This week on Menu Talk, Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food and beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, share their take on some recent happenings in the world of food and drink.
Bret is settling into his new Brooklyn digs, discovering the vast assortment of pickled and smoked fish available in his new neighborhood. And buckwheat—that’s the grain of choice in the shops that surround his apartment.
Pat was recently a guest at a “Nikkei Twist” dinner in which private chef Will Ono created a five-course Colombian-Japanese menu. Off-duty private chefs, restaurant sous chefs, line cooks and other culinary pros develop the menus and cook at these events. There’s also a sommelier at the dinners to pair wines. It’s a new kind of dining platform that’s becoming a win-win for both chefs and consumers.
We listened to clips from Bret’s podcast with Joe Schaeffer, VP of Culinary for Atlanta-based Electric Hospitality, about Muchacho, the group’s Southern California-inspired taqueria. Schaeffer created six unique fresh salsas using a variety of chilies, some raw, some roasted or simmered, to infuse each with complex flavor.
How Eileen Andrade transformed her grandmother's Cuban diner into an elegant fine-dining restaurant
How a new Margaritaville transformed foodservice at a Louisiana campground in mere months
How CEO Jeff Carcara is taking Sixty Vines to 'wherever the wine drinkers are'
As director of culinary for US Foods, Scott McCurdy is a 'constant student of restaurants'
How Mike's Hot Honey sparked the sweet-heat menu trend, starting with Paulie Gee's Brooklyn pizzeria
How Eric Gabrynowicz gave Tupelo Honey Southern Kitchen & Bar a menu refresh while staying true to its roots
How Spike Mendelsohn is changing up healthy eating in the fast-casual and snack spaces
How True Food Kitchen reimagined its menu with a focus on hyper-seasonality and comfort
How Fabio Viviani is expanding his restaurant empire into the sweet side
117 chefs share their secrets to running a successful kitchen and restaurant
How Robert St. John turned Hattiesburg, Miss., into a dining destination
How Yogurtland's flavorologists push the envelope on what frozen yogurt can be
How Ford's Garage innovative menu and vibe draws guests of all ages
How Jonathon Sawyer’s live-fire cooking passion ignites the menu at Kindling
How craveability, sustainability and the guest experience drive Avi Szapiro's menu mission
How Starbird's recipe for perfect fried chicken is powering the fast casual for growth
How food hall pioneer Anna Castellani is transforming community dining
How Jared Galbut turned his Florida-born taqueria into a dining and nightlife destination
How 3 chain restaurant execs put menu innovation front and center
Qdoba chef Katy Velazquez taps her travels in Mexico to innovate the menu—but will never touch the chain's signature queso
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