DiscoverDistinguishedEd Brown, CEO of Restaurant Associates: The Right Ingredients for Hospitality at Scale
Ed Brown, CEO of Restaurant Associates: The Right Ingredients for Hospitality at Scale

Ed Brown, CEO of Restaurant Associates: The Right Ingredients for Hospitality at Scale

Update: 2025-07-22
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Although he wears the CEO suit and title, Ed Brown counters that he’s a chef at heart. He has bridged the world of white-tablecloth fine dining and high-scale institutional foodservice, without losing the soul of either. 

Ed Brown began his career behind the line, rising through the world of fine dining to earn national acclaim as Executive Chef at The Sea Grill at Rockefeller Center. That same philosophy — care, craft, and clarity of purpose — now underpins his leadership as CEO of Restaurant Associates or R/A, a subsidiary of Compass Group, the nation’s largest family of foodservice and facilities services companies. 

Learn what it takes to think big, and all the while, stay grounded in the principle of making quality, fresh, and sustainable ingredients taste delicious. 

Research: Lan Lu, PhD 
Video and production: Jaison Jose of Cocoon Media 

Email us at shadean@bu.edu

The “Distinguished” podcast is produced by Boston University School of Hospitality Administration.

Host: Arun Upneja, Dean
Producer: Mara Littman, Executive Director of Strategic Operations and Corporate Relations
Marketing: Rachel Hamlin, Senior Marketing Manager
Research: Lu Lan


Music: “Airport Lounge" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

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Ed Brown, CEO of Restaurant Associates: The Right Ingredients for Hospitality at Scale

Ed Brown, CEO of Restaurant Associates: The Right Ingredients for Hospitality at Scale

BU School of Hospitality Administration