Ryan Pernice
Founder, R.O. Hospitality
Ryan Pernice is a lifelong restaurateur with more than 25 years’ experience building and operating neighborhood restaurants.
He started working in kitchens at 14 and was quickly drawn to the complexity of restaurant life: the people, systems, timing, standards, pressure, and care required to make a restaurant work with consistently and excellence.
After graduating with distinction from Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, Ryan worked in New York City across consulting and operating roles. At Avero, he helped restaurant leaders leverage data to improve performance. He joined the opening team of Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group at Maialino, where he developed many of the processes and tools that underpin any successful restaurant’s operation.
Those experiences shaped an enduring belief that great hospitality is not accidental. It is the result of clear systems executed with warmth and conviction.
In 2011, Ryan returned to his hometown of Roswell, GA, to open Table & Main. Under the culinary leadership of executive chef-partner Woolery “Woody” Back, Table & Main has earned Michelin Bib Gourmand distinction and a reputation for hospitality and long-term profitability.
Ryan later co-founded Osteria Mattone with his brother and business partner, Daniel Pernice. The restaurant has earned consistent recognition for its Italian wine program, service, and place in the Roswell dining community.
Ryan’s featured publications including The New York Times, Atlanta Magazine, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He serves on OpenTable’s inaugural Ambassador Council, a group of restaurateurs advising the industry’s leading guest-experience platform.
Ryan leads R.O. Hospitality and, through his consulting, supports restaurant owners to accomplish everything from forecasting and budgeting to design, leadership development, and operational clarity. His approach focuses on active ownership, not theory. He helps operators build restaurants that are disciplined, resilient, and deeply connected to their communities.