The Food Seen

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, husband and wife team, Alex McCrery & Jenny Goodman, met in New Orleans, one working BOH, the other FOH at Commanders Palace. After a short-run restaurant in Brooklyn, Goodman decided to earn her MBA before the two started another business. That's how Tilit, a chefware company, was born. Coats, aprons, pants, and more, Tilit provides the right materials for a new era of chefs: wax cloth, military grade adjustable straps, pit vents and Sharpie pen slots, all in hopes to update the outmoded model of kitchen uniforms, giving personality to an industry that surely has one.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we travel through the food world with John Sconzo (docsconz.com). If you've been to any chef's event (e.g. StarChefs, Madrid Fusion, Bocuse D'Or) you've probably met the guy behind the lens, who's dined at half of the World's Fifty Best Restaurants, and who's affectionately know as "Doc". Sconzo grew up in Brooklyn, NY, eschewing foods like onions, mushrooms and cheese, the turning point, an online forum in 2003 called eGullet, and an opinionated, but not self-important, a community of foodies. This gave Sconzo the culinary voice he was longing to have. Though he's really an anesthesiologist, hence "Doc", food has always been his medicine. Now he takes groups of adventurous eaters to New Orleans, New York City, Italy and Barcelona, for intimate insider tours with renowned chefs like Massimo Bottura and Albert Adria. Check out www.docsconztravel.com for more of Doc's culinary travels, and to join in on the food fun!

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, Thomas Kelly was obsessed with cooking during his teenage days in Minneapolis, not a place known for either it's Mexican or barbecue, but you wouldn't know that by the deep and complex flavors found at Mexicue, his ode to the best of qualities of both cuisines. What started as a food truck now has two, soon to be three, brick & mortar "quick casual" locations as Kelly calls them, where ticket times are under 5 minutes, and entrees rarely fall outside the $10-$15 range. Aside from serving up brisket tacos and Jamburritos (a burrito stuffed with Mexican chorizo and, you guessed it, jambalaya), Kelly also runs The Chili Lab, a website that showcases the diverse flavors of chili peppers from around the world from deep and earthy dried guajillos from Mexico to herbal and citrusy piri piri from Africa, proving you don't have to fire up the grill just to heat things up!

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, Gerardo Gonzalez, son of Mexican parents from Jalisco, grew up in San Diego, California with the shining sun and bright ideas about what food should look like. In his own personal style, Gonzalez blends California cuisine and his Mexican heritage, to present a creative and vibrant menu at Lalo in Chinatown, NYC. Housed in the once famed Winnie's karaoke bar, the exterior stays unchanged, but inside you'll find newly furnished mango-colored banquets and wood light fixtures, enlivening a 1970's vibe. After gaining much Cal-Mex notoriety at El Rey Coffee Bar & Luncheonette for his designer avocado toast, and vegan chicharrones, Lalo is much more "hippie Chicano" as Gonzalez puts it, heralding complex molé sauces (found in a Brown Goddess Cucumber Salad with brown molé vinaigrette, and a Green Molé Bulgarian Feta dish) and their deep dark almost-burnt flavors, as well as bright, and dark, color palate/palette plates like Stuffed Squid with Chorizo & Hibiscus

On today’s episode of THE FOOD SEEN, and just in time for the Year of the Rooster, Chinese food authority Fuchsia Dunlop walks us through New York City’s monolithic Chinatown, relative to the offerings from her hometown London. What once was a Cantonese stronghold, the cuisine perceived as “Chinese food” in our cities, is now as diverse as the country (of China) itself. In her latest book, Land of Fish & Rice, she explores the region of Jiangnan, best known for the upstart metropolis of Shanghai, which in no way represents the historic gastronomy of the area. There’s “red-braising”, “drunken” dishes made with Shaoxing wine, and “su cai hun zuo” better known as vegetarian ingredients cooked meatily (e.g. smoked tofu slivers), and sweet & sour West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce. The foods are often referred to as “qing dan”, which translates to English as misnomers, “bland” or “insipid”, when in reality they conjure up delicate soothing flavors that calm the spirits, very healthy and balanced, or “feel goo

On today’s episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we find comfort in sourdough pancakes and pie with Ron Silver of Bubby’s, a quintessential American restaurant in Tribeca, NYC. An artist in his own, Silver began his business in 1990, with 10K and 2 days of planning. Over the past 25 years, he’s kept true to the Bubby’s ethos, and found inspiration from all walks of life. Silver used to bike past The Met en route to work in the Meat Packing district, and one day serendipitously stopped at The Met, where tribal art from Papua New Guinea and self portraits from Austrian Egon Schiele spoke to him, as did James Beard, assembling a sounding board of influences that directed him on how to best serve society. Silver’s latest adventure has been in the world of weed edibles, where his business Relevant Innovations, focuses on THC infused sweeteners, that taste better than a spoonful of sugar, and provide the comforts of what America should stand for.

With our first 2017 episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we light the wick at one end with KeapBK.com (candles). Stephen Tracy and Harry Doullmet analyzing data for big brands at Google, eventually becoming roommates on Keap St. in Brooklyn. With their research, they saw companies like Everlane, Warby Parker, Casper, and Misen, cut out middleman, manufacture product themselves, and sell their singular products on simple website, well, that and a needlessly expensive candle industry which burns over 2 billion dollars a year of non-eco friendly materials! Coconut wax from California and scents that evoke the Greenmarket, Waves, Hot Springs and Wood Cabin, reminiscent of herbs, aromatics, fresh warm sea salt air, natural spa-water being poured over therapeutic hot rocks, and hikes over fall leaves past smoldering campfires; there are food memories associated with these smells, from beach picnics during the last days of summer to the founders European upbringings (e.g. British toast and tea, Parisian Tarte aux Maroilles, an

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, the last of 2016, we end with a retrospective look at Erin Fairbanks' work with Heritage Radio Network. Her near 5 year tenure as our Executive Director, and 7+ year run on her own podcast, The Farm Report, in which she talks to farmers and food makers, she's come to know what it takes to run a business, and be the boss; not an easy task to herd 30+ shows on the station! Fairbanks has been able to shepherd forth policy and change through the very conversations she's had with guests and hosts (e.g. "No Goat Left Behind" and Saxelby Scholars, a scholarship program for high school kids interested in documenting their own radio stories). From the deli counter at Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to the New York City kitchens of Savoy and Gramercy Tavern, Fairbanks has the chops, and understanding to best support yourself, you have to serve your community, as seen in her latest endeavor, "Ladies Night", a monthly women-only meet up group for women in the

On today' episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we kick off with Sabra Lewis, a sommelier who studied dance and moved to the big city with her sights set on Broadway. After some time bussing tables and spilling drinks, Lewis preformed as part of the legendary Radio City Music Hall Rockettes. There were roles in Phantom of the Opera and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang as well, but it was during break on a trip to Italy, that table wine and good food changed her high kicking course. Popping bottles at such restaurants like Gunter Seeger, Shuko, The NoMad Hotel and Rouge Tomate, Lewis' Christmas Spectacular is now more about Champagne, than a chorus line.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, Vivian Howard returns to her roots, literally and figuratively. Raised in Deep Run, NC, amongst tobacco plants and hog farms, it was a move to NYC, prompted by a job in advertising, that lead her to the cooking. Kitchen tutelage from the likes of Wylie Dufrense and Jean Georges Vongerichten, she took this newfound knowledge back south to open her progressive eatery, Chef & The Farmer, to a town hit by recession in need of real, good food. Howard focused on developing a menu based in rural abundance surrounding her (e.g. blueberries, peanuts, sweet corn, okra, collards, watermelon, peaches, pecans, sweet potatoes). Devoted to her area of Eastern North Carolina, Howard began filming a documentary of the farmers behind this produce, which became the Peabody and Daytime Emmy award winning "A Chef's Life" on PBS. In her bible of a cookbook Deep Run Roots, hear the stories behind Blueberry BBQ Chicken and Pecan-Chewy Pie!

On today’s episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we leave the big city and find ourselves in the Upper Midwest with Molly Yeh, blogger at mynameisyeh.com, and author of cookbook "Molly on the Range". Yeh's Chinese & Jewish background began the suburbs of Chicago, but her like of ethnic fusion didn't really jive as much as Lunchables did. As a percussionist, she eventually attended Julliard, using New York City as a place to first try broccoli and Brussels sprouts. These simple foods begat to culinary exploration, combining the trends of our times with her upbringing: Schnitzel on a Steam Bun, Challah Scallion Pancake, memories of spinach pizza (her dad's way of tricking her into eating healthy) accidentally turned into Spinach Feta Rugelach by her mother. It wasn't until another move, this time to Grand Forks, North Dakota, where her husband is a 5th generation beet farmer, that she learned to love "hotdish" and "cookie salad", all while perfecting her Norwegian lefse (flatbread) as all

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, how did two competitive swimmers inspire the legend of a world famous 6-ounce chocolate chip walnut cookie? Levain Bakery was started by two early risers, Constance McDonald & Pamela Weekes were both attune to 4AM wake-ups to train for triathlons, and since 1994, they used that same drive and determination to construct such celebrated cookies, they still bring steaming lines of regulars and culinary tourists to the corner of 74th & Amsterdam (now with outposts in the Hamptons and Harlem as well). Join us at a respectable hour (3PM EST every Tuesday!) to hear how the cookie didn't crumble.

On this special episode of The Food Seen, host Michael Harlan Turkell is on location at the Michael Kors Building in Manhattan for a sit-down with Kyle MacLachlan. The building serves as the headquarters for God's Love We Deliver, the New York City metropolitan area's leading provider of nutritious, individually-tailored meals to people who are too sick to shop or cook for themselves. Though perhaps best known for his work as an actor, MacLachlan is a longtime and passionate supporter of God's Love, which now cooks 5,800 meals each weekday, delivering them to clients living with life-altering illnesses in all five boroughs of New York City, Westchester and Nassau Counties, and Hudson County, New Jersey.

On today’s episode of THE FOOD SEEN, the most stylish stylist, Mariana Velasquez, takes us from the mountains to the coast, via Bogata and Big Sur, for arepas in the morning, diverse bowls of sancocho soup, and well chewed (and spit) Chicha to drink. Mariana believes the wealth of Colombia shines through it’s cooking and craft traditions but so does NYC. While working at the beloved Prune, it was there on the line, that she noticed the beauty in using beautiful things everyday. Unaware that styling was a career, Mariana spent time in a test kitchen until something clicked, and from there, she’s called “work” eating many scoops Haagen Dazs ice cream with Bradley Cooper, and gardening at the White House with our first lady, Michele Obama. While back in Cartagena, Mariana had the honor of recreating a classic cookbook by Teresita Roman, braising sweet plantains in housemade cola. The sweetest thing in life, aside condensed milk on shaved ice, is Mariana’s outlook on life itself, and belief that it’s best to surr

On today’s episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we meet Roman Cho, the photographer behind “Culinaria”, profiling some of the most influential people behind the food scene. No images of food here, just portraits, which explores the surface level of what a person looks like, and the personality they convey, without trying to impose a photographer’s style. Inspired by Richard Avedon’s 1976 seminal body of work, “The Family”, which documented the corporate and media elite whom he considered constituted the power structure of the power at that time, which include George W. Bush as head of the CIA, and Mark Felt, who was later found to be “Deepthroat". Cho’s work visits food scientist Harold McGee, urban farmer Will Allen, fermentation evangelist Sandor Katz, and the trifecta of Alice Waters, Ruth Reichl & Nell Newman. See these faces brought to the forefront, and learn more about their stories through the captions.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we ship off the trading port of Macau, a city on the Pearl River, an hour's ferry ride away from Hong Kong, China. Centuries long a vibrant trading port, a Portuguese colony under Chinese ownership up until 1887, this melting pot of culture and cuisine became inspiration for Abe Conlon & Adrienne Lo top open up Fat Rice restaurant in Chicago, now bringing about their comprehensive cookbook, The Adventures of Fat Rice: Recipes from the Chicago Restaurant Inspired by Macau. Of course in it, you'll find their namesake, “Arroz Gordo” a layered rice dish for special occasions (jumbo prawns, chili lemon, char siu pork, pickled chilies, tea egg, sweet & sour raisins, shredded duck, sofrito-scented jasmine rice, linguine sausage, Portuguese olives, manila clams, curried chicken), as well as the building blocks of Macanese cooking. But I must warn you, watch out for the Attack of the Chili Clam!

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we settle into the world of fermentation, preservation and curing, with Darra Goldstein, the well cultured EIC of CURED. Her past publication, Gastronomica, was and will always be the go to journal for critical food studies. She now pairs with Zero Point Zero, one their first print production (they're the company behind television programs Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, and The Mind of Chef), to bring us insights and stories behind our favorite cheeses, charcuterie, and drinks, all time-honored and worth waiting for.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we learn how to throw cider with David Dolginow, co-founder of Shacksbury Cider of Vermont. This is not a Johnny Appleseed story though; the trees were already there, marked by hunters during harvest for hunting hungry deer as their fruit ripened. Many of these old orchards were forgotten on dairy farms, which is fitting, because Shacksbury's cider was set in motion by the dry Basque-style homebrews of Michael Lee from nearby Twig Farm artisanal cheese. Through cow pastures, meadows and forests of Vermont, a blend of Jonagold, Spartan, Macintosh and Empire, mix with international varieties like Ellis Bitters, Browns, and Somerset Redstreak, foraging a new path for Shacksbury's modern farmhouse classics.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, many say Andrew Tarlow helped create the Brooklyn of today, and it's Bohemian food lusting free spirit. In 1999, a refurbished dining car on the corner of Broadway and Berry in industrial South Williamsburg, opened as Diner, which begat Marlow & Sons, a cafe by day, oyster bar by night, documented in Diner Journal, their indie magazine, now celebrating their benefaction to the borough by a bound edition, Dinner at the Long Table. With it's company of chefs and contributors, this cookbook is a party for all occasions, from New Years to 11:59PM.

On today's episode of THE FOOD SEEN, we distinguish the difference between the modes and mediums of ingredients with food scientist Ali Bouzari, in his book, INGREDIENT. Have you ever wondered why popcorn pops, or how to cook a juicy steak, well, you're talking about WATER; it expands as steam, and releases when bitten. Did you know that SUGARS aren’t just sweet, they're also the reasons food browns when heated which includes sautéed onions to roasted coffee beans, and even aged balsamic vinegar. CARBOHYDRATES, LIPIDS, PROTEINS, MINERALS, GASES and HEAT round out the 8 ingredients that act as x-ray vision for Bouzari. He provides illustrations and infographics for insightful cooks, who what to know how chicharrons puff when fried and why Doritos are the most savory thing ever.