620: Steve DiFillippo on Following Your Passion
Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore
Release Date: 06/03/2019
Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore
Chris Florczak is the CEO of . Risen consists of one concept with four location and a fifth soon to open. The concept is Rise, originally located in Dallas and opened in 2008. Chris got his start with an internship at Hillstone Group and he quickly was given a job offer and worked there for 16 years. In 2016, he was offered the COO position at Rise and in 2021 he became CEO and the umbrella group, Risen, was created with sights set on scaling. Join the TODAY! Restaurant Unstoppable - - Eric of Restaurant Unstoppable is now taking consultation and coaching calls! Book a consultation...
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Samir Watter is the COO at based in Dallas, TX. Samir joined Layne's in 2021 when there were only 7 total locations. Before that, he held impressive roles and big franchise companies like Denny's, where he worked for 10 years starting as AGM until heading the opening of 30 locations by the end of his tenure there. He also worked for La Salsa for 10 years as director of ops, where he opened 30 locations for that company as well. Today, Layne's has 25 locations and continues to grow. Join the TODAY! Restaurant Unstoppable - - Eric of Restaurant Unstoppable is now taking consultation and...
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Thom Crosby is the CEO of , HQ'd in Kingstwon, TN. Pal's Sudden Service was first opened in 1956 in Kingstown, TN. Thom came on board in 1981 to help them grow. Thom's experience prior to Pal's was in corporate McDonald's and corporate Long John Silvers, as well as a franchisee with Wendy's. Today Thom is the CEO of Pal's and the company has 31 locations. All but 2 Pal's locations are drive-thru only. Thom is a true believer and member of . David McClaskey was featured on the podcast, episode 1182, and you can learn more about him and his company here:...
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Zane and Brandon Hunt are the co-founders of . VIA 313 is a Detroit-style pizza chain. This is The Hunt Bros. third time on the show. They first joined us for episode 560 in 2018 and again in 2021 for episode 826. In 2021, they had 5 locations and today they have 24! Interested in as recommended by the Hunt Bros.? Check it out here: https://www.restaurantunstoppable.com/mcclaskey-institute Join the TODAY! Restaurant Unstoppable - - Eric of Restaurant Unstoppable is now taking consultation and coaching calls! Book a consultation today! Schedule your call to become UNSTOPPABLE! Check...
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Matthew Mabel is a consultant, advisor, coach and President of . Surrender is a hospitality and management-consulting firm based in Dallas, TX. Matthew was last on the show for episode 518! For this in-person workshop, Matthew will take the listeners through growing restaurants in three different major and specific phases of growth. Join the TODAY! Restaurant Unstoppable - - Eric of Restaurant Unstoppable is now taking consultation and coaching calls! Book a consultation today! Schedule your call to become UNSTOPPABLE! Check out the website for more details:...
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Garrett Reed is the CEO of . Garrett got his start in the real estate business right out of college as a site selector for Radio Shack in he 90s. By the early 2000s he had moved on to Starbucks where he served as Real Estate Director for the east and west coasts. In 2005 he started his own real estate business and in the mid-2010s he began the search to own a restaurant brand and/or franchise. He bought Layne's Chicken Fingers in 2017 and became CEO and Partner. Layne's began in 1994. There are 25 locations as of this recording (April of 2025) with plans to open a new location every month for...
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Michael Praver is the founder of Michael's company specializes in helping businesses secure capital without the stress of traditional lending. Their mission is to help businesses secure fast, reliable, and customized funding solutions that empower businesses to thrive. This workshop covers How To Get Funding with expert Michael Praver. Workshops can be found every Thursday in the Restaurant Unstoppable podcast feed or on YouTube. Most have a visual component, so consider watching the video version . Join the RUNetwork to take part in workshops and ask the experts YOUR...
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Rachel Cope is the Founder and CEO of based in Oklahoma City, OK. 84 Hospitality consists of 4 concepts in 10+ locations in and around OKC. The brand started with and the newest restaurant is , a fine-dining restaurant in OKC. They also operate , , and . Rachel was previously on the show for episode 778 in 2021. Join the TODAY! Restaurant Unstoppable - - Eric of Restaurant Unstoppable is now taking consultation and coaching calls! Book a consultation today! Schedule your call to become UNSTOPPABLE! Check out the website for more details: https://www.restaurantunstoppable.com/evolve Today's...
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David DeLorenzo is the CEO and Owner of . David DeLorenzo specializes in bar and restaurant insurance, but he is also a speaker, author, coach, as well as host of a mastermind and more than one charity organization. On top of all this, he has been an owner of 13 restaurants in his career. David was previously on the show for episode #1087 about a year ago! This workshop covers Workers' Compensation Deep Dive and Best Practices with expert David DeLorenzo. Workshops can be found every Thursday in the Restaurant Unstoppable podcast feed or on YouTube. Most have a visual component, so consider...
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Zack and Silvana Walters are the Owners/Partners at Sedalia's Oysters & Seafood located in Oklahoma City. Zack and Silvana are married and met in 2017. Prior to 2017, Zack went to culinary school and eventually opened his own butcher shop/deli in LA in 2010 with a partner which was very successful. He left that venture in 2016 to work in another restaurant where he met Silvana who worked FOH there. Silvana lived in NYC and worked FOH in various restaurants before loving to LA to work in an art museum and work restaurants. Silvana worked under Will Guidara before she met Zack. After...
info_outlineSteve Difillippo started his restaurant career at a young age and would go on to attend Boston University and Cambridge School of Culinary Arts. In 1985, He took over Davio's of Boston at the young age of 24. 33 years later he has grown the Davio's brand to 10 separate locations which include 5 locations in MA, 2 Locations in PA, one location in Manhattan, Atlanta, and Irvine, CA.
The Davio's brand also has a food company, which spun off the concept of their Philly Cheese Steak Spring Rolls.
Lastly, Mr. DiFillippo is the author of the restaurant business book It's All About The Guest: Exceeding Expectations in Business and in Life, The Davio's Way
Catch Steve DeFillippo's first appearance in Episode 003 of Restaurant Unstoppable.
Show notes…
Favorite success quote or mantra:
“Follow your passion. Figure out what you want to do in life and do it.”
In this episode with Steve DeFillippo we discuss:
- Julia Child
- Learning to cook as a child
- The love of serving people and cooking
- Passion for people
- If you’re not a people person, don’t get into the restaurant industry
- Food is important but hospitality matter more
- Mentors
- Learning how to deal with people
- Pay attention (situational awareness)
- Learn more from people in other environments
- Mindfulness
- Never quitting
- Do your best, but don’t worry about winning
- It’s not about money, its about knowledge
- Loving what you do
- The history of Davio’s prior to Steve’s acquisition
- The importance of culture
- The importance of adhering to your own standards
- The importance of a to-do list
- Knowing when to grow
- Can’t have your head in the sand
- Self-awareness
- Accountability
Today's sponsor:
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Revel Systems integrates front of house and back of house operations into a single dashboard. Designed to increase security, stability, ease of use, and speed of service, Revel’s streamlined ecosystem provides businesses with the right tools to grow. Learn more at revelsystems.com/unstoppable.
Knowledge bombs:
- Which "it factor" habit, trait, or characteristic you believe most contributes to your success?
- Run every morning
- What is your biggest weakness?
- Eat too much
- What's one question you ask or thing you look for during an interview?
- "What do you do to be philanthropic?"
- What's a current challenge? How are you dealing with it?
- Finding the right people
- Share one code of conduct or behavior you teach your team.
- Be yourself
- What is one uncommon standard of service you teach your staff?
- do whatever it takes. Eye contact. Never say no.
- What's one book we must read to become a better person or restaurant owner?
- The TB12 Method by Tom Brady
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- The TB12 Method by Tom Brady
- What's the one thing you feel restaurateurs don't know well enough or do often enough?
- They don't take care of their people as much as they should.
- What's one piece of technology you've adopted within your four walls restaurant and how has it influence operations?
- Cameras
- If you got the news that you'd be leaving this world tomorrow and all memories of you, your work, and your restaurants would be lost with your departure with the exception of 3 pieces of wisdom you could leave behind for the good of humanity, what would they be?
- Love what you do.
- Show up every day, give it your all, don't coast
- Never forget where you came from, stay humble
Contact info:
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stevedefillippo
Instagram: @daviosrestaurant
Thanks for listening!
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Huge thanks to Steve DeFillippo for joining me for another awesome episode. Until next time!