zach , you too man .
Speaker 1Two question podcast . I'm here with Peter Sklachani from Making Raving Fans Hospitality Group and what is something that restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months ? I think right now we're focusing on how we can use AI better , because it's so new and you know it's going to be so big . But we got to figure out how we're going to take that and use it to our advantage and what's a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience . Okay , so I'm going to give you my million dollar secret . We write personalized messages in dessert plates and so when we do that , it forces the server to focus on the guest , to find something personal to write about . So don't just say happy birthday . We got to at least know your name . But I'll tell you , when I first started doing it , what we found out , because my staff didn't believe me . After I had the big meeting , the very first table they came in they said , oh my God , you were right , chef . This table they're here with their mom . Their mom was just diagnosed with cancer . They think it might be their last birthday with them . It becomes so much more important . What we do is not transactional anymore . It's not like , hey , I'm going to give you a chicken breast , you give me 20 bucks . We're affecting people's lives . We're creating these memories Connection and it's that connection and you can get the server to focus on it if you make them write a personalized message on a dessert plate . Write a personalized message on a dessert plate . Love that Bonus question How's Ovation been helpful for you ?
Speaker 1Ovation has been a game changer . I've seen you speak several times no-transcript , so glad I did . In the moment we get the feedback , we're able to save guests while they're still in the restaurant . It's been amazing and our scores are going up because all of the good scores get kicked up directly to Google and TripAdvisor and anything that's not a great score . We're able to track and fix those operational problems right away . A tool only works if you work it and you obviously work it and you care . So thank you .
Speaker 8This is the Two Question Podcast with . I'm Mike Bausch , owner of Andalini's Worldwide Influencer Group in Tulsa , Oklahoma , and big user of a certain product , Ovation .
Speaker 1Oh , what should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 8Experience-driven , everything experienced , because it's either value conscious or convenience conscious or experience conscious , independent restaurants . They're not going to win those first two . So experience is where it's all at . How are we enhancing the customer experience ? Not like with money , like it's just the little things to
Connecting with Customers Through Data
Speaker 8make it like oh , I have to go there , I'll drive an extra mile or I'll pay an extra $5 because that makes me feel good today .
Speaker 1That's where it's all at . Yes , love that . And what would you say is a tactic to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 8Everything is either increasing purchase pride or decreasing purchase . Anxiety , knowing no matter what . I'm going to be okay , or , oh my God , I'm so smart for buying this . Those are the two things that , at any given moment , we're trying to achieve oh , I love that framework Okay .
Speaker 1Bonus question achieve oh , I love that framework Okay bonus question how has Ovation helped you ?
Speaker 8If you know , you know how much I'm a fan of Ovation . I speak the phrases no independent restaurant should not have that product . I do not like buying apps Apps I try to proprietarily create myself through Google Sheets and automations . There's no way for me to do that better or even in the realm of what you've created with Ovation , to have loss prevention and review incentivization . Which currently the number one pizza reviewed city in America is Tulsa . Well , that's New York , oh , New York . Number two is Tulsa and we are the best reviewed pizza in Tulsa , and it's in no short reason to the engagement we get from having more reviews via Ovation .
Speaker 1And having someone like you who cares and crushes it . Mike , thank you Buzzing . All right , here we are . Two question podcast with Shauna Smith and Andrew Smith of Savory . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 13I'd say delivering on quality , on service , on consistency .
Speaker 3Storytelling Tell your story better .
Speaker 1What is a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience ? Training .
Speaker 13Making sure you have the right angle in front of the customer and make sure they are trained Love that Accuracy .
Speaker 3It's so frustrating when you do not get the right stuff . Be accurate . Take a couple more seconds and be accurate .
Speaker 13Gosh , that's a good one . That's actually probably better .
Speaker 1Love that Bonus question . How's Ovation been helping for you guys ?
Speaker 13Oh it Overall . I would say , ovation , we know that there's feedback . We don't always know what the feedback is . We need to know that so that we can be better , and so getting that feedback is so invaluable for us . We are able to change what we're not doing right immediately , so I would say that has been invaluable .
Speaker 3Love it . We don't use anything else , just use .
Speaker 7Ovation , love it , love you guys .
Speaker 1The Two Question Podcast .
Speaker 11I am here with Amy Hom of Barcelona Wine Bar . No , really , it's Ovation , I'm with Ovation .
Speaker 1What should restaurants be focused on for the next year ?
Speaker 11Investing in their team members' development so that they can take care of their guests .
Speaker 1What is a tactic to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 11Focus on development plans so that they understand how to do it and what the mission is when they're engaging with their guests .
Speaker 1Amazing , by the way , I have never gotten a text message from the person I was interviewing while I was interviewing them . But that was pretty better . Buzzing Two question podcast . I'm here with Brian Meriden Me .
Speaker 14Of Soon to be nothing . Yeah , 11-45-01 . Tomorrow , sunday , the 18th , I'm done .
Speaker 1Okay , so after an entire career in restaurants , what would you say next 12 months ? What should restaurants be focused on ?
Speaker 14Wow , I think you really need to take a look at your technology . Do you have too much ? How can you merge things together , or are you actually using everything you have ? Amen ?
Speaker 1Talk to your vendors . See , I guarantee you there's things that they're doing that you're paying for , that you're not using . Second question what should people do to improve the guest ?
Speaker 14experience in their restaurants . Get back to understanding the true meaning of hospitality . You've invited them into your home to feed them . Treat them as such , make them want to come back . Amen buzzing thanks , Brian .
Speaker 4Two question podcasts here with Dean Labey , L-A capital V-A-Y Of Labey .
Speaker 1Company , new Orleans . You couldn't tell by the accent and Dean . You are a industry icon on LinkedIn , so want to get your take . What should people be focused on for the next 12 ?
Speaker 4months Retention of the customers that you've got coming into your business , making sure you keep them , and with that you'll have retention of employees . Right now , I'm finding that the biggest problem that restaurants are having is they can't find good help Work on the retention of the customer , your business will grow .
Speaker 1So what would you say is a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 4Act like a human being and act like you care . Kind of like that . You did a podcast here not too long ago with a lady talking about agape love . Oh yeah , jane from Donato's Jane , yes , that's exactly what we need to do . We need to start loving our customers a little bit more than just you know as a transaction . Love the customers that are coming into your restaurant , treat them with love and I promise you your business will grow .
Speaker 1Two question podcast here with Rusty Bills Of Wienersitzel , co , coo . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months ? Labor management and elevating your data Ooh , love that . That is some like deep stuff for a COO man . Normally it's like just the basic restaurant stuff . But there we go . You got to get into the data there . What is a tactic to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 6One of them is to understand
Personalization and Service Excellence
Speaker 6what your customers are experiencing , so you got to get feedback before you can make any improvements . So I believe the data that you receive from rich data from your customers is going to be more impactful , using technology in a smart way and helping your crew provide a better experience based on the feedback you receive . So let's leave it at that . Love that .
Speaker 1Thank you . Two question podcast here with Selfie Cam Activate . My name is Rev Ciancio and I point at food on the internet and you are with . I am with Rev Ciancio . I'm the CMO of Salad House and the head of marketing for Crazy Pita . The co-founder of Handcraft Burgers Brew Next 12 months . What do restaurants need guest retention and that starts with making sure you collect their data and what is a tactic that you've used to improve the guest experience ? That is a great question . So and I swear you did not ask me anything before we started it's get feedback from every guest on every single order , so that you can diagnose what's going right or what's going wrong . And honestly , god , this is the truth . When the Soundhouse franchisees call me and they go , we need help because we're having whatever problem the first thing I do is go into Ovation and I look at a summary of what's happening in their store and within three minutes I have an idea of where they're at and what they need Bazing . Thanks , man . There was no preload , that is absolutely true .
Speaker 1Two-question podcast . I am here . Oh , we got a special guest , ellis . All right , two-question podcast I am here with , with Ryan Gromfin , with the Restaurant Boss . What is something that restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months ?
Speaker 1Financials , obviously , things have gotten a little more challenging , a little more difficult . Previous to maybe the last two years , it's always been this focus on the top line . Everything else will work itself out . That's generally my suggestion . But as things are tightening up , what we're finding is , even if your top line's down 10% , most of my operators , my clients , are still able to bring the same margin on the bottom line by just getting a little more intentional with every expense . So you really need good systems . Financially . Love that .
Speaker 1What is a tactic to improve the guest experience ? You've got to connect with your guests at a more genuine level . And again I would say , as the economy has changed a little bit , people are still going to go spend money , but if they're going to spend 20% less of their money on restaurants , they're going to be more particular about where they go and the way that they're going to make that decision is not necessarily on how good the food is . It's part of it , but it's going to be on . Am I spending my money at a place I want to spend my money ? So give them a reason to want to spend their money with you and you shouldn't see any effect on your top line . And if you focus on the financials , you could probably do better on your bottom line now than you ever did before . Buzzing . Thanks , ryan . All right , two question podcast here with Kathleen Wood of .
Speaker 9Kathleen Wood Partners .
Speaker 1What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months to thrive ?
Speaker 9The number one thing that restaurants should be focused on for the next 12 months is their customer experience . Customers want value not discounted food , but value from food service and the overall experience . That's why Ovation is such a great solution . Oh geez .
Speaker 1Wow , well , thank you . Besides Ovation , what's a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 9Right now . I think what restaurants should focus in on is really their service experience . So many people have their food dialed in , but with the amount of work that they've done to dial in their food , they need to dial in their service , both online and in person . This is where the money can be found .
Speaker 1Buzzing . Thanks , kathleen . Thank you All . Right . Two question podcast . I'm here with Kip Welsh , president of Via 313 Pizzeria . What should restaurants be doing for the next 12 months to thrive ? To thrive is going to have to all be about new menu items new incentives for guests , loyalty rewards and New items .
Speaker 6New incentives for guests , loyalty rewards and then making sure that delivery on hospitality is the strongest .
Speaker 1it's ever been More competition in the space , and that's why we're going to stay relevant . Amen . And what is a ?
Speaker 6tactic that they can use to improve the guest experience . All about engagement from the inside of the dining room to third party and takeout and delivery experience , making sure that the guest is feeling hospitality as well as gold standard food and beverage experiences .
Speaker 1Love that Bonus question How's Ovation been helpful for you ?
Speaker 5Ovation has been a game changer for us the quick response time , the fact we can engage with a guest when there is an issue so quickly catch them inside of the restaurant , turn them around and wow them with an experience .
Speaker 1Striven our guest sentiment scores through Ovation , through Google could not be happier with it . Well , it works because you work it , you care and you rock . All right , two-question podcast here with David Youngberg , ceo of Stonefire Grill . All right , david . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months to thrive ?
Speaker 5Traffic , I mean getting people on the door and how you're going to do that is through engagement . It's through a differentiation of making sure that you have good food and that you're different from your competitors . You serve great food , you provide great hospitality and it's a winning combination .
Speaker 1And what is a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 5I would say loyalty , making sure that you have great food items , that you're bringing great LTOs in , that you're doing anything and everything that you can to show your guests that the dollar that they spend inside your restaurant is gold .
Speaker 1All right , two-question podcast here with Zeno Carr from Garden Catering . All right , zeno . What should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months to thrive the guest ?
Speaker 5experience . So making sure you're connecting
The Business Case for Guest Retention
Speaker 5with your guests on a one-to-one level , knowing who they are , what they like , their frequency , how you can increase that frequency . So the data is king right now .
Speaker 1Data , data , data . And what is a tactic that you would recommend to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 5Make sure you're listening to your guests and you're responding to them with a useful tool Like .
Speaker 7I don't know . Do you know any ?
Speaker 5like useful , maybe something like that yeah .
Speaker 7Use Ovation and make sure that you're maximizing the value that you get with all the different tools that Ovation provides .
Speaker 1So you can reach out to your guests . Amen Buzzing . Thanks , daniel .
Speaker 10All right , two question podcast here , with Peter Riggs of Peter Pitt and Thor's Skier what ?
Speaker 1should restaurants be focusing on for the next 12 months to thrive Doing better Amen .
Speaker 10How could they be doing better ? Anyone he told you that there is not enough money and people are shrinking their spending has misinformed . They're just spending it somewhere more interesting . So do better Work on your operations , your customer experience , all that and create reasons for those guests to come back into your restaurant , because that's the biggest problem . It's not that they didn't like you , it's not that they didn't have a good experience . They just got busy and forgot you were there and it's not their fault . You need to get out there and remind them that you're worth coming back for .
Speaker 1Wow , knowledge bombs . Second question what is something that restaurants can do to improve the guest experience ?
Speaker 10Well , I think one of the biggest things they could do is probably work on making sure their reputation management is solid , because anyone who hasn't tried your establishment is going to look at it on the online reviews , primarily through Google , and you're going to see if you've got bad reviews , if they're low star ratings and if they're unresponded to it's going to be a big problem for you . So using something like Ovation is a strong pathway to make sure that customers are coming in to your restaurant and I'm being serious because you have to do what you need to do in your restaurant to retain the guests . But part of attracting the guests is making sure that when they look into you , that they're seeing what's an accurate representation of your business online , and the only way to make sure that you're getting that done in real time is through a company like Ovation .
Speaker 1Amen . Well , thanks , peter Buzzing . All right , here we are . Two question podcast with Greg Majewski of Craveworthy Brands . Greg , what should restaurants be focusing on in the next 12 months to thrive ? Labor and food costs Question 1A why ? Because it's the most important and it's the most out of whack right now . So if you spend attention on those two items , no matter what , and keep those where they're supposed to be , you should be able to make money , no matter what your sales do . What's a tactic that restaurants can use to improve the guest experience ? Ovation Question 2B how has Ovation been helpful for you ? It gives us instant access to feedback and everything else , but , more importantly , if you actually look at the data it provides , you can see insights from your consumers before your managers or you ever get to know if things are going wrong .
Speaker 4Complaints if they're bitching about price anything of that nature .
Speaker 1You know before anyone else does and you can adjust it at that moment . Buzzing . Thanks , greg Bye , all right , two question podcast here with Michael Lengaro of Kings of Fish and San Pedro Fish . Market . What is something restaurants should be doing for the next 12 months to thrive ?
Speaker 15100% AI . Don't just think you know it . You got to get into it . You got to learn how to
Profitability and Technology Optimization
Speaker 15kind of adopt it , bring it into your practices and look at where it applies until you get ready to adapt to it and then exploit the hell out of it , love it .
Speaker 1What is a tactic that restaurants can use to improve ?
Speaker 15the guest experience . We are an experiential brand where we let customers touch their products and pick out their products . So anything you could do to give the customer an experience that's memorable outside of just sit down , order , eat and leave , I think it's going to stick with them . You want to hit them in the heart .
Speaker 1You want them to walk out with a memory about that Buzzing . Thank you All right , Two question podcast here with Tony Smith Of Restaurant 365 . He like is Restaurant 365 . Anyway , Tony , what should restaurants be focused on for the next 12 months to thrive ? Oh , I think they got to be profitable . They got to be running a streamlined , efficient business great visibility into everything that's happening there and what .