For many restaurant owners, the dream is simple: take a beloved family recipe and share it with the community.
But for Andre and Suheir Williams, the founders of S2 Grills, that dream didn’t just stay in the neighborhood—it grew across Chicagoland and into Texas.
Since 2019, S2 Grills has evolved from a popular nightclub food menu into a powerhouse brand with nine locations and over a million of their world-famous lamb chops sold. Their success isn’t just about the “Casual Gourmet” menu; it’s about pulling themselves out of the back-office weeds by leveraging smart technology and a “championship village.”
Solving the “Monthly Nightmare” of Growth
When you’re growing at a rapid speed, the administrative “boring stuff” can become a major bottleneck. For S2 Grills, that hurdle was sales tax—a looming monthly liability that often created cash flow friction.
Early on, the team recognized that manual tax management was a “nightmare” that distracted from their mission. To scale sustainably, they needed a system that integrated directly with their Toast POS to handle the heavy lifting. After vetting several options, they found that Davo Sales Tax was the only solution that could keep up with their pace.
“We tried many other options and we found that Davo was at the top of the line,” Andre explains. By automating the daily set-aside and monthly filing, the team ensured their tax money was protected and never accidentally spent on operational costs like payroll or inventory.
“It was just what we needed,” Andre adds. “When you have a company that integrates perfectly with your POS and removes those taxes seamlessly, it’s just one less thing you have to worry about.”
Building a Championship Village
Scaling from a “hobby” to a multi-state business requires a shift from solo grit to robust systems, and most importantly, the right people.
“We don’t have staff, we have family,” Andre says. It’s a sentiment many claim, but at S2 Grills, the proof is in the retention. In five years of rapid expansion, their core team hasn’t changed. They have grown together, bringing in partners with specialized corporate and financial expertise to round out the leadership team.
“You’re only as strong as your team,” Andre says. “Everybody has a particular strong suit and we all complement each other. Once you are able to fine-tune your brand, it’s just rinse and repeat.”
Stay Curious, Get Involved
S2 Grills didn’t build their empire in a vacuum. They are firm believers in the power of networking and asking for help. They make it a priority to attend industry events, like the National Restaurant Association Show at McCormick Place, to stay ahead of the curve and find the tools—like Davo—that allow them to scale safely.
Sue’s advice to new entrepreneurs is simple: “Go find somebody who’s established. Go find somebody who’s done this for a while. Ask them, sit down with them, and say, ‘Hey, what did you do wrong so I don’t do it wrong?'”
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