Host Steve Turk revisits an archived Hospitality Mentor Podcast episode featuring award-winning chef and restaurateur David Burke, who shares his path from dishwasher at a Sheraton to culinary school, Europe, and major New York kitchens. Burke recounts being mentored by a country club chef named Jose, attending the CIA, traveling through Europe, and working in top French restaurants and pastry school despite language barriers. He describes returning to the U.S. to work with, Daniel Boulud, and Charlie Palmer, then becoming executive chef at The River Café, earning a three-star New York Times review with a notable photo and winning the 1988 Tokyo culinary Olympics. Burke discusses opening and expanding restaurants, learning business under Alan Stillman, fighting for signature dishes like his pork shank, navigating partnerships, mentoring teams, and advising young cooks to stay focused, learn constantly, document, embrace mistakes, and find balance.

Thank you to our sponsor Lodgify for this episode. Make sure to try Lodgify with our promo code THM60.

00:00 Welcome to the Podcast

00:33 Sponsor Lodgify Platform

01:35 Chef David Burke Intro

02:19 First Kitchen Job

03:25 Jose Tough Lesson

06:34 Parents and Early Drive

10:14 Culinary School Path

11:21 CIA Mindset and Growth

12:57 Europe Opportunity

16:13 Chefs and Styles Abroad

18:59 Back to New York Rise

21:33 Leading River Cafe

24:48 Finding Personal Style

26:08 Critics and Pressure

27:37 Fearless Creativity Basics

28:23 NYT Three Star Breakthrough

29:21 Chocolate Butterfly Story

30:25 Park Avenue Cafe Deal

31:34 Miami Beach Opening Chaos

33:22 Pork Shank Menu Fight

35:13 First Restaurant Renegades

37:21 Expansion Partner Fallout

38:21 Choosing Business Partners

40:14 How Chef Culture Changed

43:52 Cookbooks Nightlife Pitfalls

45:56 Building Restaurants Today

47:08 Mentoring Creative Chefs

48:13 Advice To Young Dishwasher

50:45 Closing Thanks Sponsor

Host Steve Turk introduces an archived 2022 Hospitality Mentor Podcast episode featuring Raul Leal, then CEO of SH Hotels & Resorts (now CEO of Starwood). Leal recounts starting at Miami’s Everglades Hotel working with his Cuban-immigrant father, setting early goals to become a GM, and progressing through front desk and food-and-beverage roles, including managing a Sheraton with a major nightclub, before becoming a GM in La Jolla and later leading larger Sheraton properties in Denver, Chicago, Cleveland, and Miami. He describes launching and scaling Teton Hospitality and its boutique arm, Desires Hotels, driven by frustration with legacy-brand sameness and belief in internet-driven distribution. Leal shares how meeting Richard Branson led him to build Virgin Hotels from scratch, and why he later joined Starwood/SH Hotels to lead brands including 1 Hotels, Baccarat Hotels, and Treehouse, emphasizing sustainability, better back-of-house spaces, mentorship, clear goals, and kindness in leadership.

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00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:33 Sponsor Lodgify

01:38 Archive Episode Setup

02:10 First Hospitality Job

04:12 Choosing Hospitality Career

05:18 Learning Without College

05:55 Climbing Into Management

08:21 First GM Move West

09:27 Mentors And GM Life

10:24 Big Hotels Career Ladder

11:59 Entrepreneurial Leap

14:10 Building Boutique Portfolio

15:47 Travel Reality Check

17:40 Why Launch Desires

20:26 First Boutique Wins

21:43 Lifestyle Hotel Edge

23:00 Richard Branson Connection

23:43 Meeting Richard Branson

25:12 Consulting Turns Into Leadership

26:41 Inside Virgin Culture

28:45 Building Virgin Hotels From Scratch

31:00 Choosing The First Property

32:24 Chicago Launch And Expansion

34:20 Leaving Virgin For SH Hotels

36:16 SH Brands And Sustainability

40:31 Growth Plans And Openings

41:28 Reimagining Back Of House

44:04 Advice For Young Leaders

45:46 Closing And Sponsor Message

Host Steve Turk welcomes Elizabeth Mullins, President of Evermore Hospitality, who shares her start as a server at New Hampshire’s Lobster Shack and her first hotel role as a Ritz-Carlton Boston management trainee after earning hospitality and business degrees.

Mullins recounts being inspired by a childhood Ritz-Carlton visit, spending 28 years with Ritz-Carlton as it grew from six to 99 hotels, opening multiple properties across Asia, becoming a GM multiple times, and later an area vice president. Recruited to Disney, she led global hotel development, renovations, premium services, and worked through the pandemic including the NBA bubble.

She then helped open New York’s Fifth Avenue Hotel as COO/Managing Director, learning independent distribution and culture measurement, before joining Evermore after being approached for her luxury-and-scale expertise.

She describes Evermore’s “togetherness” concept, Conrad Orlando anchor, 300+ villas/homes around an 8-acre Crystal Lagoon, extensive amenities, and plans for growth, and closes with career advice on courage, speaking up, integrity, and hospitality as a lifestyle.

This episode was brought to you by Lodgify. Use code THM60.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:33 Sponsor Lodgify

01:38 Meet Elizabeth Mullins

02:00 First Hospitality Jobs

03:17 Ritz Spark at Five

05:44 Ritz Career Growth

09:28 Asia Expat Adventure

17:04 Service Lessons Abroad

18:54 Leaving for Disney

21:07 Disney Hotels Role

23:15 Frictionless Check In

26:14 Independent Hotel Leap

28:36 Independent Hotel Wins

29:17 No SOP Reality Check

30:06 Distribution Lessons

30:54 Agritourism Marketing Advice

32:34 Building Culture Systems

35:25 Evermore Recruitment Story

38:49 Togetherness Travel Concept

42:27 Evermore Scale and Amenities

44:53 Service Model Evolution

46:50 Growth Plans and Year Three

49:23 Advice to Younger Self

53:58 Wrap Up and Sponsor