Titles by Don Yaeger

<strong>This is not your everyday restaurant story.</strong><br /><br />In 2006&mdash;before food trucks were cool&mdash;Mike Rypka had a used trailer, a red vespa, and a resolute dream of opening a taco joint. Zipping around Austin, Texas, making deliveries, and spreading the word, he staked his reputation on a menu of experimental tacos coined by customers as &quot;Damn good!&quot;<br /><br />Nearly 100 brick-and-mortar locations later, a lot has changed at Torchy&#39;s Tacos, but the dedication to honesty and originality remains&mdash;alongside Rypka&#39;s memories of the steppingstones and wild chances that brought him here.&nbsp;<br /><br />In <em>The Devil Is in the Details</em>, bestselling author Don Yaeger takes readers on a madcap journey of redemption, risk, and ultimately reward, chronicling the pivotal choices and hard-earned wisdom that went into building a restaurant chain from the ground up.<br /><br />This thrilling story touches all corners of the restaurant industry, from Rypka&#39;s rock-bottom teenage years working his first job as a fry cook, to country clubs and corporate kitchens, to the recent, unprecedented challenge of expanding his business during the coronavirus pandemic.<br /><br /><strong>Part love story, part biography, part manifesto. What is depicted in these pages is not just the history of a taco restaurant, but an account of the people behind a beloved brand, its quirky culture, and its big heart.</strong>

When Jason Camper launched Le-Vel with co-founder Paul Gravette, his guiding vision was to create a company, a brand, and a product line that had never been seen before. Over 10 million customers, approaching 3 billion dollars in sales, and 30 patents later, the inventor of the THRIVE premium product line has fulfilled each goal he set for himself, and he&#39;s ready for more.<br /><br />In <em>THRIVIN&#39;: The American Dream</em>, Camper gets personal, sharing the grit, grace, and hard-earned wisdom that went into building a transformative wellness brand and achieving success on his own terms. This refreshing memoir traces his journey from troubled youngster to global entrepreneur, including candid discussions of the failures along the way which became steppingstones to a billion dollar enterprise. Readers will also gain practical insights for pursuing their own ambitions in business and beyond.<br /><br />Inspiring and timely, this is an essential read for leaders, aspiring entrepreneurs, and anyone seeking the courage and motivation to THRIVE.

In 1963, Dick Portillo built a 6' x 12' trailer with no running water or bathroom and opened a simple hot dog stand in Villa Park, Illinois. He called it "The Dog House." More than 50 years and 50 locations later, his namesake Portillo's restaurants are a Windy City institution, famous for perfect, Chicago-style dogs. In Out of the Dog House, Portillo tells the incredible story of his life, sharing the ingenuity and hard-earned wisdom that went into building a beloved restaurant chain. From a modest childhood as the son of Greek and Mexican immigrants, to the core principles that became essential in growing a national business, this is a singular, at times surprising, tale of how one man crafted his own American dream, one hot dog at a time.