Tuesday, April 28

This session will meet the new sexual harassment training requirement for all California employers.

GGRA Executive Director Gwyneth Borden will provide an update on the industry gleaned from data and trend information specific to the San Francisco Bay Area and discuss some of the upcoming challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. After she will be joined by the President & CEO, Visit California, followed by California Restaurant Association Public Affairs lead who will discuss what's going on at the state level that will impact restaurants. Additionally, we will hear from the head of the California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA), who are working to bring PAGA (Private Attorneys General Act) reform.

Speakers
Caroline Beteta, President & CEO, Vist California
Matthew Sutton, Vice President of Government Affairs & Public Policy, CRA
Tom Manzo, Founder & President, CABIA

As restaurants look for ways to expand revenue streams and extend their brand, there are a variety of opportunities to license your brand, sell branded products via retail or even franchise. Airports, stadiums and new development deals provide an a vehicle to license your brand without having to do all the operational components. This panel will explore the opportunities for expanding your brand and cover the common legal and other considerations to take into account.

Moderator:
Roberta Economidis, Attorney, Georgopoulos & Economidis LLP

Speakers:
Tony Gemignani, Owner, Tony Gemignani Restaurant Group
Hanson Li, Managing Partner, Salt Partners
Huy Pham, President & CEO, Innovative Retail Group

Come hear pitches from a variety of restaurant tech solutions and share your honest feedback. This will be a fun moderated session where you can hear about some of the latest technology products others are using and decide if they work for your restaurant. At the end, attendees will be able to vote for their favorite solution pitched.

Speakers:
Bradley Mart & Steve Edelson, Frylow
Dan McMurtie & Kevin McCullogh, Simple 123
Jose Luis Roqueñí Galindo, Hello Genio
Hava Volterra, Parsley

Judge:
Justin Richardson, The City POS

Moderator:
Liam Mayclem, SF Foodie Chap

The passage of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) transformed how public spaces need to be accommodating to all. However, conflicting building requirements among state and local governments and ambiguity in federal guidelines has allowed enterprising attorneys to exploit the confusion, often leaving restaurants feeling targeted. And as businesses employ new tools like websites and online ordering, new issues have arisen for compliance. This session will cover some of the common pitfalls that restaurants face when trying to be ADA compliant and provide attendees with a checklist to ensure their restaurant can be welcoming to all.

Moderator:
Regina Dick-Endrizzi, Director, Office of Small Business

Speakers:
Brian Cotlove, COO, BentoBox
Angela Jemmott, Executive Director, California Commission on Disability Access (CCDA)
Gi Paoletti, Principal, Gi Paoletti Design Lab
Andrew Sommer, Partner/Attorney, Conn Maciel Carrey LLP

There are economic indicators that suggest growth will be slow this year for the restaurant industry with the exception of delivery. And while more restaurants than ever are on at least one or many platforms, some restaurants are determining that their labor costs and delivery check size are not helping the bottom line. While others are building new concepts with the intention of delivery being core to their business. Who does delivery work for and what’s the formula for success? Can including alcohol be a factor? This panel will explore the economics of delivery to assess whether it makes sense for your business.

Moderator:
Katie Burke, Reporter, San Francisco Business Times

Speakers:
Andrew Ghetia, Area Director, 4505 Burgers & BBQ Restaurant
Sydney Lynn, Director of Client Advisory Services, Restaurant Solutions, Inc.
Mirco Tomassini, General Manager, The Italian Homemade Company
Evan Rich, Chef-Owner, RT Rotisserie/Rich Table

Many restaurateurs who plan to do multi-location concepts, often consider whether a move to the suburbs could be in their near future. Suburban locations can offer lower lease rates and less regulatory requirements. However, they also present a different set of challenges related to labor and clientele. This panel will hear from those restaurateurs who have taken the suburban plunge and will discuss everything from negotiating a lease for a strip or shopping mall location, to hiring and suburban customer behavior.

Moderators:
Jenna Webb, Client Manager, The Culinary Edge

Speakers:
Joe Hargrave, Founder/CEO, Tacolicious
Roland Passot, Owner, Left Bank Brasserie/ La Folie
Steve Zimmerman, President/CEO/Principal Broker, Restaurant Realty Company

Today’s culinary landscape is crowded. Traditional outlets like grocery stores and quick service chains are increasing their grab and go selections. Pop-ups, food trucks, carts, and meal kit delivery services seem to be everywhere. Even nontraditional competitors are becoming more popular such as department stores including food and beverage outlets in their concepts. How do we all compete for the same dollar? This panel will explore the growth in the trend of food as the new daily experience. We will look at what keeps customers coming back, where they find value and how convenience, overall experience and loyalty play a part in final decision making.

Moderator:
Mat Schuster, Chef/Owner, Canela Bistro & Bar

Speakers:
Josh Harris, Founder, The Bon Vivants + BV Hopsitality
Jacky Recchiuti, Co-founder and Creative Director, Recchiuti Confections
Justin Richardson, President, The City POS
Jeremy Threat, Founder, Shieldwall Consulting LLC

Restaurants are community gathering places, where people come together to break bread with friends for dinner, holidays, weekends, and more. Working long hours, being away from family and friends at the precise times when they’re free, the overall pace of work, and more, attributes to the challenges of alcohol and drug addiction as well as other unhealthy and bad behaviors. This panel will explore how to find work/life balance and deal with mental health and addiction issues while working in the industry.

Moderator:
Carolyn Alburger, Eater Cities Director, Vox Media

Speakers:
Gabriel Barba, Learning & Development Director, Alta Group
Nicholas Cardé, Psy.D, Psychologist
Dennis Leary, Chef, Sentinel
Patrick Mulvaney, Chef/Owner, Mulvaney's B&L
Daniel Patterson, Founder, Alta Group

Location: Hotel Nikko Ballroom