Why Food?

This week, we are thrilled to welcome Daniel Gritzer, the Culinary Director of Serious Eats, into the studio! Daniel shares how his early passion for food — staging at legendary restaurant Chanterelle at the age of 13 in lieu of a bar mitzvah — influenced his culinary career path. He's had few twists and turns along the way, including nearly a year working on organic farms in Europe, where he harvested almonds and Padrón peppers in Spain, shepherded a flock of more than 200 sheep in Italy, and made charcuterie in France. After a few years at a small nonprofit devoted to the creation of Brooklyn Bridge Park, he threw himself fully into restaurant work, followed by editorial roles at Time Out NY, Food and Wine, and currently, Serious Eats. Please join us as we sit down with Daniel to talk about his adventures in food, how he transitioned from the kitchen to the editorial space and so much more. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at h

After spending 10 years as an investment banker and management consultant, Minh Tsai became frustrated that he couldn’t find the delicious tofu and yuba he grew up eating in Vietnam. He decided to embark on a culinary journey to take back tofu, combining deeply traditional and pure methods with innovative production for his artisan tofu, yuba and soy milk product. After creating Hodo Foods, he launched a farmer’s market stand in Silicon Valley, eventually growing Hodo Foods to more than 4,000 retailers and restaurants nationally, from Whole Foods and Target to regional specialty markets and co-ops. Please join us as we sit down with Minh to talk about his entrepreneurial journey through the world of food, how he is revolutionizing the tofu industry and the evolution of plant-based eating! Photo by Jen Siska Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"Join cohosts Jenny and Ethan for a conversation with Catherine Piccoli, Curator at the Museum of Food and Drink in Brooklyn. Catherine is a food historian and writer whose work focuses on the intersection of food, culture, memory, and place. As curator, she oversees the creation of MOFAD’s exhibitions and educational programming and was instrumental in the research, writing, and development of past major exhibitions, Flavor: Making It and Faking It and Chow: Making the Chinese American Restaurant, as well as gallery shows Feasts and Festivals, Knights of the Raj, and Highlights from the Collection. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, please join us in welcoming Lisa Curtis to the studio! Lisa is the Founder and CEO of @kulikulifoods, the leading brand pioneering the superfood moringa in the US market. She founded the company after working as a Peace Corps volunteer. Since then, she has grown her Peace Corps dream into a multi-million dollar social enterprise with products being sold in over 7,000 stores. Prior to Kuli Kili, Lisa served as the Communications Director of Mosaic, wrote political briefings for President Obama, served as a United National Environment Programme Youth Advisor and worked at an impact investment firm in India. ⁣ Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Deepti Sharma is the CEO and Founder of @foodtoeat, an online food ordering and delivery service specializing in food trucks and restaurants. She started her company with the mission to connect immigrant, women and minority-owned food vendors to opportunities for growth - ultimately helping them strengthen their own business skills. She is also a Co-Founder of Bikky, a platform solving customer engagement for restaurants. Please tune in as we talk to Deepti about her incredible pioneering story, the different ways she is encouraging immigrant entrepreneurship through advocacy and how companies can modernize motherhood in the workplace. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Please join us in welcoming restaurateur Rose Previte to the studio! Rose spent her childhood helping her mother run her Middle Eastern catering business and restaurant. She then later spent over a decade working in bars and restaurants while getting a master's degree in Public Policy from George Mason University. After meeting her husband and traveling around the world to 30 countries, her time abroad inspired her to open award-winning restaurant Compass Rose in 2014 and then her second restaurant, Maydan, which was conceived and designed over a three-week journey through Morroco, Tunisia, Turkey, Georgia and Lebanon. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join us this week for a conversation with Aneesha Hargrave and Ali Banks of Chopt Salads. Aneesha is Chopt's Executive Chef and left a career in auto parts sales to go to culinary school and become a chef, following a family passion for food and cooking. After building her foundational culinary skills and technique, she moved to NYC and found her dream opportunity at Chopt. Ali Banks, Chopt's head of R&D, built on a background in architectural, a culinary education in Paris mastering the finer points of whole-animal butchery and Alaskan salmon fishing put her on the path to manage Chopt's Research and Development. Join Ethan & Jenny for a conversation about moving into and through the world of food, and what it's like to plan menus at Chopt! Why Food? is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, we're joined by Adam Rosenbaum, CEO of the Meatball Shop. The Meatball Shop is known for their team first culture and aims to serve simple, sustainable, delicious food with no strings attached. Drawn to high-touch and community-focused communities, Adam joined the team in 2017 to strategically expand the business to major cities and markets. Prior to joining The Meatball Shop, he was the VP of operations for Patina Restaurant Group and SVP of Global Operations of Flywheel. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We are so thrilled to have Mohammad Modarres of Abe’s Meats joining us! Mohammad is a former biotech entrepreneur, game designer and political cartoonist who moved to NYC to start Interfaith Ventures, an incubator that creates products and programming promoting unity and dialogue across religions. Abe’s Meats grew naturally out of Interfaith and has since become its flagship product — it offers meat products that are both #halal and #kosher so they can be enjoyed without worry with friends and family of all different backgrounds. Join us as we chat with Mohammad about his transition into this unique role, his upcoming TED Talk as a 2018 fellow and why Interfaith Ventures is more needed than ever in our current climate. Why Food? is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join us for a conversation with Alex McCrery and Jenny Goodman: husband and wife, and cofounders of the groundbreaking restaurant workwear line Tilit NYC. Alex is a former restaurant chef (as well as private chef for Jerry Seinfeld's family) and Jenny worked in the pharmaceutical industry. They met while working at the iconic New Orleans restaurant Commander's Palace, and in 2012 launched Tilit NYC to supply the restaurant industry with high quality, intentionally designed aprons and clothing. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our first guest of the season is Soleil Ho is the San Francisco Chronicle’s newest restaurant critic. Before coming to the Chronicle, she was a nationally recognized writer, chef, and the host of the Racist Sandwich Podcast, all while providing her thoughtful-provoking perspective on immigration, race, gender, and class in the food world. She is also co-writer on a graphic novel on entomophagy, culinary mentorship, and queer romance called MEAL. Tune in for an insightful conversation on her journey navigating food journalism and how she is hoping to use restaurant reviews to discuss important topics like urban development and wealth disparity. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chitra Agrawal has been cooking, teaching and writing about food inspired by her family’s recipes from India for ten years. She co-founded Brooklyn Delhi with her husband Ben Garthus in 2014 to bring the flavors she was creating to a wider audience. Chitra is the author of Vibrant India: Fresh Vegetarian Recipes from Bangalore to Brooklyn (Penguin, 2017). Prior to Brooklyn Delhi, Chitra held marketing roles at American Express and DDB and completed her MBA at NYU Stern. Brooklyn Delhi's award-winning condiments can be found in Whole Foods nationwide and in Blue Apron meal kits and have been featured by food critics at the NY Times, Saveur, Food & Wine and more. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Eric Kim is a food writer and the Senior Editor at Food52, where he writes the popular Table for One column. Before becoming a food writer, Eric was an academic - he undergraduate literature courses at Columbia while pursuing a PhD in 19th- and 20th-century American fiction. Join cohosts Jenny and Ethan for a discussion about writing, writing about cooking, and identity in food. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join cohosts Jenny and Ethan for a conversation with Haley Baron. She's the City Operations Director for pineapple collaborative, a community for women who love food, in NY, DC and SF. She's an accomplished food systems researcher, the team manager for the city-wide evaluation of a food access program administered by the Mayor's Office, and is publishing a suite of articles on the organic supply chain. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join cohosts Jenny and Ethan for a conversation with Alex Mayyasi, editor of Gastro Obscura, a food publication devoted to culinary wonders and curiosities.Alex was early employee at Priceonomics, where he wrote and edited business and economics stories. He lived in Cairo in 2011-2012, and along with Egyptian democracy activist Ahmed Salah, is the co-author of You Are Under Arrest for Masterminding the Egyptian Revolution (A Memoir). We'll talk about the transition from writing about politics and economics to writing about food, and the importance of a political relevance in food writing. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join us for a special episode with Lisa Gross (Founder & CEO) and Afsari Jahan (Bengali Cooking Instructor) from League of Kitchens. Lisa was and artis and social entrepreneur, and Afsari managed garment manufacturing in Bangladesh, but today they're part of the team behind League of Kitchens, hosting intimate cooking classes led by immigrant women in their homes. Join us for a conversation about social entrepreneurship, creating connection and understanding through food, and the most important culinary skills across cuisines! Why Food is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ben Jacobsen started making salt as a hobby, to distract himself from a failing tech startup. When he finally left tech and decided make salt his full-time business, began by collecting seawater in buckets and boiling it down to make his now-famous finishing salt. In the seven years since then, he's build Jacobsen's Salt Co into a national brand and created a truly American finishing salt. Join co-host Ethan for a conversation about building a brand and changing the way consumers think about the most common ingredient we eat. Why Food is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"Erin Patinkin and Agatha Kulaga are the co-founders of Ovenly, an award-winning bakery known for creating baked goods that twist sweet and savory flavors in a modern way. With five retail locations, a large wholesale clientele, and over 60 employees, Kulaga and Patinkin are at the forefront of ethical entrepreneurship, building a dynamic company committed to job training and development and environmental sustainability. The duo were named one of New York’s most “badass” leaders in food by Thrillist. Join co-hosts Jenny and Ethan for a discussion about building a successful bakery, open hiring policies and social entrepreneurship." Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Amber started her career as a musical producer in Australia, where she toured famous bands such as Pearl Jam and Bruce Springsteen, before becoming the worldwide producer of Dirty Dancing. While still on tour, her childhood friend Adam Boyd approached her with a crazy idea: to start a high-quality, ethical coffee roastery in Brooklyn — and she figured, why not? She had been looking for a new creative outlet and, as Amber says, it sounded like an adventure! That idea has grown to become Toby's Estate Coffee, a small-batch roastery with with multiple brick-and-mortar locations as well as a strong wholesale business within outlets such as Dean and Deluca and Whole Foods Market. Join us and we hear about Amber’s delightful journey into coffee, how she still (!!) maintains her role as worldwide producer of Dirty Dancing while running the Toby’s empire and where she sees the world of craft coffee heading towards in the future. Why Food? is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and Ca

Join Jenny and Ethan for a conversation with Zwann Grays, Wine Director at the highly regarded Brooklyn restaurant Olmsted. Zwann began her career in distributor wine sales, and then transitioned to work in restaurants, including at some of New York City’s most notable wine destination. At Olmsted, Zwann focuses on natural, producer-driven wine selections from responsible growers, female wine makers, and the next generation of wine makers. Why Food is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.