The Connected Table Live

JBF Award winning Chef Douglas Rodriguez is called the "godfather of Nuevo Latino cooking." A Cuban-American raised in Miami, Doug leads culinary tours to Cuba. He shares his passion for Cuban food and culture. Carlos Esquivel is CEO of PILSA, producers of fine rums made in Panama. He's teamed up with Don Pancho Fernandez, former Master Distiller for Cuba's Havana Club, to produce Origenes Don Pan...

Melanie and David share highlights from Tales of the Cocktail 2015 in New Orleans. One standout is the increasing number of quality of vermouths and their growing popularity. Vermouth has gone from back shelf to top shelf in bars around the U.S. Adam Ford, author of "Vermouth: The Revival of the Spirit that Created America's Cocktail Culture" and Founder of New York's Atsby Vermouth, discusses the...

Live from New Orleans at Tales of the Cocktail we visit with Ti Adelaide Martin, a member of the legendary Brennan family and co-owner of Commander's Palace, SoBou, Cafe Adelaide & The Swizzle Stick Bar and Brennan's in Houston. Ti shares some of her favorite cocktail lore from her book "In the Land of Cocktails." Master Tea Blender Roderick Markus, President of Rare Tea Cellar, applies his extens...

Chef Alon Shaya was born in Israel, raised in Philadelphia and now lives in New Orleans where he is executive chef and co-owner with Chef John Besh and Octavio Mantilla of Shaya Restaurant (Modern Israeli cuisine). Domenica (classic Italian) and Pizza Domenica. Frank Pellegrino Jr. inherited his father, Frank's, gift for serving classic southern Italian food with generous portions of hospitality a...

Chef Beverly Gannon runs three top rated restaurants in Maui: Hali'imaile General Store, Gannons and Joe's Nuevo Latino, and she's considers one of the 12 founding members of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine Movement. The Specialty Food Association's Ron Tanner discusses highlights of the 2015 Summer Fancy Food Show, trends and impact of the $109-billion specialty food industry, from regional mom & pop...

Ann Tuennerman is founder/director of Tales of the Cocktail, the largest gathering of bar and spirits industry professionals which takes place each July in New Orleans. Ann shares her story from creating "cocktail tours" in 2002 to building a gobal brand for Tales of the Cocktail with events in Mexico City, Vancouver and Buenos Aires. The island of Crete has the oldest wine making tradition in Gre...

Chef Greg Sonnier has cooked at his own restaurants and others in New Orleans for nearly 30 years. Now with the Dickie Brennan Restaurant Group, Greg is working with other top chefs to train new chefs about the culture and techniques of New Orleans cooking. A leading bartender, brand ambassador and expert on gin, Simon Ford launched The 86 Co in 2012 to create a portfolio of carefully sourced and...

Lettie Teague is wine columnist for the Wall Street Journal and author of three books including most recent, Wine in Words. Lettie discusses her wine mentors and mavericks, the wine business and having an adventurous wine palate. Tony Abou-Ganim (The Modern Mixologist) has created numerous signature cocktails listed on U.S. bar menus, most notably The Cable Car. His career has spanned the heights,...

Ariane Daguin, Co-Founder/CEO of D'Artagnan, has procured carefully sourced, sustainably and humanely raised meat, game and poultry to the US food industry for 30 years. Ariane also explains how D'Artagnan's exceptional foie gras is produced. Dale DeGroff, aka King Cocktail, is credited with reviving bartending as a respected profession and educating generations of new bartenders. Dale reminisces...

we discuss the differences between rum, rhum and rhum agricole with Ben Jones a fourth generation family member of Martinique's Rhum Clement, which put rhum agricole (made from pressed sugar cane juice) on the map. Chef, Author and Grilling Expert Elizabeth Karmel discusses the many regional types or barbecue and offers expert advice on grilling. Elizabeth is author of 3 books on grilling, appears...

Ralph Scamardella is Chef/Partner for The TAO Group which owns some of the nation's top grossing restaurants and nightclubs- 20 at last count. How does this Brooklyn-born chef with Neapolitan roots keep his idea pot simmering and concepts fresh? Uruguay's Daniel Pisano is 4th generation vintner at Pisano Family Vineyards. Uruguay is South America's 4th largest wine producer recognized for its wine...

We discuss foods and wines of Greece with Chef Maria Loi and vintner Yiannis Voyatzis. Chef Loi is Greece's Culinary Ambassador with restaurants in both her native Nafpaktos and New York City (Loi Estiatorio). She's a popular TV chef and author of The Greek Diet. Yiannis Voytzis is winemaker at Boutari and president of New Wines of Greece, a trade organization to promote Greek wines. There are ove...

Allan Benton's Smoky Mountain Country hams and bacon are cult-like among top chefs and discerning diners. Allan slowly dry cures his ham with a time honored process and simple ingredients: salt and brown sugar to create a distinctive, unforgettable aroma and flavor. Chef David Guas cooks Louisiana inspired dishes at his 2 Bayou Bakery hot spots in Washington, DC. Host of Travel Channel's "American...

Fourth generation owner and winemaker, Ted Seghesio, discusses his family's 120 year legacy in Sonoma County. Built from years of growing grapes for making bulk wines to be finished by others, Seghesio only started labeling wine under their own name with the 1983 vintage. Seghesio is known for its world class Zinfandels and small production wines made from mostly Italian varietals such as Barbera,...

Marion Nestle is Paulette Goddard Professor in the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, which she chaired from 1988-2003. Time Magazine included her Twitter @marionnestle among its top 10 in health and science; Michael Pollan ranked her as the #2 most powerful foodie in America (after Michelle Obama). Marion is author of several prize winning books inclu...

Stephen Teeling's family has been crafting Irish whiskey since 1782 and has opened Teeling Whiskey Distillery in the heart of Dublin. We discuss the tradition and styles of Irish whiskey and its booming popularity. Jennifer English is an award winning broadcaster who created the Food & Wine Radio Network and can be heard on RSVP Las Vegas (KLAV 1230 AM). Jennifer covers every aspect of the industr...

Chef Michel Nischan, Co-Founder and CEO/President of Wholesome Wave, is leading a movement to provide fresh, healthy, locally grown food to under-served communities in the USA. The son of a farming family and father to 2 sons with Type 1 diabetes, Michel knows the benefits of eating freshly prepared, nutritious meals. With nearly 30 million American lacking access to healthy, affordable foods Whol...

Two wine industry legends talk trends, hot topics, and emerging regions. Bordeaux expert, Robin Kelley O'Connor, is a renowned wine educator and speaker, currently with Italian Wine Merchants and teaching at International Culinary Center. JBF Award winning wine and spirits journalist, Anthony Dias Blue, is editor-in-chief and partner at Tasting Panel Magazine and The SOMM Journal and founder of th...

Continuing our series, Families in the Industry, we visit with Rita Jammet, owner of La Caravelle Champagne, who with her husband, Andre, ran New York City's legendary La Caravelle restaurant for more than two decades. Rita's passion for good food and gracious hospitality has been passed down to her son, Nicolas, Founder and Co-CEO of sweetgreen, a lifestyle brand based around quick service restau...

Warren Bobrow brings his culinary training and insatiable curiosity for cocktail history to all three of his books. His most recent, Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails (May 2015), and his first book, Apothecary Cocktails, both delve into the world of medicinal mixology, from painkilling libations and restorative elixirs to the stimulating aspects of shrubs. In his second book, Whiskey Cocktails, Wa...

Chef Rick Mooned has been the country's leading advocate for the sustainable seafood movement for over 25 years to bring awareness for best practices in fishing and seafood conservation. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Rick made his name in NYC at restaurants like Ocean and Water Club before moving to Las Vegas where he became a "big fish" with rm seafood and rx Boiler Room. Rick...

An enlightening interview with San Antonio's Chef Steve McHugh of Cured, one of the city's most important restaurants, located in the Pearl Complex. Chef Steve opens up about his culinary background working for the great New Orleans chef John Besh, moving to San Antonio, and surviving cancer to open the amazing eatery Cured. A wonderful, personal interview, recorded live at the restaurant. This sh...

An enlightening interview with San Antonio's legendary Chef Jeff Balfour of Southerleigh, A Craft Brewery and Restaurant located in the Pearl complex, one of the city's hottest dining destinations. Chef Jeff opens up about growing up in East Texas, his culinary background and his affinity for Gulf cuisine, and also how he melds the different cooking styles of Texas into his menu at his newest vent...

A delightful interview with San Antonio's Eva Aivaliotis of the Convention & Visitors Bureau, on the history, attractions, revitalization and hospitality initiatives that are helping make the country's 7th largest city one of the hottest places to visit (and re-locate to) in the nation. Topics include The Pearl Brewery complex, Riverwalk, the "New" downtown, and of course, The Alamo. So many great...

A delightful interview with San Antonio's Eva Aivaliotis of the Convention & Visitors Bureau, on the history, attractions, revitalization and hospitality initiatives that are helping make the country's 7th largest city one of the hottest places to visit (and re-locate to) in the nation. Topics include The Pearl Brewery complex, Riverwalk, the "New" downtown, and of course, The Alamo. So many great...