Foodics Launches Table Talks to Spotlight Data-Driven Restaurant Growth Across MENA

Business

Foodics Launches Table Talks to Spotlight Data-Driven Restaurant Growth Across MENA

Foodics, a leading restaurant management and payments technology platform in the MENA region, has announced the launch of Table Talks by Foodics, a new hospitality-focused initiative created to bring together restaurant founders, operators, creators, and industry professionals for open discussions on building and scaling successful restaurant businesses.

Designed as an exclusive, invite-only dinner series, Table Talks moves beyond traditional conference panels to create meaningful conversations in real hospitality environments where restaurant brands are actively developed and expanded. The initiative combines founder stories with operational insights and real business data to offer practical learning experiences for the industry.

The inaugural edition was held at Lila Molino in Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, on June 18 and featured Shaw Lash, founder of Lila Taqueria and Lila Molino. The event welcomed guests into the venue’s working production kitchen for an evening focused on entrepreneurship, culinary craftsmanship, and the realities of scaling independent hospitality concepts.

Shaw Lash’s journey has emerged as one of Dubai’s notable hospitality success stories. After transitioning from a corporate career, she launched Lila Taqueria in 2023, introducing a wood-fired taqueria concept built around heirloom Mexican corn and traditional preparation methods. The brand later expanded with the launch of Lila Molino in 2024, combining all-day dining, coffee roasting, retail concepts, and in-house masa production, followed by Tacos Caminos in 2025.

Throughout this growth journey, Foodics supported operational management across all stages of expansion, helping transform the business into an independent restaurant group built on consistency, operational efficiency, and disciplined execution.

During the event, Foodics revealed exclusive operational insights demonstrating how technology contributed to the company’s rapid expansion. Since 2023, the group has processed more than 85,000 orders through the Foodics platform, growing from a single concept into a three-brand, five-location hospitality group within three years.

The session also highlighted the role of real-time operational and customer analytics in enabling more informed business decisions and sustainable growth. According to data presented during the event, Lila Molino recorded a 98% year-on-year increase in orders between 2024 and 2025 from a single location alone.

This performance was supported by Foodics’ integrated ecosystem, which consolidates point-of-sale systems, sub-cashier operations, and delivery platform orders into a unified operational dashboard, giving operators a complete view of business performance.

Attendees were also presented with insights into customer purchasing patterns and menu optimisation strategies. Signature items and customer favourites continued driving repeat visits, while selected menu offerings recorded more than 400% growth in demand within a single month, illustrating the value of data-led menu decisions.

Today, Lila Molino contributes more than 54% of the group’s lifetime orders, demonstrating how strong operational systems and technology can support business growth beyond physical expansion.

Commenting on the launch, Belal Zahran, Chief Revenue Officer of Foodics, said that Table Talks was created to strengthen industry connections and reveal the operational decisions behind successful hospitality brands.

He noted that restaurant growth requires more than a strong concept and highlighted the importance of operational discipline, consistency, and informed decision-making at every stage of development.

Foodics stated that the initiative reflects its broader commitment to supporting the hospitality sector not only through technology solutions but also by creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing, collaboration, and industry advancement.

Table Talks by Foodics will continue as a recurring series, bringing together hospitality founders and operators every few months for transparent discussions about the future of dining and restaurant growth across the region.