

FULL COMP: The Voice of the Restaurant Industry Revolution
Josh Kopel
What if I told you that the difference between struggling and thriving in the restaurant industry is just one conversation away?
I’m Josh Kopel, a Michelin-awarded restaurateur who’s spent decades building blockbuster brands across every tier of dining. I know the challenges you’re facing—because I’ve been there. That’s why I created FULL COMP.
Every week, I go one-on-one with the smartest minds in the game: restaurateurs, chefs, and industry insiders who’ve cracked the code. Together, we unpack their biggest wins, hardest lessons, and the strategies that changed everything.
No fluff, no filler—just actionable insights to help you boost profits, build your brand, and create the kind of restaurant you’ve always dreamed of.
So, if you’re ready to stop spinning your wheels and start seeing results, hit subscribe.
I’m Josh Kopel, a Michelin-awarded restaurateur who’s spent decades building blockbuster brands across every tier of dining. I know the challenges you’re facing—because I’ve been there. That’s why I created FULL COMP.
Every week, I go one-on-one with the smartest minds in the game: restaurateurs, chefs, and industry insiders who’ve cracked the code. Together, we unpack their biggest wins, hardest lessons, and the strategies that changed everything.
No fluff, no filler—just actionable insights to help you boost profits, build your brand, and create the kind of restaurant you’ve always dreamed of.
So, if you’re ready to stop spinning your wheels and start seeing results, hit subscribe.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 24, 2021 • 34min
How to Disrupt & Innovate: Joe Jackman, founder of Jackman Reinvents
Change is hard.
Becoming irrelevant is harder.
Today we chat we Joe Jackman who wrote the book on change.
Joe walks us through what real change can look like in our businesses, creating a blueprint for disruption and innovation within an industry that desperately needs both.
You can pick up The Reinventionist Mindset wherever books are sold.
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CLICK HERE to Chat with Josh
Free Download: 5 Steps to Achieve a 15% Net Profit
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook
Industry Town Halls

Sep 21, 2021 • 32min
Leading by Example: Steve Samson & Hans Luttman, co-founders of Rossoblu
So many restaurant owners have desperately fought for survival over the last 15 months.
Why? Is it for the money or the glory? Because both have been in short supply...
We do this to serve a higher calling, and the best of us light the path forward.
Today we chat with Chef Steve Samson & Hans Luttman, partners and operators of Rossoblu in Downtown Los Angeles. Together, they share what it took to create a hit, the effort that went into enduring the pandemic and how those experiences have impacted their path forward.
For more on Rossoblu visit https://www.rossoblula.com
________________________________
CLICK HERE to Chat with Josh
Free Download: 5 Steps to Achieve a 15% Net Profit
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook
Industry Town Halls

Sep 17, 2021 • 26min
What We Can Learn From a Franchise Model: Dennis McKinley, founder of The Original Hot Dog Company
Imagine, if when you started your entrepreneurial journey, you were provided with a plan for guaranteed success. Dennis McKinley did and he shares that plan with us today.
Dennis became a franchisee in his early 20's. He took that playbook, improved upon it and today sits as the franchisor of one of the fastest growing restaurant chains in the country. In today's conversation we take a peek inside that playbook for strategies we can implement in our own businesses.
For more on Dennis' concepts visit https://www.emergingfoodfranchises.com
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Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Sep 14, 2021 • 33min
The Business of Being a Chef: Nick Brune, founder of Full Time Chef
Nick Brune calls himself a chef but I'd call him a culinary entrepreneur.
The reason being is that he's as interested in the business of food as he is in cooking it.
In today's far reaching conversation we cover the path he took to master the business of hospitality, how he's applied those lessons to build multimillion dollar F&B businesses and how he's sharing those lessons with the world.
To learn more about Nick and to learn more from Nick visit https://fulltimechef.com
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Sep 10, 2021 • 26min
The Power of Focus: Kevin Tan, founder of Snackpass
Have you chosen your customers or have they chosen you? In an effort to achieve profitability many of us refuse to clearly state who is and who is not our target customer.
Kevin Tan chose a different path. In having a maniacal focus on his target customer, he's built a platform that's grown to over half a million users in just a couple of years. What's his revolutionary idea? Skipping the line at restaurants.
Today we talk about why such a simple solution has gone viral and how we can use the same strategies to create virility in our own restaurants.
For more on Snackpass go to https://www.snackpass.co
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Sep 7, 2021 • 32min
The Shortest Route to Profitability: Chip Klose of Restaurant Strategy
Can we make more money today? Like right now? Are there simple fixes to the problems we've been suffering from as an industry for the last, I don't know, 1000 years.
Most of us don't make enough money and today we're talking with Chip Klose, who's trying to fix that. In our conversation, Chip lays out some simple, easy to execute tips and tricks for scaling profitability and our overall online presence.
For more on Chip, go to www.chipklose.com
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Sep 3, 2021 • 29min
Best Practices from the Best Restaurants [PART 2]: David Ross, Brian Seitz & Chef Anthony Hamilton of Restauranttopia
I'm not crazy. There are definitely people that make an absolute fortune in this industry. They're just few and far between and and many haven't been willing to share their recipe for success.
But you can learn a lot from observing the masters at work. And that's the vantage point from which the team over at Restauranttopia views our industry.
They're working with the best in the business to create extraordinary results and today David, Brian and Anthony share the tactics and tools used by the best to create unstoppable restaurant brands.
To check out more on David, Brian and Anthony go to https://restauranttopia.com
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Aug 31, 2021 • 34min
Best Practices from the Best Restaurants [PART 1]: David Ross, Brian Seitz & Chef Anthony Hamilton of Restauranttopia
I'm not crazy. There are definitely people that make an absolute fortune in this industry. They're just few and far between and and many haven't been willing to share their recipe for success.
But you can learn a lot from observing the masters at work. And that's the vantage point from which the team over at Restauranttopia views our industry.
They're working with the best in the business to create extraordinary results and today David, Brian and Anthony share the tactics and tools used by the best to create unstoppable restaurant brands.
To check out more on David, Brian and Anthony go to https://restauranttopia.com
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Aug 27, 2021 • 43min
Restaurant Marketing That Works: Matt Plapp of America's Best Restaurants
The future of restaurant marketing is the current state of marketing in every other industry: data. Marketing is no longer about compelling diners to come to our restaurants, it's about compelling them to give us their contact info so that we can start a conversation.
Today's marketing strategy is more about them than it us about us. Leading the charge into this brave new world is Matt Plapp, a seasoned marketer who's practicing what he preaches by offering more value than he's taking.
Today we discuss his most recent effort, the book Restaurant Marketing That Works, in which he lays out the strategies and tools he uses to help restaurants scale to massive proportions. By the end of today's conversation, you'll have the plan you need to market like the big guys do.
You can buy Matt's book "Restaurant Marketing That Works" on amazon today.
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook

Aug 24, 2021 • 30min
The Future of Fine Dining: Jenner Tomaska & Katrina Bravo of Esmé
There's a new breed of restaurateur and it's pretty exciting to see. A younger generation bringing the best of the past together with a new vision of the future.
Today we chat with Chicago power couple Jenner Tomaska and Katria Bravo in the weeks before the opening of their new restaurant. These two cut their teeth in some of the best restaurants in the country and today they're sharing the lessons from the past that helped them create the future of fine dining.
For more on Jenner Tomaska and Katria Bravo go to https://www.esmechicago.com
________________________________
Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter
Book time on Josh's personal calendar
We have a lot more content coming your way! Be sure to check out the FULL COMP media universe by visiting:
FULL COMP
The Happy Mouth Morning Show
Restaurant Marketing School
The Playbook


