Scott Mowrey - Vice President

Scott has a long and successful working relationship with Dan Simons and Mike Vucurevich, first teaming up with the pair at The Cheesecake Factory, and again when they helped lead the launch of eatZi’s, as well as through other phases of his career that finally led Scott back with the full VSAG team to help open Founding Farmers and Farmers & Fishers in Washington, D.C. His knowledge and expertise in nearly all areas of restaurant management — from back of the house to front of the house, from operations to management — have made him an asset to addressing challenges to successfully reposition restaurants for greater returns.

While pursuing his bachelor’s at the University of Maryland, Scott began his restaurant career at TGI Friday’s — it was the early ’80s, and the setting allowed him to broad range of skills developed behind the line and in the kitchen. For the next nine years, he developed his cooking and service techniques while growing his interpersonal and communication skills, rising to the role of General Manager at several locations.

In 1993, Scott accepted a strong leadership position with The Cheesecake Factory, where he served as a General Manager of the Boston store, guiding the location to $11 million in annual revenue. The Cheesecake Factory proved to be the challenge he’d been looking for, with high volume, complex food, great systems and great people.

Following his success in Boston, Scott relocated to Dallas for the opportunity to be part of the development and operations team for eatZi’s Market and Bakery, a unique startup concept focused on prepared foods for home consumption. Working as a General Manager, he successfully operated a 9,000 square-foot market with annual sales in excess of $13 million and remained with eatZi’s for three years working in a multiunit role, effectively creating systems, building culture and achieving successful financial results for the growing brand.

Eager for a new challenge in a slightly different direction, Scott chose a multiunit position with Copeland’s of New Orleans. His exceptional performance and ability to deliver results ultimately promoted him to an executive role as the franchise’s Vice President of Operations, overseeing $42 million in annual sales across numerous stores in major metropolitan cities. His success there led to his recruitment to lead Chicken Out Rotisserie, a Maryland-based fast-casual, 24-unit concept. Facing challenges similar to those when he assumed the role at the family-owned Copeland’s restaurant chain, Scott’s experience guided the rebuilding of the management team and improved their consistency of execution and financial performance.

Working with VSAG over the last seven years, Scott has played important roles on projects, including full high-volume kitchen systems implementation, new store openings, overall operations assessments and complete restaurant operations takeovers.

Scott lives in the greater Washington, D.C., area with his wife, whom he met on a blind date, and his two amazing children. A fan of fast cars and motorcycles, he enjoys time on the road and, if he weren't working in the hospitality industry, he would be building custom bikes.

Read Some Case Studies