Meet Our Team

Andy has been Chief Executive Officer at HuHot since the very first location opened it’s doors in Missoula, MT in 1999 and then formed the corporation to start franchising in 2001. Prior to developing and franchising the HuHot concept, Andy was employed by Montana Pizza (MTP) in Missoula, Montana as Director of Operations and Marketing. MTP operates several Godfathers Pizza restaurants in Montana as well as the original HuHot Mongolian Grill in Missoula. Andy is usually holding a golf club or some kind of candy. If you want to catch him eating vegetables you’ll have to go to HuHot, where his bowl always includes Burn-Your-Village BBQ®.

With over 30 years of restaurant experience, Linda Vap has been President and Director of HuHot since its inception. Since 1979, she has been employed as President of Montana Pizza in Missoula, Montana.  At HuHot, her bowl always has Khan’s Favorite® sauce in it, but she says the best thing to have with any meal is the company of her grandchildren.

Molly has been with HuHot since 2005, when she started as Director of Franchise Development. Now, as the company’s Chief Brand Officer, Molly strives to be the protector and visionary for the HuHot brand.  Prior to HuHot, Molly was in Brand Development on Hidden Valley Ranch and KC Masterpiece at the Clorox Company. She pulls additional experience from her time in Affiliate Sales and Marketing for Animal Planet and The Travel Channel at Discovery Communications. At HuHot, her bowl always includes Black Thai Peanut™ and whatever miscellaneous item from the food line that her kids decide to throw in her bowl.

Erik joined HuHot in December of 2012.  He is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Denver’s Masters of Architecture program.  Prior to HuHot, Erik worked in Design & Construction as the Designer/Equipment Coordinator for Quiznos.  Erik has gained additional experience as a Designer for multiple architectural design firms throughout the Denver-Metro area, participating in a variety of project types including:  residential, healthcare, commercial interiors, and restaurants. If you ever make it to the Denver HuHot Office be sure to have Erik show you his bowling trophy and challenge him to a game of shuffleboard, he’s quite skilled at leisure sports. At HuHot, his bowl always includes Five Village Fire Szechuan®.

Cassie was initially hired by Montana Pizza in 1996 to do bookkeeping. Through the years with Montana Pizza she played a role in Payroll, General Journals and Financials. She was transitioned to the HuHot team as Assistant Controller in 2001 and promoted to Controller in 2005. Cassie has been with the team for 16 years, she’s worked with the Vap family so long she’s in line to inherit the family home! At HuHot, her bowl always has Kung Pao…Yow® and Five Village Fire Szechuan® sauces

Eric has been working in the restaurant industry since he started at Pizza Hut at the age of 16. Since then he has acquired over 20 years of restaurant operations experience at Einsteins and Red Robin. He’s spent time as a training GM, new store openings, and in the test kitchen. Eric joined HuHot in 2013, where he now directly works with 23 restaurants, 7 ownership groups, and many key vendors. Eric is energetic, passionate, loyal, and personable – he’s known for making a friend in every endeavor and on every flight (don’t get him started on Van Halen or the Dallas Cowboys). When Eric goes to HuHot he’s sure to have a bowl with his favorite sauce, Shoyu Black Pepper and a story about his favorite people – his wife, Shannon, and their kids Taylor and Logan.

Monica currently manages HuHot’s digital assets and online marketing. From the website to the email club (HuHot Rewards) to social media to mobile, Monica is responsible for getting HuHot fans to interact with the brand online and make purchasing decisions based on those positive interactions. Under her direction, HuHot’s brand page on Facebook surpassed the 100,000-like mark by early 2012. Monica’s determination and passion for staying on the cutting edge of the industry has made HuHot’s online marketing one of company’s greatest assets.

Prior to joining HuHot, she worked at a commercial photo agency in New York, and as a wedding photographer. She now lives in Missoula, Montana with her husband and two children, and still takes beautiful photos but the avid instagrammer has traded in her DSLR for an iPhone. At HuHot, her bowl always includes Bekter’s Ginger®.

Erik joined the HuHot team in 2013 after graduating in 2012 from The University of Montana with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. He came in to do accounts payable for the corporate franchising company and quickly transitioned to doing accounts payable for Montana Pizza and Top Tier Colorado. He was later promoted to Assistant Controller in 2015. He spends his free time with his son Sean and daughter Trista, golfing, and fishing. If you happen to catch him at HuHot, his bowl always includes Burn-Your-Village BBQ, Samurai Teriyaki, and Five Village Fire Szechuan.

Lisa has been the Art Director at HuHot since 2011. She started her graphic design career in a small print shop in Helena, MT, then progressed to Montana Magazine and Farcountry Press where she worked in ad layout and book design for over 15 years. From there she packed up her bags and moved to unknown territory (Baltimore, MD) to work as Sr. Graphic Designer for Duron Paints and Sherwin-Williams for 3 years before returning to her home state of Montana.

When Lisa isn’t staring intently at a computer screen, her time is spent on numerous hobbies and enjoying the outdoors with her beloved dog, Reagan. Her HuHot bowl always contains something spicy, preferably Five Village Fire Szechuan and lots of jalapeños.