8 insightful quotes from emerging-concept insiders

Hundreds of emerging-chain operators and others gathered this week in Los Angeles for the 2019 Restaurant Directions conference. Speakers offered guidance for those in the midst of trying to grow young brands. Here are some of their most memorable and insightful quotes.

“I invest in restaurants because I consider it supporting the arts.” —Phil Rosenthal, creator of “Everybody Loves Raymond” and host of “Somebody Feed Phil”

“When putting plant-based items on the menu, scream flavor and whisper health.” —Zak Weston, foodservice analyst, Good Food Institute

“Team before self is an important mantra. We’ve had no corporate turnover since Day 1.” —Scott Taylor, president and COO, Walk-Ons Enterprises Franchise LLC

“The world doesn’t need another version of someone else’s idea.” —Michael Lastoria, CEO and co-founder, &pizza

“The tech that can’t be outsourced is human creativity. Everyone should embrace a secondary role as innovator.” —Josh Linkner, tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist

“[New restaurant owners] gotta be in the saddle. There’s no way to get it done than to be there. That connection between you and the guest, you and the team, is vital. It’s a people business. We’re selling an energy.” —Guy Fieri, chef, restaurateur and host of “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives”

“To automate for automation’s sake is something that’s very risky. You have to have the customer in mind. It has to have some sort of customer benefit.” —Joe Pawlak, managing principal, Technomic

“There’s a lot of excitement about consumer-facing technology. But when we polled Gen Z consumers and asked them about robots delivering food to their table or door, more are disinterested than interested in it. Tech for them is about facilitating a social experience.”

—Robert Byrne, senior manager of consumer insights, Technomic