Andrew Talks to Chefs

At just 27 years of age, Rasika Venkatesa has already put herself in position to plan her first restaurant. Currently serving a tasting menu in her residency at Fulgrances Laundromat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, (though March 1, 2025) , Rasika attended hotel management school in India, worked her way up from commis to chef de partie at The French Laundry, and attained the position of chef de cuisine a...

Recorded LIVE before an audience at the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy competition US regional finals in New York City. Five influential American chefs (the competition's jurors), Valerie Chang , Curtis Duffy , Aisha Ibrahim ,  Ayesha Nurdjaja , and  Junghyun Park discuss how to shape the future of the industry, in a conversation divided into three parts: Identity, Working Environment, and  Teamw...

Tomer Blechman's life has taken him from his native Israel to Los Angeles, the Far East, and finally to New York City. He also naturally progressed from a life of healing to cooking and hospitality, which are for him intertwined. This path has led him to founding three successful Brooklyn ventures: Miss Ada , Theodora , and Thea Bakery . In this deeply personal conversation, Tomer sits down with A...

In this this second  installment of our conversation with Jenner Tomaska and Katrina Bravo, the couple behind Chicago's Esmé , the pair discuss  their time at MK and Next in Chicago, the process of concepting Esmé, and their working relationship.. Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting sponsor, meez , the recipe operating software for culinary professionals. Meez powers the Andrew Talks...

Two guests demand two episodes! In this first  installment, Jenner Tomaska and Katrina Bravo, the couple behind Chicago's Esmé , talk about their childhoods in, respectively, Illinois and Florida, and the relationship with food and cooking that led Jenner to become a chef and Katrina to become a creative director. Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting sponsor, meez , the recipe operatin...

Adam Leonti discusses his New England upbringing, time cooking in Philly and living overseas, and the series of New York City projects that have led to his current success at Cucina Alba in NYC's Chelsea neighborhood. Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting sponsor, meez , the recipe operating software for culinary professionals. Meez powers the Andrew Talks to Chefs podcast as part of th...

While he was in NYC for the Fancy Food Show in June, Chef Paul Bertolli made time to sit down with Andrew to discuss his varied and textured  culinary career, which has included time as chef of Chez Panisse and then Oliveto, authoring or co-authoring books such as Chez Panisse Cooking and Cooking By Hand , and founding the salumi and charcuterie company Fra'Mani Handcrafted Foods . Huge thanks to...

It's been a busy year for Jeremy Salamon. The chef and owner of Brooklyn's Agi's Counter came out with his first cookbook, Second Generation: Hungarian and Jewish Classics Reimagined for the Modern Table , and is readying his next restaurant, Pitt's , for its imminent launch. Earlier this fall, Andrew dropped into Agi's Counter and chatted with Jeremy about his young life and career so far, which...

Following a college-age shift from music to cooking, Nick Tamburo trained in some notable kitchens in the US and Europe, and served in chef positions within the Momofuku group and Claud. In late August, he launched his first restaurant of his own, Smithereens , in downtown Manhattan. The restaurant serves Nick's take on coastal New England cuisine and we're delighted to have him on the pod for the...

While in New York City this September, Lisa Dahl--the prolific Sedona, Arizona chef and restaurateur --made time to visit with Andrew for a very personal conversation about her unique life and career path. Lisa wasn't always bound for the pro kitchen. She harbored dreams of singing, and worked for a time in fashion. But once she found her way to Sedona (which she describes as her sanctuary) and he...

This fall, at the Roots Conference held at The Chef's Garden 's Culinary Vegetable Institute in Milan, Ohio, Farmer Lee Jones (he of the signature denim overalls and red bowtie) sat down with Andrew to discuss a few key issues covered at the conference--regenerative farming, vegetables as preventative medicine, and the future of the industry. Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting sponso...

Chef Tyler Akin has a bona fide hit on his hand with Philly's newish Bastia restaurant, where he presents his spin on Mediterranean cuisine. Back in the spring, before the restaurant launched, Tyler  sat down with Andrew for a conversation about his career so far, and about the restaurant as it was being developed. Along the way, they get into the nexus of athletics and cooking, perfectionism, and...

While visiting New York City recently, Jon Templin, of Butternut Sustainable Farm , sat down with Andrew to discuss the importance of chef-farmer relationships, why they're worth nurturing, and how both parties can get the most out of them. (Jon is one of the farmers profiled in Andrew's most recent book, The Dish , which is how they know each other.) Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenti...

Chef, author, and legendary raconteur Alexander Smalls makes his long-delayed debut on the pod. The occasion of the interview is his newest book The Contemporary African Kitchen: Home Cooking Recipes from the Leading Chefs of Africa . With that as a starting point, during a visit at Alexander’s home in Harlem, Alexander shares the story of his young life in the American South, his years as an oper...

One of our favorite guests, and one of Andrew's favorite people in the industry, the singular Nok Suntaranon, proprietor and chef of Philly's excellent Kalaya restaurant , returns to the pod to discuss her new cookbook, Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen .  Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting sponsor, meez , the recipe operating software for culinary professionals. Meez powers the Andrew...

In this special episode, Andrew makes his first-ever visit to the legendary Peter Luger Steakhouse in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where he sits down with Peter Luger VP Daniel Turtel, a key officer and voice for the iconic establishment. Over a classic Luger’s lunch, they discuss the history and enduring allure of this quintessential New York institution, obtaining and cooking the perfect steak, and D...

Pastry chef Clarice Lam is out with a new cookbook this fall-- Breaking Bao; 88 Bakes and Snacks from Asia and Beyond . The book is a fun and energetic mingling of sweet and savory offerings that reflects her own background and travels, and the breadth of what a pastry chef might prepare in a restaurant. She recently sat down with Andrew in Brooklyn, to discuss her life and career so far and what...

We've all heard of the Twelve Days of Christmas, but this is ridiculous: We're dropping an episode every weekday between now and December 25, as we try to share all the interviews Andrew has banked in 2024 before the year draws to an end. This Andrew Talks to Chefs December Marathon is brought to you by The Dish , Andrew's most recent book, which just became available in paperback, with a cool new...

Michael Mina, whose hospitality group boasts about two dozen restaurants across the United States (and one in the UAE ), trained in New York City. But he hadn't opened a restaurant in Manhattan ... until this summer when he and his team launched Bourbon Steak on Central Park South . On the occasion of the opening, Michael sat down with Andrew for a conversation that covers his Egyptian heritage, t...

Dan Richer, the wonderfully obsessed pizzaiolo behind New Jersey's acclaimed Razza Pizza Artigianale , is a longtime friend of the pod. But he's never shared his full story and how he came to love and be consumed with the making of pizza here ... until now. On this episode, Dan and Andrew commandeer the upstairs office at Razza, and Dan shares it all with us. This episode is part of  Chefs on Fire...

After years of trying, Ashley Christensen and Andrew were finally able to orchestrate an in-person interview this past spring at The Chef Conference in Philadelphia. Unsurprisingly, it was well worth the wait: Ashley opens up about the role of music and food in her childhood, the college dinner parties that sparked her eventual commitment to the pro kitchen, and the genesis of some of her most suc...

For the past two decades, Stephanie Izard has steadily amassed a stellar culinary and hospitality career as a chef and restaurateur. First introduced to a national audience when she won Season 4 of Top Chef , which she immediately followed with her first restaurant, Chicago's Girl and the Goat. The instantaneous and overwhelming success of that restaurant led to additional "Goat" restaurants and o...

From high atop the Hoxton Hotel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Chicago's Mindy Segal takes us through her life and career: How she grativitated to the pro kitchen and zeroed in on pastry; her instinct-based approach to creativity and collaboration; and the genesis of her self-titled line of edibles , as well as the story behind her current place, Mindy's Bakery . Huge thanks to Andrew Talks to Chefs'...

Andrew's been a fan of the wit, wisdom, and observational powers of LA Times columnist Gustavo Arellano for years. So, when they both attended The Chef Conference in Philly this spring, we asked Gustavo to sit down for an improvisational conversation. He obliged, and did not disappoint. Enjoy this freestyle conversation that covers a wide range of subjects, from the ethics of restaurant criticism...

Food scientist Arielle Johnson has worked with some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the world, and recently offered up much of her knowledge in a surprisingly fun, accessible, and comprehendible book, Flavorama: A Guide to Unlocking the Art and Science of Flavor . In this interview, Arielle recounts her path to becoming a food scientist (a relatively new field), and discusses some of the key...