Here are some of the latest executive moves in the restaurant industry:
White Castle has promoted Anthony Joseph to the role of president. Formerly chief administrative officer and general counsel, Joseph is the first non-family member to hold the position in the company’s 104-year history. He has been with the company since 2016, and has led the company’s legal, risk management, organizational development, technology and corporate relations functions. He will now oversee White Castle’s retail and manufacturing divisions as well. Lisa Ingram, meanwhile, will remain CEO and board chair.
Bloomin’ Brands promoted company veteran Pat Hafner to president of Outback Steakhouse, its largest brand. It’s a full-circle moment for Hafner, who began his career as an hourly employee at Outback in 1996. From there, he rose to manager, managing partner, joint venture partner and regional vice president before jumping to sister concept Carrabba’s as VP of ops in 2018. In 2022, he was named president of Carrabba’s. As head of Outback, he will lead operations and development for the 674-unit steakhouse chain.
Anthony Valleta has been promoted to CEO of Bartaco, according to a LinkedIn post. The operations expert joined the casual-dining taco chain in 2021 as president. He replaces Bartaco co-founder Scott Lawton in the CEO role. Valleta said he looked forward to leading the 33-unit chain into this “new chapter.”
Drive-thru AI supplier Hi Auto hired Daniel Goldfeld as VP of customer success. Goldfeld will help support the company’s restaurant clients as they use Hi Auto’s technology. He previously held similar positions at tech companies Perimeter 81 and Logz.io.
The Kohler luxury resort in Kohler, Wisconsin, named RJ Cooper, a James Beard Award winner, as its new culinary director. Chef Cooper will oversee all food and beverage outlets throughout the property, including Immigrant Restaurant, The Wisconsin Room, The Horse & Plow, Tavern on Woodlake, Blackwolf Run Restaurant, Whistling Straits Restaurant and River Wildlife Restaurant. He previously oversaw food and beverage at the five-star Wheatleigh Hotel in the Berkshires.
Justin Mennen is the new chief technology officer at Shake Shack, effective Monday. He is the former EVP and chief digital and technology officer for Rite Aid Corp., and he has held leadership roles at Estee Lauder, Compucom and Dell Technologies.
The Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, D.C. has hired two new team members to helm food-and-beverage outlets there. Tom Murphy, previously general manager of the Doyle Bar there, is the new general manager for The Pembroke restaurant. Chrissy Sheffey, meanwhile, replaces Murphy as GM of Doyle Bar. Before joining the hotel, she oversaw the beverage program at The Jefferson Washington, D.C.
Kent Bearden has been promoted to the role of director of food and beverage at Hôtel Swexan in Dallas, which has five hospitality concepts. He served previously as GM of the private member’s club at the hotel called Golightly, and has worked at Carmine’s NYC, the MGM Grand Las Vegas and Pasea Hotel & Spa.
Daniel Bennett is the new executive chef at the Washington Hilton. He served previously as executive chef at the Hilton Austin. In his new role, he will oversee notable events at the historic hotel in Washington, D.C., including the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, the Congressional Club’s First Lady’s Luncheon and the National Prayer Breakfast.
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