Breakout Session / Monday / October 6, 2025 / 11:15 AM
AI in the Fast-Casual Kitchen: From Hype to Reality
Join us to explore the practical applications of artificial intelligence within the fast casual restaurant landscape.
We'll move beyond the hype and delve into real-world examples and actionable strategies for leveraging AI to:
- Optimize kitchen operations.
- Predictive inventory management.
- Streamline order fulfillment.
- Enhance food quality.
- Improve customer experience with personalized recommendations and AI-powered chatbots.
- Create targeted marketing.
- Identify emerging trends.
PANELISTS




Kyle Gordon | Co-Founder and CEO | Dillas Quesadillas
Kyle Gordon is a dedicated husband, father and restaurateur. He was born and raised in Austin, Texas, where he attended the University of Texas at Austin. After school, he spent many years as a leader in the restaurant industry. Then, in 2013, he started his own restaurant concept, Dillas Quesadillas. Dillas now has 11 locations, with many more under contract, over 400 team members throughout North Texas, East Texas and Louisiana, and has sales trending towards $20 million. In 2020, he was honored by the Dallas Business Journal as a 40 under 40 recipient and by the Nation’s Restaurant News as one of the Most Influential Restaurant Executives. He's a passionate hospitality guy with ketchup in his veins that has the vision to see Dillas worldwide. He and his wife and business partner, Maggie, have two children, Parker (14) and Grace (12), who you'll find him spending time with when he's not flippin' Primo quesadillas!

Ryan Jones | Vice President of Operations | TEAM Schostak Family Restaurants
Ryan Jones brings over 25 years of experience in the restaurant industry. He spent 15 years with the Lyons Group, Boston’s largest independently owned restaurant group, where he oversaw 26 restaurants across 20 distinct concepts—from James Beard award-winning fine dining in the heart of Boston to sports bars inside Fenway Park, live music lounges, and coastal seafood destinations. For the past three years, Ryan has led the Olga’s Kitchen brand at TEAM Schostak Family Restaurants, managing 24 brick-and-mortar locations, 15 ghost kitchens, a growing grocery retail presence, and the Olga Loizon Memorial Foundation, which awards grants to Michigan entrepreneurs who embody the bold, pioneering spirit of the brand’s founder.

Aaron Noveshen | Founder and CEO | Starbird Chicken