Chili’s CEO, pt 2: Kevin Hochman on the key ingredients to brand transformation
Take-Away with Sam Oches
Nation's Restaurant News
4.9 • 17 Ratings
🗓️ 7 April 2026
⏱️ 73 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks once again with Kevin Hochman, president and CEO of Brinker International, parent company to Chili’s Grill & Bar. Today’s episode is part two of a conversation Sam recently had with Kevin in a Dallas area Chili’s as part of the Signature Series, powered by The Coca-Cola Company. (Check out part one of the conversation here.) This week, Sam and Kevin get in the weeds on how Chili’s has transformed into the hottest thing going in foodservice, with Kevin laying out very plainly what it took to jumpstart the brand and go from roughly $3 million AUVs to nearly $5 million in the span of three years.
In this conversation, you’ll find out why:
- Quick wins help give brand turnarounds some momentum
- You should prove your employees wrong by taking their feedback seriously
- There are no quick fixes in the restaurant industry
- Behaviors trump metrics when measuring success
- It’s OK to make mistakes, but not OK not to learn from them
- Prepare today for the opportunity waiting for you tomorrow
- Great operations plus great marketing equals unstoppable success
Have feedback or ideas for Take-Away? Email Sam at sam.oches@informa.com.
Check out more information on this years Menu Masters: https://menumastersevent.com/?utm_source=skot&utm_medium=radio&utm_campaign=mm26&utm_content=podcast
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Attention restaurant operators. Get ready for the 29th annual Menu Masters, the culinary event of the year happening May 16th at Morgan Manufacturing in Chicago. |
| 0:10.0 | Presented by Nation's Restaurant News and sponsored by Ventura Foods, this premier gathering celebrates the industry's most iconic innovators and showcases the winners of the prestigious menu masters awards. |
| 0:21.8 | Plus, you don't want to miss the epic after party, where the vibe is cool, the music is hot, |
| 0:27.1 | and this year's party swag is top notch. Join fellow tastemakers and industry leaders for an |
| 0:32.8 | unforgettable night of inspiration and connection. RSVP today at the link in our show notes. |
| 0:38.6 | Early registration is strongly recommended as this event sells out every year. |
| 0:43.4 | Welcome to Takeaway with Sam Okas, a podcast for leaders of growing restaurant companies |
| 0:47.8 | looking to take their businesses to the next level. |
| 0:51.0 | In nearly two decades covering restaurants, I've gained access to some of this industry's |
| 0:55.0 | most influential decision makers, and I'm letting you in on the conversations. In today's |
| 1:00.7 | episode, you'll hear once again from the CEO of the hottest restaurant chain in America, |
| 1:06.2 | this time about the blueprint that he used to achieve unprecedented success. And you'll hear about why great |
| 1:13.2 | marketing plus great operations equals limitless potential in the restaurant industry. |
| 1:18.4 | Kevin Hockman is the president and CEO of Brinker International parent company to Chili's Grill |
| 1:24.4 | and Bar. Today's episode is part two of a conversation that I had with Kevin recently in a Dallas |
| 1:30.5 | area Chili's as part of the most recent episode of the signature series powered by the Coca-Cola |
| 1:35.9 | Company. |
| 1:36.6 | I highly recommend you go back and check out part one of this conversation where we covered |
| 1:41.9 | Kevin's career in the lead up to Chili's and in particular the lessons |
| 1:45.5 | that he learned working for two American icons, Proctor and Gamble and Yum Brands. This week, |
| 1:52.8 | we're going to get in the weeds on how Kevin and his team have transformed Chili's into the |
| 1:57.6 | hottest thing going in food service. That's right, if you have been jealous |
... |
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