Culture & Cuisine The Podcast

Today, we meet with Barbara Nicole, a PhD and expert in the emergence of Chinese restaurants in Australia from the late nineteenth century through the 1950's.

We sit with Barbara in the Chinese Museum in Melbourne where she volunteers and discuss her research to understand why you can find a Chinatown in most cities in Australia, how Chinese restaurants came to be in even the smallest of Australian towns, and the impact Chinese had...

Today, we sit with Peter Laliotis, managing director and part owner of Hellas Cakes, a Melbourne Greek sweets staple since 1962.

Melbourne not only has the largest Greek population in Australia, they have the largest Greek population of any city outside of Greece. Located in the heart of Richmond, formerly a primarily Greek suburb, Hellas Cakes has proudly served the residents of Melbourne for over 50 years. Through that time, they...

Today, we sit with Greg Hampton, head chef of Charcoal Lane, and Troy Krillin, program manager for social enterprises for Mission Australia.

Although they are the oldest, ongoing living culture in the world, indigenous Australians have almost become foreigners in their own lands. Missions where natives were forced to be housed and “Christianized”, the Stolen Generation where approximately 1 in 3 children were forcibly removed from ...

Today, we sit with Salvatore Malatesta, founder and creative director of St Ali Coffee in South Melbourne.

As a former British settlement, tea used to be the main household brew of Australia. It wasn’t until the first espresso machine was introduced to Melbourne at Cafe Florentino, the predecessor to Grossi Florentino who we speak with in a former episode, that coffee began to emerge in the city. Now, Melbourne is world renowned ...

Today, we sit with John Burn, former owner and chef of Ebi Fine Foods.

John is Scottish by birth but Japanese by interest. After visiting Japan, becoming enamored with the culture and cuisine, and making a spur of the moment purchase of a specialty grill, John traveled down a path that led to the opening of a Fish N Chips - Japanese Cuisine joint shop in the suburbs of Melbourne. His love and passion for Japanese cuisine and his un...

Today we sit with Guy Grossi, owner and chef of Grossi Florentino.

Grossi Florentino, formerly the Florentino Cafe, has been a staple of the Melbourne community since the 1920s. Sitting in the heart of Melbourne’s Central Business District, it has seen a vastly diversifying and evolving city. It stood at the forefront of educating the community about Italian customs and cuisines before a large post-WWII Italian immigration to the c...

Today we sit with Shanaka Fernando and Jessica Tana from Lentil As Anything. This pay-as-you-feel concept opened its first restaurant in Melbourne in 2000, and you won’t find any prices on the menu. They have a donation box and credit card machine off to one side where you can pay for what you can afford. Those who can’t pay are encouraged to volunteer their time with the friendly, inviting staff whom are mostly volunteers themselv...

Our tenth and final episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast features Don Jante, one of the founding cousins of Flip'N Patties Food Truck. This episode is our first SHORT where we tell Don's story ourself in a condensed version.

Don didn’t grow up wanting to be a chef nor does he now dream of unique food creations. Don loves what he does because of the working family he has created, the customers he interacts with, and the challeng...

Our ninth episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast features Margarita Mandizabal, owner of Lemon Tree, and her son Augusto Mandizabal who translates her story for us. Margarita preps desserts while her husband cooks the meals for one of the most authentic Peruvian restaurants in Houston. Through love and passion, they built restaurants in Peru and ultimately, decided to take a risk and create a restaurant in America to build a ...

On our eigth episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast, Mary Cuclas, employee of Pondicheri, is Greek by descent, American by birth, yet has found her way into one of the most reputable Indian kitchens in Houston.

Mary sits with us today to discuss the things she’s learned about Indian cuisine that has had her fall in love with the food and the culture. We discuss the countries she has lived in and the experiences that she has had t...

On our seventh episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast, Jimmy Trinh, chef and entrepreneur, shares Naughy Noah's Noodles, his healthy, Vietnamese-inspired vegan pho that can now be found on the shelves of Central Market

Jimmy ventures from his move to San Diego at two years of age to the release of Naughty Noah’s Noodles. From a parental divorce through the transition from electrical engineering to culinary arts school, Jimmy shar...

Our sixth episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast presents Tina Ambelue, owner and chef of Blue Nile, one of Houston's only Ethiopian restaurants.

Tina takes us on the journey through her cleaning career, back injury, and ultimately, restaurant opening. This is the story of the power of community and the struggles that come from leaving friends and family behind in the pursuit of freedom and happiness. Although many of us are fort...

Our fifth episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast presents Yessica Molena, event planner and right-hand woman of Cuchara, one of Houston's most authentic Mexican restuarants.

Yessica explains how she left home to follow love and stumbled into the restaurant industry from there. Through twists and turns, she made her way to Cuchara, an authentic, seasonally inspired restaurant with cultural roots and exciting events. She shares Mex...

Our fourth episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast presents Cuc Lam of Sing and Lisa Carnley from Cajun Stop. Although both Vietnamese by ancestry, they decided to pursue other passions in their restaurants.

Through a live discussion, Cuc & Lisa remind us that in our evolving nation, where the minority is the majority, we can’t assume that people have one place that they call home. From building relationships with customers to mai...

Our third episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast presents Roberto Crescini of Fresco! Cafe Italiano who introduces us to Northern Italy.

Roberto's passion for cooking is almost rivaled by the stories and history behind the cuisine. He is committed to enlightening Americans to traditional Italian cooking and traditions by sharing his freshly maded pasta and sauces daily. This week, he discusses with us his personal memories that i...

Our second episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast presents Yunan Yang of Pepper Twins who introduces us to Sichuan China.

Yunan shows us what it takes to leave a successful career for a passion you know little to nothing about. Through sickness, parental strife, personal growth, and love, Yunan takes listeners on a journey through a story that many can relate to. We learn that at the end of the day, we aren't all that different a...

Our first episode of Culture & Cuisine the Podcast introduces us to Yakeya Mohamad of Tarim Central Asian Grill who introduces us to the small Muslim minority in Western China known as the Uyghurs.

Mohamad introduces us to the unique cuisine that developed due to their location along the Silk Road and shows us that fusion cuisine isn't unique to Texas. The immigration and travel along the road yielded a cuisine analogous of Mediter...