Restaurant operations consulting for operators who've outgrown their systems
Most restaurant groups don't have a people problem or a menu problem. They have a systems problem. Labor gets scheduled by habit. Food cost drifts. Managers spend their shifts firefighting because nobody owns the process.
Culinary Thinking Lab is a restaurant and foodservice operations consultancy led by Dusty Cooper, CEC, MBA. Dusty has owned restaurants and bars, run fine-dining kitchens, led culinary for Marriott hotels, served as corporate executive chef across multiple countries, and managed high-volume, healthcare, university, and non-profit foodservice. That range is what you get in every engagement.
Three ways we work together
Fractional COO Partnership
Ongoing operational leadership for groups that need a COO but not a full-time salary. Accountability, labor systems, KPI reporting, and opening support.
Learn moreRestaurant Operations Assessment
An on-site review of labor, leadership, menu complexity, service flow, and culture. You leave with a prioritized roadmap, not a binder.
Learn moreOperational Visibility
Daily reporting, scorecards, SOPs, and manager coaching so you can see what's happening in every location without being in every location.
Learn moreWho we work with
Independent restaurants, multi-unit groups, café and bakery operators, fast casual and QSR franchisees, hotel F&B, catering, and institutional foodservice.
Where we work
On-site across the United States and Canada. Remote and project-based work nationwide.