MDP Restaurant Group Founders

Born in America and raised in Italy, Antonio started working at the age of fourteen as a dishwasher for weddings. Throughout his adolescence he continued working for local pizzerias while still attending high school. With years of work experience under his belt, Antonio’s desire to grow and challenge himself led him to buy his own pizzeria rather than pursue a college degree. After successfully running his own pizza shop, he took a job opportunity in Morocco for a seafood canning company. Antonio challenged himself further and took the opportunity to learn more about a different culture and different parts of the food industry.

At the age of 25, and with no fluency in English, Antonio moved to Orlando, Florida. He first worked as a dishwasher for Food Systems Unlimited Inc., before working his way up the ladder: First as the manager of a single store and eventually the district manager of the Orlando area. For a time, he also oversaw all company franchisees. Climbing his way to the top, he became the Vice President of the company with his right-hand, Aaron Stevens. Together they nurtured the business and grew it to an estimated $50 million in sales across 33 stores.

In 2020, Antonio founded the MDP Restaurant Group with the goal of bringing people together with good food and great service.

Growing up in the Midwest, Aaron began his restaurant career at the age of fifteen working at Café Capri in Youngstown, Ohio as a dishwasher. He graduated from Ball State University in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. He then accepted a position with Food Systems Unlimited, Inc. in Longwood, FL as a Leasing/ Administration Manager. In 2010, he became a franchisee of Food Systems and opened his first restaurant at Newark Liberty International Airport with his brother Chris Stevens growing it to the highest revenue location. In 2011 Aaron was part of a 12-location renewal deal that extended a large portion of real estate for Food Systems Unlimited.  In 2014 he transferred his role into Operations as a Multi-Unit Manager in Indianapolis, In.

   
He then moved back to Orlando FL in 2015 and became an Area Manager, overseeing five locations. Eventually he became Antonio’s right-hand man. They both grew fast and moved up in the field together. By 2018 Aaron, along with Antonio, oversaw 33 restaurants with over $50 million in annual revenue.

  
Aaron is responsible for all the corporate aspects of MDP. He oversees all aspects of MDP’s growth including the vision, real estate, legal, administration, field operations and brands.  

A native of Naples, Italy. Max started his hospitality career at the age of 16 working as a pizza maker for Quick Bite Pizza. He later opened and supported five stores with Quick Bite Pizza. He then focused on Neapolitan pizza and worked for the famous Rossopomodoro pizza franchise in Genova, Italy. Max later became a partner at Rossopomodoro and opened a new location in northern Italy. With this experience, Max was able to grow in the hospitality field and made customer service a priority.    
 
His passion for hospitality took him in an unexpected direction. In 2015, his childhood friend Antonio Schiano offered him a job with Food Systems Unlimited Inc. in the quick-service Asian food business. It was a big decision, but Max’s passion for the hospitality business led him to tackle this new opportunity. In December 2016, Max, along with his wife, moved to Orlando FL from northern Italy. He became a franchisee of Food Systems, buying his first store in Indian River Mall, and supported operations for corporate stores under Antonio and Aaron.  Max is responsible for all operations in Florida under MDP Restaurant Group.