Hospitality Meets... with Phil Street

What happens when a morning person who dreams of opening a coffee shop joins forces with a night person who wants a cocktail bar?
Naturally, they rope in their chef mother, add a fiancé with experience in marketing and finance, and open a Greek Mediterranean restaurant together.
This is the story of Eirini Tamousi and Nectar: a family business that took four years, several false starts, disappearing investors and a last piece of finance arriving one day before the deadline to become real.
Then came opening week.
It was, by Eirini’s own account, chaos and in fact her words before we started the chat - "I don't even know where to start"
But amidst the chaos, It was also the beginning of something rather special.
We Cover
Falling into hospitality while studying in Edinburgh
Leaving the industry for corporate HR, and missing its energy
Combining one family’s very different skills
Trying repeatedly to secure the money to open Nectar
Receiving the final finance one day before the deadline
Protecting a family relationship while building a family business
The danger of expecting people to know when you need help
Opening a restaurant without a working fryer or grill
Asking neighbouring businesses whether they had seen your bins
Why honesty during a disaster can build customer loyalty
Reaching more than 300 five star reviews in the first year
Creating a restaurant that feels less like a venue and more like home

Quotables
“We were living it without actually knowing if it was going to work out.”
“People don’t know what’s in your head, funny enough. Unless you tell them.”
“You told me there’s no food, but I can have alcohol.”
“I didn’t know our bins were going to fly away.”
“The things that feel like big setbacks in the moment are quite often the things that shape you the most.”
Final Observation
There is a polished version of entrepreneurship in which somebody has a brilliant idea, raises the money, opens the doors and confidently begins building an empire.
This is not that story.
This is four people repeatedly questioning whether they should continue, learning how not to destroy their family under pressure, opening without the ability to serve food and searching the streets of Edinburgh for wind assisted bins.
But it is also a story about what happens when people keep choosing the thing they believe in.
Almost one year later, Nectar has become exactly what the family hoped it might be: warm, imperfect, honest and full of people who keep coming back.
Hopefully, by the time Phil visits, it will also have food.
Show Partner
A big shout out to today’s show partner, RotaCloud - the people management platform built specifically for shift-based teams.
RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from one simple, web-based app.
It also makes life easier for teams, allowing staff to check rotas, request holiday, and pick up extra shifts directly from their phones.
To find out more, head to RotaCloud

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

The story of the office that smells like itself
What do university ASBOs, Stash Monkey, Sarah Beeny, private equity cold calls and an office with its own recognisable smell have in common?
They all feature in the unconventional journey of Chris Davies, CEO of flexible office brand Uncommon.
Recorded inside Uncommon’s Fulham podcast studio, after Chris and Phil had already used up most of the good material during an hour-long pre-podcast chat, the conversation explores accidental entrepreneurship, yellow energy and the value of making decisions before certainty finally arrives.
Chris also invents the word “Un-Starbucks-ise,” reveals why his university time resulted in an actual legal threat and casually announces that he would eventually like to create a hotel brand.
Naturally, we made a note of that.
We Cover
Why every Uncommon building looks different but somehow feels the same
Recognising an office by its smell
The university business that nearly earned Chris an institutional ASBO
Being sued over the name Stash Monkey
Why your dream investor should not receive your first-ever pitch
Making decisions when you are only 51% certain
The joy and danger of filling a business with yellow energy people
Why a company is a team rather than a family
Learning to manage the energy you bring into a room
The hospitality stories that definitely cannot be shared publicly
Saunas, ice baths and Chris’s future hotel ambitions

Quotables
“People need to think of time as a resource.”
“You kind of don’t want your best shot to be your first one.”
“We’re a team. We’re not a family.”
“People can be odd.”
“I like doing, in my personal life, as many reckless things as possible because I think it makes me feel alive.”
Final Observation
Uncommon began as a happy accident: a residential development that failed at planning and became an experiment in creating somewhere people might actually enjoy working.
But what followed was not accidental.
It took uncomfortable calls, imperfect pitches, wrong decisions, difficult conversations and a willingness to move while only 51% certain.
The result is a growing business with five distinctive locations, a strong hospitality instinct and an office brand that Phil can apparently identify with his nose before he has even reached reception.
Which is either excellent branding or the beginning of a very niche superpower.
Show Partner
A big shout out to today’s show partner, RotaCloud — the people management platform built specifically for shift-based teams.
RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from one simple, web-based app.
It also makes life easier for teams, allowing staff to check rotas, request holiday, and pick up extra shifts directly from their phones.
To find out more, head to RotaCloud

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

I'll be honest... this one is a little different.
For the first time in Hospitality Meets history, I sat down with a guest who didn't need a microphone, didn't ask for a coffee before we started, and definitely didn't have any travel expenses.
Instead, I had a conversation with ChatGPT.
What began as a bit of curiosity quickly turned into something much more interesting. Somewhere between jokes about "Chatty McChatface", philosophical debates about trust, and the bizarre reality that I was interviewing... well... nobody sitting opposite me... we found ourselves exploring one of the biggest questions of our generation.
Not what AI is.
But what it means for us.
Along the way we laughed, challenged each other, questioned what intelligence really means, and even discovered a brand new phrase...
"Digital adulthood."
Who knew?
In this episode we get into...
Why the journey to AI actually began over 70 years ago.
How a conversation about technology somehow became a conversation about humanity.
Whether AI really has a sense of humour... or is just borrowing ours.
Why trust is something AI should earn, not expect.
The famous AI stories that went hilariously wrong (including the tank that turned out to be a cloud detector).
Why AI isn't replacing thinking... but can become a brilliant thinking partner.
What should genuinely concern us about AI... and what probably shouldn't.
Whether Chatty McChatface is actually a respectable stage name.

(We're still undecided.)
Some cracking moments...
"I've processed billions of words... and somehow that's the nickname I end up with.""I'd rather earn your trust question by question than ask for blind faith.""Think of me as a very well-stocked library that talks back.""The future isn't AI becoming human... it's humans getting better with AI.""I said I don't have an ego... I didn't say I don't have standards."
Why this episode is worth your ears
This isn't an episode about technology.
It's an episode about curiosity.
About asking awkward questions.
About challenging assumptions.
About discovering that one of the most interesting conversations you can have about artificial intelligence is actually a conversation about... being human.
And yes...
I genuinely laughed far more than I expected to while interviewing something that technically doesn't laugh back.
Join the conversation
If you had one hour with an intelligence that knew a huge amount about the world...
...what would you ask?
Send me your questions.
Because this is only the beginning.
The AI Files are officially open.
Show Partner
A big shout out to today’s show partner, RotaCloud — the people management platform built specifically for shift-based teams.
RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from one simple, web-based app.
It also makes life easier for teams, allowing staff to check rotas, request holiday, and pick up extra shifts directly from their phones.
To find out more, head to RotaCloud

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

The Story of... The Angry Gardener
What do luxury hotels, practical jokes, Palm Beach, New York, Beijing, Japan, Hong Kong, a very angry gardener and a 30cm ruler have in common?
Yep, this week's guest Rory Slater, Managing Director for COMO Hotels in London.
And trust me...
Some of these stories are almost too good to be true.
Rory's journey started with a love of food, inspired by his mum's Cordon Bleu cooking, before joining the legendary Savoy Group management programme with dreams of becoming a chef.
Fast forward a few decades and that journey has taken him across four continents, some of the world's finest luxury hotels, and into leadership roles that have tested not only his skills, but his character.
In this episode we chat about:
Why becoming a chef wasn't quite what he imagined
Life on the legendary Savoy Group management programme
Why everyone should spend time working night shifts
Hospitality practical jokes, from soufflé pumps to spaghetti drying lines
Running luxury events in Palm Beach
Launching rooftop bars in New York
Building a career across Beijing, Japan and Hong Kong
Opening luxury hotels around the world
Why choosing the right owners matters just as much as choosing the right company
The role mentors have played throughout his career
The unforgettable Easter egg hunt that was nearly destroyed by one very determined gardener
Standing up for his team, even when it meant challenging someone incredibly powerful

Along the way we explore curiosity, leadership, resilience, culture, integrity and why some of life's greatest opportunities arrive wrapped up in uncertainty.
Of course, this episode is packed with the sort of stories that make Hospitality Meets... well... Hospitality Meets.
There's the night a woman was caught slipping business cards under hotel bedroom doors, leading to an unforgettable chase through the corridors... before Rory found himself lying flat on the carpet with a ruler and some sticky tape trying to retrieve every last card before guests woke up.
Then there's the Easter egg hunt.
Honestly... you'll never look at an Easter egg hunt in quite the same way again.
But beneath the laughter are some brilliant lessons too.
💭 "Take the opportunity when it comes."
💭 "You work for good owners."
💭 "Take your job seriously... but don't take yourself too seriously."
And perhaps the most powerful takeaway of all:
💭 "You look after your team."
Whether that's standing by your colleagues in difficult moments, embracing new cultures, or moving halfway around the world because an opportunity feels right, Rory's story is a wonderful reminder that great careers aren't always carefully mapped out.
Sometimes they're built through curiosity.
Sometimes through courage.
And occasionally...
Through surviving an angry gardener.
Funny, thoughtful and packed with wonderful stories from one of hospitality's true gentlemen.
Enjoy.
Show Partner
A big shout out to today’s show partner, RotaCloud — the people management platform built specifically for shift-based teams.
RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from one simple, web-based app.
It also makes life easier for teams, allowing staff to check rotas, request holiday, and pick up extra shifts directly from their phones.
To find out more, head to RotaCloud

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

Six years ago, Robert Richardson joined me on Hospitality Meets for the very first time.
Back then, he was a hotel General Manager with a passion for people, wondering what the next chapter might look like.
Neither of us could have predicted what came next.
Fast forward six years, and Robert returns to the show as CEO of the Institute of Hospitality, leading a global professional body with more than 17,000 members, overseeing record membership growth, driving the Institute's Charter ambition, and helping shape the future of our industry.
It's amazing what can happen in six years.
In this episode we chat about:
The leap from hotel General Manager to CEO
Leading an organisation through unprecedented change
Why the Institute is experiencing its strongest membership growth in years
Championing professional development across hospitality
The Youth Council and why the next generation matters more than ever
The journey towards Chartered status
Learning to overcome imposter syndrome and the fear of public speaking
The stories we tell ourselves... and how they can hold us back
Why leadership is about stewardship, not ownership
The power (and pitfalls) of social media
Building organisations where people genuinely feel they belong

Along the way we explore leadership, confidence, legacy, positivity, personal growth and why hospitality remains one of the greatest industries in the world for developing people.
Of course, this wouldn't be Hospitality Meets without a few memorable stories...
🤣 Accidentally being announced as the new CEO while being tagged as a completely different organisation on social media.
🤣 Rehearsing every speech exactly seven times before stepping onto a stage.
🤣 Seriously considering quitting on the morning of his first major keynote... before discovering the world didn't end after all.
And perhaps the most powerful moments of the conversation come when Robert steps away from the role of CEO and shares the experiences that have shaped him personally.
From the fear of receiving an urgent cancer referral that thankfully proved to be a false alarm, to speaking openly about the reality of living through an eight-year stalking ordeal, it's an honest reminder that leadership doesn't make us immune from life's challenges.
If anything, it simply means learning how to keep showing up in spite of them.
There are also some wonderful takeaways throughout the episode:
💭 "No one develops from a place of comfort."
💭 "You will always get an answer. You might not like the answer, but you'll always get an answer."
💭 "It's so easy to be positive and so lazy to be negative."
💭 "Be the voice for positivity."
More than anything, this is a conversation about growth.
Growth as a leader.
Growth as an organisation.
Growth as a person.
Six years ago, Robert joined me as a hotel General Manager.
Today, he returns leading one of hospitality's most respected organisations.
It's a wonderful reminder that careers aren't built overnight—they're built one opportunity, one uncomfortable moment, and one conversation at a time.
A thoughtful, honest and uplifting conversation with someone who continues to lead with humility, purpose and positivity.
Enjoy
Show Partner
A big shout out to today’s show partner, RotaCloud — the people management platform built specifically for shift-based teams.
RotaCloud lets managers create and share rotas, record attendance, and manage annual leave in minutes — all from one simple, web-based app.
It also makes life easier for teams, allowing staff to check rotas, request holiday, and pick up extra shifts directly from their phones.
To find out more, head to RotaCloud

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy