In partnership with
Hot Coffee
Friends of Branded:
Happy Saturday and I hope you had a great week.
Google the two words “hot coffee” and the 2011 documentary film that analyzes the impact of tort reform on the United States judicial system will be the top of the list. The title of this documentary was derived from the Liebeck v. McDonald’s Restaurant lawsuit and a story that I was infatuated with back in 2011. The plaintiff, Ms. Stella Liebeck, was severely burned after spilling a cup of hot coffee purchased at a McDonald’s restaurant into her lap.
The title and image above may have been drawn from this documentary, but this week’s Top of the Fold has nothing to do with the lawsuit or film (I think I’ve got range, but tort reform would be pushing the limits). Coffee is the focus and how this segment of the market is the focus is one of the hottest (pun intended), fastest growing, most dynamic, and resilient parts of the restaurant industry in 2025.
How hot is this segment of the market right now? Great question, so let’s set the stage.
CTV ads made easy: Black Friday edition
As with any digital ad campaign, the important thing is to reach streaming audiences who will convert. Roku’s self-service Ads Manager stands ready with powerful segmentation and targeting — plus creative upscaling tools that transform existing assets into CTV-ready video ads. Bonus: we’re gifting you $5K in ad credits when you spend your first $5K on Roku Ads Manager. Just sign up and use code GET5K. Terms apply.
🎧 In this week’s Hospitality Hangout episode…
In this week’s episode, PR guru Sherri Fishman breaks down the hospitality trends every restaurateur needs to know. She shares insider tips on social storytelling, influencer relations, and building a media engine that drives growth.
Fact-based news without bias awaits. Make 1440 your choice today.
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Big news for coffee and hospitality fans: Craveworthy Brands has partnered with Gregorys Coffee to fuel the next chapter of the NYC specialty coffee favorite. Craveworthy’s operational expertise perfectly complements Gregorys’ craft-focused, community-driven approach, a combination that will allow the brand to expand nationally while keeping its beloved “Gregulars” at the heart of every cup. Expect smarter systems, fresh café concepts, and more ways to delight loyal fans across the U.S.
What this means for you: If you’re in hospitality, watch for tools and strategies that make it easier to scale with quality, deepen customer loyalty, and create memorable guest experiences.
Huge congrats to Josh Halpern, Sam Stanovich, Gregg Majewski, and Gregory Z—click their names to congratulate them on LinkedIn for making this bold next chapter happen!
🍱 The experts at Wired cooked (and ate) dozens of meals to create this definitive list of the best meal kits and delivery services of the year—not a bad gig.
🥊 It’s official: Paramount+ will become the exclusive home of all UFC events in the U.S. starting in 2026.
📍 SEO is dead, long live GEO: Here’s everything you need to know about the next big thing in search, and how it’s all about tricking AI chatbots.
📱 TikTok changes the game again, now letting users book hotels directly in-app and giving creators a cut through a new commission program.
🍣 Sushi master Nobu Matsuhisa shares his favorite restaurants around the world—and not a single one is in the U.S.
Brooklyn Dumpling Shop is an emerging omni-channel fast casual concept that uniquely operates restaurants, food service, and consumer packaged goods. While only 4 years old, the company has grown rapidly across these channels, with significant incremental growth ahead.
Key Brooklyn Dumpling Shop stats:
19 shops open across the US and Canada; opening in downtown Vancouver next week; 160+ franchise units sold
CPG dumplings in 500+ retail doors, with QVC traction via investor Kevin O’Leary and, following a record-breaking Costco roadshow, launching this week in 29 Costcos across NY/NJ/PA/DE
Licensing deals with Yankee Stadium, Madison Square Garden, Resorts World New York and more on the way
After recently receiving an investment from RSE Ventures (the investment firm of Stephen Ross, owner of the Miami Dolphins, and Matt Higgins), Brooklyn Dumpling Shop is looking to quickly close its current round and continue to scale rapidly in the second half of this year and beyond.
Interested in the deal? Reach out right here.
Don’t just scroll—click! Congratulate everyone on making the B List and send some LinkedIn love their way.
Industry Intel
Attract and retain talent before 2026’s brutal labor crunch hits the industry hard.
Written by Jay Ashton
@hospitality.hangout Have you ever had horchata? #lostacos #tacos #nyc #foodie
Learn from this investor’s $100m mistake
In 2010, a Grammy-winning artist passed on investing $200K in an emerging real estate disruptor. That stake could be worth $100+ million today.
One year later, another real estate disruptor, Zillow, went public. This time, everyday investors had regrets, missing pre-IPO gains.
Now, a new real estate innovator, Pacaso – founded by a former Zillow exec – is disrupting a $1.3T market. And unlike the others, you can invest in Pacaso as a private company.
Pacaso’s co-ownership model has generated $1B+ in luxury home sales and service fees, earned $110M+ in gross profits to date, and received backing from the same VCs behind Uber, Venmo, and eBay. They even reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.
Paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals.
That’s it for today!
See you next week, same bat-time, same bat-channel.
It takes a village!
Jimmy Frischling
Branded Hospitality
235 Park Ave South, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10003
Branded Hospitality is a foodservice growth platform with three integrated business lines—Ventures, Solutions, and Media. We invest in innovative tech and emerging brands, provide expert advisory and capital strategies, and amplify visibility through podcasts, newsletters, social, and events—creating a powerful flywheel that drives growth, brand strength, and lasting success.
Learn more about Branded here: Branded At-A-Glance
