Mad Food
Comedic food talk and even some respectful interviews with big name chefs, celebrities, and regular schnooks. Hosted by shrimp fanatic, uneducated eater, and horrific at home chef Jordan Okun. Coming to your ears straight out of Los Angeles, California.
Episodes
Jordan and Max are back and dropped their first video podcast on Substack.
It's a Q&A to wrap it all up with Jordo and Bubbles giving final thoughts on the recent LA Times 101 Best list, westside eats, the impossible biz of restaurants, finishing the year strong with recent openings, Max's top 3 cooking tips for 2026, and the new pod and project are revealed.
THE SUBSTACK IS HERE with all sorts of new content and access.
Keep riding with us, show love, and stay connected as we continue this food thing.
Eggnog - that's the name of the game, as nine of the best booze minds in Los Angeles compete, with Shapiro's favorite bartender Max Reis pouring all the creamy holiday cheer down Jordan's throat, for him to decide the best nog in the land. Original takes on the spiked Christmas treat from Providence, Vandell, Birdie G's, Death & Co, Rustic Canyon, Bar Benjamin, Idyllwild Tavern, Oxalis, and Mírate/Daisy Margarita are the participan...
Jordan and Max break it all down, from a shocker in the top spot to the 3 Michelin star Spanish hatred. Plus, the paper's neopotism picks, strange disregard for a phenom, continued Budonok disrespect, the hall of fame inductee to appease Jordo, sushi snubs, and Bill Addison finally exposed himself (but not like Max).
Plus lots of booze talk including holiday gifting, Max & Helen's wait times and other diner options, a short Little Fish review, decanting bubbles, a Chinese LA Christmas, the perfect restaurant reservation time, Jordan's top 3 Grateful Dead shows, food text threads, not cutting pizza, New Orleans and New York are on the horizon, and Thanksgiving reviews.
Addison by William Bradley is the OG of this local three Michelin star dining thing, and Jordan and Max have travelled to Del Mar once again to dine and sit with Will to talk the past, present, and future of California gastronomy in the Caramel Valley. And it's all chef collabs, an Addison makeover is coming soon, the one ingredient, the best season, calling everyone chef, temperatue changes, the story of eggs and rice, cheesy nick...
When hosting this holiday season, you need to know what's chic. You need to know what's classic. Annie and Hallie Meyers-Shyer know a thing or two about all of that, so Jordan and Max sit down with the sisters of Hollywood royalty to talk everything Thanksgiving, Christmas, and even some Hanukkah. What follows is an appetizer debate, a baked brie beatdown, a worse sweet potato casserole assault, Nancy Meyers' gravy recipe text (whi...
A chef's recent email to Max has Jordan concerned, and then the fellas talk dining at new restaurants on the scene, and it's all Brentwood cougars, sweet butters, the Pasadena schlep, shrimp balls, a salt issue, the spoonable pasta, poor Bill Bush, booze enhancing food, and let's stop with the "American bistro" thing.
Restaurant workers of Los Angeles and beyond have written in with the biggest pet peeves they deal with when serving diners, and it's all splitting bills, booze behavior, showing up early and late, too much talky, not enough tippy, stacking dishes, eager early birds, knowing the owner, crying kids, filming the staff, and Jordan is ordering his steak like a monster apparently.
Jordan and Max return to answer audience questions, and it's the one big restaurant gimmick, seed oil freaks, sauna and ice, and spas, pricey tasting menus, the problems with Hilstone, managing generally, Thanksgiving protiens, Diddy Riese ice cream sandwich construction, Max's height and bubble intake, and too much tippy.
Jordo and Bubbles go all in on the worst restaurant behavior, and it's all complaints on memorizing the order, no more telephones, bad instincts, additional tip lines, chef bonafides foreplay, waiting for your entire party, molesting tables, overcooked meats, butter temperatures, clearing plates, bad corkage, water semantics, sticking to ya culture, and way too much talky. But first, the fellas are joined by the PHD, who reviews re...
Lots to eat in Los Angeles lately, so Jordan and Max talk their options: from style dining in Beverly Hills, to making a West Adams kebab voyage, to celebratory meals all over, and Jordan gives a first taste tease of the Larchmont diner everyone is anticipating. Plus, Max went to Ceviche Project without a jealous Jordan, another trip to Alto, Budonoki is somehow getting better, Eduardo's is back from the dead, pizza is on the menu,...
Jordan and Max talk Jordan's recent adventures as a "chef," serving up his ode to St. Elmo fried shrimp cocktail sandwich (or maybe it's roll) to a few food celebrities and even a friend who the fellas call on air for his review and notes. Then Max reviews recent visits to West Hollywood's Marvito, Michelin starred tasting menu Ki, and Bubbles talks cooking his own Mexican menu.
Jordan and Max answer audience questions and it's all Christmas eve plans, the Jones Hollywood fritto hack, Max & Helen's, favorite dive bars, The Smoke House onion ring thing, death row chewing, Holbox menu highlights, lots of nog, shrimp cocktail obsession, salty cocktails, where in the world is Peckerman, best pizza chains, Mott 32 Hollywood's opening, Dunsmoor vs. Republique, Echo Park beef tacos, storing parm, Eater LA's webs...
Welp, another ridiculous list has hit the food media landscape, so Jordan and Max break all the losing and winning down. But first, Genghis Cohen has finally re-opened in a new location and the fellas have the shrimp toast and orange chicken first look featuring a member of Jordan's family. And no restaurant in Los Angeles is currently more hyped than Baby Bistro, so the fellas talk it and their experience with the Echo Park farmer...
Jordan and Max review two recent restaurant experiences with very different outcomes, and then explore a few negatives critques the podcast has received, and it's all fire grilled meats, Ventura Blvd. souffles, hidden shmears, a finalized Max (Hector) meter, the most egregious dish, the worst cooking method, coming burger correct, and an exclusive Studio City special order.
The LA Times and Bill Addsion finally published an actual critical food review, and Jordan and Max have thoughts, which leads the fellas into a Chinese restaurant episode, dissecting 88 Club, Firstborn, Henry's, Ji Rong, and Jordan's favorite New York style bites, all while teasing a recent disastrous meal by a celebrity chef.
Jordan and Max are back to answer audience questions, and it's all new L.A. restaurants on the horizon, monk milk, Bub & Grandma's pizza, wines by the glass, Montecito dinners, Disfrutar vs. Somni, how to gain 100 pounds, LA Times vs. NY Times food coverage, the bottled & filtered water thing, a new rating system, all sorts of shrimp cocktail talk, the schelp meter, Max working for Michelin full-time, bagels, Jordan's new coffee di...
Jordan talks with co-hosts Brad Metzger and chef Neal Fraser of LA Chef Conference, which is taking place October 6 in Los Angeles, and features a who's who of chefs and food industry notables to not only talk the major issues of the day, but to eat like royalty. And one of those bites will be an exclusive menu item designed by Jordan with all the shrimpy help from the team at Santa Monica Seafood. Then, Jordan is joined by Gather ...
The boys talk why San Fran classics Zuni Cafe and Swan Oyster Depot have remained instutitions for decades, while their beloved Stella West Hollywood could not follow a similar path. Plus, Jordan's exclusive menu item is coming to Los Angeles, Bill Addison needs new friends, the Benihana ass clock as been conquered, Max's Cobrasnake days, and 818 pizza disrespect.
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