Expense Account

Our first guest is carla lalli. FKA Carla Lalli Music. She’s lived many lives. From the first GM at the first Shake Shack, to a beloved chef in the Bon Appétit test kitchen. She’s been a YouTube star, recipe developer, Substacker, and James Beard Award winner. She is a legend. She recently published her new book, Food Is A Feeling. Half cookbook, half memoir, the book tells the story of her divorce, and the healing powe...

Food critic J Lee is back, turning food into a doorway to the bigger conversations that define how we live. Each week, J sits down with a guest to talk about food and everything around it - society, identity, culture, and the way we move through the world. Sometimes it's a chef. Sometimes it's a writer, a tastemaker, or the bartender at his favorite bar. Because everyone eats, and everyone has a story.

We always start with food. But...

Expense Account is currently between seasons, but we had an opportunity to speak to culinary legend Tom Colicchio at his home in New York. We have more exciting announcements about the show later this spring, but in the meantime, enjoy this intermission episode.

This week, J Lee spoke to Tom Colicchio. The restaurateur and TV star just celebrated the 25th anniversary of his iconic restaurant Craft. You might also know him as a judg...

It’s the season one finale of Expense Account!

This week, J Lee spoke Keith McNally, the legendary restaurateur behind Balthazar, The Odeon, Pastis, Minetta Tavern, Lucky Strike and more. He is also the author of “I Regret Almost Everything.” Topics discussed include:

* The ideal order for two people at Balthazar

* Keith’s love/hate relationship with social media

* Creating the perfect restaurant playlist

* and w...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke to Cami Téllez and Sasha Mutchnik. Topics discussed include:

* Colostrum

* The Armani Couture bring worn and Juuls being smoked at Casa Cipriani

* Sasha and Cami’s friendship origin story on the Columbia campus

* Dinner omelettes

* And the art collection at Kappo Masa

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos and also peo...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke to Pete Wells, former restaurant critic for The New York Times. Topics discussed include:

* The ideal width of sandwiches.

* Why everyone is a food journalist now (social media).

* The increased emphasis on furniture and design in restaurants.

* And whether Pete misses being a critic.

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos ...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke to chef, author, director, and writer of Canal Street Dreams on Substack, Eddie Huang. Topics discussed included:

* Getting arrested in Sicily.

* Writing his book to Sky Ferreira on repeat.

* His honest thoughts on the state of menswear in New York.

* And ChinaMaxxing.

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos and also people ...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee and Emily Sundberg spoke to Sammy Nussdorf, the founder and CEO of Meadow Lane. Topics discussed include:

* Mouse-gate.

* Chicken Nugget-gate.

* Building a viral business in public, and why haters fuel growth.

* And what sets his Tribeca gourmet grocer, Meadow Lane, apart from New York’s existing establishments.

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your ...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee and Emily Sundberg had a special edition of Feed Me — a holiday extravaganza. Topics discussed include:

* A shortage of house parties.

* Tom Cruise’s coconut cake.

* New York’s finest holiday desserts.

* The woman with a ribbon around her neck.

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos and also people from Florida...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke with Paul Carmichael (chef at Momofuku’s Kabawa) and Marguerite Zabar Mariscal (CEO of Momofuku Group). Topics discussed include:

* Everyone’s earliest memories of eating at Momofuku restaurants.

* The charm (and benefit) of phone-only reservations.

* The restaurant scene in Hudson Yards.

* And what it feels like to open a new restaurant in New York.

Expense Account is a food podcas...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke with Asa Akira, adult film actor, spicy food avoider, and miniature enthusiast. Topics discussed include, but were not limited to:

* Collecting miniatures.

* Why the cheek is the best part of a lot of animals.

* School lunch nightmares and being embarrassed about eating Asian food in school.

* And taking advantage of “eating for two” while pregnant.

Expense Account is a food podcast...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke with Hannah Crosbie, drinks columnist at The Observer Magazine, and author of Corker: A Deeply Unserious Wine Book.

Topics discussed include, but were not limited to:

* A rumor that charli xcx’s album was inspired by London’s Brat.

* Riesling is the wine nerd’s grape.

* Why wine writing should be as fun as drinking a bottle with your friends.

* And Hannah teaches Jason about ...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke with Joseph Weisenthal, the co-host of Bloomberg’s Odd Lots, who is also one of New York City’s most loyal Chinese restaurant customers.

Topics discussed include, but were not limited to:

* Naming names on what New York barbecue restaurants are worth it (or not)

* Why the influx of Chinese students at NYU has made the East Village the new Chinatown

* Borscht, both hot and cold

* And ...

This week on Expense Account, J Lee spoke with Helen Rosner, a staff writer at The New Yorker who writes about restaurants. Helen has received multiple James Beard Awards for her work, including, in 2025, for her profile of Padma Lakshmi.

Topics discussed include, but were not limited to:

* What it’s like to be The New Yorker’s restaurant critic

* Debating whether Carrie Bradshaw’s friends read her column

* Learning a...

Expense Account is a food podcast for everyone. Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos and also people from Florida (we love you).

This week, Jason speaks to chef and author Alison Roman about her secret order at Keens, her new tomato sauce business, and the importance of having fresh flowers in her home.

Insiders, outsiders, your mom, your dad, New Yorkers, Angelenos and also people from Florida (we love you). Anyone who enjoys eating food. It’s even for people who hate food. Feed Me's resident food critic, J Lee will be joined each week by interesting and noteworthy guests from various fields who will make you laugh, they might even make you cry, who knows. You'll find us here each week. Subscribe to stay relevant.