Staying Hungry is back with a story every restaurant owner needs to hear. This week, hosts Michael D'Onofrio and Vinny Pappalardo sit down with Tarek, founder of Made by Lily's and The Dirty Cheesecake, to unpack the journey from baking with his daughter at home to building one of Long Island's fastest-growing dessert brands.

From a tiny Times Square storefront to sold-out nights in Smithtown and North Babylon, Tarek shares the real story behind entrepreneurship: surviving COVID, pivoting to cheesecake-on-a-stick, leveraging social media, building a loyal team, managing growth, and creating a brand customers can't stop talking about.

If you're a restaurant owner, bakery operator, food entrepreneur, or anyone looking to scale a local business, this episode is packed with lessons on branding, customer experience, hiring, franchising, social media marketing, and perseverance.

Timestamps:

00:00 – Entrepreneurship and stress: the ER story

01:05 – Meet Tarek from Made by Lily's & The Dirty Cheesecake

02:15 – Baking with his daughter and discovering a passion

05:20 – Leaving the limo business and taking a chance on Times Square

10:10 – Partner fallout and learning the bakery business alone

13:05 – COVID shuts everything down

15:45 – The cheesecake-on-a-stick pivot

18:50 – Scaling delivery through Uber Eats, DoorDash & Grubhub

23:30 – The exhaustion of building a business

29:15 – Closing Times Square and betting on Long Island

33:00 – The influencer marketing strategy that changed everything

37:40 – Opening Smithtown and selling out early

42:20 – The vision for The Dirty Cheesecake brand

46:10 – Building a team and company culture

53:15 – Expanding locations and future franchising plans

58:45 – Wholesale partnerships with restaurants and coffee shops

1:03:50 – Technology, delivery apps, and operational challenges

1:10:40 – Managing reviews and customer feedback

1:17:20 – From Egypt to New York: Tarek's immigrant journey

1:23:45 – Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs

1:29:30 – What's next for The Dirty Cheesecake?

In this episode, hosts Michael D'Onofrio and Vinny Pappalardo sit down with John Galatoulas, the driving force behind Burgerology, to discuss how he went from washing dishes in the family business to helping build one of Long Island’s most recognizable restaurant brands before the age of 20.

John shares the behind-the-scenes journey of growing Burgerology from a single location into a multi-unit restaurant group, navigating family business dynamics, surviving a devastating fire, scaling during COVID, leveraging social media marketing, and using technology and AI to improve restaurant operations. From viral milkshakes and hospitality lessons to labor challenges, food costs, delivery apps, and future expansion plans, this conversation is packed with practical insights for restaurant owners, entrepreneurs, and hospitality professionals.

Whether you're opening your first restaurant, managing multiple locations, or looking for inspiration from a family-owned success story, this episode delivers real-world lessons from the front lines of the restaurant industry.

Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction & meeting John Galatoulas

02:15 – The family’s restaurant roots and immigrant story

06:45 – Growing up in the coffee truck business

10:30 – New York Burger Bar and the road to Burgerology

15:20 – The fire that changed everything

19:05 – Opening Burgerology at just 20 years old

22:10 – How Burgerology got its name

25:15 – Learning the business from dishwasher to grill cook

29:00 – Scaling Burgerology across Long Island

33:15 – The viral milkshakes that helped build the brand

39:20 – Social media, influencers, and restaurant marketing

45:10 – Surviving and expanding during COVID

51:30 – Delivery apps and the future of restaurant ordering

55:15 – The reality of operating inside UBS Arena

1:03:40 – Growth strategy, operations, and SOPs

1:10:25 – Promoting leaders from within the company

1:14:50 – AI, technology, and controlling food costs

1:21:35 – Family business: rewards and challenges

1:28:20 – John's future vision for Burgerology

1:33:15 – Advice for aspiring restaurant entrepreneurs

1:37:00 – Favorite restaurants, steakhouses, and Greek food

1:41:00 – Final thoughts and closing remarks

Staying Hungry sits down with Mike Scotto, founder of Tony’s Tacos, to talk about turning a struggling taco shop into one of Long Island’s fastest-growing restaurant brands. Hosts Michael D'Onofrio and Vinny Pappalardo dive into Mike’s journey from arriving in America with just $600 to scaling multiple restaurant locations through branding, marketing, culture, and relentless hustle.

The conversation covers restaurant growth, AI and automation, customer psychology, Chick-fil-A’s business model, social media strategy, and why modern restaurant owners need to think bigger to survive. If you’re a restaurant owner, entrepreneur, or someone chasing a big goal, this episode is packed with value.

⏱️ Timestamps

0:00 – Why the restaurant business is brutal

10:04 – Moving to America with $600

22:11 – How Tony’s Tacos started

27:08 – From $600 weeks to $45,000 weeks

41:25 – Building the Garden City flagship

55:20 – Chick-fil-A’s culture and success

1:11:05 – AI and the future of restaurants

1:31:10 – Expanding Tony’s Tacos

1:52:40 – Why courage matters more than money

Follow Tony’s Tacos:https://www.instagram.com/tonystacoshttps://tonystacos.com

Follow Staying Hungry:https://www.instagram.com/stayinghungrypod