Andrew Talks to Chefs

A few weeks ago, in record time, the good folks behind the LA Chef Conference, organized a benefit for victims of the recent, devastating LA wildfires. Dubbed Chefs ❤️ LA, the event raised more than$800,000, with all proceeds going to World Central Kitchen and Restaurants Care to support their work on behalf of those who lost their homes in the conflagrations. It was a restorative and emotional evening, and Andrew was honored to be...

Earlier this year, we lost one of the greatest and most influential chefs ever to ply his trade in the United States, when André Soltner passed away at age 92. On the day the culinary community pay their respects at a celebration of his life in New York City, we wanted to share this previously unaired conversation with Chef Soltner, recorded in 2016 as part of Andrew's research for his book Chefs, Drugs, and Rock & Roll. André Solt...

Come for the industry insidership, stay for the great writing and unvarnished personal honesty. Author Laurie Woolever's new memoir Care and Feeding will attract many readers because of its promise of tales from her days as assistant to Mario Batali and then Anthony Bourdain. And it delivers on that front, for sure. But Care and Feeding is also, and primarily, Laurie's story--the story of a writer finding her way in life, New York,...

At last year's Hot Luck festival in Austin, Andrew sat down with chef Alex Kemp, co-owner and chef of Philadelphia’s acclaimed restaurant My Loup for an honest and entertaining conversation. Alex shares his journey from his French-Canadian roots in Montreal to the vibrant culinary scene of Philadelphia. He discusses his diverse culinary experiences, including his time at Sugar Shack and Joe Beef in Canada, Moor Hall Restaurant in t...

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 at Mourad in San Francisco. (As if th...

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  Teamwork. (S.Pellegrino is a longtime promotio...

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 Andrew to discuss his training, pulling...

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 to Chefs podcast as part of the meez  ...

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 operating software for culinary professionals....

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 the meez  Network, featuring a breadth ...

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 Andrew Talks to Chefs’ presenting spon...

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 has included stints at Prune, Buvette...

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 first time to talk about all of tha...

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 her calling as a cook, her ascent has ...

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 sponsor, meez, the recipe operating softwar...

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 plotting the steps of a culinary c...

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’ presenting sponsor, meez, the recipe operating...

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 opera singer, and his metamorphosis into...

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 Talks to Chefs podcast as part of the m...