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668: Krista Kintop Phillips and Caitlin Kintop Fletcher on Sharing Passion

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Release Date: 11/18/2019

1293: Alexis Guttridge, Founder of Anchor Consulting show art 1293: Alexis Guttridge, Founder of Anchor Consulting

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to joinrunlive.com to get access to today's guest specifically OR join the newly relaunched Restaurant Unstoppable Network!    Alexis Guttridge is an experienced hospitality consultant and advisor who provides on-the-ground operational support for restaurants, hotels, and venues. Originally an NYC transplant who built a highly regarded career as a restaurateur and general manager in Boston, she is now based in Melbourne, Australia, where she focuses on optimizing venue workflows and front-of-house culture    Alexis...

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1292: Matt Wampler, co-founder and CEO of ClearCOGs show art 1292: Matt Wampler, co-founder and CEO of ClearCOGs

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on October 5th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to to get access to today's guest specifically OR join the newly relaunched Restaurant Unstoppable Network! Matt Wampler is the co-founder and CEO of ClearCOGS, a restaurant intelligence platform using AI and predictive analytics to help operators forecast demand and make smarter decisions around prep, purchasing, and labor. Before founding ClearCOGS, Matt took over a struggling Jimmy John’s franchise at age 21, turned it...

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1291: Adam Weisblatt, co-founder of Last Word Hospitality show art 1291: Adam Weisblatt, co-founder of Last Word Hospitality

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on September 28th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to to get access to today's guest specifically OR join the newly relaunched Restaurant Unstoppable Network! Adam Weisblatt is the co-founder of Los Angeles–based Last Word Hospitality, the restaurant group behind acclaimed concepts including Found Oyster, Barra Santos, Queen’s Raw Bar + Grill, Same Same Thai, and Red Dog Saloon. Since launching Last Word Hospitality in 2014, he has helped build people-driven,...

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1290: Danny Azzarello & Alan Frati, co-founders of CRACK’D Kitchen & Coffee show art 1290: Danny Azzarello & Alan Frati, co-founders of CRACK’D Kitchen & Coffee

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guests will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on September 28th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to to get access to today's guest specifically OR join the newly relaunched Restaurant Unstoppable Network! Danny Azzarello and Alan Frati are the co-founders of CRACK'D Kitchen and Coffee. Both guests grew up in restaurants and learned the fundamentals from working in profitable and system-heavy chains. They met while working together and decided to open CRACK'D in 2019. Today there are 5 locations, along with retail and...

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1289: Jeremy Fitzgerald, founder and CEO of 86DeadStock show art 1289: Jeremy Fitzgerald, founder and CEO of 86DeadStock

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on September 14th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to restaurantunstoppable.com/live -OR- to just catch today's guest, head over to restaurantunstoppable.com/cwe and we will get you a link to join that specific event for FREE! Jeremy Fitzgerald is an accomplished hospitality entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of , a peer-to-peer marketplace designed to help restaurants, hotels, bars, and other hospitality businesses buy, sell, and trade surplus inventory. With a bachelor’s...

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1288: Jesse Stein, founder and CEO of Hermetic AI show art 1288: Jesse Stein, founder and CEO of Hermetic AI

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on September 7th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to restaurantunstoppable.com/live -OR- to just catch today's guest, head over to restaurantunstoppable.com/cwe and we will get you a link to join that specific event for FREE! Jesse Stein is the founder and CEO of Hermetic AI, which develops AI-powered tools to help restaurants, hotels, and entertainment venues convert more private-event inquiries into bookings. A serial entrepreneur with multiple successful exits, Jesse has...

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1287: Meredith Tipping, General Manager and Head of Marketing at The Boston Sail Loft show art 1287: Meredith Tipping, General Manager and Head of Marketing at The Boston Sail Loft

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on August 31st, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to restaurantunstoppable.com/live -OR- to just catch today's guest, head over to restaurantunstoppable.com/cwe and we will get you a link to join that specific event for FREE! Meredith Tipping is the General Manager and Head of Marketing at The Boston Sail Loft, a longtime waterfront restaurant located on Atlantic Avenue in Boston’s North End. She has helped lead the restaurant’s operations, marketing, and business development...

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1286: Jason Santos, Chef/owner of Buttermilk & Bourbon Group show art 1286: Jason Santos, Chef/owner of Buttermilk & Bourbon Group

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to restaurantunstoppable.com/live -OR- to just catch today's guest, head over to restaurantunstoppable.com/cwe and we will get you a link to join that specific event for FREE! Chef Jason Santos is the chef/owner of the Buttermilk & Bourbon Group, a family of New Orleans–inspired Southern restaurants in Massachusetts including Buttermilk & Bourbon, Citrus & Salt, and related concepts. A Massachusetts native and Newbury College culinary grad, he rose through Boston kitchens before gaining national attention as the...

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1285: Kathy Terry on Employee Ownership Trusts: Why P. Terry’s Chose Legacy over an Exit show art 1285: Kathy Terry on Employee Ownership Trusts: Why P. Terry’s Chose Legacy over an Exit

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Today's guest will join the Restaurant Unstoppable Network for a live Q+A on August 24th, 2026 at 11AM EST. To join us and engage with all our guests and events, go to restaurantunstoppable.com/live -OR- to just catch today's guest, head over to restaurantunstoppable.com/cwe and we will get you a link to join that specific event for FREE! Kathy Terry co-founded with her husband, Patrick Terry, in 2005, opening the first location in Austin, Texas. Known as the company’s guiding conscience, she helped shape the brand’s mission around quality food, exceptional service, and community-minded...

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1284: Restaurant Profit Breakthroughs with Robert Sloop: AI, Kaizen, Tech Stack Implementation, and Fractional CFO Support show art 1284: Restaurant Profit Breakthroughs with Robert Sloop: AI, Kaizen, Tech Stack Implementation, and Fractional CFO Support

Restaurant Unstoppable with Eric Cacciatore

Robert Sloop is the CEO of , a consulting firm that helps restaurant operators improve financial performance, operations, and tech stack implementation. With over 30 years in foodservice, he has served as CFO for leading multi‑concept restaurant groups and now advises owners on data‑driven systems and continuous improvement. Join RULibrary:  Join RULive: Set Up your RUEvolve 1:1: Subscribe on YouTube: Subscribe to our email newsletter: Today's sponsors: -  - Private event leads die in inboxes every day. Mia fixes that. She's an AI agent that responds within seconds,...

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The Cheese Board in Reno, NV was founded in 1981 by Debbie Branby. Nearly 40 years later, in 2017, after about a decade of working at the Cheese Board for Debbie, sisters Krista Kintop Phillips and Caitlin Kintop Fletcher purchased their place of employment. The transition from employee to owner hasn't been easy, but they have handled it with grace.

Show notes…

Favorite success quote or mantra:

  • "What if you fall? What if you fly?"
  • There is no elevator for success; you have to take the stairs."

In today's episode with Krista Kintop Phillips and Caitlin Kintop Fletcher we will discuss:

  • Focus on best-case-scenario
  • Slow road to success
  • Women pioneers in the restaurant industry
  • Transformative relationships with your staff
  • Debbie Branby opening the restaurant back ion 1981 and its evolutions
  • Evolving with the market
  • Surviving recessions
  • The importance of inventory management
  • Insurance policies
  • "Oh shit" money and the need for it
  • Navigating emotional connections to your business
  • Partnerships/family partnerships
  • Lawyers and legality of buying a business

Today's sponsor:

BentoBox empowers restaurants to own their presence, profits and relationships. The hospitality platform disrupts third-party services that come between the restaurant and the guest. BentoBox puts the restaurant first and offers tools that drive high-margin revenue directly through the restaurant’s website. BentoBox is trusted and loved by over 5,000 restaurants worldwide including Union Square Hospitality Group, Eleven Madison Park, Gramercy Tavern, Lilia and more.

Restaurant365 is a cloud-based, all-in-one, restaurant-specific accounting and back-office platform that seamlessly integrates with POS systems, payroll providers, food and beverage vendors. It generates accurate real-time reporting and analysis in user-friendly dashboards, facilitating immediate, data-driven decision making. Restaurant365 eliminates manual, error-prone processes and is designed to help restaurant businesses grow with functionality that helps optimize labor costs, reduce food costs and increase revenue.

 

Knowledge bombs

  1. Which "it factor" habit, trait, or characteristic you believe most contributes to your success?
    • Hard work
  2. What is your biggest weakness?
    • Relinquishing control
  3. What's one question you ask or thing you look for during an interview?
    • "If you could anything from anywhere in the world, what would it be?" Looking for an authentic, interesting answer.
  4. What's a current challenge? How are you dealing with it?
    • SOPs - standard operating procedures
  5. Share one code of conduct or behavior you teach your team.
    • Respect each other
  6. What is one uncommon standard of service you teach your staff?
    • Humor, safe place
  7. What's one book we must read to become a better person or restaurant owner?
  8. What's the one thing you feel restaurateurs don't know well enough or do often enough?
    • Know their costs, watch their costs; avoid mistakes
  9. What's one piece of technology you've adopted within your four walls restaurant and how has it influence operations?
  10. 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?
    • Don't take yourself too seriously
    • Be authentic
    • All you need is love.

Contact info:

Website: www.cheeseboardcatering.com

Check out Krista and Caitlin's podcast The Good, The Bad, & The Drinking

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for joining today! Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

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Huge thanks to Krista Kintop Phillips and Caitlin Kintop Fletcher for joining me for another awesome episode. Until next time!

 

Restaurant Unstoppable is a free podcast. One of the ways I'm able to make it free is by earning a commission when sharing certain products with you. I've made it a core value to only share tools, resources, and services my guest mentors have recommend, first. If you're finding value in my podcast, please use my links!