National Restaurant Association Show

May 22–25, 2027
McCormick Place
Chicago, IL

Mike Whatley
Vice President of State Affairs and Grassroots Advocacy, National Restaurant Association
Speaker

Profile

Mike is Vice President of State Affairs and Grassroots Advocacy at the National Restaurant Association. In his role he advocates on behalf of restaurants in all 50 states, oversees the restaurant industry's grassroots efforts at all levels of government, and serves as the staff executive of the Restaurant Advocacy Fund.

Prior to working at the Association, he worked in Congress for the House Oversight Committee in the United States House of Representatives. He is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College with honors in Government and received his MBA from Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business