HiddenFandB

Claire Chan owns two places in New York, The Elk and Bar Beau. Many people have been in the food business forever and worked their way up from home kitchen to chef or front of house in a restaurant. Claire was a fashion buyer for Bergdoff Goodman with a passion for coffee and cocktails. Those two passions became the seeds for her two restaurants, and her experience with fashion? It's all about pay...

Destiny Burns...isn't that a great name for a superhero? Well, this winemaker isn't a superhero, but she's pretty close. She's been an EMT, a firefighter-in-training, a military intelligence officer…she's had more lives than most cats! Now she's bringing the culture of a craft brewery to Cleveland, only she's doing it with wine. She's also a legacy award winner for Les Dames d'Escoffier, an intern...

Lauren DiGiovanni is a chef at Weight Watchers. If you still think food from Weight Watchers is all about cottage cheese and celery, you're way behind. Lauren is creating healthy, tasty food videos that keep you well within your points, and she's doing it by putting flavor first. Lauren DiGiovanni, on the Hidden F&B.  

Jennifer Billock is a kitchen witch and a journalist and I first encountered her in her journalist role since we both write about food. But the other part of her – the witch part – fascinated me and I wanted to learn more about what it means to use food as the expression and practice of your beliefs. I found it so interesting, and I think you will too. Jennifer Billock, on the Hidden F&B.

 Lucille Contreras of the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project says, "Who doesn't like buffalo?" She obviously does -- she talks about buffalo and how her project in San Antonio is bringing her people health and food sovereignty -- as well as what that means. James Beard Fellow Lucille Contreras on the Hidden F&B podcast.

His mentor was a short, grumpy guy who cut off someone's ear with a sushi knife. No wonder Masatomo Hamaya listened and learned without any back talk! Masatomo Hamaya of O-Ku Atlanta on the Hidden F&B. 

 Hannah Barton manages the restaurant Herons, which is part of the Umstead resort and spa in Cary, North Carolina. The restaurant has won top ratings from Forbes and Triple A, and Hannah's wine list is one of the reasons why. You might be surprised to hear that when Hannah is on her own time, wine is NOT the first thing she reaches for. We talk wine, wine snobbery, and the stories behind wines wit...

Mara Papatheodorou used to edit at Bon Appetit. Now she talks about how food shapes our culture, our lives, and our holidays on the Hidden F&B podcast. 

They weren't sure at first how Trinidadian food would go over, even in an international city like DC. The popularity of Cane reassured this sibling duo, and they're getting ready to open a second restaurant with a Trinidad theme. Peter and Jeanine Prime on the Hidden F&B! 

We're talking with Belinda Smith-Sullivan. I first met Belinda through Les Dames d'Escoffier, an international philanthropic organization of women in food and beverage. She was the one with the wicked laugh and a glass of champagne charming everyone at the bar. Then I found out we had the same birthday and the same sense of humor, and we became friends. But even I learned some things about this Re...

Mindi McGlynn owns a steak house that even vegetarians can enjoy, because almost everything goes over the fire and there are plenty of smoky vegetables on the menu. Mindi opened Asheville Proper right during COVID, but even a construction halt didn't stop Mindi and her husband, and their restaurant is serving local proteins and vegetables and even cocktails with a hint of smoke. Mindi McGlynn of A...

We're talking with Jorge Baralles of Papi's Tacos in Greenville. Jorge works with his dad to turn out tacos that he says are authentic tacos and not hipster tacos. I'd never even thought that tacos could be hipster, but, you know, when he described what he meant, I could just see the earnest guys in man buns eating them. But Jorge is about more than feeding people – he wants to be sure that others...

 I first heard about Julia Sholtz when a friend said she's the kind of woman who ran the restaurant with a baby on her hip. Turns out, that may have been a BIT of an exaggeration but not by much – when child care falls through, there's still a couple of restaurants to run and, let's just say, her daughters know where the sweets are kept at both Stella's, her restaurants in upstate South Carolina!...

We talk with David Page. If you love food like I do, you want to be first to hear about trends in the food world. I jumped on it when I got the chance to talk to David because, not only does he have a book about Food Americana, but he also created that iconic television show, Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Whether or not you're a fan of big Guy Fieri, you've got to admire the impulse to highlight t...

We're talking with Erin Scala of the Common House in Richmond, VA. Erin makes you feel smarter about wine, just from talking with her. And she's passionate about drinking sustainably now to preserve the wines of the future. Erin Scala on the Hidden F&B podcast!    

Heidi Vukov of Myrtle Beach owns a couple of Croissants Bistro and Bakeries and Hook and Barrel. She's won several awards, including South Carolina Restaurateur of the Year for 2011. This is a woman who knows how to get things done. But the night before she opened her first place, she had what she calls an Amityville Horror experience that involved blood and black goo. Let her tell the story! Heid...

I first heard Kay Cornelius of Panorama Meats talk at a workshop sponsored by FAB, the food and beverage conference for females in the industry. She said that cows were getting a bad environmental rap. That got my attention! I had to learn more. What I discovered is that no issue is ever black and white and I also got to talk to my very first cowgirl. Like, literally, she rides a horse out to chec...

I love paging through a good cookbook, don't you? I can not imagine what it would be like if every recipe I saw was something I wasn't allowed to eat! Shaun Chavis of Georgia has solved that problem with cookbooks that are customized to whatever diet or faith restriction you may have, and they're fun to look at! It's a really cool idea – Shaun Chavis on the Hidden F&B podcast!  

We talk with Birmingham's Ama Shambulia. Ama practices mindful eating and, if that sounds like something you can't fit into your busy life, she says you just need to think about it as something you do every day, like brushing your teeth. She says food is a lifelong adventure and you might as well enjoy it. That includes not just caring about what you put in your mouth, but caring about the ritual...

Amanda Storey lives in Birmingham, AL and she went from trading a basket of vegetables every week for her marketing skills, to being all in and becoming executive director at the Jones Valley Teaching Farm, which brings school lessons to life with food. It's no surprise that Amanda went all in. Just listen to her and you can hear the passion for what she's doing. Amanda Storey, on the Hidden F&B....

You may have seen Chef Gerald Sombright on the Top Chef season when they were in Charleston. He's the chef de cuisine for Knife & Spoon in Orlando, which opened during the pandemic. He talks about what THAT was like as well as about the fact that Orlando food is about a lot more than Disney on the Hidden F&B podcast.

We talk with Kristen Farmer-Hall of Birmingham, AL. She's Executive Pastry Chef/Co-Owner of The Essential  and  Bandit Pâtisserie . That last name came about because Kristen is known as the Baking Bandit and she kind of stole my heart with the way she talked about her daughters.

Jossie Lukacik, owner of Charlotte's Sweet Spot Studio, talks baking, her new virtual baking classes, and why Kraft Mac n Cheese isn't necessarily evil.