From Dishwasher to Design Lead: Jason’s Hospitality Journey

“In this industry, you never know what the day will bring. It’s never predictable, and that’s what I love about it.”

Zaylan: Thanks a lot for being here, Jason. Let’s start off easy—where’s home for you?

Jason: I live in Bonita Springs, Florida.

Zaylan: What’s your favourite food and drink?

Jason: Man, I had no idea what kind of questions you were going to ask.

Zaylan: It’s a mix—we’re all over the place here.

Jason: Honestly? Probably fresh mangoes. They grow wild down here, so in the summer we’ve got piles of them. One of my favourite things to eat.

As for drinks... that’s a tough one. It’s like picking a favourite kid—especially when you work in the beverage industry. But if I had to choose, probably a good Italian Barolo. That region was one of the first wine destinations I ever visited, and I’ve always gone back to it. It’s a standby.

Zaylan: Is that the Langhe region—is that how you say it?

Jason: Yeah, right there. Piedmont.

Zaylan: Okay, this might be just as hard—what’s your favourite hotel you’ve ever stayed at?

Jason: That’s a tough one. I’d say the Ritz-Carlton Reserve at Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico. It’s set on a beautiful old citrus plantation and has one of the most amazing spas I’ve ever seen.

Zaylan: Is that also your favourite place you’ve ever been, or is that a different answer?

Jason: No, I think my top place in the world is Italy. It’s the only place where, when I’m boarding the plane to leave, I’m already trying to figure out how to get back.

Zaylan: I haven’t been yet, but I’m looking forward to it. What about a dream destination or hotel—somewhere you’ve never been but want to go?

Jason: The Maldives. I’d love to dive there and visit some of those remote Pacific islands.

Zaylan: Is that the place shaped kind of like a flower—all out over the water?

Jason: Yeah—most of it is built right over the water.

Zaylan: Beautiful. Okay, how about a book—hospitality-related or otherwise?

Jason: That’s a hard one—I have thousands of books. But probably Adventures on the Wine Route by Kermit Lynch. He was, and still is, one of the original importers of French wine into the U.S. He ran an amazing wine shop in Berkeley for years. The book is not only entertaining—it’s a brilliant account of relationship building and trailblazing in the wine world.

Zaylan: Sounds great—I’m going to look that up!

Gaby: Okay Jason, those were supposed to be easy icebreakers. He always stumps everyone [laughing].

Jason: Yeah, those are always the hardest ones.

Gaby: Let’s dive into your early career. You started in hospitality as a teenager, working your way up through restaurants and fine dining. Do you remember what first drew you in?

Jason: My first job was really just that—a job. I started as a dishwasher, back when it was all done by hand in boiling water. But within the first week, they moved me to the garde manger station—making coleslaw, breaking down the meat slicer. It was way more than I expected. Every week brought something new, and I loved that feeling. I kept coming back.

When I went to college, hospitality was what I knew, so I bartended my way through and got a degree in archaeology. After graduation, I took a short detour into archaeology—but I missed the rhythm of hospitality. In this industry, you never know what the day will bring. It’s never predictable, and that’s what I love about it.

Gaby: Archaeology—wow, that’s unexpected! I didn’t think I’d hear bartending and archaeology in the same sentence!

“The same way you treat the guests out front is how you treat the kitchen team in the back.”

Jason: I’ve probably told this story a million times. I used to share it with my team every so often.

I started at Ritz-Carlton because we were expecting our third child, and I figured it was time to get a job with insurance and benefits. That was my only motivation, honestly.

Before that, I worked in standalone restaurants where, if you screwed up an order, someone might throw a plate at you in the kitchen—which was pretty common back then. So when I walked into the Ritz, I had no idea what I was getting into.

There were 50 people in my orientation class. The HR director stood up and said, “You may have heard—it’s almost like a cult here. We all carry these little cards. But trust me, it’s something different.”

We spent three days diving into Ritz-Carlton’s core values and learning the credo. They gave me my first credo card, and I carried it with me for years. Now it lives on my desk.

About a week in, I was working as a “co-captain,” doing tableside service—Caesar salads, filet mignon, rack of lamb. I had just come off the floor and was washing a cutting board in the kitchen when someone shouted, “Hey! Get that cutting board over here—we’ve got lamb in the window!”

I said, “Okay, just need to wash it real quick.” He yelled again, “Get that cutting board over here!” And I replied, “Just a second, man, I’m washing it.”

Then he stopped the entire kitchen. “Everybody put down your knives,” he said. The whole place froze.

He walked over and said, “We haven’t met yet. I’m Lawrence McFadden. I’m the executive chef of this hotel. In my kitchen, nobody calls me ‘man.’ You can call me Larry, you can call me Lawrence—I prefer ‘Chef’—but don’t ever call me ‘man.’ The same way you treat the guests out front is how you treat the kitchen team in the back.”

I said, “Yes, Chef.” And right then, I knew I’d be there a long time. That moment stuck with me. Thirty years later, I’m still in touch with him—I actually texted him just a couple days ago.

Gaby: That’s amazing.

Do you have any key memories or lessons from your time as Director of Food & Beverage at the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead?

Jason: Definitely. Buckhead was the corporate hotel—the first Ritz-Carlton built specifically for the brand.

Zaylan: MSE?

Jason: Meetings and Special Events. That’s actually where Chris and I first worked together—he was my Assistant Director of MSE.

Funny story—just this past weekend, I went to a wedding for one of my former leaders from Buckhead. He’s now the GM at Restaurant Daniel in New York. Back then, he was my three-meal restaurant manager—he ran the café.

I always told my team: my job as F&B Director is to support you, help you lead your teams, and clear the roadblocks. I’d say, “If you’ve got an idea that improves the guest experience or strengthens your team, I’ll back you—just make sure there’s a solid process behind it.”

One day, that manager came to me, completely frustrated. “Everyone’s giving me excuses about why the tablecloths are wrinkled,” he said. “They say it’s the machines, or that they just don’t stay pressed. It looks terrible.”

So he said, “I want to give each of my server attendants a personal iron—a rechargeable, cordless iron—so they can press the tablecloths right at the table.”

So we bought one for each team member. And they actually did it—placing the cloths on and ironing them in place, right in the dining room.

And this was in a casual restaurant—not even fine dining! People thought he was crazy. But it became his signature. Guests started taking pictures and sharing the story—it turned into a feature.

It also became a powerful lesson for his team: attention to detail matters, whether you’re in a five-star restaurant or serving breakfast. They ironed those tablecloths for all three meals, the entire time he was there.

That’s what happens when you give your team the freedom and support to think outside the box. It cost a couple thousand dollars—but it was absolutely the right call.

Gaby: Wow. A casual restaurant, ironing the tablecloths.  That is pretty memorable!

Looking back, are there any habits or lessons from your early restaurant days that you still carry into your executive work?

Jason: Definitely. I was taught early on that you need a process for everything.

That’s part of why Chris and I worked so well together when we opened our first hotel. I remember noticing that all the sugar caddies were arranged differently. It drove me nuts. I started reorganizing them so they were all set up the same way.

Chris saw what I was doing and said, “Thank God. That’s been bothering me since we got here.” It’s even part of his hospitality psychology class.

That habit stuck with me—set everything up the same way, every time, so you don’t have to think about it. That kind of consistency keeps you organized and efficient.

Even now, I don’t lose things—because my keys always go in the same basket. My phone is always in the same spot on my desk. Same habits I had when I set up a bar.

At the end of the night, bottles go back on the shelf in a specific order so that the next day, you grab them in the same sequence. That consistency is the foundation of pretty much everything I do—and it all came from those early days.

“Just one bottle out of 5,000 was missing—and I knew exactly which one.”

Gaby: It sounds so simple, but I can imagine the impact that has.

Jason: I’ll tell you—when I was the wine director at the Ritz-Carlton Naples, I worked in the wine cellar every single day. I’d be in and out probably 200 times a night—grab a bottle, serve it, go back for the next one. That was my station, my bar, my desk.

One day, I walked in and noticed a bottle missing. Just one out of the 5,000 in the cellar. But it happened to be a 1982 Château Lafite—worth several thousand dollars.

I checked the transfer sheets—since I didn’t come in until 4 p.m.—thinking maybe someone sold it earlier. But there was no record. So I called the food and beverage director right away: “There’s a bottle of wine missing—and here’s what it is. I need to know where it went.”

At Ritz-Carlton, one of the cornerstones of the culture is employee empowerment. Ladies and gentlemen are trusted to solve problems without asking for permission. At the time, they could spend up to $2,000 to make things right, no questions asked.

Turned out, we had a couple staying on the Club Level for their anniversary. They came every year and brought mementos to decorate their suite—including an empty bottle of 1982 Lafite from a past celebration.

Housekeeping, doing what housekeeping does, saw an empty bottle and tossed it. The guests returned, noticed it was missing, and understandably were upset. The housekeeping manager figured out what it was, looked up the wine list, saw we had it in inventory, and asked security to let them into the cellar to replace it.

They gave the couple a new bottle. And no—he didn’t get in trouble. That’s exactly what empowerment looks like. But he didn’t know the process, so there was no transfer, no record. The bottle just disappeared from inventory.

That would’ve hit our beverage cost by thousands. So we sat down and said, “Great job—are the guests happy? Perfect. Now let’s talk about the right way to get wine from the cellar next time.”

We never would’ve caught it if I hadn’t been in the cellar every day—if I didn’t know it so well. Because everything had its place. That’s what process does—it gives you a reference point. And over time, it becomes second nature.

Zaylan: On the wine director side—I used to manage wine service, too. What advice would you give a new manager who’s the one opening bottles at the table? How do they connect with guests in that moment?

Jason: Get comfortable with it. Most people want to enjoy wine—but they’re intimidated by it.

When I started at Ritz-Carlton, I didn’t know anything about wine. Literally—red, white, and pink. I didn’t drink wine. The casual bars I worked in either didn’t serve it or had almost none.

Then I walked into a wine program with $30,000 bottles on the list and 40 wines by the glass. I figured out fast I needed to catch up. So I started tasting. I asked questions. You’ve just got to get comfortable.

In our industry, especially in restaurants that serve wine, you should know at least the basics. It helps the guest relax. It helps you do your job better. And honestly, I think it’s the best part of the beverage world.

Wine’s always changing. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, a new vintage drops and everything shifts. Wines you know well are a year older and evolving. It’s a constant challenge—but a great one.

For young managers, I’d say: learn the basics, understand the service steps, and don’t be afraid of wine.

Zaylan: Do you have a go-to resource for learning wine fast?

Jason: The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil. I’ve probably given away 20 copies over the years. She actually taught one of the first wine classes I ever took—at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa.

I’ve got five or six bookshelves full of wine and beverage books, but that’s the one I still pull down. Most others are textbooks—great info, but dry. The Wine Bible breaks it into digestible chunks. It’s the best foundation for anyone looking to learn wine in a real, accessible way.

Zaylan: After years of hands-on leadership at Ritz-Carlton, you moved into global operations at Marriott, focusing on restaurant and bar strategy. What drove that shift—from property-level to corporate?

Jason: We were in the process of de-flagging our hotel. Ownership had decided to rebrand from Ritz-Carlton to the Luxury Collection.

At that point, I’d been with Ritz-Carlton for 17, maybe 18 years. I really wanted to stay with the brand. Around the same time, we were renovating our restaurant, and the corporate chef came to visit. I told him I wasn’t thrilled about leaving Ritz-Carlton.

He said, “We’re building a luxury-focused team at corporate. We need people who understand true luxury operations.” Marriott had just acquired Starwood, so now we had all these new brands—St. Regis, W, and others. The challenge was defining what makes Ritz-Carlton F&B different from St. Regis or W or any other luxury brand.

It felt like the right opportunity at the right time. I’d been at Buckhead for seven years. I never really wanted to be a GM—I love food and beverage. I love operations. So stepping into a role where I could help shape luxury F&B strategy across brands—that just made sense.

“It’s rare to take a concept from vision to execution with that level of trust. But the relationship we built made it possible.”

Zaylan: You’ve brought a lot of new concepts to life, working with different groups to make their ideas real. How do you take a big creative vision and turn it into something that actually works—functionally and operationally?

Jason: Honestly, that’s the core of what makes Ellis Adams Group successful. We have designers who aren’t necessarily from restaurant or hotel operations backgrounds. Their job is to create beautiful spaces—and they’re incredible at it. My role is to bring the operational lens to the table.

When I review a design, I’m thinking: What does the guest see when they walk in? Where are the service areas? Are there sightlines into those spaces? What’s in the service station? How many steps does a bartender take to make a drink?

If a space isn’t designed with operations in mind, it won’t function well—and unfortunately, that happens a lot in our industry. People design first and think about operations later. But if operations is part of the foundation, the space works from the start. It’s really hard to retrofit a great restaurant into a poorly designed space.

Gaby: Let’s talk about your role at Ellis Adams Group. What exactly do you provide at EAG, and what kinds of clients do you look for?

Jason: I lead development. I don’t always explain that well, but I co-lead the design team with Christy, our design principal, and her amazing team. I try to stay out of their way while bringing operational insight and conceptual direction.

My job is really to figure out how to make things happen. I work closely with Chris and Maricela to identify new revenue streams, new segments in the industry where we can truly make an impact. We’re always asking: What’s been done the same way forever in hospitality—and how could it be done differently?

That’s our approach. We aim to deliver essential services for hospitality—but in a fresher, more thoughtful way. That mindset has taken us all over the world.

We provide full support—from design, to F&B concept development, to menu creation, to full-service training teams. My focus is making sure all those pieces are aligned and executed with intention.

Gaby: And with all the projects you touch, what are your favourites?

Jason: I’ll always have a soft spot for Ritz-Carlton and luxury projects. That’s where I started, and it’s really the foundation of EAG. I know the brand inside and out—the standards, the expectations.

But it’s more than familiarity. Ritz-Carlton has the most well-defined foundation of any hospitality brand I’ve worked with. When I’m on a Ritz-Carlton project, I feel like I’m in my element.

Gaby: EAG puts a lot of emphasis on storytelling through design and guest experience. When you’re leading development, how do you keep that story front and centre?

Jason: It’s definitely part of my role. Like I said, I try not to interfere with the design team—but I’m involved every step of the way.

My responsibility is to make sure the story—the concept we started with—carries through the entire process. From the original pitch deck, to the layout of the space, to the menu, that narrative has to stay intact. That’s my role: protecting the story.

Gaby: Last one in this section. What’s a recent EAG project where everything just clicked—the team, the concept, the execution? What made it special?

Jason: About two years ago, a client came back to us after we’d opened one of their hotels. They were a fast-growing regional restaurant group looking for an F&B consultant.

Chris and I started conversations with the owner, and I kept the relationship going. Our first project was a rooftop restaurant concept for a hotel in Indiana.

From there, it snowballed. They began asking us for input on operations across other properties, then had us reviewing design documents for upcoming projects. Eventually, the owner said, “We just want you to design everything for us moving forward.”  

The first major project under that new partnership was to design a restaurant concept that could scale across multiple hotels. They have about half a dozen in development and wanted a French-inspired coffee shop for each one.

They asked us to create everything: the name, the brand, the design elements, the menu. We’ve had complete creative freedom—from layout, to guest experience, to choosing coffee cups and even our roasting partner.

The first location opens in August in Rogers, Arkansas. It’s still under construction, so maybe it’s early to say everything “clicked”—but so far, it really has. The branding is spot-on. Our culinarian has done extensive testing—we even held a full tasting for the client a couple weeks ago.

It’s rare to take a concept from vision to execution with that level of trust and creative alignment. But the relationship we built over the years made it possible. It’s been a great process.

“The sexy part of luxury service isn’t just the experience—it’s all the little processes and workflows that make that experience possible.”

Gaby: Wow, that sounds fantastic. When you say “scaled,” does that mean the concept can grow or shrink depending on the location?

Jason: Yeah. In restaurants, scaling means taking a single concept and expanding it across multiple locations. This client didn’t want a one-off restaurant for just one hotel—they wanted something that could be replicated consistently.

But it’s not as simple as copy and paste. Every hotel has a different footprint, so the physical layout can’t be identical. And you don’t want something so generic that it loses character.

So we focused on defining the core pillars of the concept: What elements need to remain consistent? What capabilities should be designed into the equipment? What should the guest arrival experience feel like? How should the menu be presented?

We wanted every location to feel like the same French coffee shop—even if the design details or layout vary slightly. The idea was to create a flexible brand system, backed by a detailed handbook, that could be thoughtfully replicated.

Gaby: Very nice.

Zaylan: One more EAG question before we shift. EAG | EMEA just launched—so if you’re a hotel developer in that region, what do you now have access to? What should you be excited about?

Jason: The EMEA team has really impressed me. They’ve only been together for three months, but the tools and materials they’re producing are already top-notch.

I was just on a call with them a couple of hours ago, reviewing some of their hotel opening documentation. The attention to detail, the depth of knowledge—it’s incredibly impressive.

Opening a hotel is always complex. Every property is different, and sometimes we’re walking into a construction zone. But the EMEA team connects with hotel teams in a way that adds real value, right away.

We’re hearing from leaders that this kind of expertise is rare. I genuinely think it could change the game for hotel openings in that region.

Zaylan: That is Awesome! Let’s shift to team and leadership. You’ve worked in both high-pressure operations and long-term development roles. How do you bridge the gap between having a creative vision and actually bringing it to life?

Jason: I think the key is documenting the vision. If it lives only in your head, the team can’t act on it. So how do you distill a vision—whether it’s for a concept or a project—into something that is clearly communicated and actionable?

We used to talk about the guest journey. That journey isn’t intuitive—it’s made up of many steps, from deciding to book, to making a reservation, to traveling, checking in, finding the room. Every stage has potential pain points—and also opportunities to create delight.

So we break it down, step by step. That’s how you go from vision to execution—by identifying each moment and planning how to deliver on it.

It’s like building a workflow or a roadmap—kind of like that tool we were talking about last week during the Nitecapp meeting.

Gaby: Was it Figma?

Zaylan: Yeah—Figma, the workflow diagram.

Jason: Exactly. I think about everything like a workflow. That’s how you bring a vision to life—by figuring out who owns each piece, clearly communicating it, building the process, and training around it.

The sexy part of luxury service isn’t just the experience—it’s all the little processes and workflows that make that experience possible.

Gaby: Totally. Can I ask—you’re making me think of product design. Do you use journey-mapping tools or something visual to outline the guest experience, including pain points and opportunities for delight?

Jason: Yes—though some parts of our process are more documented than others.

Going back to Ritz-Carlton—the real power wasn’t just the credo card, the three steps of service, or the motto. It was how those standards were replicated across locations.

There were luxury hotels before Ritz-Carlton, but there weren’t luxury hotel brands. Not in a consistent, scalable way. That’s what Ritz did exceptionally well.

They even won the Malcolm Baldrige Award, which was originally created for the auto industry to recognize efficiency and consistency. It’s all about process—taking a vision from the C-suite and executing it on the ground.

Ritz-Carlton was the first hospitality company to ever win that award. And they won it again seven years later. That says a lot.

It gave us the framework to define the guest journey in precise detail—and build the systems that make delivering luxury service consistent and repeatable. That was foundational.

“Hospitality is one of the few global industries where formal education isn’t always required to grow.”

Zaylan: That was a great answer—super interesting.

How has your leadership style evolved—from being very hands-on and on-property to now working cross-functionally across many projects?

Jason: You have to trust your team. That’s probably been the biggest evolution.

In hotel operations, we tend to reward the doers—the operators who jump in and handle everything themselves. And when you move into management, you often stay very hands-on. But as the team grows, you have to shift. You need to hire the right people, give them support—and then step back and trust them to do the work.

That’s not easy.

When I joined Chris and Maricela at EAG, it was literally just the two of them—and Christy on the design side. Four of us, right after COVID. We handled all the openings ourselves. Chris, Maricela, and I personally led the first half dozen or so Ritz-Carlton and other luxury hotel launches, from an F&B perspective.

As we’ve grown, we’ve brought on new team members. The challenge now is: teach them how we do things—and trust them to carry it forward. They’re representing EAG with our clients. They’re the ambassadors now. And letting go—that’s honestly the hardest part.

Zaylan: What do you think makes a strong leader in hospitality today? And how has that changed since you started?

Jason: A strong leader is still a strong leader. That part hasn’t changed.

But the biggest shift I’ve seen is around quality of life. When I started in hospitality, nobody talked about balance. If you were a hotel leader, you worked six or seven days a week—15, 18 hours a day. That was just normal. But it’s not sustainable—whether you’re in the kitchen or the front of house.

Now, there’s real awareness around the importance of balance. We still work hard—we always will. But protecting time and recharging is just as important.

When I was an F&B director, I used to tell my team: you have vacation—use it. Step away. Reset.

At EAG, we don’t even have a formal vacation policy. We offer unlimited time off. But we  remind the team: take the time you need. We hire responsible adults. That doesn’t mean work 365 days a year. We expect people to unplug.

That kind of mindset just wasn’t even part of the conversation 30 years ago.

Zaylan: What advice would you give someone stepping into their first leadership role in the industry?

Jason: Learn the roles.

It’s tough to work in one position for six months and then jump into a management role. I had to work nearly every job as I came up in the industry, and I’m grateful for that. I know what it takes to be a host. I know what it’s like to be a dishwasher.

It’s hard to lead a team if you don’t understand what their jobs involve. You can’t offer meaningful insight if you don’t know what their day-to-day really looks like.

Don’t expect to jump straight into being a general manager—learn the jobs.

Gaby: Yeah, I just wanted to follow up on that. How important is formal education—degrees and all that—in hospitality? Or is it more valuable to have gone through all the different roles, like you mentioned?

Jason: It doesn’t hurt. I don’t know how much I’ve used my archaeology degree in hospitality, though!

That said, I do look for people who are college-educated. Finishing a degree shows a certain level of discipline and structure, and that can be helpful.

For some roles—like on the finance side—formal training is essential. But one of the unique things about our industry is that you really do learn by doing.

Hospitality is one of the few global industries where formal education isn’t always required to grow.

“Now, we’re designing entire hotels—including the branding. It’s a chance to bring a complete vision to life at scale.”

Gaby: Okay, let’s talk about vision, trends, and what’s next. There’s always something new in hospitality—what shifts or trends are you paying close attention to right now?

Jason: I’m watching the all-inclusive model closely—Marriott is expanding into that space in a big way, and it’s growing globally.

We’re also starting to look at hospitality through new lenses—like experiences at sea. Ritz-Carlton now has two yachts, and other brands are following suit. So what does luxury hospitality look like on the water?

Beyond that, hospitality is starting to influence other industries. Hospitals, for example, are sourcing luxury hoteliers to improve the patient experience. It’s all about people and the moments you create—and that mindset is extending far beyond traditional hospitality spaces. That’s something I’m keeping a close eye on.

Gaby: When you look ahead—either for EAG or hospitality more broadly—what are you most excited about being a part of?

Jason: I love that on the design side, we’re now actively designing entire hotels.

Ten years ago, EAG was designing bars and offering training. Then we moved into full restaurant design, concept development, and branding. Now, we’re designing entire hotels—including the branding.

Being able to shape everything—from food and beverage to the guest experience, rooms, banquets—it’s incredibly exciting. It’s a chance to bring a complete vision to life at scale.

Gaby: That does sound exciting. Okay, last question—if you could design your dream concept, no budget or limitations, what would it be and what story would you want to tell?

Jason: Chris developed a hotel concept called Ellis House with just that in mind, and I would love to find the right team to build it out.  Ellis House is intended to be the hotel we have dreamed of running, approaching every aspect of the guest journey with intention and in the most detailed manner possible.  It will be a true luxury experience, with fanatical attention to detail and every part of the guest experience thought out and highly curated. At this point it is still a dream, but we are committed to making it a reality at some point in the future.