Neil Remedios is the UK & Ireland Operations Lead at Dave’s Hot Chicken. With a background in strategic leadership and hands-on hospitality experience, Neil has led the brand's explosive UK entry, blending operational excellence with local market insight.
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Conor Sheridan is the founder and CEO of Nory, an agentic AI restaurant management system alongside being the co-founder of Mad Egg. Conor blends hands-on restaurant experience with a passion for tech-driven efficiency and profitability in hospitality.
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You've got to make sure though that you're delivering on the commercials and I guess it's my job. If there's a fight in the meeting with design versus ops, ops always wins. You can't do things at the expense of covers if that starts to conflict with the original business plan.
Welcome to What's Cooking. Today we've got a super special episode for you live from the Hospitality Tech Expo in London's Excel Arena. This is the show where we talk about operators who want to perform and thrive and not just survive. Today's guest is Neil Romedios, the operations lead from Dave's Hot Chicken. He talks to us about how they went from zero to seven restaurants in less than 12 months and launched the incredible Dave's Hot Chicken into the UK with a massive bang.
Over 1,000 customers average per day, launching the fastest and biggest growing Dave's hot chicken in the world. Now let's get into it.
So Neil, great to have you here. Welcome to Halsen Cooking. Do you mind giving us a a brief intro into your background and how you came to be leading one of the fastest growing and most exciting brands in the UK?
Yeah, I started out only ever worked in hospitality, started out in McDonald's. I trained, my management training with Whitbread in the mid nineties and then moved to London. I worked for Maxar's Restaurant Group. So I ran a few sites around London, the West End and Chelsea before joining up to be part of the opening team at Byron Hamburgers. So yeah, I was there for six and a bit years. We grew that from zero to 40.
They are moved on when it's sold and then spent a few years in Hong Kong and China and then, yeah, find my way back to London with a few Rugrats and yeah, find myself back with the, the Gondola, with the Azuri guys and yeah, got involved with, with Dave's. So yeah, super pumped and yeah, going well and yeah, exciting few years ahead, I think.
Yeah, nice. Dave's is obviously a a cultural phenom the US. If anyone hasn't seen the news, they had a billion dollar acquisition, one of the fastest br growing brands of all time. Neil and his team at one point had the highest turning over Dave's restaurant in the world in London, an incredible achievement. It's obviously landed with a massive bang. Not all concepts localized to the UK from the US. What gave you the confidence that Dave was gonna absolutely crush it?
When I first went out to LA, met with the founders of the management team, we spent a few weeks trading and really getting close to the brand and the operation. And I think, straight away, the engagement with their team, the effort they put into the training, the detail of the operation, they're huge fun, did a fantastic job with us. And then just like the care that they put into the products.
and the process to make sure you've got real consistency there, which just gives us that great end product. We kind of knew at that point with the flavor, the Nashville style, that I think we had something that set us apart from the competition.
Yeah, incredible success story. averaging over a thousand guests a day in in Shaftesbury. So if you haven't been there, you have to hit that up and get a reaper into you and wipe those tears away. So if you move on from obviously like it's landed really well, but nothing lands like that without an incredible amount of work to to localize that. Could you talk to us a little bit about what went into that process? Was it pure copy and paste from the few hundred sites in the US or
Get a Reaper.
What didn't work and what had to be tuned specifically for the UK market.
Yeah, I mean, the objective and the goal was to copy and paste, you know, that's, what you've got to do. I think if you can do that really, really well, you know, you're going to execute exactly the same experience as they have in North America. And that was my goal. Yeah, I guess from going out there, like I said, and sort of getting really close to it, I the next step is getting back here, working out what's the same, what can you bring across? So like, you know, fryers, certain pieces of kit, great, you tick that off, brilliant. But then there's other things that are different, you know, oil.
different products and different things that they use over there. over here, so developing the menu and the product to make sure you account for that and having to tweak and change was a big part of it. You know, a lot of the products that we're using, they were achieving the same thing, getting new suppliers, new products, testing them, getting the Americans over to approve that and sort of make sure that they're happy with it. There's another big part as well. But yeah, you end up with copy and paste and you do end up with like, right.
You can't tell the difference between that Dave's source and this one here. This it's a Dave's source. Um, lot of the products we bring over the same, the spice is the same, you know, the pickle we fly in as well. But then there's other bits that are copying tweak, I guess. So a lot of the back of house systems, uh, ways of working, um, the whole safety aspects and QS obviously, uh, EHL over here have different requirements. So just adapting the way that they, they work to our ways of working and just.
making sure that communication between the two is really good. So yeah, I mean, it was relatively straightforward, but big piece of work before we open for sure.
So Dave's is obviously part of the broader Azuri group, one of the largest and most successful hospitality groups in the UK. How fundamental or how much of an excelerant was being part of that group in terms of like finding property, leveraging supply chain, central services around HOR, finance?
It was critical to meet the timeframe that we did it in. So the deal was done in June 24. We opened the doors to Chesapeake Avenue early December. So I think it's only because Azuri have got a great core teams there, finance, property. Yeah, Kieran, the property director, I think is very underplayed. was like.
It's going to take a year, Neil. Take it easy. You got loads of time. And then two weeks later, you signed a deal on Chesapeake Avenue. So he moved really, really quick. then mobilizing finance and group supply chain, finding the suppliers, super critical to getting the job done. yeah, that's exactly what they did. And six months later, we had it open. And like you said, within three months, we were trading.
top of the chain, busiest one there. So yeah, they continue to be a really good support as well. So it allows me to do my job and we've got a really good core team there supporting in all of those areas.
Nice. I suppose moving on to some of the challenges. We've talked on like obviously great support system. The brand has landed so well, been really well received from from the consumer in in London and now into new new cities. What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in in that rollout? And some of the early days are are typically quite hairy for restaurants opening up. Any war stories that you could give us?
I think the three months before the launch were the most difficult and lots of different work streams happening at once. What is a brand new team and we're all working together for the first time. So just working out everyone's strengths, weaknesses, are the ways of working, et cetera. We're building Chesapeake Avenue, we're recruiting a hundred people, we're training them at the same time, we're developing the products and entertaining the Americans when they come over. Now we're doing a...
pop up for 550 people in Shoreditch. We didn't have a site at that point, so we're calling in favors and prepping our chicken until 2 a.m. in the morning out of a tiny kitchen and then setting up in a makeshift car park. So doing all of those things and then kind of wearing lots of different hats from day to day and from hour to hour was really difficult, but something I'm phenomenally proud of and the team did.
an amazing job to go from that. And then when we opened the door to Chesapeake Avenue. Yeah, I mean, the if you want a nightmare, the opening night we opened the doors, I thought this this could be busy. This I think there's a lot of chap. And then I looked outside about four hours before we were due to open there were like six people there and I was like, Excuse me, this is Dave's like chicken, but yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, we're waiting. Okay, great. And then
Yeah, by the time we opened the doors, had a queue that had gone down past Albert Schloss and I had like nine different traders along Shasbury Avenue shouting at me for blocking their entrance. So we gave away a bit of chicken that night.
Very cool. That must have given you huge confidence though that the brand was gonna not just land but a bang but build up some serious momentum. Yeah.
Yeah. I mean, I was really happy with the product and it's obviously got a big online presence. It's a huge deal in the States. Will that sort of translate over to the UK? It was great to see those cues and get that buzz. We had the founders and the whole management team there for when we launched. We had just done the pop-up. That was also building a little bit of awareness. So yeah, I mean, that was the first time I think I looked up from having flour on your...
hands and all over you to kind of go and, okay, it's working and everyone's coming. then week two, week three, month two, month three, people are still queuing. Yeah, it was amazing.
Nice, really cool. If you look now, a little bit ahead of time, less than twelve months, but you're gonna finish that period with almost seven restaurants open, so incredibly quick scaling journey with huge growth plans going forward. To get from where you were to now, you've had to build a pretty robust operating playbook. How do you make sure things are consistent across sites, across cities, across regions?
while also balancing the creativity that Dave's is renowned for. So like UFOs in the ceiling, unbelievable guest experience, crazy hot sandos. How do you manage that? How do you manage the operational consistency? without everything breaking down when you're doing a thousand guests a night and you've six hundred people queuing outside? It seems like a recipe for successful mayhem, but a lot of challenges, no?
Yeah, I think you hit a nail on the head. You've got to balance it right. the design is already great. And the design team that I work with, they have a lot of fun as well. And I think if the venue allows for it and you can have a bit of fun, go for it. And they've done that, you know, the 10 foot UFO breaking through the ceiling at Birmingham. And we've got a wraparound screen that mimics Piccadilly Circus at Chaspi Avenue, which is fantastic as well. Great to have that.
And we'll do that and we'll invest in that in some key areas where the venue allows it. You've got to make sure though that you're delivering on the commercials. And I guess it's my job. If there's a fight in the meeting with design versus ops, ops always wins. And I guess you can't do things at the expense of covers if that starts to conflict with the original business plan and business case that you had for that site.
I stand firm when I need to, but also it's great to have that environment and that fun and that's got to be present as well. You don't always need a big feature piece. think we work with incredible graffiti artists out of LA that do an incredible job of the decor. But yeah, I'm all for pushing the envelope on that.
Nice. Long may it continue. So if we look forward, big plans for the business. We targeting a new opening every five weeks for the next twelve months, which is pretty incredible rate of growth. You've obviously signed European expansion for potentially a hundred and eighty new sites. Sixty in the UK is the next milestone just to unpack a little bit of that. What are you doing today, process wise, team wise, system wise, to make sure that you're gonna you're set up for success and set up to nail those targets?
I think you take it sort of year by year. Fair enough. And I think we've already got the core sort of elements and things in place for us to operate. And then I think you've got to take time to kind of work out what do need to tweak and change. And this year's challenge will be different to next year's. And the growth, already meeting that sort of growth, that speed of growth right now. So I think the real challenge is going to be.
just staying true to those values and making sure that you can execute site number 30 the same that you did site number four, five, 10 or whatever it is. And yeah, in terms of resource, yeah, I think it's all about people, right? And just I've already started to put more resource into our people team. The training team has tripled in size. And when you're opening, when you're opening, start to overlap.
It's really important that you're consistent with the training, the team know what they're doing, they've got time to bed into their site and you can execute flawlessly from the moment you open the door. So get the resource, stay true to the standards, stay focused on the basics.
You mentioned that earlier, nail the basics. Like everything is in place. You've got the product quality, the brand, guest experience. If you can just be consistent, you've just touched on tree Xing the people team and the training team. Why did you make that investment decision now? Was that to make sure each site is landing as you expect?
Exactly. Yeah. I'm not going to change the way that we open our site. So we have a handover from our property team and then we get to work getting ready for the guests. So I want to maintain that it works. It's good. So if you commit to that, yeah, it's building the resource around that to make sure you can deliver it consistently. yeah, doing 11, you need, you you might need six in Liverpool and another eight people in Nottingham or wherever else you're at.
Okay, nice. so if we think around future growth and those big numbers, so UK domination is on the cards, European domination fast follows to be the leading QSOR fried chicken brand. What could go wrong or what could stop you or what challenges do you foresee that might add friction to achieving that mission?
I mean, so far we can take a lot of confidence from the first six months. We're hitting all of our targets and KPIs that we set out from the start. And with every opening, we're sort of refining it and making it better each time. I think, you one of the differences with America and the UK is that it's easier to open on a flat square in America than it is to sort of go to two floor listed building in London and trying to work around that. So we're getting better.
more efficient every time we open. And I think the training team and the people team will get stronger and more confident as well. I think as long as we can stay true to those values, really commit to the products and don't compromise on it. Yeah, don't cut corners and really make sure you look after the guests. I think if you do that, then I think you'll deliver great value for your shareholders. And then that will then
build the road for the following year. So that's what I'm focused on in operations, right? Execute flawlessly and deliver the commercial. And yeah, if we can do that, then I don't think there's anything stopping us.
Very cool. Excited to see it. So life's all about learnings, as we all know. You fail, you learn, you iterate. I like to ask this question to people who come on the show, what have you learnt in the last twelve months and that will change how you act in the next twelve months, or any kind of personal failings or challenges that you'll go, okay, I'll make sure I won't do that again.
I think it's really important to be humble. I was new to sort of QSR, if you like. It's actually, it's a different style of working, working super quick. You've got less time to engage with the guest. So sort of pivoting and making sure that you focus on what the guest really wants from you, which is that operational efficiency, hot, fresh food, the correct order, efficient.
guest experience and an ordering experience is critical. Obviously I learned a huge amount about my team and going through, you asked about that, the hardest bit, that three months and sort of bringing days to the UK, I learned a huge amount in terms of how the business operates and continue to learn every week by breaking down the results from the previous week and what's working with this opening. We just opened Stevenage.
I was there this morning and I've put the chiller right next to the cook line thinking that's amazing. That's fantastic. Yeah, you just jump over there, do the prep, jump back on the line. Fantastic. It opens out right onto the prep, the plating line. So anytime someone access the chiller, they're getting in someone's way. And now I think, okay, sliding door next time for the walking chiller, that'll work. So, you you can continually...
learning and trying to make those tweaks and just try to, yeah, take time to make those considerations every time before you send the builders in, that's for sure.
It's no perfect playbook when you're moving that fast. and look like you've obviously nailed nailed it and done something right. Well look, Neil, appreciate you making time, jumping on the episode today. if any of you here haven't been to Dave's Hot Chicken, go immediately. You can meet us after and we'll pay for your Uber. Don't hold us to that. Thanks so much for sitting in and listening to today's episode. Thanks, Neil.
Thanks.
What an awesome episode of What's Cooking. Live here from London's Excel Arena at the Hospitality Tech Expo. Our first live podcast. Amazing audience, amazing interaction, and Neil smashed it. The fast and furious rise of Dave's Hot Chicken in the UK. Opening a new restaurant every five weeks, looking for a target of 60 in the UK, 180 in Euro. Keep your eyes on this brand. What an amazing show. See you next time.
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