This Is TASTE

Hailee Catalano and Chuck Cruz are two of our favorite social media follows (@haileecatalano and @chuckycruz). The two chefs, who met in culinary school, cooked at Chicago restaurants like Dos Urban Cantina and Cellar Door Provisions before starting to share recipes on TikTok and Instagram. Their inventive recipes and laid-back vibe have won many, many fans, and it’s so fun to have them both in the studio to talk about their shifting careers. Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, GoogleMORE FROM HAILEE CATALANO AND CHUCK CRUZ Earl Grey Buckwheat Chocolate Cake [Hailee Catalano] Chicken Adobo Au Poivre [Chuck Cruz’s Substack] Chuck’s Spotify Playlist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hamburger expert George Motz talks about his popular NYC restaurant, Hamburger America, while Aliza and Matt discuss the revival of terrines in NYC. The episode covers burger trends, terrine history, and the rewatching of past cooking show seasons.

Today on the show we have a great double episode with two serious dudes in the restaurant game. Arjav Ezekiel is co-owner of Birdie’s, a beloved restaurant and wine bar located in Austin, Texas. On this episode we talk about Arjav’s immigrant upbringing in Portland, Oregon, and what brought him to the exciting world of wine.Also on the show we have a really great conversation with Harris Mayer. Harris is a New York City chef and the owner of Pulkies, a really terrific restaurant serving Jewish-style barbecue to go—that would be ’cue centered around the smoked turkey leg. His “I can’t believe it’s not pork” pulled turkey leg sandwich is one of my favorite things in all of NYC.Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.  MORE FROM ARJAV EZEKIEL & HARRIS MAYER: The 2023 Restaurant of the Year [Food & Wine] The Powerhouse Duo Behind Birdie’s [Austin Monthly] Harris Mayer-Selinger Puts His Own Stamp on Jewish Barbecue [Tablet] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kanchan Koya will forever change how you look at your spice drawer. The chef, author, podcast host, and nutrition coach has a PhD in biomedical sciences from Harvard Medical School, which she uses to champion the science-backed benefits of ancient spices. We invited her into the studio for a truly fascinating conversation answering our many questions about health claims around spices—such as, what is inflammation, actually? Find out now.Also on the show, Matt shares some highlights from his recent trip to Seoul, including stops at Buto, Sancheong Sutbul Garden, Flavourtown (100% free of spikey blonde hair), Meal-do, Honeybee, Magazine F. To name just a few! The full list will be dropping later this year.        Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.  MORE FROM KANCHAN KOYA Spice Spice Baby [official] Radical Vitality [Apple Podcasts] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matthew Schneier is currently the chief restaurant critic at New York magazine and previously reported on fashion and culture at The Cut and the New York Times. Matthew joined us in the studio to talk about the job he took over a little more than six months ago. We discuss putting his own unique stamp on the coverage, what he looks for in both old and new NYC restaurants to review, and how he came to the job in the first place. Matthew is one of our favorite writers around, and it was so great catching up.Also on the show, Aliza and Matt catch up about three things they each are into right now, including: Patita at Spoon & Pork in Los Angeles, the forthcoming cookbook from Los Angeles restaurant Kismet, Kismet: Bright, Fresh, Vegetable-Loving Recipes, clam kalguksu at Hangari Kalguksu in Los Angeles, Mom’s Touch Lab in Seoul, Little Fatty in Los Angeles, and come to France this summer with Matt and Marissa Mullen!  Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.      MORE FROM MATTHEW SCHNEIER: Will Four Twenty Five Kill the Grill [NY Mag] Not-So-Plain Slices [NY Mag] Keith McNally, to Go [NY Mag] The Good Used Book Edition [WITI] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Himanshu Suri is best known by his rap name Heems. We wanted to have Heems on not just because we are a fan of his former group Das Racist (you may remember their song “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell”) but because we wanted to talk to him about Punjabi food. About growing up in Queens. About his new passion for gardening. Check out his very cool new album, Lafandar. Also on the show is James Harris, one half of Throwing Fits, a very funny podcast and online community dedicated to all things menswear. We wanted to invite James in not just to talk about chef fashion but also to find out about where he’s eating and drinking around his hometown of New York City. We also get into Fanelli vs. Lucien, not being able to get into Gem Wine thanks to TikTok, eating fried prawn heads, Japanese food at home vs. in restaurants, and eating the miso black cod at Nobu as a kid. We also get the Throwing Fits line on Dimes Square. This is a great talk with James, a real one-of-one guest.MORE FROM HEEMS AND THROWING FITS: Dosa Hunt! [official] Heems on Rap, Race and Identity [NPR] Throwing Fits for Men’s Fashion [NYT] From Nike to Nautica, Here Are the ’90s Brands that Defined the Decade [Complex] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You’ve spotted their iconic squeeze bottle on the shelves of Whole Foods and seen it used by your favorite food influencers and chefs on Instagram. But do you know the story behind Spanish olive oil company Graza? On this episode, we welcome back Graza’s charismatic cofounder Andrew Benin to talk about the ups and downs of running a quickly growing food company. We hear about public drama, exploding growth, critical reviews, and how Graza remains one of the most exciting brands in not just olive oil, but all of food.Want to partner with TASTE? Send us a note at: partner@tastecooking.com. MORE FROM GRAZA: The Best Olive Oil You Can Buy at the Store [Wirecutter] This Is TASTE 182: Graza [TASTE] Olive Oil Has Never Been Cooler [Eater] This Week’s Tiniest Social Media Drama Is About Olive Oil [NYT] This Is TASTE 351: Aura Bora [TASTE] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christina Chaey is a writer and recipe developer based in Brooklyn. A former Bon Appétit food editor, she’s currently writing the newsletter Gentle Foods, where she shares essays and recipes rooted in cooking how you want to feel. It’s so special to catch up with Christina in the studio about her background working in magazines, expanding the concept of wellness food, and making her very own cookbook. Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.MORE FROM CHRISTINA CHAEY: Gentle Foods [Substack] Green Curry Lentil Soup [Bon Appetit] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andy Baraghani started his professional cooking career as a teenager at the legendary Berkeley, California, restaurant Chez Panisse, and he was truly just getting started. After working as a line cook at Estela in New York City, he was hired as the food editor at Tasting Table and eventually found his way to the Bon Appétit test kitchen, where he worked for over six years and won the hearts of many with his exceptional cooking instruction and his own kind heart. Andy’s rich story and sharp recipe writing chops come together so beautifully in his book, The Cook You Want to Be, published two years ago. So what has Andy been up to? It turns out, plenty—both online and offline. Here we catch up about what is good in the Baraghani universe, and it’s clear Andy is the guy he wants to be.Also on the episode, we hear from Christian Reynoso about the recent TASTE feature he wrote describing his time working at San Francisco’s Zuni Café and the legacy of the cookbook that remains an absolute classic.Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.MORE FROM ANDY BARAGHANI: Andy Baraghani’s Essential Kitchen Tools [Bon Appetit] Kimchi Udon With Scallions [Bon Appetit] How Andy Baraghani Became the Internet Boyfriend of Our Dreams [Out] The Zuni Café Cookbook Is Canon [TASTE] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What a great conversation here with David Kamp, a journalist of the highest order and author of one of Matt’s favorite books about food ever, The United States of Arugula: The Sun-Dried, Cold-Pressed, Dark-Roasted, Extra Virgin Story of the American Food Revolution. In this episode we talk about the book’s legacy some 15 years after its publication. We also find out what David is working on now, including a Broadway musical. It’s great catching up with David Kamp, a real legend in the game.Also on the show, Aliza and Matt talk discuss three things they are most interested in, including: A NYC pop-up report (Wizard Hat Pizza, Chrissy's, Shy's Burger), Hand Hospitality in the NYT, Unified Ferments Nilgiri Coomor kombucha, a great new cookbook: Vegan Mob: Vegan BBQ and Soul Food, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and happy birthday to TASTE!Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.MORE FROM DAVID KAMP: Faces for Radio [Air Mail] I’ve Told My Last Trump Joke [NYT]  The Hunger Artists [NYT] The Elusive Restaurant Group Redefining Korean Dining in New York [NYT] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices