Chipotle Mexican Grill's digital sales have grown rapidly since Curt Garner joined as chief information officer 10 years ago when digital orders accounted for just 5% of total revenue. Through initiatives such as eliminating fax ordering, launching a mobile app in 2017, and introducing a rewards program in 2019, digital sales steadily increased, reaching 10% of sales by 2018 and over 35% of total revenue by 2024. Digital channels now generate the company's highest-margin orders, and innovations such as Chipotlanes and gamified app campaigns continue to drive both engagement and revenue. Garner has also steered Chipotle's venture investments and implemented AI-powered HR tools.

The hospitality sector boasts a 67% AI adoption rate, yet many organizations find it challenging to integrate AI effectively into daily operations. While AI is increasingly used to optimize efficiency and support tasks such as order management and staffing, success depends on preparing employees to utilize these tools, says isolved's Yutaka Takagi. Effective AI adoption hinges on tailored learning that fits the unique needs and constraints of frontline workers, ensuring technology serves as an asset rather than a barrier.

Shake Shack Chief Financial Officer Katie Fogertey has implemented a data-driven strategy to enhance operational efficiency and profitability since joining the company in 2021. Fogertey built a data analytics team that created a new labor model based on what is sold, rather than sales alone, reducing wait times by more than a minute. Shake Shack has also focused on digital sales and strategic market expansion, with plans to expand to 1,500 locations from its current 330.

Manville Chan, the owner of The Story of Ramen, a San Francisco cooking school, has integrated AI for customer service and marketing. Chan uses Gemini to interpret incoming emails and ChatGPT to draft replies. Initially, Chan had to manually review all AI responses due to frequent errors, but over time, he has improved the AI's accuracy through better prompting. Now, 90% of email replies are sent automatically, with Chan only needing to edit 10%.

Social media is becoming a primary source of information for foodservice buyers, according to Belle Communication's 2026 Evolving State of Foodservice report. Restaurateurs are using digital platforms for menu inspiration, supplier recommendations and peer validation, consulting multiple sources before making purchases. Distributors remain important for fulfillment but less so for influencing product choices, and brands must focus on building operator demand through social media and chef endorsements.

BlindVine is an interactive wine-tasting game created by Denverite Eric Senescu to make wine education more approachable and fun. The game engages players in tasting five mystery wines and competing to identify their characteristics through app-driven questions, transforming the learning process into a social, competitive experience. Each BlindVine game kit includes five pre-selected 187-milliliter bottles--two whites and three reds.

Sunday's QR code payment system allows diners to quickly pay their bills by scanning a code at the table, streamlining the checkout process and reducing labor for restaurant staff. Beyond payment, the system prompts guests to leave reviews and tips, ultimately saving restaurants an average of 12 minutes per transaction and increasing both revenue and gratuities. The startup recently secured $21 million in funding to accelerate its expansion into new US markets such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, Nashville and Austin,Texas.

Café Vivant partners with an 80-acre regenerative farm in Pescadero, Calif., to source its Heritage breed chickens and other ingredients. The restaurant's approach, called "regenerative hospitality," emphasizes responsible farming, ecological stewardship and a closed-loop system where kitchen scraps nourish the soil. Executive chef Jared Wentworth brings his Michelin-starred experience to the restaurant, infusing the menu with creativity and reverence for premium ingredients.

At the 2025 Worlds of Flavor Conference in Napa, presenters explored how Mediterranean food traditions offer a foundation for innovation, rooted in the idea that respecting heritage does not require resisting change. Panelists and chefs emphasized that authenticity is a lived experience shaped by ingredients, stories and adaptation, while zero-waste and sustainability have long been embedded in Mediterranean foodways. Across sessions and demos, chefs demonstrated how tradition can be preserved, transformed and used to build deeper cultural understanding.