When you lose, tell the story anyway

I’m standing in Terminal One at the San Diego Airport. The same place my team and I dreamed of seeing Cali BBQ on the wall one day.

We were in the final running to bring our slow food fast concept here. Two incredible hospitality groups reached out, and for a while, it felt like we were really doing it. We made it through the presentations, the tastings, and the interviews. We believed.

My wife was excited. My team was fired up.

We could already picture travelers digging into smoked brisket and peach cobbler before catching their flights home.

But we didn’t win.

We lost the bid.

And yeah, it sucked. It was brutal. There’s no sugarcoating it. You pour your energy into a dream, and sometimes the dream doesn’t happen the way you wanted.

You Won’t Win Them All

Walking through Terminal One for the first time after that loss was emotional.

I saw the names of friends - Tiago and the crew from Novo Brazil, the amazing people behind Better Buzz Coffee, the team at Luna Grill - all local brands doing incredible things. Seeing them thrive reminded me that even when you don’t win, someone from your community does. And that’s still a victory worth celebrating.

Not everything in business is a win.

But every loss is a lesson if you’re willing to own it and share it.

Dream Anyway

It would’ve been easy to stay bitter. To think, “We should’ve been there.”

But that’s not how growth works.

Dream big anyway.

Shoot your shot again and again.

Because maybe the next time Cali BBQ will get another chance.

Until then, we’ll keep doing what we do best: serving slow-smoked barbecue, building digital hospitality, and sharing our story - even the chapters that don’t end in victory.

Thanks for reading Restaurant Technology! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restauranttechnology.substack.com