The meez Podcast
Josh Sharkey (Entrepreneur, professional chef, and founder/CEO of meez, the culinaryOS for food professionals) interviews world class entrepreneurs in the food space that are shifting the paradigm of how we innovate and operate in our industry.
The meez Podcast
Tony Aiazzi on bootrapping, Over Easy Office, and bespoke chef knives. Plus Ai as the last mile and singing Chef David Burke's praise.
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#129
Josh sits down with Tony Aiazzi for a wide-ranging conversation about restaurant tech, bootstrapping, and the hidden operational work that keeps hospitality businesses running. Tony shares his path from the Culinary Institute of America and Charlie Palmer’s kitchens to co-founding Shoebox, Over Easy Office, and Veteranized, explaining how one of the most frustrating parts of restaurant life became the foundation for an entirely new career.
They dig into why invoice processing is still far messier than most people realize, how overseas teams in the Philippines and Colombia support modern restaurant back offices, and why the real promise of AI is not replacing craftsmanship but freeing people to spend more time on the work they actually love. It is a thoughtful look at what happens when restaurant operators build tools for the problems they know firsthand.
Links and resources 📌
Visit meez: https://www.getmeez.com
Follow meez on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getmeez
Follow Josh on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshlsharkey/?hl=en
Follow Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-sharkey-406965b/
Follow Tony on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-aiazzi-0366b5108/
Follow Tony on Instagram: @ynotaiazzi
Visit Over Easy Office: https://www.overeasyoffice.com/
Follow Michael: @michaeljacober
Timestamps
00:48 Intro to Tony Aiazzi and his restaurant-tech journey.
03:18 From CIA and Charlie Palmer to leaving kitchens behind.
06:08 Learning to fly in South Africa and resetting his career.
07:51 Why invoice processing became the problem worth solving.
10:17 Building Shoebox and creating a team in the Philippines.
14:55 How Shoebox evolved into Over Easy Office and service work.
24:45 Why Tony chose to bootstrap instead of raise venture capital.
31:20 What restaurant invoice automation can and cannot fully solve.
51:53 Veteranized, knife-making, and staying connected to craft.