A podcast by students of Stanford University's Business and Design Schools


FEATURED INTERVIEW

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Tom Kaplan, Senior Managing Partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group

Tom Kaplan helped build and now runs Wolfgang Puck’s Fine Dining Group, consisting of some of the world's finest and most innovative restaurants, including Chinois, Postrio, CUT and the flagship Spago.


MP3 File | Subscribe via iTunes | Add to del.icio.us

Wolfgang Puck is known as the first celebrity chef and Tom Kaplan has been his right-hand man for over 25 years, managing the overall business. The flagship LA restaurant Spago (host to the most famous of Oscar parties) has been the subject of Hollywood legend and food critics delight for decades. Spago’s success allowed Puck and Kaplan to expand into one of the most successful fine dining groups in the world.

We caught up with Tom Kaplan in Las Vegas to talk about innovation in the restaurant industry and received a heaping serving of knowledge. Don’t miss out Tom’s advice for how to get a reservation at a restaurant where you thought one was impossible.

For some additional content on how the group manages the Puck brand, see the video below:



And for the story of how Tom joined Puck, check out this video.

We need your help in providing us with feedback on the podcast! Please take 5 minutes to answer a few questions about what you want to see next on the very brief iinnovate listener survey.

- JULIO.