The LA Food Podcast

Gilberto Cetina is the chef and owner of Holbox, the Los Angeles Times 2023 Restaurant of the Year. On this episode, Cetina traces the journey that brought him to where he is today. We talk about the dreaded childhood chore that was helping his family make tamales to sell at church, his adolescence spent spearfishing with his cousins on the Yucatan peninsula, the experience that was opening the family’s first restaurant, Chichen Itza, and what he learned from a failed expansion into a second location. The story culminates, of course, with the opening of Holbox, and Chef Cetina is very generous in letting us see behind the curtain to learn more about the magic behind some of his most iconic dishes.  Helpful links: Holbox website https://www.holboxla.com/#/ Holbox on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/holboxlosangeles/ Chichen Itza https://www.chichenitzarestaurant.com/ LA Times names Holbox 2023 Restaurant of the Year https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2023-06-13/gilberto-cetina-holbox-los-angeles-times-2023-restaurant-of-the-year

UK cooking show Five Star Chef has finally made it to Netflix, and Father Sal joins me today to break down what can only be described as the best British export to grace these shores since Harry Styles began serving angelic sounds and androgynous fashion choices. Five Star Chef follows a cast of up-and-coming chefs as they compete to take over the iconic Palm Court restaurant at the five-star Langham Hotel in London. The show is a bona fide rollercoaster of emotion, and whether you’ve seen it or not, I think you’ll enjoy our discussion of what makes a cooking show actually good, as opposed to the gimmicky nonsense clogging up our Hulu home screens.  But first, Sal and I get into the Los Angeles food news of the past couple weeks. We discuss an absolutely heinous list brought to us by the LA Times, why a vegan restaurant in Santa Monica has decided to add meat to their menu, and what the heck is driving all of the high profile restaurant closures we’re seeing in 2023. Tallulah, we hardly knew ya. Helpful links: Five Star Chef https://www.netflix.com/title/81507383 Margo starts serving meat https://la.eater.com/2023/8/21/23840379/margos-former-plant-based-adds-meat-to-menu-santa-monica-restaurant Restaurant closures https://la.eater.com/2023/8/22/23840539/biggest-restaurant-closures-los-angeles-summer-2023-news Etta-gate https://la.eater.com/2023/8/22/23842250/etta-culver-city-eviction-staff-layoffs-los-angeles-news Kristen Kish feature https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/22/dining/kristen-kish-top-chef.html LA Times NY list https://www.latimes.com/food/list/15-nostalgic-new-york-inspired-restaurants-for-a-slice-of-the-big-apple

Lien Ta is the restaurateur behind All Day Baby, Here’s Looking At You and Tet a Tet. Lien’s story is a fascinating one, and we retrace her steps from her childhood in Georgia eating beige foods at Chili’s to her culinary awakening in New Orleans, which eventually resulted in her opening one of LA’s best loved restaurants of the last decade, Here’s Looking At You in Koreatown. We discuss the challenges of opening a new restaurant, what it was like to close seemingly for good during the pandemic, only to then rise from the ashes against all odds. From her leadership at her restaurants to her work supporting woman-owned business with Regarding Her Food, Lien is truly a shining light in the Los Angeles food community, and I’m stoked for you to hear our conversation.  Also on this episode… The Infatuation released a controversial list of the 19 best pizzerias in Los Angeles this week. This caused quite a stir to say the least, so I outline the pizzerias I think were most hard-done by being excluded from the list.  Helpful links: Lien's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lientigre/?hl=en Here's Looking At You https://www.hereslookingatyoula.com/ All Day Baby https://www.alldaybabyla.com/ Regarding Her Food https://www.regardingherfood.com/ Infatuation Pizza List https://www.theinfatuation.com/los-angeles/guides/the-best-pizza-in-los-angeles Pizzana https://pizzana.com/ Milana's http://www.milanasnewyorkpizzeria.com/ Pi LA https://pila213.com/ Gra https://xn--gr-nia.com/ Gorilla Pies https://gorillapies.com/ Dough Daddy https://www.instagram.com/doughdaddyla/?hl=en Dtown Pizzeria https://www.dtownpizzeria.com/ Lucky Nick's luckynickspizza.com Brandoni Pepperoni https://www.brandoni-pepperoni.com/ Quarantine Pizza Company https://www.instagram.com/quarantinepizzaco/ Hail Mary Pizza https://hailmarypizzala.com/ Hot Tongue https://www.hottonguepizza.com/ Tomato Pie https://www.tomatopiepizzajoint.com/ Bagel and Slice https://bagelandslice.com/ Pizza Wagon of Brooklyn https://www.pizzawagonofbrooklynmenu.com/ Dough Box https://order.doughboxla.com/ Blackbird https://blackbirdpizzashopla.com/ Mother Wolf https://www.motherwolfla.com/ Speak Cheezy https://www.speak-cheezy.com/ Best Bet https://www.bestbetpizzeria.la/ Friends and Family https://www.ffpizzaco.com/ Ghisallo https://www.ghisallo.la/

David Chang’s Secret Chef is out on Hulu, and Father Sal joins me to break down the first season. We discuss the concept, the contestants, the challenges, and ask ourselves whether one of the most iconoclastic chefs in the game succeeded in breaking the mold of cooking competition shows. We also discuss a couple of chaotic news weeks in food. Taco Maria has closed, John Tesar tried to get canceled, a diabolical service fee spreadsheet has burst onto the scene, and our city has been confronted with a pork crisis that’s squeezing barbecue pitmasters and carniceros alike… We discuss all of that and more. Helpful links: Secret Chef https://press.hulu.com/shows/secret-chef/ Pork crisis https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2023-08-04/los-angeles-barbecue-restaurants-react-to-proposition-12-pork-prices Taco Maria closure https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-07-25/taco-maria-closes-saturday-carlos-salgado-future-relocation Service charge spreadsheet https://la.eater.com/2023/8/8/23823809/los-angeles-service-charge-reddit-am-intel Tesar loses it https://la.eater.com/2023/8/9/23823674/chef-john-tesar-video-strike-union-labor-workers-orange-county-yelling-knife-restaurant-news The Bear Season 3 predictions https://chicago.eater.com/2023/7/28/23809939/the-bear-season-3-fx-hulu-predictions Dave Portnoy pizza fest https://www.tmz.com/2023/08/01/barstool-sports-dave-portnoy-one-bite-pizza-festival/ Restaurant reservation fee https://ny.eater.com/2023/8/3/23817542/reservation-fees-deposits-resy-opentable-nyc?_gl=1*1bx0wxg*

We are joined today by Tanya Kollar, the food curator of Outside Lands. She has the massive responsibility of assembling the vendors that keep the masses fed, working with them to figure out how they’re going to serve their food in a festival setting, and ironing out all of the mind-boggling logistics to make it all happen. Even if you’re not going to the festival next week, you’re gonna want to add some of the restaurants we discuss to your Bay Area bucket list.  I also share with you 3 incredible meals I’ve had recently. I’ve been eating like a damn prince lately, if I’m being honest, and it was insanely difficult to choose just 3 for today’s pod. But alas, choices were made, and I’ve got stories of mariscos, roast beef and Italian ice coming your way in just a minute.  Helpful links: Outside Lands https://sfoutsidelands.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwoK2mBhDzARIsADGbjermZ_F1mXw-bzNW2_B9Lb5aXZ0GprL0-rhBc0oCd-BuKRC9K5NyVhQaAn7sEALw_wcB Outside Lands food https://sfoutsidelands.com/food-and-drink/taste-of-the-bay-area/ Za Za Za www.zazaza.la Pane Bianco https://www.pizzeriabianco.com/pane-bianco-los-angeles Coco's To-Go Go https://www.instagram.com/cocostogogo/?hl=en

Joining us on the pod today are Francesca Pistorio and Francesco Lucatorto, the husband-and-wife team behind Ceci’s Gastronomia in Silver Lake. Ceci’s is designed to recreate the authentic Nonna experience. If you’ve got a Nonna, an abuela, an Oma or any kind of grandmother, you know what I’m talking about. You stop by her house for a quick coffee, maybe a pastry, and before you can say “mamma mia”, you’re leaving with a to-go container of lasagna, gnocco alla romana, suppli and whatever the heck she felt like whipping up on that particular day. Well guess what, that’s also what happens every time I go to Ceci’s. And Not only is the food at Ceci’s spectacular, the experience is too. It’s cozy, familial, welcoming, and frankly, the closest approximation to a true Italian breakfast-and-lunch spot that you can find in Los Angeles. What about Francesco and Francesca, you ask? Well, they’re an absolute treat. Their story of falling in love with food and with each other will leave you hankering for a rewatch of your favorite Italy-based rom com. Under the Tuscan Sun would be my choice. What’s yours? We talk about surfing, suppli, the state of Italian food in LA, and so much more. Helpful links: Ceci's https://www.cecisoven.com/ Ceci's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/cecis_gastronomia/?hl=en Taste of Italy https://www.iamla.org/taste-of-italy/

Ian Asbury is the Co-founder of Good Clean Fun, an absolutely bitchin’ natural wine shop and bar in downtown LA. Natural wine has been on the rise for a minute now, but a lot of folks are still skeptical. How is it made? Is it real wine? Is it even any good? These are all questions we get into with Ian, who’s passion for the form is, frankly contagious. We also talk about his journey from dining at Olive Gardens in Beaverton, Oregon to becoming a widely respected food and wine entrepreneur in our City of Angels.  Father Sal also joins us to break down Michelin’s California Guide, which was released earlier this week. Once again, Los Angeles was low-key snubbed, losing two stars and gaining only one. We tlak about what this says about LA, what this says about Michelin, and whether you as an eater should even care. We also spend a little bit of time talking about the LA Times’ recent coverage of Mexico City. Daniel Hernandez published a nice little three-piece set on the changing face of the city, and how to best enjoy it as a traveling Angeleno.  Helpful links: Good Clean Fun https://gcfwines.com/ California Michelin Guide https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/michelin-star-revelation/michelin-guide-california-stars LAT on Mexico City https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2023-07-13/mexico-city-essay-daniel-hernandez LAT tips for traveling in Mexico City https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2023-07-14/mexico-city-tips-dos-donts-daniel-hernandez LAT Mexico City recs https://www.latimes.com/food/list/best-mexico-city-restaurants-bars-tacos-cantinas-dessert

Kat Turner is chef and partner of Highly Likely, one of LA’s hottest all day restaurant concepts. They’ve been serving the West Adams neighborhood for several years now, and are on the verge of opening a second location in Highland Park. Chef Kat joins us to discuss Highly Likely’s food and new location, but also her own personal journey which has taken her from acting in a David Lynch movie to private cheffing for Billy Corrigan on tour. Also, did I mention she’s a Chopped champion? We talk about what that was like, and I even give her a virtual basket of mystery ingredients to see if she’s still got it.  We’re also joined by world-renowned Top Chef scholar Father Sal to discuss the late breaking news that Season 10 champion Kristen Kish will be taking over as host now that the great Padma Lakshmi has stepped down. Will she be up to the challenge? Or is this a missed opportunity for the show to go in a totally new direction? We discuss all that and what we think of setting season 21 in Wisconsin.  Helpful links: Highly Likely on IG https://www.instagram.com/itshighlylikely/ Kat Turner on IG https://www.instagram.com/katturnerwashere/?hl=en Highly Likely website https://www.itshighlylikely.com/ Chef Keith Corbin's book https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/677186/california-soul-by-keith-corbin/

Today’s episode is all about The Bear. We’re joined by culinary producer Courtney Storer to break down the behind-the-scenes of Season 2, which is now airing on Hulu. Courtney is a Los Angeles-based chef who’s many credentials include running the kitchen at Jon & Vinny’s. Courtney is, in a nutshell, one of the main reasons why The Bear feels like such an accurate representation of restaurant life, and why it’s resonated with so many inside and out of the industry. We talk about her experience working with actors to ensure they’re moving around the kitchen believably, how she went about creating the gut-wrenching chaos present in the already iconic Feast of the Seven Fishes episode guest starring Jamie Lee Curtis, and how important it was to her to do right by Chicago’s legendary culinary scene. Courtney is wise beyond her years and we also get into some heavier topics like mental health in the kitchen, how our personal trauma informs our beliefs about ourselves, and why so many chefs have no problem taking care of others, but have a really tough time taking care of themselves. In Part 2 we’re joined by Father Sal. We give our overall takes on Season 2, and discuss things like who gave the best performance, which episode made us cry the most and is Rick Bayless an idiot for saying the show set the industry back 20 years. In Part 3, we let our creative juices flow and pitch our best ideas for how we think The Bear should open Season 3, Episode 1. If you’re afraid of spoilers, I recommend listening to Part 1 with Courtney and saving the rest of the pod for after you’ve seen the show. Helpful links: Courtney's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/courtney__storer/?hl=en The Bear on FX https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-bear Queen Street https://resy.com/cities/la/queen-st?date=2023-07-07&seats=2 Yang's Kitchen https://www.yangskitchenla.com/

Gab Chabran is the Associate Editor of Food and Culture at LAist. He’s a Whittier native and a Long Beach resident, and joins the pod to offer a diverse and far-reaching perspective on our region's amazing food. Gab tells us the story of how his dual passions for music and food molded his professional journey, landing him in the driver’s seat of one of LA’s most respected food newsrooms. Gab’s is a story of tenacity, perseverance and, of course, plenty of delicious food. We talk old school pizza parlors, new school burger pop-ups, and of course, what goes into making the perfect mixtape. Because what else would you want to learn on a food podcast? Helpful links: Gab's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/gabchabran/?hl=en Gab on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@gabchabran Gab's bio https://laist.com/people/gab-chabran LAist's food section https://laist.com/news/food