The Taste Podcast

When Nasim Alikhani opened Sofreh, an Iranian restaurant in Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights, she was 59 years old. She was an experienced home cook but had never worked in a restaurant in her life. We sit down to talk about some of the biggest surprises along the way and most important things she learned about keeping herself sane and keeping the restaurant steady. And, we talk about the subtle changes she and her chefs have made to a whole suite of classic homey Iranian dishes to make them restaurant-ready. Later on in this episode, Matt has a conversation with Diana Kuan, the author of Red Hot Kitchen. Her latest book dives into the world of classic chile sauces from across Asia. She and Matt talk about what makes a good XO sauce, why yuzu kosho tastes surprisingly great on tacos, and why some sauces are so much better when they’re homemade.

After studying architecture at UC-Berkeley, Pichet Ong eventually made it to New York and worked as a chef with Jean-Georges Vongerichten from 1998 to 2004, cooking at the restaurant 66 (shout out to Sex and the City) and Spice Market, located in the then up-and-coming meatpacking district. Soon Ong established himself as one of the city’s most innovative pastry minds, weaving the flavors of Southeast Asia into classic French desserts. He also low-key popularized the salt-and-caramel flavor pairing that is now ubiquitous. We discuss it all in this lively conversation. Also on the show, Anna talks Austrian food with Markus Glocker, executive chef at Augustine and chef-owner of Bâtard. They talk about intricate Viennese pastries and messy, comforting spaetzle.

The Four Horsemen in Brooklyn. Have you been there? Have you drank some wine there? Had some of the restaurant’s bread and cultured butter? It’s an amazing place, up on Grand Street, and I had a great time talking with the chef, Nick Curtola, and co-owner, James Murphy. James of the band LCD Soundsystem and fan of drinking natural wines by the Jeroboam. Nick of making really great bread—among other fine things. We talked about the unique way they run their place (we talk fancy water filtration), and also about the time James appeared on French national television and was asked to taste wines blindly. Awkward. He tells the story. Also on today’s show, TASTE contributor Max Falkowitz answers a burning reader question: What is Chicago pizza, exactly?

Michelle and Suzanne Rousseau are two sisters on a mission. They want the wide world of home cooks to think of Caribbean food as more than just jerk chicken. As they explore in their latest book, Provisions: The Roots of Caribbean Cooking, the food from the West Indies is layered with the history of colonialism, slavery, plantations, and the food businesses and home cooking that arose after emancipation. On this episode, we talk about some of the women throughout history responsible for preserving these traditions and propelling the food into the 21st century. We also talk about some of the ingredients (think breadfruit, plantains, culantro) that have created a common thread in the cuisines of these islands. Later on in the episode, Matt speaks to author Gretchen Rubin, author of books including, most recently, Outer Order, Inner Calm. They talk about some of the surprising ways that a philosophy of calmness and order can apply to cooking.

There is no journalist I would rather talk to about Italy—and, really, talk about food in general—than Katie Parla. Her mind, her spirit, her willingness to drive around the wonderfully off-the-grid cow towns of Calabria for the sake of a book project. It’s all really special. In this episode, we talk about her decade-long obsession with the Italian South (and how this is a different thing entirely than “southern Italy”). We discuss her visiting places in Italy that “haven’t seen the Google van” and how her new cookbook, Food of the Italian South, documents it all through a really smart and articulate selection of recipes and stories. Also, Parla debunks a big myth surrounding Italian wedding soup. And that is: Most Italians wouldn’t be caught dead serving soup at a wedding. So where does its name come from? There is a story! Later on I catch up with Amy Zitelman of the remarkable Philadelphia company Soom Foods. She and her two sisters make what many (this writer included) consider to be the best tahini avai

I swear Akira Akuto and I only talked a little bit about the sandwich. What sandwich? The Sandwich. You can read about it in The New York Times: The Egg Salad Sandwich That Drew Eyes on Instagram. Sandwiches are beautiful; sandwiches are fine. But Akuto, a crazy-talented Los Angeles chef with New York City lineage, sure doesn’t want to make them all the time. In this wide-ranging interview, we talk about the opening of his new Echo Park restaurant, Konbi, and how he ditched the world of investment banking and got his start cooking in NYC at Momofuku and Franny’s. He also talks honestly about what it’s actually like to open a restaurant in L.A. these days. Also on today’s show, TASTE contributor Max Falkowitz answers a burning reader question: What exactly is uni? There’s a lot to…unpack here.

The Los Angeles food world has the most low-key power couple. And they are very OK keeping it low-key. Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis are the chefs and owners of two of the buzziest and most influential restaurants in the city: Bestia and Bavel. They are also the authors of a cool new cookbook: Bestia: Italian Recipes Created in the Heart of L.A. During this interview, conducted before service at Bavel, we talk about Ori’s time spent in the Israeli army and how the experience informed the way he cooks today. They also list their favorite L.A. restaurants (they name the names!), Ori reveals what Instagram is saying about Genevieve’s pastries (she isn’t on social media so has no idea), and Ori breaks down the anatomy, and runaway success, of his most popular dish: the lamb neck shawarma. I love these people. Also on the episode, Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman plays the game F, Marry, Kill with three favorite chocolates. I love Deb, too!

British journalist and cookbook author Yasmin Khan writes about Palestinian food tasting alive. But what does that mean? So much, it turns out, and we have a really great conversation about this incredible cuisine and history. Khan spent years reporting for her new book, Zaitoun: Recipes from the Palestinian Kitchen, and she discusses her on-the-ground reporting process. And she does something remarkable: Explaining za’atar (a cool though sometimes confusing Middle Eastern spice blend) in the most succinct, clear manner I’ve ever read. In recipe form! Tune in to find out all about that. Oh yeah, New Yorkers: The best knafeh can be found hidden in Park Slope. Tune in to find out! Also on the show is writer Rebekah Peppler, author of a great new book: Apéritif: Cocktail Hour the French Way. She talks about the three meanings of the apéritif.

Los Angeles chef Minh Phan has a really cool story to share with us. She is the owner of a highly original restaurant, Porridge + Puffs, located in the city’s Historic Filipino Town neighborhood. It’s a mushy good time—you know you like mushy foods. We all do. And the Puffs part, what does that mean? Tune in to find out. Phan talks about P+P’s journey from farmer’s market pop-up to breakout hit restaurant and how her time working in Denmark shaped her vision as a chef. Also on the show chef Daniel Holzman answers my burning food question: Why is Etxebarri the most important grill restaurant in the world?

Listener, subscriber: This is a good one. Pete Wells is the longtime restaurant critic at the New York Times and a man of slight mystery and sound judgment—or bad taste, if you ask some of the chefs he’s goose-egged during his prodigious reviewing career. Before being named critic in 2011, he was an editor at Details and Food & Wine, and we talk about the process of writing the review week after week—and how he thinks like an editor with weekly writing. I also ask him: What should the next New York City mayor do to help improve safety and financial stability for the city’s restaurants? The situation is pretty apocalyptic, and his answers are really interesting. And Pete gives his hot takes on the dollar slice, barbecue, and Mexican food in New York. Oh yeah, about the illustration? There’s a story for that too. Also on the show, Anna interviews Charlene Johnson-Hadley, executive chef of the Brownsville Community Culinary Center, a culinary training program that educates and inspires participants to excel in t

Nicole Rucker is a star baker and the co-owner of Los Angeles restaurant Fiona. She’s also competed in national pie-making competitions and will publish her first cookbook about fruit pastry in the fall. And she’s simply a pleasure to speak with: She’s honest, she’s articulate, and she’s got some amazingly honest thoughts about running a restaurant and the buildup to her recent review in the Los Angeles Times. “Tacos are a public service,” she says, wisely, of the city’s most iconic foodstuff, comparing it to the slice in NYC. “I’m not a taco head, because I grew up with it. They are like cereal to me.” So yes, tacos are discussed as well. Also on the show, Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman gives her advice on transforming a couple of cans of tuna into an exciting dinner. We challenged Deb Perelman, and she very much delivered.

The Ivan Orkin story has been well documented. In summary—and you can read it in the excellent memoir-cookbook he wrote with Lucky Peach editor Chris Ying, or stream it on Orkin’s also excellent episode of Chef’s Table—ebullient white man lives in Japan, makes magic with ramen, stays humble, works hard; the crowds and critics and media swarm. In this episode of the TASTE Podcast, we catch up with Orkin to tell the story of how he first brought his unique style of ramen to America, through a legendary pop-up at Momofuku Noodle Bar in 2012. We also hear about his popular restaurants in America, including a new slice shop. Also on the show, Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman plays the game F, Marry, Kill: Sandwich edition. Grilled cheese, corned beef, pb&j?

Laurie Woolever is a fresh and highly original voice in the food writing game. She’s a journalist—having worked as an editor at Art Culinaire and Wine Spectator—and was Anthony Bourdain’s longtime assistant. On this episode we talk to Woolever about the two Bourdain book projects she is busy working on and a story she wrote for TASTE about cooking the whole damn heart. She also talks about Carbface, the podcast she does with Chris Thornton (aka Shit Food Blogger). And finally, we get her take on a variety of random topics that only Laurie can respond to. Pigs in a blanket, grocery-store ham, and the idea of the “poor man’s recipe.” Also on the show we have Ryan Angulo and Doug Crowell, the duo behind the new cookbook Salt & Kindness. They talk about their popular Brooklyn restaurants, Buttermilk Channel and French Louie, and about that one night a certain very famous couple (coughBey and Jay) celebrated New Year’s Eve in their restaurant.

What a treat! Today on the show we have Meredith Erickson. She’s a journalist, cookbook writer, cycling fan, and the co-author of the new book Joe Beef: Surviving the Apocalypse. We talk about her many chef collaborations—she compares her writing style to that of creating a mixtape—and discuss a big project she’s been working on for years: documenting the foods of the Alps. Erickson also chats about splitting time between Milan and Montreal, which is just about the best way to split time. Also on the show we have Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman answering a reader question: What’s something that you know how to cook now that you wished you could cook in college? The answer is really great.

While the name Zabar is most associated with a delicatessen empire based on New York’s Upper West Side, it’s Eli Zabar (the punk rock Zabar of all in the Zabar clan) who has the most interesting story to tell. He founded one of NYC’s first specialty food stores in 1973, introducing the city to exotic imports like balsamic vinegar and fraises des bois shipped in from France. And he’s sharpened his bread-baking skills through thousands and thousands of loaves. Eli Zabar is low-key one of the city’s finest bread bakers. On this episode I interview him about his earliest memories of smoked fish, the changing landscape of the grocery business, and what it’s like running a restaurant and bakery with his son Oliver. Later on the episode, Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman answers a reader question: If you could take a cooking class to learn about anything in the food world, what would it be?

Helen Rosner is a journalist, Twitter commentator, and the editorial force behind much of the New Yorker’s food coverage. This year, we were treated with her writing about iceberg lettuce, fermenting blueberries with René Redzepi, a visit to an MSG factory in Japan, and a method for preparing chicken that involves a hair dryer. I sat down with Helen to talk about her work, and to look back at some of the highlights of 2018 in food writing, cookbooks, and Twitter outrage. Also on this episode, Anna spoke to Josh Gee, the writer behind the food-focused newsletter Snack Cart. They caught up about some of the best restaurant reviews of the year, and speculated a little bit about how food writing might evolve in 2019.

Before he edited Epicurious, sharply reviewed restaurants in Chicago, and wrote a cool new cookbook, Cook90: The 30-Day Plan for Faster, Healthier, Happier Meals, David Tamarkin worked as a story producer on the first incarnation of Queer Eye. David is an interesting dude! In this fun interview we discuss what it means to cook 90 meals over a 30-day period—and how this Herculean-sounding task is actually quite doable and offers several lasting benefits to the home cook—as well discussing some of the popular (and controversial) recipes he’s published on Epi this year. Does a sheet-pan pancake make you happy? Mad? Also on the show, Tatiana sits down with Diane Chang—a caterer and private chef behind the incredibly cool company Eating Po Pos. Diane talks about what inspires her cooking, from Filipino desserts to dehydrated fruits. And about her time cooking for Gwyneth Paltrow.

Dirt Candy is a restaurant that has become famous over the course of the past decade on New York’s Lower East Side for making eggplant tiramisu, rosemary cotton candy, and tomato fruit leather. But its chef Amanda Cohen makes one thing very clear—it’s not about vegetarianism or health or politics. It’s just about making vegetables taste really good. On this episode, we talk to Amanda about what’s changed over the years—especially as Dirt Candy has rolled out their tasting menu full of tricks, surprises, and, yes, even table-side flames. We also talked about the changing landscape of restaurant review coverage, and why restaurant critics in 2018 have a responsibility to tell a story that goes beyond the food. Later on the episode, we ask Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman about her go-to dessert to bring to parties.

Maybe you’ve been making macarons your whole life, could temper chocolate with your eyes closed, and have enough cake pans to fill a walk-in closet. But maybe, more realistically, you’re like the rest of us who love cake, have no idea what mousseline is, and are still fuzzy on the difference between cocoa and Dutch process cocoa. No matter which of these categories you fall into, Rose Levy Beranbaum’s books are written for you. Beranbaum’s books, like The Pie and Pastry Bible, The Cake Bible, and her newest, Rose’s Baking Basics, cover classic techniques and pastries with scrupulously detailed instructions. Nothing’s dumbed down, and everything is photographed. Anna talks to Beranbaum, along with her longtime collaborator and coauthor Woody Wolston, about how baking has changed over the decades. Hint: Egg yolks are getting smaller, and people are buying more kitchen scales. Later on the episode, Matt talks to author and artist Timothy Pakron about growing up in the South and the inspiration for his new book, 

The chef and cookbook author Anita Lo occupies a very special place in the hearts of many in the New York City restaurant world—chefs, journalists, civilians who merely dine at restaurants (that is, most people). Lo is a supreme talent, having run one of the city’s top restaurants—Annisa—for 17 years. She’s also a mentor to many in the industry. A leading light and an example of how to do things the right way. Stories of this journey, as well as some pretty cool recipes, are detailed in her new cookbook—Solo: A Modern Cookbook for a Party of One—disguised as a personal history. It's memoir light. During our interview at Books Are Magic, we talk about some of the recent controversies in the world of food, and her take on “the boys” and how there’s a clear double standard when it comes to business opportunities, etc. Lo also talks about the joy of cooking for one. Later we get to talk with Matt Startwell, managing partner at legendary New York City cookbook store Kitchen Arts & Letters. We tackle a number of fu