This Restaurant Tech Cost Him a Client — Then Changed Everything

These leaders are reshaping how restaurants grow. Brendan Sweeney and Tony Roy co-founded Popmenu to give operators smarter tools, connect with guests, and scale. Tunji Junard, now Chief Marketing Officer of Steam Boys, saw the impact firsthand and brought Popmenu into the brand, helping grow it to nine locations.

Watch now to learn about restaurant growth, the power of partnership, and replacing guesswork with good data.

Sponsored by:

• TOAST AllIn1 Restaurant POS

Chapters:

[01:34] – Steam Boys Origin

[07:30] – Discovering Popmenu

[09:54] – Building the Playbook

[18:52] – Asking for Help

[26:15] – Human Creativity Meets Automation

SPONSORS:

RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS IS PRESENTED BY TOAST —

Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point of sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience.

• Toast AllIn1 Restaurant POS

Episode Links:

Tony Roy LinkedIn

Brendan Sweeney LinkedIn

Tunji Junard LinkedIn

Popmenu Online

Popmenu LinkedIn

Steam Boys Online

Steam Boys LinkedIn

Key Takeaways:

Tech Built by Listeners, Not Just Coder: Popmenu’s success isn’t about flashy features. It’s about founders who stayed close to the restaurant grind, listened to real problems, and built tools that actually solve them.

From Setback to Strategy: When Tunji Junard lost a client to Popmenu, he didn’t fold—he got curious. That curiosity helped him scale Steam Boys from three to nine locations, proving that the right tech can transform instinct into intentional growth.

Help isn’t weakness. It’s leverage: When Tunji stopped trying to do everything on his own and started leaning into Popmenu’s tools, his marketing didn’t just become more efficient. It became sharper, faster, and tied to real business results. Embracing support turned his guesswork into growth.

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About the Guests:

Tunji Junard

Tunji Junard is a seasoned marketer with over 15 years of experience driving business growth through innovative, data-informed strategies. As the co-owner and Chief Marketing Officer of Steam Boys — a fast-growing dumpling restaurant concept founded in 2019 — he has led all marketing efforts from the ground up. His expertise spans digital channels including social media, SMS, email, and web design. He has leveraged machine learning and analytics to optimize online ordering, user experience, and search visibility. Under his leadership, Steam Boys launched a high-impact loyalty program and email strategy that significantly boosted customer retention and word-of-mouth referrals.

Brendan Sweeney and Tony Roy

Brendan Sweeney and Tony Roy are the co-founders of Popmenu, a restaurant technology company born from firsthand frustration with outdated online menus and disconnected guest experiences. Brendan, the CEO, conceived the idea after noticing how hard it was for restaurants to control their digital story. Tony, the COO, brings deep experience in revenue operations and partnerships. Together, they’ve helped thousands of operators grow smarter and faster while staying rooted in real-world hospitality challenges.

About Restaurant Influencers

Restaurant Influencers is a weekly video podcast series presented by Entrepreneur Media and Cali BBQ Media. Every week, host and restaurant owner Shawn Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) talks with business leaders like Shaquille O’Neal, Rob Dyrdek, Emeril Lagasse, Mayim Bialik, Jon Taffer, Robert Irvine, Toast co-founder Aman Narang, and more about their secrets to Smartphone Storytelling, branding, marketing, and showing up where customers engage online.

Produced by Cali BBQ Media

Published by Entrepreneur