The Cutting Onions Podcast

On the Cutting Onions Podcast, restaurant executives Bobby Shaw and Myles Gift celebrate leaders and organizations that build strong people cultures that develop other leaders. Bobby and Myles interview leaders who have built amazing cultures in their organizations through developing great leaders who produce amazing results, the right way.

The Cutting Onions Podcast is a business podcast hosted by Bobby Shaw, with 115 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Bobby Shaw hosts The Cutting Onions Podcast, a business show with 115 episodes published.

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  The Cutting Onions Podcast

  114. Carlo D'Amore, Founder of Live In Theatre, Talks about the Importance of Play and the Power of Story

  Aug 14, 202643 min

  Welcome back to The Cutting Onions Podcast. Myles and I are so excited to present this conversation with Carlo D’Amore. Carlo is an actor, playwright, director, producer, experience designer, and the founder/creative director of Live In Theater (LIT) . His professional theater career spans more than three decades and includes Broadway appearances in Summer and Smoke and Latinologues , as well as Off-Broadway, regional theater, film, and television work. We spent a great deal of time in this episode talking about the importance of play and the power of storytelling and how that works in the theater, but also how that impacts the hospitality world in powerful ways. There are more similarities than you might think. Storytelling isn't merely something Carlo does professionally. There is a very personal connection between story, identity, truth, performance, and survival in his life. We loved this conversation know you will too.

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  Episode #113

  113. Mike DeJong, Restaurateur and Author of Grow Smart joins us today for a conversation about The Operator Trap

  Aug 12, 202656 min

  What happens when the thing that made you successful becomes the very thing holding your business back? On this episode of The Cutting Onions Podcast , we sit down with Mike DeJong for a conversation about growth, leadership, systems, and one of the hardest transitions entrepreneurs and operators have to make: learning how to step out of the day-to-day without becoming disconnected from the business. We talk about what Mike calls the “Operator Trap” —when the leader becomes the person everyone depends on to solve problems, make decisions, and keep things moving. That may work for a while. But it doesn’t scale. We get into building systems without creating bureaucracy, developing leaders who can make good decisions without you in the room, understanding the metrics that really matter, and recognizing when your organization is truly ready to grow. One of my favorite parts of the conversation is the tension between letting go and staying connected . Great leadership isn’t about disappearing from the business. It’s about building people, systems, and clarity so the business doesn’t require your constant intervention. If you’re an entrepreneur, restaurant operator, or leader trying to build something bigger than yourself, I think you’ll get a lot out of this conversation. Growth shouldn’t require more heroes. It should require better systems and stronger leaders. We had a mishap with the audio last week, so it sounds like Mike and I are in a pool! But I promise you we weren’t. The convo was so good, I am sharing it as is. We hope you enjoy it!

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  Episode #112

  112. Jim Varney, co-founder of Wavelength Coffee Roasters talks Coffee, Sustainability, and Storytelling.

  Jul 23, 20261h 5m

  On today's episode of The Cutting Onions Podcast , we are excited to feature our conversation with Jim Varney. Jim is an industrial designer, engineer-minded entrepreneur, sustainability advocate, and co-founder of Wavelength Coffee Roasters . After roughly 25 years in product development and design, he made a significant mid-career pivot into specialty coffee. Alongside his wife, Deanna, they founded Wavelength in Massachusetts in 2025, officially launching the brand in November of last year. The most compelling part of Jim's story is not simply that he started a coffee company. It is that he is applying industrial design, technology, systems thinking, and environmental sustainability to an industry still dependent on many traditional processes. He and Deanna really want to show what the future can look like for roasting coffee beans. We also spent time discussing the power of storytelling and how that is central to the Wavelength brand. There is a fully integrated message from the roastery to farmers' markets, to the website, to the packaging. This was such an inspiring conversation, and we can't wait for you to hear it. Check out this episode wherever you consume your podcast content.

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  Episode #111

  111. The Lost Art of Restaurant Orientation

  Jun 26, 202637 min

  On today’s episode of The Cutting Onions Podcast, Myles and I continue to the conversation about the basics of the business and talk about the lost art of restaurant orientations. This is a basic fundamental of the business that is crucial to having engaged, inspired, and excellent team members. Here is some of what we talked about in our conversation: Technology (LMS, onboarding software) is a useful tool, but cannot replace human conversation, eye contact, and culture transfer The industry has drifted toward mistaking the administrative package for a real orientation Orientation is the first promise leadership makes to a new team member Follow-up orientation is where you prove you meant it Culture immersion starts in the interview process and continues through the orientation. Our challenge to you this week: Talk to your newest team member and ask these powerful questions: Is there anything we could have done differently to make your onboarding better? What was confusing or unclear? Who has helped you the most? This signals your openness to feedback early. Then, pick one thing and fix it, and circle back to let them know you made the change. As Myles said, the orientation sets the tone for how the rest of the employment experience will go. Check out this conversation wherever you consume your podcast content!

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  Episode #110

  110. The Return of Operational Discipline

  Jun 11, 202633 minS0

  <p>Today on The Cutting Onions Podcast, Myles and I talk about the return of operational discipline. </p><p>Here’s what we know: </p>Restaurants are entering a season where fundamentals matter more than ever.Technology, AI, dashboards, kiosks, loyalty platforms, delivery, and automation are all useful tools, but they do not replace the discipline of running a great shift.The winning operators will consistently execute labor, food cost, cleanliness, speed, hospitality, prep, manager presence, opening routines, closing routines, and daily communication.Operational discipline is not old-school. It is the foundation that makes growth, hospitality, and technology actually work.<p>Th...

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