Josh Miles didn’t stumble into the hospitality industry. It found him in the back of one of many South Carolina kitchens while tagging along with his father on sales calls as a child. It may have been inevitable, with both of his grandfathers running small cafes in different locations, yet somehow providing a north star to Miles’ future. The atmosphere and the friendly staff was the start of the slow braise that would simmer for decades, transforming a young, passionate kid into one of Rochester’s most well-known and ambitious restaurateurs.
By the time he was 14, Miles, founder of SCN Hospitality—the umbrella that encapsulates some of Rochester’s hottest restaurants and bars—was working in restaurants, whether he was running the cash register at a Greek-owned fast food joint, or later, working as dishwasher, server, food runner, bartender, host, or manager.
He’s been called a visionary by partners and staff. And, if you ask his mother, Laveda Miles, she’ll tell you long before he was organizing staff and overseeing an entire hospitality group, he was organizing talent shows and could plan a party with a pager “in a heartbeat.”
“He’s always loved people and always wanted to be around people,” Laveda says. Inspiring people in a shared vision hasn’t stopped for Miles, who just found a bigger stage, allowing his visions to become reality.
Roots
Although hospitality was in his blood and a part of his upbringing, Miles first set off to college with the idea of earning a degree in wilderness leadership. An outdoor enthusiast at heart, he spent time as a lifeguard and river raft guide. But the degree program wasn't the right fit, and Miles returned to his other passion—the hospitality industry, pursuing a degree in hospitality and tourism management instead.
Miles' journey from the South to Rochester began in the mid-2000s, when he was working on Kiawah Island outside Charleston at a golf community and hotel resort. In his fourth year there, a Wegmans team came through, and he was recruited to come to Rochester. "Where I worked was owned by a very large corporation, and the person who owned it didn't even look at you," Miles says. "Then in my final meeting in Danny Wegmans' office, he spoke to me like he really cared." For Miles, that difference in culture was reason enough to make the leap.
During his time at Wegmans, working as a general manager both in the store and at the Wegmans-owned Next Door Bar & Restaurant, Miles built a network of connections. A passionate sommelier, he organized a trip to Napa Valley that further cemented his reputation as a hospitality authority. As his entrepreneurial spirit took hold and the backing of the right people fell into place, he set out to open his own restaurant. In 2013, The Revelry opened downtown, now known as Rev BBQ.
At the heart of Miles' decision to go into business for himself was a passion to bring a hospitality-first, guest-first experience to a dining scene he felt was missing it. "We opened the restaurant with pure hospitality in mind, giving people an experience that transforms their reality," Miles says. "We wanted people to step back in a place in time, and I feel like we really crushed it."
Several months into the launch of The Revelry, the Strathallen Hotel asked him to come on board to direct their food and beverage program. Miles' wife, Jenna, quit her job to take over the helm of The Revelry in his absence. Although it was a lot to manage, it didn't slow him down.
Setting the Table
Since the opening of The Revelry, Miles has opened a number of restaurants in Western New York, even opening a spot in Buffalo. Today, they currently own six unique restaurant concepts in the Rochester area, where they intend to keep their focus: The Rev BBQ, Branca Midtown, Bitter Honey, Velvet Belly, Ziggy’s, and Patron Saint.
Miles is someone who understands that building something enduring is to surround yourself with good people. In 2014, he sat down with Chelsea Felton, who’d worked in the industry previously but had left to stay home with her kids. Just like his son, nine-year-old Grady—who Laveda says can talk you into anything ("When I'm around Grady, it's just like déjà vu 40 years ago," she says)—there's something about Miles that makes people buy in. It's how he talked Chelsea Felton into returning to the industry and coming to work for him.
For Felton, it came down to his energy and a sense that they were genuinely aligned on ethos and passion. Whether it was importing an oven from Italy for their Italian restaurant Branca Basin (previously owned by Miles and Jenna, but now independently owned) or sourcing equipment from Mexico for their Mexican concept Bitter Honey, Miles was always going the extra mile. "Every restaurant, there were roots, there was a reason, and this passion," Felton says. "He put so much into it. It was about creating something bigger for Rochester."
When she walked into The Revelry and discovered he'd convinced his entire bar staff to relocate from Buffalo to Rochester, it sealed it. This was someone who led with loyalty, and she was in. Today, Felton serves as vice president of SCN Hospitality.
But for all his ambition and polish, Felton has seen the man behind the suit. Traveling to South Carolina with him, his Southern roots came into full view, evident not only in his focus on hospitality and cuisine, but in the image of him behind the wheel of a truck, cigar in hand, snacking on boiled peanuts. "That's not what you'd expect when you see him in his black suit walking around Patron Saint," she laughs.
Just like he found financial backers and believers through his work at Wegmans, he has a talent for bringing patrons into his orbit. Tom Riggio started out as a customer at The Revelry, but quickly became a friend to Miles, who likes to spend time on the floor socializing with guests at each of his restaurants. Their growing friendship prompted Miles to ask Riggio, who has spent his entire career in food and beverage, to come on as a co-owner. “Josh’s passion, his downright hospitality, and the way he treats people just connects with me,” Riggio says. “He treats people how he wants to be treated. I’ve seen it as a friend and as a business partner. Developing his staff has been fun to watch.”
The Salt Shaker
When Riggio contemplates Miles’ leadership style, he notes that Miles is direct and a glass-half-full type of guy. With every restaurant being unique, he’s also adaptable. “He can go from Patron Saint to Ziggy’s and has an ability to know where his audience is at and adjust his style to that.”
Miles’ mom sees him as a big-picture type of person. “Before we opened Bitter Honey, he went there and there was graffiti on the walls, and he could see this wonderful restaurant,” she says. “He always has a vision of what something could be and how much better it could be.”
The sentiment is often the same between those that know him best, with Felton noting how he’s an ideas guy. “He’s the cheerleader of hospitality. He's the go-getter. He’s always up to the challenge. He finds unique features and ideas in people and he runs with it,” Felton says, also appreciating Miles’ willingness to let his employees spread their wings. “He gives people autonomy. He trusts what people bring to him.” Miles, along with his team, have worked to create a company, not just a restaurant job, Felton adds, noting how they offer health insurance and 401ks. “He always says we have to grow, we need more opportunities for people.”
It’s this type of loyalty to his staff that makes them loyal to him, with some employees having worked at the company from the beginning. “He’s definitely a risk taker, and he believes in Rochester,” she adds.
Miles himself points to the Salt Shaker theory from international hospitalarian Danny Meyer, which says owners need to use “constant, gentle pressure” to maintain high standards. “You have a table and a salt shaker. As the guy or girl who owns this place, you dictate where you want the shaker. But all day people are going to move it,” Miles says. “It’s your job to constantly put it back and show them where it goes, and I apply that. You have to be on it and all over it.”
Something Bigger
Before Miles was born, he had a brother who passed away from heart complications related to Down syndrome. Though they never met, his brother became part of his story, shaping in Miles a heart for children with special needs. It's a sensitivity that extends into his own life as a father, to Grady and ten-year-old Georgia, both of whom have grown up in and around the restaurants. "He's a great father," Riggio says. "He spends a lot of time with his kids. He's not just married to the restaurant." For Miles, family and hospitality have never been separate worlds.
For years, Miles had been looking for a way to channel his heart for children into something meaningful for the Rochester community. That vision culminated in the launch of the Shoot Big Project, a nonprofit with a mission of enhancing local children's lives through signature events and experiences.
In its inaugural year, the organization will host the Big Shooter Open on June 15 at Oak Hill Country Club, benefiting Golisano Children's Hospital. "I'm going to throw the best party and give substantial money to the hospital, which sees 9,000 kids a year," Miles says.
True to form, they're putting a fresh twist on the traditional golf tournament with on-course SCN restaurant stations featuring chefs serving wagyu, fresh oysters, and sushi, top-end beverages, and Cuban cigars. For those who'd rather skip the fairway, there's a champagne lunch and retail event running alongside. Their hope is that it will be the kind of afternoon people will be talking about long after, and SCN plans to host at least one event every year, each benefiting a different children's organization.
That’s It For Me
Laveda spoke of Miles' generosity of spirit since he was a small child, and it's that generosity that seems to drive everything he's built as a restaurateur. For Miles, bringing people together isn't a business model, it's something humans have been doing since the beginning of time. Ensuring that every guest feels special is simply part of that Southern hospitality he was raised on.
"I really think it goes back to one of the things as old as time—communal, people coming together to nourish themselves and communicate with each other," he says. "There's nothing better than coming together over food and drink. That, to me, helps stitch up the fabric of the community."
And the best part? "When we have guests sitting there and their experience takes them to a level where their life is affected in a positive manner, that's it for me. It's really about the human experience and the effect on them."
Pullquote: We opened the restaurant with pure hospitality in mind, giving people an experience that transforms their reality.
Sidebar: For more information about the Shoot Big Project and the 2026 Big Shooter Open, visit https://www.shootbigproject.org.