Why Food?
181 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 30 ratingsDo you daydream about dropping everything and opening a restaurant? Have you always wondered what it would be like to start your own line of condiments? So many trailblazers in the food world actually started their careers in entirely different fields. How did these folks decide to hit the brakes, start over, and become inspiring the chefs, entrepreneurs, farmers and activists they are today? Hear their stories and learn how you too can fulfill your food dreams. Join cohosts Vallery Lomas and Ethan Frisch on Why Food?
If you made a leap of faith to work in the food industry and want to share your story, please get in touch at [email protected].
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Episodes
Episode 32: Ligaya Mishan: Telling True Stories About New York's Great Unsung Restaurants
February 12, 2018 15:43 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MBLigaya Mishan is the author of the New York Times' "Hungry City" column, where she reviews New York's "great, unsung" restaurants. Her career has taken her from an MFA in poetry to writing book reviews for the New Yorker to her current job, where she tells the stories of immigrants and entrepreneurs through the food that they serve. Join us as we talk about how someone who grew up eating spam and frozen peas now reviews restaurants serving food from dozens of countries, and as we grapple wit...
Episode 31: Rob Laing: Agricultural Innovation Within City Limits
February 04, 2018 20:29 - 48 minutes - 44.4 MBRob Laing was a successful tech entrepreneur in Japan when he first realized his stressful, nonstop lifestyle was leading him astray. After leaving his company, embracing a plant-based diet and taking time to learn more about his food sources, he came across the burgeoning indoor vertical farming movement - and saw the impact he could make on the food industry while leveraging his tech background. Rob started Farm.One in 2016 with 350sqft inside New York's Institute of Culinary Education, gr...
Episode 30: Devika Kumar: Food Storytelling, From Family to Farms
January 20, 2018 17:53 - 47 minutes - 43.5 MBDevika Kumar found herself at a crossroads after having her first child. She had successful career in investment banking and an MBA from Harvard Business School, but she wanted to leave a legacy of good food for her newborn boy. Her love for talking to others and telling their stories propelled her down the path of food, from surveying customers at Tom Colicchio's 'Wichcraft to forging relationships with new produce farmers at FreshDirect to overseeing the supply chain at L'Atelier de Robuch...
Episode 29: Cushman Concepts - Nancy and Tim Cushman
August 03, 2017 18:58 - 53 minutes - 49 MBWith a love for good food and wine in comfortable and welcoming surroundings Tim and Nancy Cushman poured themselves and their finances in to their first restaurant, O Ya, in Boston, to create a space where they would feel comfortable. On todays episode they are celebrating the ten year anniversary of O Ya and reflecting on the other four restaurants that reside under the umbrella that is Cushman Concepts, as well as rolling back the years on their respective careers in music and advertising.
Episode 28: FoodyDirect - Brad Koenig
July 27, 2017 19:23 - 39 minutes - 36.6 MBHave you craved New York bagels when you are on the west coast or needed the Caramel Pecan Pie from Blue Owl Bakery in Missouri? Brad Koenig was a lover of all regional foods and wanted access to them from his home in Menlo Park, California. Previously a partner at Goldman Sachs for over 20 years, Brad turned his food desires in to a business and created FoodyDirect which ships delicious foods from restaurants and artisan producers all over the country. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.
Episode 27: William Dean Chocolates: Bill Brown
June 29, 2017 19:05 - 34 minutes - 31.9 MBAt the tender age of 46 Bill Brown tapped in to his creative mind which had been subdued for nearly four decades, his creations were chocolate. It took friends, family and colleagues by surprise that Bill, a successful man who climbed the corporate ladder to the top would quit his well-paid job to sell chocolates in a cafe in Florida. It's that naivete and creative freedom, coupled with his passion and enthusiasm that has led Bill to become so successful, and serves as a constant innovator i...
Episode 26: Supercrown Coffee Roasters: Darleen Scherer
June 22, 2017 18:47 - 37 minutes - 34.3 MBThe DotCom Crash left Darleen unemployed and very uncertain of finding secure work. She took her savings and passion for excellent, transparent and sustainable coffee to Park Slope, Brooklyn to create Gorilla Coffee which became one of the most successful micro-roasteries on the east coast and laid the foundation independent coffee shops in Brooklyn. Two years ago Darleen took those same values and started from scratch once again to open Supercrown Coffee Roasters in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
Episode 25: Q Drinks - Jordan Silbert
June 15, 2017 19:55 - 45 minutes - 42 MBWith a belief mixers should be of equal quality and beauty as their alcoholic counterpart, Q Tonic was born. Twelve years later Q Drinks carries seven products that can be found in bars and homes around the world. With a degree in public policy and a career in urban development Jordan forged an unlikely career change that brought him to develop a soda company revered by mixologists around the world.
Episode 24: Restaurateur - Matt Abramcyk
June 08, 2017 18:56 - 50 minutes - 46 MBAfter falling out of love with finance Matt dipped his toe in hospitality as an investor in one of the most revered cocktail bars in New York City, Employees Only. He then went on to make a name for himself with The Beatrice Inn but has now moved to a quieter part of town and is integrating in to the Tribeca neighborhood with four restaurants to his name.
Episode 23: Hannah Cheng - Mimi Cheng's
June 01, 2017 18:52 - 31 minutes - 28.5 MBFrom finance and fashion, Hannah and Marian Cheng left successful careers to bring traditional and healthy Chinese dumplings to New York City. In this episode Hannah Cheng comes on the show to chat about her childhood, her fathers unusual love for juicing onions, the stress and joy of opening a restaurant and what makes Mimi Cheng's dumplings so special.
Episode 22: Marc Glosserman - Hill Country Hospitality
May 25, 2017 18:55 - 51 minutes - 46.9 MBWith a self-described 'plain vanilla' upbringing in the suburbs of D.C. where at least one parent of each of his friends was a lawyer, it was almost set in scripture that Marc would follow a career in the corporate world. After college Marc founded a telecommunications company with friends which led him to London for a few years. Eventually he acknowledged his passion did not lie in technology and sought to rediscover his passions through an MBA at Colombia University. His MBA led to the b...
Episode 21: Coffee Connoisseur - Debbie Wei Mullin
April 20, 2017 19:13 - 30 minutes - 27.8 MBDebbie Wei Mullin is passionate about poverty alleviation. After visiting her relatives in Vietnam at 15 years of age she decided to dedicate her career to community empowerment and providing opportunities to those less fortunate. That passion led her to work for the World Bank where she felt she could make a lasting impact within one of the most powerful global institutions with a mission of poverty alleviation. Instead, it was a bureaucratic machine that made her feel ineffective and unem...
Episode 20: Home Cook - Donal Skehan
April 13, 2017 18:49 - 50 minutes - 46.3 MBDonal Skehan has created a remarkable career for himself in the food world. As an author of seven cookbooks and the host to fourteen cooking shows in four countries he has showcased the power keeping food simple and accessible. Donal's career in front of the camera began in a very different setting, he was involved in two different pop groups in his early twenties but left his music career behind in pursuit of his true passion. His blog, Good Mood Food, quickly evolved to a book deal and a t...
Episode 19: Farmer - Ben Flanner
April 06, 2017 18:49 - 37 minutes - 34.8 MBIn the concrete jungle of New York City agriculture is sparse but Brooklyn Grange have developed the worlds largest rooftop soil farms which produce over 50,000 lbs of organically cultivated produce per year. Ben Flanner, President and Director of Agriculture, joins me on the show today as we discuss his circuitous route to farming, how two rooftop farms can supply some of New York City's finest restaurants including, The Spotted Pig, Gramercy Tavern, and Roberta's, and how his early years i...
Episode 18: Food Academic - Darryl Mosher
March 30, 2017 18:53 - 53 minutes - 48.8 MBThis week I made the trip Poughkeepsie to chat with Darryl Mosher at the CIA campus. Darryl left a lucrative position at IBM in search of nature which led to a 70 acre family run farm. After two decades on the farm Darryl turned to the academic world to share his knowledge with the next generation at CIA. Darryl lectures in product knowledge and applied food studies, and shares a refreshing opinion on how our broken food system can be mended. Part of the baby boomer generation we also talk ...
Episode 17: Food Author - Bianca Bosker
March 23, 2017 18:50 - 39 minutes - 36.6 MB"I am obsessed with other people's obsessions" This quote sets the tone for how engaged and involved you become when you read Cork Dork. Bianca Bosker, previously the executive tech editor at the Huffington Post, left her job and set out to understand Sommeliers and their obsessions, whilst trying to become a certified Somm in under one year. In today's interview we get to hear about Bianca's journey from philistine to blind taster, the sacrifices she made, is fine wine a genuine industry or...
Episode 16: Restaurateur Pt. 1 - Adam Eskin
March 09, 2017 20:47 - 52 minutes - 47.7 MBAs the founder & CEO, of Dig Inn, a successful farm to table restaurant group based in New York and Boston Adam Eskin was thrown in the deep end right from the start. With an Economics degree from Brown University, Adam quickly entered the world of finance where he ascended the corporate ladder. His first insight to the world of food came when Wexford Capital acquired a small chain of bodybuilding restaurants, at the time of the protein craze during the mid 00's. Adam soon assumed responsib...
Episode 15: Food Critic - Alan Richman
February 23, 2017 19:47 - 56 minutes - 51.7 MBA winner of 16 James Beard Foundation Journalism Awards during his 25 years as a food critic for GQ, Alan Richman is one of the most revered, yet controversial figures in the restaurant scene over the past two decades. His feuds with Anthony Bourdain, David Chang and Creole cuisine have captured the media, but there is a much greater depth to Richman’s career and personality that deserves to be heard. His journey into the world of food and wine was by coincidence after serving in the army, f...
Episode 14: Sommelier - Max Coane
February 02, 2017 19:45 - 47 minutes - 43.9 MBImagine if you're first restaurant job was at a two Michelin-starred restaurant and within that restaurant you were the Head Sommelier, quite the start in the industry. Max Coane's life was dedicated to music from the age 6, it was his obsession. As a producer, sound-engineer, songwriter and musician he worked in some of the finest recording studios around the world. In his early twenties he was introduced to the sophisticated world of wine and this love interest slowly came to a tipping po...
Episode 13: The Theatrical Chef with Chef Yo
January 12, 2017 19:57 - 41 minutes - 38 MBChef Yo graduated with a masters from the Theatre Directing program at Columbia University. A native of Thailand, he found himself working in Thai resturants in New York, climbing the ladder from busboy to server to manager. The hospitality industry never appealed to him-it was simply a means to an end-but when he graduated and struggled to find work in the theatre he went back to basics. Chef Yo reached out to two friends and together they opened up Pinto, a Thai restaurant in the West Vill...
Episode 12: The Dairy Queen from Wall Street - with Homa Dashtaki of the White Moustache
December 15, 2016 19:45 - 43 minutes - 40.1 MBHoma Dashtaki is the owner of The White Moustache, a coveted New York producer of both Persian and Greek style yoghurts, labneh and whey probiotic drinks. Homa started the company with her father after she was laid off from her Wall Street job during the 2008 recession. This is a story of perseverance - The White Moustache encountered so many hurdles during its infancy which would cause most business owners to give up but Homa was determined the business would succeed.
Episode 11: Jonathan Mendez of Saloniki Greek
December 08, 2016 20:30 - 29 minutes - 26.8 MBJonathan Mendez, co-founder of Saloniki Greek introduces us to his new restaurant and his previous career path as a lawyer. Saloniki Greek takes traditional Greek dishes with New England ingredients to reproduce some delicious classics. In this episode we talk about the good, the bad and the ugly of Greek Street food here in the states, and what to look for when you want some quality feta cheese.
Episode 10: The Curious Beginnings of Ample Hills with Husband and Wife co-owners Brian Smith and Jackie Cuscuna
December 01, 2016 19:49 - 34 minutes - 31.7 MBBrian Smith and Jackie Cuscuna are the co-founders of the delicious, creative and playful ice cream company, Ample Hills. They both have past careers as teachers, Brian later went on to become a screenwriter and director before founding Ample Hills. Ample Hills are known for their chunky ice creams and wacky names but did you know they make every single ingredient from scratch? Brian gives us a basic guide on how to deconstruct a food and recreate it as ice cream and we get Ample Hill's opin...
Episode 9: From the Classroom to the Kitchen – Timothy Caspere
November 10, 2016 19:55 - 37 minutes - 34.1 MBTimothy Caspare, the Chef de Cuisine at the trendy Italian spot Pasquale Jones, hasn’t always been a chef. On today’s show we talk about his time as an English teacher at a rough high school in New Jersey, his retreat to Italy for his formal cooking education, his quick ascent at Eleven Madison Park and his nuggets of wisdom to balance a highly regimented profession with creative flair.
Episode 8: Wine Becomes Art – Alie Shaper
November 03, 2016 18:51 - 47 minutes - 43.5 MBAs the founder of Brooklyn Oenology, Alie Shaper has taken the centuries old wine concept of terroir and modernized it within the Brooklyn environment. Alie is a graduate of Engineering from Cornell University which is where her passion for wine was ignited. After graduating Alie moved to San Jose as a military contractor to work on various projects. She soon returned to New York in pursuit of the wine industry. In 2010 Brooklyn Oenology opened a tasting room in Williamsburg, stocking food a...
Episode 7: A Serial Investor Rooted in Nature – Shen Tong
October 27, 2016 18:50 - 43 minutes - 39.7 MBShen Tong is one of the most accomplished individuals I have met. It is simply not possible to bracket him in to pre- and post-food careers because he builds on his achievements instead moving from one to the next. Shen is a social activist, exiled from China as one of the student leaders in the democracy movement in Tiananmen Square in 1989, he was also heavily involved in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Shen Tong is a television producer, technology innovator, entrepreneur, serial investo...
Episode 5: A Privileged and Humble Transition to Food – Vincent Mazeau
October 06, 2016 18:45 - 31 minutes - 28.8 MBVincent Mazeau recently traded his successful career as an artist and set designer of 15 years to start a new life, owning and operating his own restaurant, Cherry Point, in Greenpoint, with his partners, Chef Julian Colcott and Garrett Smith. Vincent is a graduate of Sculpture from Yale who progressed in to the world of set design with his company, Big Room. During Vincent's fifteen years in the industry he collaborated with brands such as Calvin Klein, Yves St. Laurent, Alexander McQueen ...
Episode 4: The Land of The Happy Pear – David and Stephen Flynn
October 04, 2016 16:24 - 47 minutes - 43.3 MBStephen and David Flynn are twins and founders of The Happy Pear. The Happy pear began twelve years ago as a fruit & veg shop in their hometown of Greystones, just south of Dublin, Ireland. In that twelve year period, The Happy Pear has expanded to a Café, evening restaurant, sprout farm, food production facility – producing energy bars, pesto, granola and many other plant based delicacies, the happy heart – a health education course, and two best-selling cookbooks. Stephen and David have ...
Episode 3: From Desk Jockey to Dough Bro – Ronan Greaney
September 29, 2016 18:40 - 34 minutes - 31.6 MB"If you have a genuine passion for something, why not go for it?" I'm back home in Galway, Ireland this week and while I was home I wanted to meet the guys who have set the restaurant scene a light with their warm hospitality and sensational Neapolitan pizza. Galway is the major food destination in Ireland, recently awarded the European Region of Gastronomy 2018 and Dough Bros are the restaurant that perched themselves as the number one restaurant on TripAdvisor for 14 consecutive months a...
Episode 2: From the Opera to the Hive – Casey Elsass
September 22, 2016 18:47 - 38 minutes - 35.7 MB"The one through line of my early twenties was that there was no through line." After many years of random jobs and a prolonged stint at the Metropolitan Opera, Casey made a pledge to himself that he would establish his career path by the time he was 30. Food was always heavily involved in Casey's life, it was a love interest of his but always something in the background. That is until he and a friend set themselves a challenge to set up a company in 30 days. They developed a spicy honey wit...
Episode 1: Social Justice to Food Justice – Martha Hoover
September 15, 2016 18:45 - 39 minutes - 37.1 MBIn this episode we meet one of the most inspirational restaurateurs in the States. Largely unknown because she doesn't operate in sexy markets like New York or LA, Martha Hoover is the CEO and founder of 11 restaurants and a charitable foundation. Formerly a public sector lawyer, Martha made the transition to food in '89. With no restaurant experience, two young children, and a third on the way, she opened up Cafe Patachou. Over the past 25 years she has changed the restaurant landscape in I...