Olga’s Kitchen, a 2026 Food On Demand Outstanding Operator, spent the last five years treading the line between eagerly adapting to changing consumer preferences and maintaining a distinct brand identity forged over five-and-a-half decades of serving Michiganders.
Thanks to an extensive tech stack and an uncompromising mission to meet customers where they are, the Wolverine State-based Greek-American restaurant saw off-premises sales mix up roughly 30% from 2019.
Ryan Jones, vice president of TEAM Schostak Family Restaurants, which owns and operates Olga’s Kitchen, said the brand faced the challenge of honoring its 55-year legacy while evolving to meet the demands of new consumers.
“We have 23 locations, and they’re all located in Michigan. It is a very regionally iconic brand. If you grew up in Michigan, chances are you have an affinity or an affection for the brand,” Jones said. “It’s a brand that people have almost the same connection to as they would have with a professional sports team; people have this emotional reaction when you bring it up.”
Ryan Jones, Vice President of TEAM Schostak Family Restaurants
Since joining the leadership team in 2021, Jones said it became obvious that Olga’s attracts a different type of customer through its off-premises operations than the regulars who have dined in-house for decades.
Jones credited Sutra.AI with custom-building a system that offers deep insights into off-prem guest behaviors. The artificial intelligence platform allowed Olga’s to leverage dynamic pricing and apply marketing tactics by store, day and week.
“Sutra is really hyper-focused on segmentation and peeling back a ton of layers,” Jones said, adding that the platform gathered the brand’s data from DoorDash, Olo and other partners. “They aggregated it all, and now they’re providing us recommendations to segmented guests for deals that we know will motivate those guests.”
When it comes to leveraging AI, Jones said Olga’s sees it more as a tool to build sales and better understand guest behavior rather than a means for operational improvements. The brand uses Paytronix Systems for its app and loyalty program; loyalty sales now make up about a quarter of the total mix.
“I think in five years from now, the offers that come to your inbox are going to be based off of what your purchase behavior has been prior,” Jones said as a prediction for industry-wide marketing trends. “It’s not going to be a blanket offer that 300,000 other people get; it’s something that’s specific to you, that it knows is going to motivate you to come buy whatever they’re selling.”
Since 2023, guests calling any of Olga’s locations to place an order have been greeted by Gina, an AI customer service representative through Voice Plug. On the phone, Gina offers recommendations tailored to the caller.
On the third-party delivery front, Olga’s maintained an exclusive partnership with DoorDash from 2021 until last August, when it switched back to a multi-platform approach. Delving deeper into the platforms, Jones said, proved significant in further expanding 3PD sales in 2025.
“As basic as this sounds, learning and understanding the ins and outs of Uber and DoorDash portals — marketing, sponsored listings and things like that,” Jones said. “If you’re an operator and you’re not really well educated on that stuff, you’re leaving money on the table.”
As another boost to its off-prem revenue, Olga’s saw catering sales nearly quadruple since 2019, growing from $500,000 to nearly $2 million annually. Jones said this increase resulted from the onboarding of a skilled catering manager.
Despite the progress Olga’s has made in capturing off-prem sales and expanding its customer base in recent years, Jones said the brand will continue to lean heavily on technology to continue the trajectory in the coming years.
“As each year passes, you either need to get on the boat — where you embrace technology, embrace AI, use it responsibly and combine it with a human element — or you’re very much going to be left behind, and it’s going to happen really, really quickly,” Jones said.
The Outstanding Operators Program highlights 20 innovative brands taking creative paths to success with all things off-premises. Each winner receives a $1,000 charitable donation to its organization of choice and will be recognized on-stage at the 2026 Food On Demand Conference. Register today!
 |
 |
 |
