ABOUT US
For Restaurant People by Restaurant People
EyeSpy Critiquing & Consulting is a consultancy that offers a range of services to hospitality businesses including mystery shopping, operational development, team training, and more. Our philosophy is happy employees make for happy guests. Based on this belief, our Owner and CEO Mistie Boulton started EyeSpy in 2001 to help restaurants and hospitality companies enhance their guest experience through team building and culture development. With 102 restaurant groups and 17 awards, EyeSpy is one of the oldest full service restaurant consultancies in the Bay Area. We are honored to have served many very gifted clients through Eyespy, including Knead Hospitality, Bacchus Restaurant Group, Vine Hospitality, Doordash, Poke House, Los Agaves Restaurant Group, Palisades Hospitality, and others.
Mistie Boulton, CEO & Founder
Restaurant Expert & Owner
Cutlery clinking, low conversations clipped by waiters buzzing between tables, cocktail shakers holding down the beat, slow enjoyment juxtaposed against efficient speed… I love the high energy of a restaurant on a bustling Saturday night. I first got hooked in college, waiting tables for cash. I not only loved the challenge and the inevitable team bonding that creates, but also the fact that all of this effort is geared towards creating an evening of ease and ideally adventure for the guests. What a delicious contrast.
In what felt like the blink of an eye I was suddenly a 25 year old regional manager. I’ve since had the immense privilege to serve as the Director of Operations for PFS Restaurants for 8 years and on to CEO & Co Owner of Oren’s Hummus restaurant group, a role I still hold today.
Through these 30 years in the industry, I have seen my core hospitality philosophy reinforced time and time again. Happy employees make for happy guests. Seeing how true this is and how little it is acted upon drove me to found EyeSpy Critiquing & Consulting in 2001, a consultancy offering a range of services including mystery shopping, operational development, team training, and more, to help restaurants and hospitality companies enhance their guest experience through team building and culture development. I am honored to have served many very gifted clients through Eyespy, including Knead Hospitality, Bacchus Restaurant Group, Vine Hospitality, Doordash, Poke House, Los Agaves Restaurant Group and others.
I am also a passionate traveler, exploring the world in search of the perfect restaurant experience. I am a member of several Bay Area merchant groups, business associations, and charitable organizations. Certified through Accomplishment Coaching as a business and life coach, I bring a unique perspective and passion for excellence to every project, ensuring that both clients and guests benefit from my expertise and enthusiasm.
OUR TEAM
Heather Lewis
VP of Operations Joined EyeSpy 2011
With 25 years in the food service industry, Heather started as a barista before managing a café chain. She supports with everything from creating client-specific forms and checklists for FOH and BOH operations to meeting directly with clients to understand their unique operations. She works closely with the evaluator and Health Auditor team, facilitating the highest quality reporting and data. Her dedication to service and attention to detail are pivotal to our clients’ success.
Laura Garcia
Office Administrator Joined EyeSpy 2004
Laura has over 20 years as an Office Administrator and Spanish Translator at EyeSpy. She manages office operations and bilingual communications. Laura's expertise in administrative tasks and translations has been crucial for our multilingual training courses. She also leads Spanish harassment seminars and plays a pivotal role in developing compliance courses.
Alysia Sewell
Scheduling Director Joined EyeSpy 2015
Alysia's background in Biology and Chemistry informs her detailed approach to operations at EyeSpy. Starting in the restaurant industry to support her studies, she quickly understood the importance of precise management in business success. Through her dedication and expertise, she has advanced from editor to the role of Scheduling Director, bringing with her a devotion to delivering exact client reports and fostering company efficiency.
Miyuki One Bear
Executive Admin to CEO Joined EyeSpy 2022
Miyuki's hospitality career began at 15 and progressed from host to Regional Manager. She earned a BS in Marketing from San Jose State University. With over 20 years of experience overseeing every aspect of restaurant operations, Miyuki is passionate about helping EyeSpy clients achieve their goals through her extensive knowledge and insights.
Nisha Maxwell
Director of Marketing Joined EyeSpy 2017
With expertise in branding, copy writing, art direction, graphic design, and social media marketing, Nisha has elevated EyeSpy’s marketing and communications, creating a steady stream of creative content to inspire and inform clients and attract new business. A San Francisco native foodie, Nisha’s career has spanned high-tech, hospitality, entertainment, and consumer products, collaborating with global brands like McDonald's, Nestle, and Microsoft, but her true love is supporting culinary innovation in her hometown.
Marcus Belardes
Health Auditor & Consultant Joined EyeSpy 2022
With over 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry, Marcus has managed both FOH and BOH, led new restaurant openings, turnarounds, franchise expansion, and implemented operational structures while coaching and developing unit and multi-unit leaders. He has worked with independent restaurants, regional groups, and national chains, managing a national QSR brand for over 10 years. He is currently the VP of Operations for the Oren’s Hummus restaurant chain and EyeSpy health auditor and operations consultant.
Dante Lonardo
Course Designer Joined EyeSpy 2023
With 8 years of front-of-house experience in the restaurant industry, Dante is currently stationed as FOH Store Manager at Oren's Hummus in Los Gatos, providing leadership and coaching, creating a community, and working to build an environment where guests can receive a memorable experiences. He constructs educational courses for restaurants connected to EyeSpy to help provide safe working conditions and a relationship across multiple companies.
Ellice Ogle
Lead Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2024
Ellice Ogle is a food technologist with experience in research and development focusing on food safety. Ellice understands risk management through understanding the severity of a consequence and the likelihood of that consequence. Ellice has 10+ years of experience in working closely with clients, customizing programs to their needs. Ellice obtained her B.S. Chemistry from The University of Texas, Austin and her M.S. Agriculture, specialization Dairy Products Technology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Ellice is Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) certified. Her industry experience includes SCS Global Services, Sun Basket, and Nestle Ice Cream R&D.
Juan De Los Santos
Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2024
Juan De Los Santos has been the General Manager of Oren’s Hummus Commissary for over 8 years, also overseeing the Catering Department. With a robust background in food safety and management, he is both ServSafe certified and HACCP trained. Juan’s passion for delivering high-quality service and ensuring food safety drives him to lead his team with dedication and professionalism. He is committed to creating exceptional experiences for clients while upholding the highest standards of safety and efficiency in all operations. Juan brings his extensive experience to EyeSpy's health auditing team, further enhancing the company’s commitment to excellence in food safety.
David Lewis
Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2003
David Lewis began his career in restaurant management before transitioning to auditing where he developed an eagle eye and a passion for improving safety procedures. In his current role as a health auditor for EyeSpy, he conducts thorough audits, identifies areas that need improvement then reports back to the teams for development with best practices.
Kamylle Giani
Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2023
Kamylle is a seasoned cross-functional restaurant professional with 15 years of experience in the industry. She has successfully trained both hourly and salaried positions on best practices in safety and sanitation, leading regional teams to achieve top-tier inspection scores. Kamylle is dedicated to fostering growth among her team members, providing opportunities to enhance their sanitation awareness through hands-on training and the implementation of effective changes in the kitchen. Her commitment to excellence ensures a safe and high-performing environment for both staff and guests.
Gaetano Lonardo
Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2020
He has worked with EyeSpy for 3 years, initially starting in research before transitioning to his current role as a health auditor. Gaetano has been in the restaurant industry for over 10 years, beginning as a host and progressing through many positions to manager. He possesses strong skills in communication, team building, and leadership, with a keen ability to understand customer needs. Gaetano is certified in making soft cheeses in the state of California and has experience ranging from fine dining to casual dining. He considers himself a free spirit who loves life.
Michelle Baldwin
Editor Joined EyeSpy 2024
Known for her meticulous nature, she believes that attending to the smallest details truly makes a difference. With a BA in Psychology from UCLA and an MA in Forensic Psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Michelle brings extensive experience in writing and editing reports and research articles. Her strong analytical skills and attention to detail enhance the quality of work produced, making her an invaluable asset to the team. She is dedicated to making sure that the evaluations submitted to our partner restaurants are polished, comprehensive, and accurate.
Jordyn Eichelberger
Editor Joined EyeSpy 2024
Jordyn has a diverse background, but one of her most recent career highlights was assisting in launching a non-fiction women's advancement book. Jordyn is also experienced in planning, marketing, design, bookkeeping, editing, and proofreading. Jordyn loves learning new skills and using them in a professional setting. She enjoys challenges and believes anything can be accomplished if you put your mind to it.
Christopher Price
Health Auditor Joined EyeSpy 2024
Christopher Price is a seasoned professional with a B.S. in Culinary Arts from Nicholls State University and a background in culinary arts, health, and safety. He enhanced his skills through an externship at Institute Paul Bocuse in Lyon, France. Currently, he serves as Regional Health & Safety Manager at Eataly, overseeing food safety training, audits, and food permitting processes. His prior roles include Food Safety Specialist at UL Everclean and Senior Risk Control Safety Advisor at Darden Restaurant Group. Christopher is committed to maintaining safe and exemplary dining experiences that prioritize health and safety for all.
PROFESSIONAL PARTNERS
Momos is designed to help Multi-Location Brands globally manage their entire guest feedback, collect guest insights and drive sales with segmentation and outbound marketing.
Legal representation for hospitality.
Quick service and fast casual restaurants are held up by a "Jenga Tower" of technology. Byte Kitchen’s unified products drive operational excellence across leading restaurant brands.
At Synergy, comprehensive and unbiased assistance is provided for commercial real estate needs for restaurants.
They are here to help owners run sustainable long-term businesses.
CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
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WHERE WE OPERATE
- United States: Alabama, Arizona, California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Nevada, Wyoming, Maryland, Pennsylvania.
- Australia
- New Zealand
- Spain
INDUSTRIES WE SERVE
- Restaurants, Bars/Clubs, Food Trucks, Catering, Hotels, Spas, Cinemas, Day Care Centers, Jewelry Store, Tire Shops, Electrical, Stores of any sort.
RECOMMENDED INDUSTRY RESOURCES
- FSR, GGRA, QSR, Andrew Freeman for PR