Friends of Branded!
Happy Saturday and I hope you had a great week.
A combination of the recording of a podcast, the reading of an industry report and the bumping into some friends at an ice cream shop before heading home to write the newsletter is the driver of this week’s Top of the Fold.
Inspiration can come from any number of sources. This week it became clear what I wanted to write about while enjoying a small (I swear I only had a small) cup of cookies & cream by the good people at Van Leeuwen.
Branded entered the world of emerging ResTech with investments into PourMyBev, a labor-savor & manufacturer of guest experiences, and Chowly, an online integration platform for delivery ordering that has now become the single tool to power everything outside the 4 walls for operators. Our second and third investments were in first-party delivery companies, GoParrot (acquired by Square) and Bbot (acquired by DoorDash).
With 3 out of first 4 investments focused on off-premises dining, one of Branded’s earliest investors asked me why we were so focused on this segment of the market. I remember him specifically saying why don’t restaurants just sign-up and use Uber, how complicated is that?
Despite the photo above, I had no negativity towards my friend and investor then, and I don’t have any negativity to him now. It’s been a strong conviction of Branded that our industry is incredibly misunderstood b/c everyone projects their guest experiences onto it.
No matter how many times I fly on a plane (and I’ve taken more than my share of flights as a self-proclaimed road warrior), I can neither fly a plane nor build one. There are many experiences I have as a customer, client, patient and otherwise, but I still don’t project my experiences onto the respective business I’m interacting with and believe myself to be a subject matter expert. Such is uniquely not the case with hospitality, and everyone has an opinion, and I dare say, a belief or expectation that this is an industry they truly understand (despite having no experience working in it).
The hit series, The White Lotus could be used as a master class for the restaurant industry with its display of guest entitlement and the associated power dynamics. The show particularly hits on the theme of an illusion of hospitality where the staff is expected to smile and cater to guests needs, regardless of how they’re treated or just how much the guests don’t understand the operations or workflow.
But I digress, as I often (and intentionally) do. 😊
I’ve written about off-premises dining before and how the percentage of such dining spiked during the pandemic (although its recently become quite stabilized). Unlike the airline and hotel industries, that were initially and only temporarily intermediated by 3rd party platforms, the restaurant industry lost its guests to the 3rd party delivery platforms (“3PDs”). Our industry is a most a most fragmented one (which is the opposite of the airline and hotel industry), and we’ve never been able to reclaim our guests.
But the times they are a-changing!
According to our friends & partners at Qu, and its 6th annual State of Digital report, winning back the guest ranked as the single highest priority for operators in 2025 and for the restaurants, that means the doubling-down on first party digital ordering.
The economic impact of 1st versus 3rd party delivery to operators is no small thing. To be clear, it’s often the difference between a profitable order for the restaurant versus a money losing one. Leaving aside the act of the food leaving the venue and arriving at the guests’ door (b/c that needs to happen whether the order is placed to 1st party or 3rd party platform) the difference in costs to the restaurants are as low as a simple SaaS (software as a service) fee versus a 20% take-rate on the amount of the order (the math here isn’t complicated as most restaurants don’t operate with 20% margins).
But the costs of 3PDs go beyond the take-rate, as engagement with 3PDs results in their owning the guests and the associated data. Guest data is a valuable resource and is fast becoming a currency restaurant operators know they need to reclaim guests from the 3PDs.
There is not and will never be 3rd party delivery platform bashing in the H^2. The role the 3PDs play is too important and that includes exploration and the finding of restaurants on their respective platforms along with the ease in which guests can engage with their favorite restaurants. Particularly when it comes to larger restaurant companies (and I’m referring specifically to unit count here), the take-rate is often far lower (think 10%), and the guest data is shared. Such an arrangement with a 3PD is typically only available to some of the larger and more high-profile restaurant companies, but my point here is that working with the 3PDs is often the right and an easy decision for restaurants.
Again, according to the Qu survey, 40% of brands said first-party digital ordering will drive the highest revenue growth in 2025 and that these brands are looking to remove 3rd party interference, own the guest relationship and increase profitability.
Shifting the ordering channel from 3PD to 1PD isn’t limited to quick service restaurants (“QSR”) and includes fast casual restaurants. This top technology trend towards owning the guest relationship extends beyond direct ordering and is closely tied to marketing, loyalty, mobile apps, and the associated guest data across each of these areas.
Owning guest data has become a high priority for operators and according to Qu’s report, investments in consumer data platforms are up 11% and are expected to continue to outpace investments in loyalty platforms (which are down 8% year-over-year).
While 40% of the respondents in Qu’s survey voted to make 1st Party Delivery platforms the industry’s highest priority, coming in second with 34% of respondents was a plan to invest in data platforms in 2025. Knowing and connecting directly with guests is widely understood to be a differentiating factor among fast casual operators while QSRs are focused more on investing in efficient transactional systems.
The theme of all the above is the industry’s deep desire to win back the guests and the if you follow the money, this is playing out in 1st party delivery platforms, digital & personalized marketing, and data platforms.
I know this is NOT the Shoutout Section, but it’s not possible for me to see operators shifting investment dollars to customer data platforms (“CDP”) and customer relationship management (“CRM”) platforms to drive effective loyalty platforms and for me not to think about and mention our friends at Fishbowl.
Operators, you can’t have a successful customer acquisition strategy and capture guests without knowing your guests. Branded’s engagement with Fishbowl is directly tied to its Guest Relationship Management (GRM”) which unifies guest data, automates marketing, and builds loyalty. Without the data, loyalty is more likely to be a loss leader, b/c it will be non-differentiated.
On the other hand, data-first strategies and loyalty paired with unified data platforms have the power to target the many, personalize the experience, and improve the lifetime value of the guest (and that’s how winning is done!). 😊
I want to close out this week’s Top of the Fold with a thank you and acknowledgement that I pulled a great deal of information from Qu’s 2025 State of Digital Report.
The final numbers I’ve pulled and will now share from the report are the actual number of participants and specifically the over 85,000 restaurants that contributed to this voluntary survey. This is an industry to shows up for each other and I’ve got to tip my hat to our friends at Qu for getting such a large number of operators to share their information and respond to the survey.
It truly does, take a village.
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This week we’re going to execute the Shoutout Section a little differently.
At Informa’s Restaurant Leadership Conference this week, the Branded team not only hosted Influencer Row (aka: “The Row”), but we did so in partnership with our friends from Foodbuy, Dinova and Qu. We also couldn’t have created as strong and deep a podcast line-up without the help of our podcast sponsors, Olo and DirecTV.
I’m super proud and feel very fortunate that Branded was afforded the opportunity to lead various activations out at RLC and we can’t wait to work with Informa on the next event.
I can’t wait for Branded to release the 17-pocasts we recorded at RLC, but there are a few things that I don’t think should wait until the respective release dates.
So, for this week’s Shoutout Section, I present a bevy of tidbits and discoveries that came from our podcasting at RLC.
Podcast with Mike Mano, COO at Jersey Mikes.
Schatz learned, despite his protesting with conviction, that Jersey Mike’s was NOT named after Mr. Manzo. 😊
Schatz also felt our chat with Mike did more for him and his now wanting to own being from New Jersey than 25 years of therapy.
Podcast with Kevin Bentley, VP, Head of Technology, Business, and IT Strategy, at Jollibee.
This is one of my favorite photos from our Influencer Row. Schatz has clearly said something, and Mr. Bentley and I are looking at one another and I think we’re having a discussion with our eyes on whether a smack may or may not be in order. For avoidance of any doubt, no smacks or injuries took place during the filming of this podcast. 😊
Podcast with Alison Quinn, CEO at Dinova.
As Branded’s “Finance Guy,” I like numbers and particularly big numbers. Alison dove into our podcast like boss and shared why corporate diners are more important than ever and how Dinova is helping operators tap into this high-value market. Dinova does this uniquely without disrupting the operations of the restaurants and how seamlessly they make it for operators to engage.
How big is this dining opportunity? $245 billion! Mic drop!
Podcast with André Vener, partner at Dog Haus.
André may not be happy with me when he sees the picture I selected from the recording of his podcast. Not only does Mr. Vener have the high watermark of our podcast’s most listen to episode, but our friends from Dog Haus dropped off trays of their awesome HausSliders as nourishment during the recording of the episodes.
Despite André’s success, generosity and continued friendship, I’m sharing this photo of Branded’s partners at Vistify who held court at Influencer Row and wowed operators with their dynamic menus and menu boards that help operators level-up and increase revenues and simplify operations. I swear, that really is André in the background recording a podcast with us! 😊
Podcast with Amir Hudda, CEO at Qu.
And finally, I want to include this photo of our friend Amir who not only dropped some serious knowledge on our recording but was the genesis of this week’s Top of the Fold when he shared some of the factoids from Qu 2025 State of Digital Report and specifically how many operators participated in this year’s survey.
I also get to share here that Mr. Hudda shared a great deal of information on Qu’s new IoT-powered smart kitchen and how Qu is one of the first major POS platforms to offer this technology. Qu’s new smart kitchen tool, the Energy and Equipment Intelligence System, allows operators to keep track of equipment in real time and alert operators when there is a problem. The tool is meant to keep energy costs down, predict when a piece of equipment needs maintenance, and extends the life of equipment by doing so.
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I want to use this week’s Access Hospitality section to highlight the amazing work from our friends and partners at Brooklyn Dumpling Shop “(BDS”), a pioneering Asian-inspired fast-casual food brand offering distinct menu items in its shops, in the frozen aisle and at home. This crew has been busy (especially in this month of April).
Earlier this month, BDS joined Yankee Stadium’s culinary concession scene. BDS is now bringing its distinct take on dumplings thanks to its partnership with the New York Yankees and Legends Hospitality (JB: is this like reason # 407 why The Stadium > Fenway Park?). 😊
Yankee fans and visiting fans will be enjoying hand-held bites throughout the stadium across multiple concession stands as well as inside premium clubs, suites and via Legends/Champions in-seat dining.
Brooklyn Dumpling Shop will continue its mission to deliver delicious, high-quality dumplings to a wide audience for years to come thanks to this multi-year partnership with the Yankees and Legends. Pulled from the announcement about this partnership, CEO Jeff Galletly shared, "The Yankees are one of the most recognized sports franchises in the world, and we are thrilled to partner with them to bring Brooklyn Dumpling Shop to a venue as iconic as Yankee Stadium. As our business continues to rapidly expand, this partnership is a major step forward in solidifying our position as a leading emerging player in fast-casual dining. We're excited to share our incredible food with such a dedicated fan base, and to showcase the championship combination of 'Let's Go Yankees!' and 'Everything's Better in a Dumpling!'."
But wait, there’s more!
Just 5 days after opening at Yankee Stadium, Brooklyn Dumpling Shop has now also taken its talents to the World’s Most Famous Arena (JB: is this like the WORST edition of the H^2?!?) and opened a concession stand at Madison Square Garden!
You can now find BDS at section 108 or in premium spaces & suites throughout The Garden.
These long-term partnerships with both Yankee Stadium and Madison Square Garden are emblematic of the tremendous momentum going on at Brooklyn Dumpling Shop.
Everything’s better in a dumpling!
For parties interested in exploring opportunities with Brooklyn Dumpling Shop and the work Branded is specifically focused on, please contact me directly.
It takes a village, and we serve delicious dumplings in ours! 😊
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Featured Episode: From Docks to Disruption: Michael Ungaro on Restaurant Transformation, Trends & Hilarious Food Tales
In this episode of Hospitality Hangout, we dive deep with Michael Ungaro — CEO, visionary, and third-generation owner behind the iconic San Pedro Fish Market and star of the hit Amazon Prime series Kings of Fi$h.
Michael shares his incredible journey of restaurant transformation, how to find lasting success in hospitality, and the secrets behind scaling a family-run institution into a national brand. From industry-shaping hospitality insights to laugh-out-loud funny food stories, this episode is packed with real talk, big ideas, and trends that every hospitality insider should be watching.
Whether you're into bold business moves, game-changing beverage strategies, or just love a good behind-the-scenes restaurant story — this one's for you.
🎧 Tune in, laugh, and learn how legends are made in the hospitality space
Tune into the episode and subscribe to our channel here: Hospitality Hangout With Michael Ungaro
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Are you loving the Hospitality Hangout? Let us know! Please leave us a review here!
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That’s it for today!
See you next week, same bat-time, same bat-channel.
It takes a village!
Jimmy Frischling
Branded Hospitality Ventures
jimmy@brandedstrategic.com
235 Park Ave South, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10003
Branded Hospitality Ventures ("Branded") is an investment and solutions platform at the intersection of foodservice, technology, innovation and capital. As experienced hospitality owners and operators, Branded brings value to its partners through investment, strategic counsel, and its deep industry expertise and connections.
Learn more about Branded here: Branded At-A-Glance