A wide range of Dallas restaurateurs and industry professionals came together for What Now Media Group’s recent Accelerate event, hosted at Victory Social, a modern American restaurant located at 2323 Victory Avenue in the heart of Victory Park. The free event, held on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, provided valuable networking and strategic insights for local restaurant owners and operators.
Victory Social hosted the event, bringing together representatives from dozens of food and beverage businesses featured on What Now Dallas. The gathering included local restaurant leaders and industry experts from What Now Media Group’s national network of Preferred Partners. Attendees enjoyed light refreshments and mingled before a presentation led by Mariah Medley, Director of Events and Partner Engagement at What Now Media Group, which covered effective strategies for expansion, operational efficiency, and community impact.
Among the restaurateurs in attendance were Puneet Mittal and Sweta Goyal, partners of Paris Baguette – Dallas, a popular bakery cafe chain known for its fresh-baked goods and French-inspired menu. Also present was Morad Awad, owner of Hamburgottis, a Richardson-based eatery serving smash burgers and loaded fries.
Representing Taqueria El Arquito was Nancy Reza, the founder and managing director of the Mesquite-based Mexican restaurant known for its authentic street-style tacos. Chris Brooke of Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza also attended, promoting the Florida-based chain’s recent expansion into Fort Worth.
Additional attendees included Jason Morgan, CEO of Original ChopShop; Ricardo Jimenez, co-owner of Frutilicious; Giuseppe “JP” Piccinini, owner of La Stella Cucina Verace; and Wakaas Abdrazak and Asaa Hassan of Stoner’s Pizza Joint, a fast-growing pizza franchise with multiple Dallas-area locations.
The event also brought together representatives from over a dozen of What Now Media Group’s Preferred Partners, offering resources ranging from financial support to operational solutions. Notably, Amber Belmore of inKind shared how restaurants can leverage non-traditional capital to grow without giving up equity, while Chad Cohen of Credibly offered funding solutions tailored for small and medium-sized hospitality businesses.
From the technology side, Mark Stringer and Shawn Blaylock of Global Payments discussed modern point-of-sale systems designed to streamline front-of-house and back-office operations. Emily Ratcliff of Heartland presented payroll tools that help businesses improve accuracy and compliance. Meanwhile, Dan Schrobilgen from Our Town America explained how direct mail can be used to attract new movers in the area, and Jay Casas of Always Affordable Hood Cleaning was also in attendance, offering insights on safety and cleanliness standards for commercial kitchens.
The restaurant owners and industry-leading experts from What Now Media Group’s network of Preferred Partners shared valuable insights, operational highlights, and expert advice, creating an engaging and informative evening that was both enriching and beneficial for all attendees.
This led Mariah Medley to carry the conversation even deeper by discussing critical business points, such as having an exit plan and efficiently managing operations after expanding to multiple locations. After Mariah and the guests shared their tips, knowledge, and concerns, everyone became quickly interested in learning more about their businesses and how they could help one another.
This event provided a valuable platform for restaurant owners and industry partners to collaborate, brainstorm, and establish new connections. It’s clear that the Dallas restaurant community is eager to continue innovating and evolving, and What Now Media Group’s Accelerate events provide the perfect space for these conversations to take place.
What Now Media Group shares restaurant opening news in 33 cities across North America, breaking news, and provides timely insight into yet-to-open brick-and-mortar businesses. The platform shares news of thousands of openings across all 33 cities annually.
The industry-leading experts in What Now Media Group’s network of Preferred Partners help new businesses open and existing businesses grow.
Stay tuned for future Accelerate events from What Now Media Group in 2025. For more details, see the Accelerate page here.
Click here for a complete list of our partners. To learn more about becoming a preferred partner, click here.
