Restaurants - Commercial Kitchen Design Expert Witnesses: 4

David Rutecki's career spans 39 years of Restaurant and Hospitality related experience. Working in more than 20 restaurants and involved in the opening of more than a dozen, he has worked every position possible within this industry. Mr. Rutecki currently owns and operates Mountain Deli in Hendersonville, garnering the 2016, 2017 & 2018 Blue Ridge Growth Award. He is a Member of the North Carolina and National Restaurant Associations. Mr. Rutecki has been invloved in the following selected restaurants:

• Fancy’s Food and Wine, Gourmet Shop, Coral Gables, South Miami & Grove Isle, Fl.
• Susie’s Bagels, Breakfast Restaurant, South Miami, Fl.
• Pizzaria Uno, Full Service Restaurant, Miami, Fl.
• Baystreet, Full Service Seafood Restaurant, Miami, Fl.
• Rusty Pelican, Upscale Seafood, Key Biscayne, Miami, Fl.
• Rudolph's BBQ, Upscale BBQ, Miami, Fl.
• Signature Gardens, Upscale Catering Hall, Miami, Fl.
• Chart House, Upscale Seafood, Coconut grove, Fl.
• Cafe Tu Tu Tango, Coconut Grove, Fl.
• Gatsby’s, Upscale Billiards and Cigar Bar, Boca Raton, Fl.
• Prezzo, Casual Italian, Boca Raton, Fl.
• Maxwell’s Chophouse, Upscale Steakhouse, Boca Raton, Fl.
• Mountain Deli, Delicatessen, Downtown Hendersonville, NC
• Tabica Grill, Upscale American, Jupiter, Fl.
• Jonathon's Landing Marina Club, Upscale Boating Club, Jupiter, Fl
• Jetty's, Upscale Seafood, Jupiter, Fl.
• Austin Grill, Casual, Washington, DC.

Litigation Support - David Rutecki offers expert witness and litigation support for restaurant related issues in the United States. His services are available to counsel representing both Plaintiff and Defendant. Areas of Expertise:

• Restaurant and Kitchen Design, Menu Development
• Food Safety and Sanitation
• Bar Operations & Liquor Liability... Dram Shop
• Safety & Security - Slips, Trips and Falls
• Daily Operations & Management, Employee & Staffing Issues
• Retail Operations
• Staff & Mgmt Training Programs & Handbooks
• Business Plan Development

Gary R. Coburn is an award-winning Restaurant Executive with 40 years of experience creating, opening, running, and advising hundreds of full service restaurants, limited service, quick-service, bars and nightclubs. Additional expertise in restaurant franchising and commercial kitchen design/build from remodels to ground up including conceptual development, viability and business interruption.

With over four decades in the industry, Mr. Coburn has held positions as VP of National Accounts and Design Build for the largest commercial kitchen and distribution company in the country to, Director of Operations, President, COO, Executive Director of Food Services and owner operator. His management experience has included supervising more than 2,000 employees, including 170 managers, along with overseeing consulting assignments for numerous companies.

Clients Include: Joe's Crab Shack, Cask ‘n Cleaver, Lord Charlie’s, El Gato Gordo, Pizza Pronto, Safari Bar Restaurant, Shark Club, Bull Dog Grill, Stronghouse, Pangea, The Ballroom, Juarez Grill, Dickerson’s Club 29, Yucatan Liquor Stand, Zepp’s Atomic Tex Mex, Cabo Grill, Angel Stadium, In Cahoots, The Ball Room, Slick Willie’s, Rodeo, Jake’s, Bobs on the Bay, Crabby Bob’s Seafood, PizzaRev, Honolulu Harry’s, Lahaina Mai Tai Lounge, Canyon Grill, Campagnia, Huey’s Grill & Brewery, Gladstone’s Long Beach, Pro’s Ranch Markets, Lily's Doughnuts & Pops

Litigation Support - Mr. Coburn has served as an expert witness in numerous restaurant-related cases. His services are available to attorneys for plaintiff and defense and include site inspection, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.

Areas of Expertise:

Slip,Trip & Fall Burns Choking Food Safety Dram Shop Alcohol Employee Safety Commercial Kitchen Customer Injuries Operations Management

Franchise Ownership Permitting Training Investing Accounting Premises Liability / Negligent Security OSHA ADA Procedures Equipment Design

Recent cases retained by Plaintiff:

• Guest incident regarding standard of care including safety, protocols / procedures, adequate warnings, and related issues
• Safety and security practices for proprietors regarding foreseeability of harm, likelihood of injury, notice and reasonable intervention 
• Loss of income, conceptual and goodwill impact based on providing adequate parking

Recent cases retained by Defendant:

•     Loss of income and the feasibility of the concept and the viability of opening the restaurant
•     Slip and fall and the ensuring safety of its patrons and duty to use reasonable care in keeping premises reasonably safe
•     Maintenance, industry standards of furniture handling and procurement, foreseeability of harm, and   likelihood of injury from lack of procedures

View RCI's Consulting Profile.

Alan Someck’s 42 years of experience in the Hospitality Industry as an owner, operator, consultant, and teacher has given him the in depth practical knowledge to provide highly professional and thorough expert witness reports, depositions and testimony.  For the past 14 years, he has been a full time Management Instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City as well as serving as an Adjunct Professor of Hospitality Management at the New York Institute of Technology.

Mr. Someck has had 25 years of experience as a full time operator in fine dining and fast casual restaurants. Through his active consulting firm, Keystone Hospitality Solutions, he has helped develop a wide variety of restaurant concepts ranging from cafes to full service restaurants, and worked as a food service operations analyst for organizations such as the U.S. State Department, U.S. Patent Office, and the F.A.A. 

Mr. Someck has been awarded 7 grants from the Environmental Protection Agency and New York State to work on sustainability issues within the hospitality industry.  He also has ownership interest in Jimbo’s Naturally, a highly successful chain of San Diego based Natural Food Markets.  

Mr. Someck has organized and presented at workshops, conferences, and training programs for the New York State Restaurant Association, and has been a national keynote speaker and author of hospitality related business articles on hospitality management strategies, food service operations, and franchising.  He has been featured in a variety of industry media publications such as Forbes.com and Full Service Restaurant Magazine. Mr. Someck is also a Nationally Certified Trainer in ServSafe Food Safety and ServSafe Alcohol.

Litigation Support - Alan Someck has been a legal expert witness in a wide variety of cases related to the hospitality field including:

Restaurant Operations  Restaurant Income and Profit Analysis Hospitality Slips and Falls Customer and Employee Safety  Restaurant Wages and Tips Issues

Food Safety / Allergies Alcohol Service Liabilities / Dram Shop Cases Hospitality Harassment and Discrimination Restaurant Training  Business Damages and Restaurant Feasibility Studies

View Keystone Hospitality Solutions' Consulting Profile.

Joel Feigenheimer, PhD is an industry expert with over 35 years of experience related to the Restaurant and Hospitality field. A graduate of the Cornell Hotel School, he holds an MBA in Hospitality and a PhD in Business from Northcentral University (attained 2018). Dr. Feigenheimer has been named the National Association of Concessionaires Eminent Scholar at The Chaplin School of Hospitality at Florida International University.

For the past three decades, Dr. Feigenheimer has served as both an entrepreneur and director for an International restaurant firm. He has corporate, independent, and franchise restaurant experience. Over his career he has consulted on three continents, excelled in the corporate environment, been a successful entrepreneur, and met thousands of industry leaders.

Currently on the faculty at Florida International University, he teaches Restaurant and Hospitality Management to tomorrow's hospitality leaders. His courses include Purchasing and Menu Planning, Concepts of Food and Beverage, Sustainability, Cost Control, Introductory Management Concepts, and Project Management, among others.

Litigation Support - Dr. Feigenheimer provides nationwide expert testimony relating to Food Service and Hospitality Operations. He has direct experience not only as a "legal expert" but also as an operational expert. This enables him to explain cases in a manner that juries understand, easy going yet direct and effective. Dr. Feigenheimer's services are available to attorneys representing both plaintiff and defendant.

Areas of Expertise:

Contractual Obligations Restaurant Lease Issues Restaurant Employee Concerns Food Safety Vendor Disputes

Hospitality Business Law Food Service Management Operator Liability Liquor Liability / Dram Shop Slip and Fall

View Joel Feigenheimer's Consulting Profile.