2016 TechTable Summit

Since Co-Founding the company in 2009, Chris Stang has been the architect of The Infatuation’s editorial voice, creative vision, and marketing strategy. Today his role still encompasses all of those things, but also includes pushing the company forward into new arenas, including the creation and launch of Text Rex, and EEEEEATSCON, The Infatuation’s food festival franchise. He was nominated for a James Beard Award in 2015 for Underfinger, a review of a restaurant that doesn’t exist, and he still writes from time to time about real restaurants. Prior to taking on The Infatuation full time, Stang was the VP of Marketing at Atlantic Records, working closely with many of the label’s biggest acts including Coldplay, Bruno Mars, Skrillex, and Gnarls Barkley.

Amanda Kludt is the Editor in Chief of Eater, a publication covering the ins and outs of dining and food in America and around the world. Through original reporting, longform journalism, maps and guides, reviews, and video, Eater informs its audience on the latest news, tells them where to eat and drink, and highlights important issues facing the world of restaurants. Before Eater, Kludt worked at Gridskipper and Metro. She has contributed to Lucky Peach, Cherry Bombe, The Guardian, and others.

Krystle Mobayeni is Co-Founder and CEO of BentoBox, a platform for restaurants to connect with their guests and drive revenue online. Krystle has spent over 12 years working as a digital designer in New York City. She started her career at some of the top digital agencies in the city, working with world class brands like British Airway, Adobe, William Grant & Sons and more. During that time, she developed her innate skill of being able to solve business problems through design and technology and went on to start a boutique digital creative agency in 2009. Her work has won Webby Awards and has appeared in TechCrunch and Communication Arts. Several years later, by working closely with some of the best restaurants in the world, Krystle recognized that restaurants were in need of a platform to be able to deliver the same great hospitality experience online that they delivered inside of their restaurants. BentoBox was launched in late 2013 with this mission.

Senior editor Amy Farley oversees Fast Company’s front-of-book Next section, covering innovation and creativity in business, and steers its annual Most Innovative Companies list. Before joining Fast Company, she was the news editor and columnist at Travel + Leisure, where she headed up consumer news in print and online and commissioned features from award-winning writers. She also pioneered the magazine’s coverage of environmental and social justice issues.

Design is Meija's not-so-secret weapon for creating a better food future. With a background in psychology and advertising, Meija has over two decades of experience helping Fortune 500 companies, start-ups and non-profits design innovative and lasting brands, products and experiences. Her work ranges from designing beverage product platforms that inspire healthy behavior change to building branded experiences and loyalty programs for hotel brands.  As a leader of IDEO’s Design for Food portfolio, Meija collaborates with companies such as Whitewave Foods, Suntory Food & Beverage, and The Hershey Company, as well as food innovators and restaurateurs to design a positive and sustainable future for food and beverage.

Josh Patchus is the Chief Data Scientist & Director of Technology at CAVA, a growing culinary brand that offers a Mediterranean take on bold, better-for-you cuisine. With 35 fast-casual restaurants and a consumer-packaged goods (CPG) line of chef-crafted dips and spreads, CAVA brings modern, authentic Mediterranean eats to a national audience through both restaurant and grocery channels.Through building tools and custom benchmarks, Josh is breeding a culture of data internally at CAVA, focusing on making business practices and the guest experience smarter through unique and measured information. Externally, Josh hopes to enhance customization and education around smart choices for individual CAVA customers through data-driven food technology.Josh is an avid data lover, mainly those involving sports, weather, coffee, and food. He even uses spreadsheets to track all the coffee shops he visits and Liverpool matches he's watched…he hasn't missed one in five years. Previously, Josh was a data scientist at consumer technology companies including Gamechanger, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Livingsocial. Josh earned both his Bachelors and Masters of Science degrees in Statistics from the George Washington University.

After opening 17 successful restaurants over two decades, James Beard nominated restaurateur Kevin Boehm has become one of the nation’s most successful owner/operators. Kevin, along with partner Rob Katz have not only built a successful restaurant group, but have established a restaurant culture built on great chefs, inspired hospitality, and amazing design.

Born in 1970, Boehm grew up in Springfield, Illinois and knew at a young age he was destined to be in the restaurant business. After dropping out of University of Illinois, he saved enough money as a server to open his first restaurant in 1992, the quaint Lazy Daze Café, in Seaside, Florida. Indigo Wine Bar (Blue Mountain Beach, Florida), Indigo Restaurant (Springfield, Illinois), and Six Degrees (Nashville, Tennessee) followed and Boehm got his education opening and selling restaurants all before the age of 30.

In 2002, Boehm partnered with Rob Katz and the two established Boka Restaurant Group The pair would open 16 restaurants in less than 13 years: Boka (2003), Landmark (2005), Perennial (2008), Girl & the Goat (2010), GT Fish & Oyster (2011), Perennial Virant (2011), Balena (2012), Elaine’s Coffee Call (2012), The J. Parker (2012), Little Goat Bread (2012), Little Goat Diner (2013), Momotaro (2014), and Swift & sons (2015), Cold Storage (2015),  Duck Duck Goat (2016), and GT Prime (2016), and establish themselves as one of the great chef-driven groups in the county. They are also opening three restaurants in 2017: The Kennison, The Bellevue and Somerset.

The groups many accolades include “3 stars” for Boka, Perennial, Girl & the Goat, GT Fish & Oyster, Perennial Virant, Balena, Momotaro and Swift & Sons from the Chicago Tribune. A James Beard nomination for Girl & the Goat for “Best New Restaurant” in 2011, and a James Beard win for Stephanie Izard for “Best Chef: Great Lakes” in 2013. “Restaurant of the Year” at the Jean Banchet Awards and “Chef of the Year” for Lee Wolen at the Banchet’s and by the Chicago Tribune in 2014. “Restaurant of the Year” for Momotaro in both Chicago Magazine and Chicago Social in 2015.

Boehm and Katz won “Restaurateurs of the Year” from Time Out Chicago in 2010, the Chicago Tribune in 2011, were named “Empire Builders of the Year” by Eater National in 2011, and were James Beard semi-finalists for “Best Restaurateur” in 2015. Boka Restaurant Group was named one of the RH25 in Restaurant Hospitality Magazine in 2013.

Boehm has been a featured speaker at the National Restaurant Show, MUFSO, keynote speaker at the Asheville Independent Restaurant Show, and gave the commencement address at the Culinary Institute of America Graduation in Hyde Park, NY. He is an occasional columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times Splash, and was named “40 Under 40” in Crain’s Chicago Business in 2010. He co-produces the Gold Coast Film Festival, which was started in 2004, and sat on the board of Trustees for the Hope Institute for 7 years. He currently sits on the Board of Directors of Easter Seals Kevin lives in Chicago with his wife and three children.

Brett Schulman is the CEO of CAVA Group, Inc., a growing culinary brand that offers a Mediterranean take on bold, better-for-you cuisine. With 35 fast-casual restaurants and a consumer-packaged goods (CPG) line of chef-crafted dips and spreads, CAVA brings modern, authentic Mediterranean eats to a national audience through both restaurant and grocery channels.Since 2011, Brett has seen CAVA through multilevel growth that has included nationwide CPG expansion as well as new storefronts throughout Maryland, DC, Virginia, CT, LA, New Jersey and New York City. Before taking the helm at CAVA, Brett spent more than a decade in the investment banking world at firms including Alex Brown, Deutsche Bank, Alex Brown, and Friedman Billings Ramsey, and later merged his culinary interests and business acumen as the COO of healthful snack company, Snikiddy, LLC. In this role, Brett expanded Snikiddy from its conceptual beginnings to a multi-million-dollar growth business, which was subsequently acquired by Utz Quality Foods.Brett champions the movement to educate healthier eating as a member of the Society of Fellows at The Culinary Institute of America and working with organizations like Garden School Foundation and City Blossoms. He’s a Washington, DC, native, graduate of the University of Maryland, and resides in Bethesda, MD, with his wife, Mary, and children Sunny, Sadie, and Luke.

Michael Montero has been a pioneering entrepreneur and chief technologyofficer for over two decades.  After graduating from New York Universitywith a degree in computer science and mathematics he founded his firststart up Community Connect Inc. which built social networks for ethnicaffinity groups.  After it was acquired for $38MM, Michael founded Fotologwhich he grew to one of the largest photo sharing communities in the worldand was acquired for $90MM.  Michael and his team at CrowdTwist, a startup he founded in 2009, were awarded the patent for multi-channel loyaltyprograms for their innovative software.  He is currently a founder andthe CTO of Resy where he and his team are building some of the most advancedhospitality software in the industry.  Michael is a well known start upadvisor often helping companies with their strategy and product.  

Michael co-founded a family with his wife and raises three incredible children, Sophia, Mila and Mikey.  They have each expressed that codingis "boring" and that all he does at work is sit around and stare at ascreen.

Chef David Barzelay channeled his self-taught, passion-driven culinary skills into a thriving underground dinner party that ultimately culminated in the opening of his two-Michelin-starred, San Francisco restaurant Lazy Bear. Barzelay was named among Food & Wine’s “Best New Chefs” in 2016, and Lazy Bear has been listed as one of Bon Appetit’s “Best New Restaurants,” San Francisco Chronicle’s “Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants,” and James Beard Awards semifinalist for “Best New Restaurant.” Barzelay is currently working on a bar-centric concept slated to open in Summer 2017.

Leslie Ferrier began her hospitality career with Hilton Hotels Corporation in their management development program. Recruited on campus from Johnson & Wales University, she worked in HR leadership roles for the Capitol Hilton, McLean Hilton, Fontainebleau, Rye Town & Pittsburgh Hilton Hotels. With Loews Corporation, she was on the opening teams for the Loews House of Blues, the Loews Miami Beach and the Loews Porto Fino Bay Hotel in Universal Studios. She has served as Corporate Director of HR for Linens n Things, as well as, VP of HR for both ABC Carpet & Home and Aerosoles shoes. Leslie was the founding HR leader for TxVia, a high tech start up, which sold to Google.

At Atlantic Coast Media Group, Leslie was the VP of Talent Acquisition & Development where she was nominated as one of New Jersey’s top women in business. That same year, ACMG won fastest growing company in NJ. As the Head of HR for Le Pain Quotidien, she opened 15 new restaurants and was responsible for 3500 employees in 90 restaurants over 8 states. During this time, Leslie served on the Board of Directors for Liberty Humane Society turning around a failing animal shelter into a model for other urban rescue operations. Leslie was recently featured in her alma mater’s “Success Issue” which is dedicated to twelve distinguished graduates who have excelled in their chosen careers. Leslie was also recently nominated to the Hall of Fame for the World Association of Cooperative Education. Leslie is currently the Vice President of Human Resources for Momofuku & Milk Bar reporting directly to world renowned chefs David Chang & Christina Tosi.

Randi Zuckerberg is an entrepreneur, investor, bestselling author, and tech media personality. She is the founder and CEO of Zuckerberg Media, developing technology, content, and live events all with the mission of putting intelligent, tech-savvy, entrepreneurial women and girls at the center of pop culture and media. A Harvard graduate, Randi hosts a weekly talk business talk radio show, Dot Complicated on SiriusXM. She has two TV shows currently on air: DOT on NBC Universal Kids (winner of Kidscreen's Best New Preschool Series) about a spunky little girl who uses tech to enhance her everyday adventures, and American Dreams on HSN, highlighting entrepreneurs around the country. She is the best selling author of Dot Complicated, Dot., and most recently, Missy President, about a fourth grade girl who wakes up to find herself elected President after her homework assignment goes accidentally viral online.

Randi travels the world, speaking about technology, entrepreneurship, her time as an early employee at Facebook, leading major marketing initiatives in the company's formative years, and shockingly...how to unplug! When she's not Facebooking or actual written-word booking, she can be found at the theater - as a TONY awards voter, investor in the award winning show Dear Evan Hansen, and board member for the American Theatre Wing and Lincoln Center - or doing her best to unplug at home with her husband and two young sons.

Eric Gillin is the digital general manager of Architectural Digest, Condé Nast Traveler, and the Food Innovation Group, running digital product strategy across both Epicurious and Bon Appetit. Over his nearly two decade career, he’s run digital strategy and launched websites and apps for the biggest media brands, including Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, and more. He is an avid home cook with a serious salt tooth.

Seth Harris is the Founder & CEO of HuddleUp, a modern communication system for brick & mortar businesses.  Previously, Seth founded Breadcrumb, a hospitality point of sale system that runs on iPads, in January 2011; Groupon acquired Breadcrumb in May 2012, and Seth ran the POS and Payments business units at Groupon for three years.

 Prior to founding Breadcrumb, Seth was a McKinsey & Co management consultant from 2000 to 2002 and the CEO of a marketing services company from 2007-2011.

 He also spent 12 years suffering with outdated technology as a bartender, general manager, director of operations and managing partner in various New York restaurants and nightclubs. Seth never understood why POS systems cost so much and why staff communication was so hard and inefficient. This longing for better systems drove him to develop Breadcrumb, the modern approach to hospitality point of sale, and HuddleUp, a networked messaging platform that saves deskless workers from communication chaos.

 Seth graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Ethics, Politics and Economics.  He currently lives in Connecticut with his wife Melanie, daughter Marlowe and dogs Mookie and Lenny (yes, Seth is a big Mets fan).

Neil Day has over 30 years' experience in software development, systems architecture, technology operations, and product development. Currently, Day is Vice President of Technology at Blue Bottle Coffee, where he focuses on R&D for new consumer products, leads the Business Systems team, and works closely with the eCommerce team. Day is the Founder of Perfect Coffee, which Blue Bottle acquired in 2015. Perfect Coffee is an innovative process for replicating grind settings, which also guarantees that ground coffee stays fresh for months. 

Previously, Day served as Senior Vice President and CTO at Shutterfly and Sears Holdings and was responsible for architecture, technology, strategy, and software development with an emphasis on e-commerce applications. Prior to Sears Holdings, Day was a Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer at MediaMaster, Inc., where he was responsible for product strategy and design, product development, and technical operations. He was part of the founding team of Walmart.com, and was responsible for development and operations. His previous experiences also include CTO at Velosel, and CTO of Homewarehouse.com, which was acquired by Walmart.com.

Jocelyn Mangan serves as Snagajob's chief operating officer where she is responsible for the creation and management of products that connect workers and employers and leading all marketing efforts to accelerate the growth of Snagajob's national brand.  Mangan has almost two decades of experience building iconic global mobile apps and market-leading software products. As the former head of product for OpenTable, she oversaw the vision, strategy and development of the company's consumer and restaurant products. Prior to that, Jocelyn held senior roles at TicketMaster, where she successfully led the first multi-lingual, Olympic ticketing website from concept to implementation.  

Mangan was honored as a member of the 2016 column of Henry Crown Fellows and the Aspen Global Leadership Network at the Aspen Institute. Prior to that, Mangan was named to Fast Company’s 2015 list of “100 Most Creative People in Business” and to Business Insider’s 2014 list of the “32 Most Powerful Women in Mobile Advertising."  Jocelyn received her B.A. in English and Communications from Vanderbilt. Her first hourly job was restaurant hostess.

Adam Price is the Founder and CEO of Homer Logistics. Homer helps local and national restaurant chains run deliveries to their customers. Homer is headquartered in NYC, and works with 100s of restaurant brands across 11 cities in the United States. Homer was founded in 2014 because of the growth in demand for locally delivered items, and the shortfalls of existing services and businesses in providing consistent, economic means for delivery. Homer now employs over 300 people and their technology and operation power over 100,000 local deliveries per month.

Adam holds a degree in Aerospace Engineering and a Professional Engineering License. He previously worked at an engineering consulting firm in California where he supported design and analysis for complex mechanical and aerospace systems. Adam has helped design and develop systems at clients ranging from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to Disney’s Imagineering division.

Nicholas Miller is co-founder and CEO of event management platform Gather. In 2013, Miller and his co-founders launched Gather to help restaurants, venues and hospitality groups make event management simpler and more fun. Under Miller’s leadership, Gather has grown exponentially, 200 percent year-over-year, and now works with more than 3,000 restaurants and hospitality venues throughout the United States.  Miller’s passion for moving the events industry forward grew out from his previous role as senior associate at Bain & Company, where he experienced first-hand the many pain points coordinators face when planning events. Miller graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in philosophy and psychology.

Edwin leads the marketing, branding, communications, digital, social media, communications and advertising for Shake Shack. The critically acclaimed, modern day “roadside” burger stand is known for its community gathering experience, delicious burgers, hospitality and cult-like following around the world.

As Shake Shack has grown from a hot dog cart in NYC to more than 140 restaurants across the U.S. and in 12 countries, Edwin has overseen the marketing initiatives and some amazing brand moments along the way including its IPO, cookbook and mobile ordering Shack App. 

Before joining Shake Shack, Edwin was the Marketing Director for GQ at Condé Nast for nine years, where he led its brand strategies, marketing and research initiatives. A graduate of Tulane University, Edwin holds an MBA in Marketing from Georgia State University. The Shake Shack marketing team has won several awards including Small Brand of the Year, Fast Casual Digital Brand of the Year, a Halo Award for “Best Social Service Campaign”, a Webby Award for shakeshack.com and an Appy Award for the Shack App.

Todd Masonis is co-founder and CEO of Dandelion Chocolate. After graduating from Stanford University in 2001 with a degree in Symbolic Systems specializing in Computational Linguistics, he co-founded the internet start-up Plaxo with his friend Cameron Ring, which was sold to Comcast in 2008. After leaving the tech world, he reignited his lifelong love of chocolate through a traveling sabbatical, studying everything from the old chocolate making traditions in France to the best way to grind cocoa beans in his kitchen. Soon enough, in 2010 he and Cameron founded Dandelion Chocolate, a small-batch, bean-to-bar chocolate factory with locations in San Francisco and Japan.