Chefs Without Restaurants

This week we have a short episode about how to make better sourdough bread. This was part of a much longer conversation with Andy Roy of Twin Bears Bakery in Frederick, Maryland. At Twin Bears, they make 100% naturally-leavened bread. When I asked about how to make better bread at home, Andy shared his tips for making better sourdough, which isn't just reserved for home bakers. The rest of ou...

This week's guest is chef Anna Voloshyna. She's a Ukrainian-born, California-based chef, blogger, and culinary instructor. Her upcoming cookbook Budmo! (out September 27th) celebrates classic Eastern European recipes with a modern, creative twist. On the show, we discuss her upbringing and life in Ukraine, where she lived until she was 21.  We talk about the food she grew up with and lov...

This week I talk about how you can grow your personal chef business using vacation rental properties like Airbnb and VRBO . This has been where the majority of my business has been coming from for the past five years.  I’ve talked about it as part of other podcast episodes but thought it warranted a standalone episode. If you want to make more money cooking as a personal chef or caterer, tune in t...

This week's "What is a Chef" episode is with Taffy Elrod. She’s a chef, restaurant owner, cooking instructor, recipe developer, and food writer with 20 years of experience in the food industry. Stay tuned for my full episode with her which will be released soon. Taffy Elrod Taffy’s Website Taffy’s Instagram Taffy’s Twitter CHEFS WITHOUT RESTAURANTS If you enjoy the show, and would l...

This week's guest is Daniel Liberson of Lindera Farms, a nature reserve in Delaplaine, Virginia. There, Daniel forages for items local to the area, and creates fermented pantry items for both restaurants and home cooks.  His products include vinegar made from ramps, paw paws, and Virginia berry, as well as items like crab apple verjus, pecan tamari, and applewood soy sauce. Besides discussing...

This week's guest is Josh Sharkey. He's the founder of Meez, an online recipe tool that helps you save time, cut costs and improve execution. Josh talks about how he started Meez, and gives a rundown of its functions and how it works. Josh has a culinary degree from Johnson & Wales University, and has worked in some of the best restaurants in the U.S. Besides an overview of Meez, we...

This week's guest is Eli Kulp. He's the co-founder and culinary director of High Street Hospitality Group, as well as the host of both The Chef Radio Podcast and Delicious City Philly Podcast He has been a finalist for JBF Best Chef Mid-Atlantic, Best New Chef- Food & Wine Magazine, Chef of the Year- Eater and Philadelphia Inquirer. We recently released our "What is a Chef"...

This week's guest is Christopher Curtin, the certified master pastry chef, and chocolatier behind Éclat Chocolate, which he founded in West Chester, PA in 2004. After attending culinary school, he spent 14 years honing his skills alongside the world’s top chocolate makers across Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and Japan. Éclat has received acclaim including being named one of the...

This week's "What is a Chef" episode is with Eli Kulp. He's the co-founder and culinary director of High Street Hospitality Group, as well as the host of both The Chef Radio Podcast and Delicious City Podcast He has been a finalist for JBF Best Chef Mid-Atlantic, Best New Chef- Food & Wine Magazine, Chef of the Year- Eater and Philadelphia Inquirer. Stay tuned for my full e...

This week I’m talking breakfast tacos with Liz Solomon Dwyer, founder of King David Tacos. An Austin native, Liz brought her love of the breakfast taco to NYC. What started as a drop-off catering business, then grew from two breakfast taco carts to over 50 locations across NYC. Her tacos can now be found at retail partners like Whole Foods and Stumptown, as well as their brick-and-mortar location....

This week is a solo episode. The topic was prompted by Ray Delucci of Line Cook Thoughts who posed the question "How do you motivate your staff in the food industry?" My reply was "Find out what their goals are, and where they see their path going. Then, try to help them get to that place, even if it means that they’ll leave you and go elsewhere eventually. Too many bosses try to ho...

This week is a solo episode. I discuss the time I was fired from a job and the subsequent anxiety that I experienced due to that. It took a long time before I came to terms with the whole experience. But there was also a silver lining... It ultimately led to me starting my own personal chef business, and this community. If you've been fired, or if you're a hiring manager, I'd love f...

This week's "What is a Chef" mini-episode is with Sara Hauman, You might know her as the yogurt queen from season 18 of Bravo's Top Chef, or the owner of The Tiny Fish Co. You can find last week's full episode with her here . =============================== Sara Hauman ===============================   Sara's Instagram Sara's Website The Tiny Fish Co Instagram Th...

This week I have Sara Hauman, You might know her as the yogurt queen from season 18 of Bravo's Top Chef, or from her highly entertaining Instagram cooking videos where she's making some delicious-looking food. After high school, Sara moved to the south of Spain. Upon returning to the US, she decided to go to culinary school, (which she doesn’t recommend).  She spent the next few years wo...

This week my guest is Jonathan Bardzik. He was first on the show on the show in July 2021 , and I wanted to have him back. He’s a storyteller, cook, and author. He’s a performer, speaking and cooking for private and corporate audiences, creating customized experiences that build connection. He’s appeared with more than 900 audiences, been on the TEDx stage, written 4 books , and his television ser...

This week we have a mini-episode with Taste Network's Brady Lowe. If you haven't heard our full episode with him, you can check it out here. During our conversation, I asked him what it means to be a chef. In this quick episode, you'll hear what Brady has to say. Sponsor- The United States Personal Chef Association While the pandemic certainly upended the restaurant experience, it p...

This week my guest is Sena Wheeler of Sena Sea. Sena’s part of at least a third-generation fishing family. With her husband Rich, they’re bringing premium quality seafood directly to their customers. Sena has a master’s degree in nutrition and food science with a specialty in quantifying omega 3's in fish, and determining preferred handling practices for premium quality. Rich does most of the...

This week I have Krimsey Lilleth. She’s the author of The Cajun Vegan Cookbook, and was the owner of Krimsey‘s Cajun kitchen, the world's first vegan Cajun restaurant. Due to Covid, Krimsey made the tough decision to close her North Hollywood restaurant in Spring 2020. She knew she wanted to share her recipes with her fans so they could re-create their favorite dishes at home, which is what i...

Today I have Brady Lowe, founder of Taste Network. Started in 2002, he’s currently on a mission to disrupt, and rethink the typical food marketing strategies, forge new online possibilities, and partner with and help promote sustainable, ethical, and delicious food and drinks from around the world.  You might know Brady from the Cochon 555 events that he put on. But you might not know that he sepa...

This week, we have a mini-episode about what it means to be a chef. Today's answer comes from Andris Lagsdin of Baking Steel. You can hear my full episode with him here , and another mini-episode where we talk about health and wellness here . I'm currently out of town on vacation and have been having some technical difficulties. So, today's episode jumps right in without any real in...

This week, I talk about free food and failure. More specifically, I discuss why giving away free food, and doing events for free didn't work out for me. I'm not saying that there might not be a place for it. But before you do an event, I think you need to make sure it's a good fit. Does it make sense to give out free cupcakes and the ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new car dealership?...

This week my guest is Cody Marwine of The Perfect Truffle, a chocolate shop he owns in downtown Frederick, Maryland.  You might’ve heard my mini-episode with him a couple of months ago about what it means to be a chef.  On this full episode, we dive into the chocolate business. We talk about how he ended up taking over the shop that he had been working at on and off for almost a decade. We discuss...

This week's guest is Philadelphia chef Kiki Aranita. You might know her from her Poi Dog food truck and subsequent restaurant of the same name. Unfortunately, due to the Covid pandemic, she had to shut down her restaurant. But Poi Dog has returned in the form of a line of bottled condiments including guava katsu sauce and chili peppah water.  We talk about the evolution of her business, decid...

This week I have a bonus episode with Andris Lagsdin of Baking Steel. During our full conversation , we talked primarily about pizza making, and how he created the Baking Steel. While recording the episode, we discussed health and wellness, abstaining from alcohol, and why he no longer follows a vegan diet. I also asked him about vegan cheeses. I thought that part of our conversation was great, bu...

This week, we have a mini-episode about what it means to be a chef. This is something I'm asking many of the guests as part of my upcoming season 3 interviews. I thought it would be great to get as much insight on this as possible, from many different people in the food and beverage industry. Today's answer comes from Jensen Cummings, the creator, and host of Best Served Podcast. On his...