Howard Greenstone

Born and raised in Teaneck, NY, Howard’s parents introduced him at a young age to some of the best restaurants in NYC. Greenstone began his career with The Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City and quickly ascended the ranks to help open the prestigious Hyatt Hotel in Greenwich, CT. At age 26, he was named the opening General Manager of the famed restaurant Aquavit, earning two stars from The New York Times. Greenstone then moved on to serve as VP of Operations for Sfuzzi Restaurants, a casual fine-dining concept which grew from 3 to 30 units during his tenure. He moved back to the New York area as President of Dry Dock Restaurants in New Jersey.

As Greenstone developed a reputation for successfully growing restaurant concepts, he was wooed by NYC owners of Rosa Mexicano Restaurants, then a 2-unit upscale Mexican restaurant concept. He served as a Partner/CEO of the company driving not only the business, but the concept, up to 18 units. Greenstone grew Rosa Mexicano tenfold and established it as one of the premiere Mexican restaurants in the country. He strategically aligned business partnerships internationally and introduced the brand to markets and gourmet retail outlets. He and his partners orchestrated a liquidity event in 2008.

Over the last 10 years, Greenstone began to build his portfolio of independent business partnerships, with his own company, Red Pebbles Hospitality. Greenstone co-founded Bajo Sexto Taco and Adele’s in Nashville, TN, with acclaimed Chef Jonathan Waxman. He later went to partner with the well known 404 Kitchen and founded Sadie’s, also in Nashville. He is Partner and CEO to the acclaimed Pizza Loves Emily, based out of Brooklyn, NY, and is continuously growing the business country wide: with outlets in Nashville, TN, Louisville, KY, Washington, D.C, Philadelphia, PA, Atlanta, GA and Charlotte, NC, totalling 27 units, including three in the Middle East and one in Santa Monica, CA.

Pizza Loves Emily brought in a partner in early 2022.

In addition, Greenstone has been a partner with Chef Marcus Samuelsson for over 10 years. He oversees his restaurant division, working to expand his restaurant empire across the globe.

He has been featured in New York Magazine, Restaurant Business Magazine and Nation’s Restaurant News, to name a few. He has been a featured speaker at notable culinary events, including Food & Wine Classic, in Aspen.