Eat It, Virginia!

Ty Walker and his wife Shannon own and operate Smoke in Chimneys trout farm in New Castle, Virginia. In this Eat It, Virginia episode, Walker joined Scott and Robey and shared his experience revitalizing a 1930s trout hatchery. He discussed the challenges of starting and running a sustainable fish farm, including public perception, infrastructure limitations, and high start-up costs. (22:45) Walke...

The James Beard Awards, the food world's equivalent to the Oscars in Hollywood, snubbed Richmond restaurants and chefs for the third year in a row, Richmond Times-Dispatch restaurant critic Justin Lo ( who appeared way back on Ep. 8 ) wrote in a recent article that appeared in the city paper . Lo laid out his reasoning behind the so-called snubs and later called his article a conversation starter...

Virginia Museum of History and Culture curator Paige Newman and her team spent months diving into the life and cultural impact of celebrity chef and icon Julia Child. Her mission was to season Julia Child: A Recipe for Life, a national touring exhibit, to a Virginia audience. "At first I was like, what are those? But as you delve in, in the exhibit we have five sections and we call them Virginia  ...

Robey Martin and Scott Wise are joined by James Beard-nominated chef Travis Milton. Milton discussed the cultural significance of Appalachian cuisine and its role as an economic driver in Bristol, Virginia, where his restaurant Hickory, at Nicewonder Farm & Vineyards , is located.  He emphasized the importance of investing in local talent and building a strong team with diverse skills and expe...

Cou Cou Rachou bakery owner Rachel De Jong grew up in a large family in Charlottesville, Virginia. She credited her family with helping her discover her passion in the kitchen. "I'm one of five children, so food was around a lot. When you're feeding seven people in the house, I was always in the kitchen, I was always watching my mom. But I had a huge sweet tooth," she said. "And of course, all my...

When 14-year-old Bertrand Chemel walked into the bakery near his grandmother's home in France, his life changed forever. Summers at the bakery turned into a more formal kitchen education at culinary school in France. With a degree in hand and military service behind him, Chemel landed at one the finest restaurants in France — Michel Gaudin's restaurant in the Alps. What followed was a culinary adv...

Maria Martin and her family recently opened a Richmond outpost of Juan More Taco on Robinson Street in The Fan. The family also owns and operates a Juan More Taco in Fredericksburg. Virginia. But the story of Juan More Taco begins in Honduras, where Maria was born and raised. "Honduras has a lot of Mediterranean Middle Eastern influence. And we use a lot of spices and I'm not saying spices in the...

Brennan Griffith is not from Thailand, nor is he of Thai descent. But Griffith's Thai-inspired pop-up Nam Prik Pao has been turning heads and causing spicy sweats in the Richmond dining community. "[Thai food] is what I'm most obsessed with," Griffith said when asked why he chose that cuisine to base his business. "I love other cuisines. But I haven't had that connection with anything else to the...

Trey Owens' life is a beautiful circle. After growing up in Richmond, Owens' life took him around the world working on cruise ships and later military vessels. He eventually landed back in Richmond where he became part of the team that opened both Soul Taco and JewFro, the latter a restaurant that combines African and Jewish cuisine.  "The focus [of JewFro] is to bring people together and to start...

When the people who run Massachuttes-based Burtons Grill & Bar asked John Haggai to be the company's new CEO, he pulled what can only be described as a baller move.  "[I said] I'm not moving to Boston, as beautiful as it is, plus I have kids, I'm not moving, there's no way. So I thought that was a deal breaker," but it wasn't Haggai said. So he added another stipulation. "And I said I'm buildi...

Three years after she first appeared on Eat It, Virginia ( Episode 43, Sept. 2020 ), Keya Wingfield returns to the podcast. In this episode, she discusses the ups and downs of life after winning her Food Network baking championship, the incredible community she's fostered in Richmond, and the launch of her new product -- Bombay Chips . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shawn Eubank and Michael Smith of Native Selections join the podcast to discuss the world of natural wine. Smith previously appeared in Episode 26 , See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leah Branch, the executive chef at The Roosevelt in Richmond, exudes quiet confidence in the kitchen and the podcast studio. She prefers to let her plates do the talking. Fortunately, the Chesterfield native was willing to sit down with Scott and Robey to share her story on this episode of Eat It, Virginia! This episode is presented by Duke's Mayo and SUPPER | SUMMER | SOMM .     See omnystudio.co...

A lot has happened to Rabia Kamara since she first appeared on Eat It, Virginia in August 2020. In fact, that first interview took place before Kamara even opened her now Northside neighborhood-defining ice cream shop Ruby Scoops. "We are now at a place where when houses are listed in Northside, we are in there as a perk, 'you can walk to Ruby Scoops,'" Kamara said about her ice cream shop's succe...

Bobby Kruger has managed or owned multiple Richmond-area restaurants and venues, but he got his start as a teenager at the Applebee's in Chester. "One of the bartenders that I worked with there, ended up coming up and getting a job in Richmond at a place called Surfish Station, which was where Bandito's is now," Kruger said as he retraced his steps in the Richmond restaurant industry. "When I was...

Devin Rose was born and raised in a restaurant family in the town of White Stone, Virginia. So it makes perfect sense that Devin and his wife Katie now own and operate one of the most acclaimed restaurants in that town -- Adrift. In fact, Robey Martin called Adrift the best, little-known, restaurant in Virginia .   "There's just an incredible care and detail to the food," Martin said of Adrift, fo...

After 100+ episodes, "Eat It, Virginia" finally put the focus on condiments. And what better condiment to feature than Richmond, Virginia-based Duke's Mayo? Founded more than 100 years ago in South Carolina, the Richmond, Virginia-based C.F. Sauer Company bought the brand in 1929. Over the generations, Duke's Mayo has become synonymous with Southern cooking. These days, Duke's is the fastest-growi...

Is it possible that the best pizza in Richmond is served out of a truck? Eat It, Virginia podcast co-host and Virginia food critic Robey Martin said yes, it's 100 percent possible. The pizza Joe Lajoie creates in a truck for River City Wood Fire Pizza consistently ranks among the best slices in town. But don't ask Joe if he thinks his pizza is the best in Richmond. "Often people say, 'Do you want...

A veteran of New York City's fine dining world, the pandemic forced Erin Keene to take a step back and reset her life. That reset landed the Pennsylvania native in Richmond, Virginia, where she opened Second Bottle Wine Shop in Richmond's Church Hill neighborhood. "I was in a place where I was ready for a big jump. Life as I knew it had really just shut off [in New York City]. In that time, I star...

It did not take long for Jesse Wykle and his restaurant Aloha Snacks to make an impact in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Months after he opened Aloha Snacks in 2018, Food Network Star Bobby Flay's producers called and invited Wykle onto the hit show "Beat Bobby Flay." Wykle defeated the Iron Chef by challenging Bobby Flay in a battle over the Filipino favorite lumpia. Back home in Virginia Beach, Wykle...

Bill Cavender makes award-winning mead at Black Heath Meadery in Richmond, Virginia. His business in Scott's Addition recently celebrated its eighth birthday. Cavender discussed the beginnings of Black Heath Meadery on a recent episode of the Eat It, Virginia podcast with Scott Wise and Robey Martin. Black Heath Meadery 1313 Altamont Ave. Richmond, VA 23230 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Get to know new Richmond restaurant Penny's Wine Shop owners Kristen Gardner Beal and Lance Lemon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Watters and Rachel Best. the couple behind Blue Atlas Restaurant and Market in Richmond, Virginia, started their business and their family during the pandemic. For Watters, Blue Atlas was born out of his passion for food and learning how other cultures eat. "I love being a food dork," Watters told Scott Wise and Robey Martin during his Eat It, Virginia podcast interview. "If I find something o...

Joye B. Moore's smile is infectious. But behind the sixth-generation baker's big grin and loud laugh, there is pain. Before moving to Virginia, Moore grew up in North Carolina and Texas where she lived with an abusive stepparent and a mother with severe mental health challenges. "My mother was undiagnosed with mental illness, that the family, just due to cultural reasons was not aware of," she sai...

Torchy's Tacos will open its second Richmond-area restaurant in February. The new location, in the recently-built Carytown Exchange shopping center, is not far from where the Austin, Texas-based taco chain's CEO and founder came into this world. "I was born at Richmond Memorial Hospital," Torchy's Tacos boss Mike Rypka told Scott and Robey on the Eat It, Virginia podcast. "We lived off of Monument...