Host Tal Clark, CEO of Instant Financial, welcomes Melissa Doolin-Koehne, founder of Elevate 4 and chair of the Texas Restaurant Foundation, to discuss her restaurant-industry background and current work advising brands on purpose-driven growth. Melissa recounts being raised in the industry and launching Elevate 4. She highlights the Texas Restaurant Foundation’s ProStart Invitational, drawing 1,000+ high school competitors and offering scholarships. They discuss a “tepid” 2026 outlook amid inflation, tariffs, oil prices, and consumer trade-downs, emphasizing brand promise, value via experience, simplified operations, and employee-focused innovation starting with designing a great shift.

00:00 Welcome to the Podcast

00:40 Meet Melissa Doolin-Koehne

01:43 Melissa’s Restaurant Journey

03:12 Inside Black Box Intelligence

05:06 Texas ProStart Spotlight

07:47 Restaurant Industry Outlook

10:45 Why Some Brands Win

12:47 Employee Experience Innovation

15:02 Why Texas Leads Restaurants

17:35 Part Two Teaser and Wrap

Instant Financial: instant.co

Connect with Tal Clark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-clark-a60776b/

Connect with Melissa Doolin-Koehne: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-doolin-koehne/

References:

Texas Restaurant Association: https://txrestaurant.org/
Texas Restaurant Foundation: https://www.txrestaurant.org/TRF/
Black Box Intelligence: https://blackboxintelligence.com/
Raising Cane's: https://www.raisingcanes.com/home/