Tinfoil Swans
Tinfoil Swans

Food & Wine has led the conversation around food, drinks, and hospitality in America and around the world since 1978. Tinfoil Swans continues that legacy with intimate, informative, surprising, and uplifting conversations with the biggest names in the culinary industry and beyond, sharing never-before-heard stories about the successes, struggles, and fork-in-the-road moments that made them who they are today. You'll hear from icons and innovators like Daniel Boulud, Padma Lakshmi, Tristen Epps, and Maneet Chauhan, going deep on their formative experiences, the dishes and meals that made them, their joys, doubts and dreams, and what's still on the menu ahead. Tune in for a feast that'll feed your brain and soul — and plenty of wisdom and quotable morsels to savor later. New episodes every Tuesday. Season 4 coming March 31, 2026.

Season 4 of Tinfoil Swans returns March 31 with an all-star lineup of culinary icons, storytellers, and industry trailblazers. Hosted by Kat Kinsman, this award-winning podcast goes beyond food to explore the personal journeys behind the people shaping what and how we eat. This season features powerful conversations with legends like Wolfgang Puck, Claudette Zepeda, and Tom Colicchio. Expect laughter, vulnerability, and hard-earned wisdom as guests share the triumphs, struggles, and defining experiences that fuel their passion.  Follow us wherever you get your podcasts so you do not miss an episode, and visit foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans for more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Phil Rosenthal is living his dream life as a newly-minted restaurant owner who gets to work alongside his family and one of the greatest chefs in the country. In this live podcast taping from the Food & Wine Classic in Charleston, the Somebody Feed Phil star, Everybody Loves Raymond creator, and bestselling cookbook author talks about his childhood culinary awakening at 7-Eleven, dragging his parents kicking and screaming to a fancy meal, why he believes diners might save America, and what he wants to do with the rest of his days on earth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Celebrated food writer and Great British Bake Off finalist Ruby Tandoh talks about growing up with Nigel Slater on her parents' bookshelf, hosting earnest teenage dinner parties, and finding her own voice on the page. She digs into regional food traditions from Manchester’s spicy dip burgers to Scotland’s arbroath smokies, the strange pressures of algorithm-driven food culture, the joy of old cookbooks and weird jelly molds, her new book All Consuming: Why We Eat the Way We Eat Now, and why she’s still hopeful about the future of food. Learn more at: https://www.foodandwine.com/tinfoil-swans-podcast-s3-ep31-ruby-tandoh-and-the-spicy-dip-burgers-11857119 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Byron Gomez and his family arrived in the United States from Costa Rica when he was eight years old, and he was in for the shock of his young life. He spoke Spanish at home, had never seen snow or even a winter coat, and had to find his place in a world that didn't always want him there. But at age 15, he found restaurants. He put in the very hard work, let himself dream, and the success followed. The Top Chef contestant spoke about his path from Burger King to cooking in Michelin-starred restaurants, being a DACA recipient, getting sober, and the battle scars he earned along the way. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Houston-based sommelier and restaurateur June Rodil shares her journey from an immigrant kid decoding American culture through Babysitters Club books to becoming a hospitality visionary redefining what it means to serve with empathy. She opens up about fitting in, parental pressure, what Waffle House and Olive Garden taught her about hospitality, and the quiet refuge she finds beneath the covers when the world gets too loud. Learn more at: https://www.foodandwine.com/tinfoil-swans-podcast-s3-ep30-june-rodil-and-the-cove-beneath-the-comforter-11850897 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Bestselling author, award-winning TV host and producer, activist, and fledgling comedian Padma Lakshmi joined the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen for a live onstage conversation about what's next after Top Chef and Taste the Nation, her new book Padma's All American, how comedy is like sex without touching, the freedom in working from the bathtub, the value in building an "old broads network," and why it's so healthy to embrace your rage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
If you're a fan of The Office, you're probably aware that co-star Angela Kinsey and her husband Joshua Snyder host an ultra-charming cooking show, but do you know how a giant pot of soup factored into their romance? They joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about their warm, wonderful, and empowering new cookbook; the way they feel when someone is rude to a waiter; the anxiety that still sometimes comes alongside the check at a restaurant; soup as a love language; and why Angela will in fact take those last two pieces of broccolini home in a doggie bag. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Cassandra Peterson — better known as Elvira, Mistress of the Dark — grew up as a misfit kid with a bad perm, burn scars, and a mother who told her she'd never make it. Despite it all, she became a Las Vegas showgirl, a Groundling, a horror icon, and a beacon for weirdoes everywhere. The "Martha Stewart of the Macabre" talks about her new cookbook, the cooking tip Vincent Price gave her, the advice she didn't take from Elvis, and the power of entertaining to build community — even if it all goes hilariously wrong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Harry Hamlin shares how his Sunday Bolognese went from a Real Housewives lunch to an open-source food company, the reason his psychology degree informs his hosting (at parties that serve as exposure therapy for his wife, Lisa Rinna), and why it's so important to him to support hunger relief groups. Did you know he's owned an energy company for almost 30 years? The actor, activist, and entrepreneur goes deep on his belief in ingredient transparency, the struggle meals he ate growing up, wooing Rinna, and why the podcast they host together is how they're finally getting to know one another on a deeper level. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Madhur Jaffrey published "An Invitation to Indian Cooking" in 1973, she had no idea that half a century later, the book would not only still be in print, but also get an anniversary reissue that would welcome future generations in the vast and varied cuisine of her homeland. In this encore of one of our favorite first-season epsiodes of Tinfoil Swans, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman finally meets her lifelong culinary hero and gets some sage advice from the writer, teacher, and actress about self worth, righteous anger, perfectionism, and what actually matters to you when you turn 90.  For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
2009 F&W Best New Chef and Houston icon Bryan Caswell opens up about single fatherhood, second chances, and his comeback with Latuli — plus the "redemption lies tomorrow" mindset reshaping his kitchen, and the time he sneaked into Jean-George Vongerichten's kitchen and came out with a job. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
From fixing radios and writing slam poetry as a kid in the Bronx, to becoming one of the most celebrated pastry chefs and community builders of her generation, 2021 Food & Wine Best New Chef Paola Velez has never followed the expected path. Along the way, she’s embraced subcultures that gave her belonging, built spaces where strangers connect over shaved ice and cocktails, and redefined what it means to be a chef — on social media, in restaurants, and in the wider world. In this conversation, she shares the courage it takes to choose joy in the face of struggle, the humility behind turning down a major accolade, and the celebrity chef moment that meant everything to her mom. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
From three-mile walks to school in Guyana and “punishment baking” with his aunt to becoming the first pastry chef named a Food & Wine Best New Chef, Tavel Bristol-Joseph has never followed the expected path. In this episode, he shares the chaos and music of landing in Brooklyn, the quiet ritual he keeps each birthday to honor his late father, and why he believes cooking is just the vessel for something much bigger. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Food & Wine’s longest-serving editors in chief, Dana Cowin and Hunter Lewis, invite you into a revealing conversation about the history and impact of the Best New Chefs accolade since it started in 1988. From the early days of scouting talent with notebooks and stringers to today’s rigorous process shaped by mentorship, community, and culture, they share behind-the-scenes stories, heated debates, and the unforgettable moments that have defined the program — and American dining — for nearly four decades. Plus, can you beat them in a chef trivia quiz? For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Food & Wine editor in chief Hunter Lewis shares the untold story behind the magazine’s iconic Best New Chefs list and reveals the 2025 class. From the intense debates that shape each year’s BNC decisions to the lessons he’s carried from his days as a three-sport "prep jock," line cook, and local journalist, Lewis reflects on the long, strange trip that led him to the helm of Food & Wine. Along the way, he opens up about why he still calls himself a "glorified home cook," his upcoming cookbook, his brush with Anthony Bourdain, how he approaches leadership, and the future he sees for restaurants in America. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
From poring over cast-off food magazines in a Brooklyn laundry room to opening a New York restaurant at 25 and being nearly undone by a single New York Times mention, Edward Lee has lived through the exhilarating highs and bruising lows of the kitchen. On this episode, he goes deep about the worst lunch service of his life, how moving to Kentucky after 9/11 gave him the space to make mistakes and grow, and why revealing his Korean name on Netflix's Culinary Class Wars became one of the most important moments of his career. He also shares how he’s working to banish plastic from restaurant kitchens, why bartenders deserve more protection than they often get, and what he's hoping to teach his daughter about her Korean heritage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Samin Nosrat has changed the way so many of us think about food, cooking, and connection. You may know her as the bestselling author of Salt Fat Acid Heat, her joyful Netflix series of the same name, or her wildly popular podcast Home Cooking. But in this conversation, she goes far beyond recipes. Samin opens up about growing up as a book-loving outsider with a very particular notion of cool, the early fan mail she wrote, the lessons she learned in the fires of Chez Panisse, the unexpected weight of fame, and why more than ever, she sees food as the most precious gift we can give one another. She also shares stories from her newest book Good Things, the weekly dinners that ground her, how her journaling habit came in handy decades later, and her secret connection to a particular puppet. See more about the episode on foodandwine.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
You know Regina King from her decades of extraordinary performances — from her teenage roles on the sitcom 227 and the movie Friday to Watchmen, The Leftovers, The Boondocks, If Beale Street Could Talk, and so many more. But a conversation at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen showed a different side of the Oscar-winning actress: the daughter, the sister, the mother, the cook, the traveler, the dreamer, and now the wine entrepreneur. She revealed how as a kid, she and her sister would put on performances, reciting poems and doing one-act plays. She talked about her grandmother's pound cake recipe she has framed on her wall, the extraordinary way her mom cooks vegetables, and the freedom she found traveling solo in France. And she opened up about her son Ian, and his unique talent for finding beauty in the most mundane things — bringing new life to forgotten objects, going barefoot and in shorts in the winter, and finding so much joy in a glass of funky wine.  With her new endeavor — an orange wine named for him, MianU — she's connecting with Ian, and sharing the gift of him with the world. Settle in, pour yourself a glass of something special, and take a moment to notice the light. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
2025 Food & Wine Game Changer Ayesha Curry is such a surprise of a human being. On paper, it's natural to wonder how someone can be an actress, cookbook author, restaurateur, founder of a skincare line and lifestyle brand, winemaker, and co-creator of a foundation that helps kids get fed in a million different ways. But as soon as she starts talking, it's easy to see that she's just always been this way. Live onstage at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Curry rewound the game tape to her childhood in a family where her Jamaican-born mom would make meals big enough to feed the whole neighborhood, her move to Los Angeles as a teenager where she had to figure out how to feed herself, her early days as a blogger, and the Food Network star who embraced her with open arms. She also opened up about the vital work her and her husband Stephen Curry's foundation Eat. Learn. Play. does for kids in Oakland, finding her place in the wine world, and the kind of old person she wants to be. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
"Queer Eye" and "No Taste Like Home" star Antoni Porowski joins Tinfoil Swans live at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen for a heartfelt and humorous conversation about identity, vulnerability, and finding meaning through food. He opens up about his path from actor and caterer to TV host and storyteller, the emotional layers of cooking, navigating fame, and the gentle art of knowing when to leave the party. Along the way, he shares reflections on therapy, self-care, family dynamics — and what turning 40 taught him. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Growing up in a military family, Tristen Epps moved around a lot. But no matter where he was living, Friday nights were sacred. He got to dress up, go to a restaurant, not order from a kids menu, and feel like he was getting to know the place he was living — for now. At home, when his mom taught him to scramble an egg, he was mesmerized by the alchemy; one simple ingredient could transform into so many things. It's that wonder and curiosity that transformed him into the leader, visionary, and Top Chef winner he is today. He joined Tinfoil Swans at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen to talk about his mission to “un-colonize colonized food,” the freedom he feels cooking in Air Jordans, why it's important to him to celebrate oxtails with Michelin-level finesse, and his belief that cooking has power to correct history. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Growing up in Oklahoma, school was not Chris Shepherd's thing. Traditional classrooms just aren't the right fit for some brains — but it turned out that restaurants were. In junior college, he picked up a job as a dishwasher at a sushi restaurant and on the day the tempura guy didn't show up, his culinary journey began. The 2013 Food & Wine Best New Chef took time out from his extremely busy travel schedule to talk about finally finding his calling in the kitchen, the Disney cookbook that lives on a pedestal in his home, and the ingredient he just can't stand. Then his powerhouse wife Lindsay Brown joined to talk about why they founded the game-changing Southern Smoke to help restaurant workers in crisis, how 20 free therapy sessions can change a restaurant worker’s life, and the two-word question that makes all the difference. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Killer Mike and El-P were 10 years old, they both knew they wanted to be emcees, but it took a few decades for them to meet, form Run The Jewels, and go to war against one another over salad. The legendary rap duo joined Tinfoil Swans for a laugh-out-loud (and also cry a little) conversation about childhood meals, musical awakenings, midlife reflections, and the right way to eat a bagel. They dish on growing up on game meat and matzah brei, surviving lean years on egg sandwiches and fried fish, and building food ventures rooted in love, legacy, and community. There’s a philosophical breakdown of “rich people ice,” tales of Atlanta strip club wings and sentimental steakhouses, and the kind of brotherhood that only forms over bars, beats, and deli meat. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
2001 Food & Wine Best New Chef and Stretch Pizza impresario Wylie Dufresne joins Tinfoil Swans to talk about his job lording over the ice truck at the New York Renaissance Festival, how team sports inform his work ethic, what the heck molecular gastronomy actually is, and why the pursuit of the perfect pizza dough has him so fired up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
2022 Food & Wine Best New Chef Ana Castro and her sister and business partner Lydia Castro are powerhouse duo behind New Orleans' beloved Acamaya. They're not just redefining contemporary Mexican cuisine — they’re reshaping what it means to lead with vulnerability, resilience, and fierce sibling love. In this conversation they dive deep into their shared childhood in Mexico City, parallel journeys through grief and healing, and the epic road trip that led them to create one of the most emotionally resonant and culturally rooted restaurants in the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our debut episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman spoke with the one and only chef Guy Fieri. He's become a household name as a restaurateur, cookbook author, host of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Guy's Grocery Games, Tournament of Champions and more smash-hit shows — and in recent years, as a mega-philanthropist who has raised millions for first responders and hospitality workers. But before all that, Guy was just a kid with big dreams and a Kool-Aid stand in a small town in California. Kat and Guy chatted about how he hustled enough cash to send himself to high school in France, the thing Emeril Lagasse said that gave him chills, his adventures as a flambé captain, and the most defining moment of his career so far. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
25 years ago, James Beard Award-winning chef and Top Chef alum Karen Akunowicz received a compliment from a Food & Wine Best New Chef that changed her entire career path. On this episode, she opened up about her journey from musical theater kid and hardworking diner waitress to acclaimed restaurateur, the power of embracing her queer identity, the heartbreak of a dropped dessert, her enduring love of Houston's, and the importance of visibility for the next generation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dr. Jessica B. Harris is a scholar of the African food diaspora, an award-winning and prolific writer, a gifted storyteller and speaker, a teacher, and an icon to many. But what gets lost sometimes is that she's a person, first and foremost — one whose bookishness as a kid made it hard for her to connect with other kids. One raised by two artists whose dreams had to be deferred to make a living in New York but who supported their daughter's aspirations to be onstage. One whose curiosity and itchy traveling feet led her to explore the world and examine how the threads of many cultures wove together to end up on our dinner plate. She joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about being an outsider, her new book "Braided Heritage," about being Anthony Bourdain before Anthony Bourdain, and what it's like to live inside a mountain of cookbooks. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
You have a favorite Matthew Lillard film or TV performance. It might be SLC Punk, the Scream franchise, Scooby Doo, Hackers, She's All That, Twin Peaks: The Return, or the new Stephen King and Mike Flanagan movie The Life of Chuck. He's been working in Hollywood for over 30 years, and has a reputation for being kind to fans. But connecting with people is exactly why he got into acting as a kid — the community that comes from putting on a play together and hashing it all out at the diner afterward. It's what drew him to Dungeons & Dragons, and then a spirits company celebrating fantasy and horror fandoms. Lillard joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about growing up not fitting in, the thrill of finding your people, the punk rock high school movie he directed, his wedding cheese wheel, and so much more. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Season 3 of the smash hit FX/Hulu show “The Bear” roared to life just days ago, but Will Poulter (the actor who plays fan-favorite Luca) and 2014 F&W Best New Chef Dave Beran had been prepping for weeks. Poulter — like his co-star Jeremy Allen White — staged with Beran at his Santa Monica restaurant Pasjoli to learn how to accurately portray a professional chef onscreen. The lessons went so well, Beran says he’d hire Poulter as a cook — even despite a messy mishap with a pastry bag. The two dished all about getting kitchen culture right on and offscreen, what it takes to be at the top of your craft, and the pure magic of a great restaurant service. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The first food memory Curtis Stone has is getting in trouble for eating too much butter. Then again, the Australian chef and TV host has never been one for restraint. Once he realized he wasn't going to be a professional athlete, he went to work for Marco Pierre White — notoriously one of the most hard-driving chefs of all time, then hosted 140 episodes of Take Home Chef, and then back into the fray, opening restaurants on his own without investors. The brand new James Beard Award nominee joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about his ham bathroom, the exhilaration and exhaustion of running a restaurant, how he wooed his wife — the actress Lindsay Price — with whiskey, the naked prank Joel McHale played on him, and so much more. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Hawa Hassan was five years old, she was living in a refugee camp in Kenya. By seven, she was resettled in Seattle with a few other refugees from Somalia, and waiting for her family to join her. Then the political climate changed, and she came to realize that they were never coming; she was on her own. The thing to know about Hawa Hassan is that she will always find the light in any situation, and use it to guide the way forward for others. The author, host, entrepreneur, and chef joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about her stunning new cookbook celebrating the lives of refugees, surviving as a kid far away from the world and family she'd known, how Doritos shaped her life, and the scent that transports her to her mother's kitchen. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Romy Gill puts in the work — always. Growing up in India, the chef, TV host, and author dreamed of being a cricket player and directed all her effort into that — and into lightly fibbing her way into her neighbors' homes to try different dishes than the ones she ate in her Punjabi household. It's this hunger and curiosity about other people and their foodways that has made her such a beloved presence on the BBC and ITV, as well as amassing a devoted audience for her award-winning cookbooks that explore regional Indian food and the people who keep these delicious traditions alive for generations to come. She joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about her passion for teaching, her evolving relationship with perfection and anger, dealing with dyslexia, and the celebrity she's dying to take on a train trip. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Vikas Khanna was growing up in a small town in India, the world was stacked against him. He was bullied by other children for wearing braces on his legs and not being able to play like them. But his grandmother and sister saw him for who he truly was: a lion. They brought him into the kitchen, and he roared to life. An extraordinary life at that, where he makes movies, writes books, feeds millions of hungry people, and runs Bungalow, the most watched Indian restaurant on the planet. He joined Tinfoil Swans for a truly moving conversation about the power of people believing in you, why he wants to "unrestaurant" himself, and why he feels driven to feed the world. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Laurie Woolever has worked for chefs you've definitely heard of, most notably Anthony Bourdain and Mario Batali. Those two men are notorious for their outsized appetites, but in her new memoir, "Care and Feeding," Woolever gets raw and real about her own insatiable need for drugs, alcohol, and extramarital affairs while navigating the grossness and glamour of the food world in their orbits. She joined the Tinfoil Swans podcast to talk about getting sober, managing complicated men, and the shock of needing spirituality. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Growing up as an immigrant latchkey kid, Roy Choi spent a lot of time wandering the streets of Los Angeles alone, thinking he'd never fit in anywhere. He had a scar on his face from cleft palate surgery, and he thought of himself as an alley cat, slipping through the world unnoticed and he took in every detail of the way people interacted, especially at restaurants. It's this nuanced and empathetic view of humanity that's made the 2010 Food & Wine Best New Chef such a force in the hospitality world. He joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about going through life feeling unwelcome, how that's informed every business decision he's ever made, his new cookbook, and why he sometimes feels like a baked potato. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Byron Gomez and his family arrived in the United States from Costa Rica when he was eight years old, and he was in for the shock of his young life. He spoke Spanish at home, he'd never seen snow or even a winter coat, and he had to find his place in a world that didn't always want him there. But at age 15, he found restaurants. He put in the very hard work, let himself dream, and the success followed. The Top Chef contestant spoke about his path from Burger King to cooking in Michelin-starred restaurants, being a DACA recipient, getting sober, and all the battle scars he earned along the way. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The award-winning Tinfoil Swans podcast from Food & Wine is back on April 8. We're bringing you even more intimate, informative, surprising, and uplifting interviews with the biggest names in the culinary industry and beyond, sharing never-before-heard stories about the successes, struggles, and fork-in-the-road moments that made them who they are today. In Season 3, you'll hear from icons and innovators like Byron Gomez, Roy Choi, Karen Akunowicz, Vikas Khanna, Matthew Lillard, Romy Gill, Laurie Woolever, Ana and Lydia Castro, Curtis Stone, and others going deep on their joys, inspirations, doubts, and dreams, and what's still on the menu for them. Tune in every Tuesday for a feast that'll feed your mind and soul. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
There's a good chance you know chef and author Kevin Gillespie from his fan-favorite stint on Season 6 of Top Chef or his return on the All Stars Season 20, but the Georgia native's talent can't be reduced to the small screen. His new Atlanta restaurant, Nàdair, is a full-throated love letter to his Scottish heritage — something Gillespie's family had always been made to feel ashamed of. But in the aftermath of renal cancer, doctors begging him to retire, and the loss of multiple family members in the past year, he's put life on fast-forward and opened the restaurant that would make his ancestors proud. Gillespie got raw and real about a childhood split between Appalachia and aristocracy, how facing death has changed his relationship to fear, and what the next chapter holds for him. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When chef Kylie Kwong announced that she was going to be shuttering her destination dining spot Lucky Kwong to take on a new role at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, working at the intersection of food, community, and education to honor the people and foods that have made Australian cuisine so distinctive and precious — it made sense. Kwong has always centered humanity in everything she does, including this raw and astonishing conversation about cooking for a first date, valuing the wisdom of elders, finding your way through grief, and so much more. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
With her shows Pati's Mexican Table and La Frontera and cookbooks Treasures of the Mexican Table and Mexican Today, Pati Jinich uses her exceptional empathy, political science background, and fearless curiosity to share the stories of the people living, creating, and cooking all around Mexico, and celebrate our shared humanity. For the Season 2 finale, Jinich joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about learning English by watching Sesame Street, her comfort with being laughed at, cooking nopalitos with eggs, and why now more than ever, she wants to celebrate the beauty of the U.S.-Mexico border. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
You may know Joel McHale from his star turns on beloved shows like Community, The Soup, or Animal Control, his standup special Live From Pyongyang, or as host of House of Villains and Crime Scene Kitchen. Chefs know him from their nightmares — or rather as the menacing chef David Fields on The Bear. He's also a very talented cook, especially in the realm of meat. McHale joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about working at a coffee stand in his teens, crappy tippers, what he thinks about men who don’t do their part in the kitchen, why Robert Smith of The Cure is a genius, and what a joy it was to terrorize Carmy on The Bear. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Since 2008, actor and writer Darron Cardosa has been setting the internet ablaze with his pioneering blog "The Bitchy Waiter" — which he has since spun into a rollicking book and stage show of the same name. Darron is also one of Food & Wine's most prolific and popular writers, and in this inspiring and emotional conversation, he shares his feelings about weird customer requests, being a voice for the service industry, his upcoming movie, and why it's so rude to leave a penny tip. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Bobby Flay has been a fixture on Food Network since the beginning, written 18 cookbooks, and is pretty much a household name. But the thing that gets lost in the sauce is that he's a James Beard Award-winning restaurant chef who changed the restaurant scene in some bold and groundbreaking ways. He joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about his new book Chapter 1, his rules for visitors, being competitive, and why a tiny chef coat made him cry. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Tom Holland's parents enrolled him in dance classes as a kid, no one could have dreamed he'd end up as an international superstar, internet icon, and entrepreneur — and he still has to pinch himself to believe it. The Spider-Man actor joined Tinfoil Swans to talk about some horrible lamb shanks he'd cooked, his favorite pizza place, getting sober, and his grand hopes for his new nonalcoholic brand, Bero. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dolly Parton is an American icon for all the right reasons. She's always been unabashedly herself, employing that authenticity, work ethic, humor, talent, and grace to make enduring art — and use her hard-earned platform and cash to support causes dear to her heart. She and her sister, Rachel Parton George, recently co-authored the cookbook Good Lookin' Cookin' and joined Tinfoil Swans for a rollicking chat about being proud of where you're from, eating bear and squirrel meat, feeling insecure in restaurants, taking care of cast-iron, and the joy of chosen family. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chef and author Yotam Ottolenghi is internationally beloved for his joyful and accessible approach to fresh ingredients in his restaurants, and also in his recipes for home cooks. The self-described "greedy little boy" from Jerusalem shares how he found his way out of academia and into kitchens; the ways he's trying not to be a nervous parent; and why now more than ever, he believes everyone should find comfort in food — no matter where you come from. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When chef Kylie Kwong announced that she was going to be shuttering her destination dining spot Lucky Kwong to take on a new role at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, working at the intersection of food, community, and education to honor the people and foods that have made Australian cuisine so distinctive and precious — it made sense. Kwong has always centered humanity in everything she does, including this raw and astonishing conversation about cooking for a first date, valuing the wisdom of elders, finding your way through grief, and so much more. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nick Cho is beloved by millions for his empathetic and affirming "Your Korean Dad" videos on TikTok and Instagram, but the real-life coffee expert and entrepreneur is so much more than the character he plays online. Cho joined Tinfoil Swans for a robust conversation on growing up in a place you're not wanted, the fallacy of "good" people vs "bad" people, what American food actually IS, the role of authenticity, his brand-new coffee venture, and why bad Korean barbecue doesn't get a pass from him. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Christine D'Ercole is a legendary competitive cyclist, compelling public speaker, and fan-favorite Peloton instructor. That's in part because of her intense and often New Wave and Goth-playlisted classes, but also because she loves to cook and savor incredible meals, and share frank talk about complicated emotions around bodies and aging and exercise. She joined Tinfoil Swans for an intimate and uplifting conversation about body image, life-changing restaurant meals, her wild career as a bike messenger, learning to cook, and what meal she'd make for her favorite musician. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Food & Wine's restaurant editor Raphael Brion talks about the tremendous impact that the Best New Chefs accolade has had on people's careers, why each member of the 2024 class was selected, his time working in New York City kitchens, the time Anthony Bourdain gave him a paper bag full of $100 dollar bills, and what it does to the human body when you spend months on the road eating nonstop. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ti Martin — along with her cousin and co-proprietor, Lally Brennan — is ensuring that the family's 131-year-old New Orleans restaurant Commander's Palace is living up to its legacy and moving into the future. At the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen this past June, Ti joined Tinfoil Swans for a spirited conversation about kicking down doors, the gift and responsibility that comes with running an iconic family business, why hospitality and service are NOT the same thing, and how to get people dancing in the dining room. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Cheetie Kumar is — by pretty much everyone's accounts — one of the coolest people ever. At the 2024 Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, the Raleigh-based chef, restaurateur, and Birds of Avalon guitarist made time for a quick chat about how she had to rethink restaurants through Covid, created the structure of her new restaurant to make sure it benefitted the neighborhood and the people who work there, the joy of introducing new flavors to a population that maybe hadn't experienced them before, and the bands she absolutely will not play in the dining room. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Former NBA powerhouse turned winemaker Channing Frye nerds out about moving from slap the bag to the nuances of terroir, what it's really like to drink baller wine on the team jet, and how therapy got him out of his depression sweatpants For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Priya Krishna was a little kid — a blob, as she calls herself — she started traveling the whole world with her family because her mom worked in the airline industry. As it turns out, the wildly successful reporter, author, and video host had a truly wild and wonderful journey ahead. Though it wasn't public at the time this was recorded, she was also about to be tapped as interim restaurant critic at the New York Times. Right before going on tour for her brilliant new kids cookbook Priya's Kitchen Adventures, she opened up about her musical theater background, the importance of seeing yourself reflected in media, and why your weirdness is your greatest asset. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Recorded live onstage at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen: David Chang Unfiltered — and with a face full of wasp stings. The notoriously opinionated chef shares some raw talk about the chili crunch controversy, failure, living life under a microscope, Guy Fieri (spoiler alert — they're BFFs now), and why people are so weird about microwaves. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Outgoing New York Times restaurant critic Pete Wells gets personal with his longtime friend about his path from high school cheerleader to college dropout to the pages of Sassy magazine — all the way to the most prestigious critic's seat in the country. Plus, he's got a little challenge for Thomas Keller. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In this episode, executive features editor Kat Kinsman gets raw with Gregory Gourdet. You might know him from "Top Chef," "Iron Chef," or playing himself on "Portlandia." You might be a fan of his cookbook "Everyone's Table: Global Recipes for Modern Health." Perhaps you've read Korsha Wilson's profile of him in the August issue of Food & Wine or spent months scheming to get into his James Beard Award-winning Portland restaurant Kann. Gregory Gourdet is — and should be — at the forefront of restaurant cuisine in America. And he's pretty surprised to be here and takes none of his life for granted. Gourdet didn't hold back about being a chef in recovery, learning to swim, his nerdy passions, and why De La Soul is so important. Note: This episode contains mentions of substance use disorder and suicide. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
There's a good chance you know chef and author Kevin Gillespie from his fan-favorite stint on Season 6 of Top Chef or his return on the All Stars Season 20, but the Georgia native's talent can't be reduced to the small screen. His new Atlanta restaurant, Nàdair, is a full-throated love letter to his Scottish heritage — something Gillespie's family had always been made to feel ashamed of. But in the aftermath of renal cancer, doctors begging him to retire, and the loss of multiple family members in the past year, he's put life on fast-forward and opened the restaurant that would make his ancestors proud. Gillespie got raw and real about a childhood split between Appalachia and aristocracy, how facing death has changed his relationship to fear, and what the next chapter holds for him — no matter how long it lasts. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chef Asma Khan is a bolt of lightning to the senses. Born a second daughter, she felt dismissed by society, but Asma Khan has always known her worth. With her restaurant Darjeeling Express in London, she takes pride in her all-women staff, cooking food they'd serve at home. Her contributions to the culinary world were recognized on the Time 100 list of people who are deeply influential in the world and she was featured in an episode of Chef's Table. Khan spoke with Tinfoil Swans about how change happens in restaurants and the power of ganging up with good souls. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans This episode contains mentions of abuse. If you or someone you know needs help, please refer to the link for resources. https://www.foodandwine.com/fwpro/the-food-wine-pro-guide-to-mental-health-and-sobriety Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Season 3 of the smash hit FX/Hulu show “The Bear” roared to life just days ago, but Will Poulter (the actor who plays fan-favorite Luca) and 2014 F&W Best New Chef Dave Beran had been prepping for weeks. Poulter — like his co-star Jeremy Allen White — staged with Beran at his Santa Monica restaurant Pasjoli to learn how to accurately portray a professional chef onscreen. The lessons went so well, Beran says he’d hire Poulter as a cook — even despite a messy mishap with a pastry bag. The two dished all about getting kitchen culture right on and offscreen, what it takes to be at the top of your craft, and the pure magic of a great restaurant service. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 1999, when Food & Wine named Rocco DiSpirito as one of its Best New Chefs he was only in his early 30s, but he'd already been in the industry for a couple decades. At 10 years old, Rocco started working at a local pizzeria – a natural fit for a kid whose Italian American family grew most of their own food and started talking about lunch before breakfast was over. His innovative cuisine at Union Pacific made him a darling of both industry peers and jaded New York diners, but it was his cookbooks and stints in front of the camera that made him a household name. In this episode of Tinfoil Swans, DiSpirito opens up about the pressures of being a public figure, what's changed in the restaurant world since he started, the dream restaurant he'd like to own, and what he'd tell that younger version of himself. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Say the name "Claudia Fleming" and those who know will probably deploy the word "legend." And if you don't recognize her name, you definitely have benefitted from her groundbreaking pastry creations and flavor combinations that plenty of people now just take for granted. Original copies of her cookbook "The Last Course," went for huge sums of money on eBay and cookbook stores until it was reissued in 2019, and her book "Delectable" made pretty much every "best cookbooks of 2022" roundup. Some of the most notable pastry chefs in the game cite her as a mentor and inspiration and she remains a huge force in the way we all eat sweets today. And if things go right — it's going be that way with sandwiches next. Fleming spoke about her days as a ballet dancer, the magic of Gramercy Tavern, getting through tough times, and the privilege of working with freaks.  For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
At the end of 2015, Dan Giusti shocked the culinary world by walking away from his position as head chef at Noma. Not for another restaurant job, but to feed school children, senior citizens, incarcerated people, and hospital patients through his new company, Brigaid. Food & Wine named Brigaid as one of its 2024 Game Changers for its goal of not only feeding some of the country's most vulnerable people — but also giving professional restaurant chefs a chance at a sustainable career. In this episode, Giusti explained why he made the radical move, how he deals with the haters, and why he believes everyone on earth deserves a good meal. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In the 10 years since Cody Rigsby joined Peloton as an instructor, the former McDonald's drive-thru worker, backup dancer, and cater waiter's life has changed in unimaginable ways. He's competed on Dancing with the Stars, written the bestselling memoir XOXO, Cody, and built a massive fanbase of indoor cyclists who are as invested in his hot takes on ranch dressing and snacks as they are in his cardio-challenging HIIT and hills rides. In this episode, Cody Rigsby goes deep on anxiety, working in the service industry, the power of brunch, and the correct sauce-to-chicken-finger ratio. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When E.J. Lagasse was four years old, he made his debut appearance in Food & Wine in a feature called "How to Kick Healthy Cooking Up a Notch." He wasn't the one making the recipes — that was his dad Emeril Lagasse — but 17 years later, the father and son are comrades in the kitchen. Most notably at their flagship New Orleans restaurant Emeril's, where E.J. — and if you just did the math, yes, he's 21 — runs the kitchen. The two generations of Lagasse chefs talk about working together, the unique magic of sno-ball season, and watching people's faces react to a massive pyramid of butter. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Lee Anne Wong was starting out as a line cook, her nickname in the kitchen was The Little General — and she owns it. For her entire life, she's thrown herself full-force into anything she does, whether it's cooking, competing on TV shows, being a culinary producer on Top Chef, or mentoring young chefs, and it's led to a pretty extraordinary life — complete with running her own restaurants in Hawai'i. But then in August of 2023, suddenly, things were out of her control. Wildfires devastated large sections of Maui. Lee Anne sprang into action, tracking down her staff to make sure they were safe. She coordinated efforts to get her community housed and fed — and she admits, neglected her own wellbeing in the process. In a generous and emotional conversation, Lee Anne opened up about the barriers to rebuilding, the importance of mental healthcare for the industry, and what you can do to help Maui. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Rodney Scott is having a good day. It's right there on the pit master's shirt — the slogan "every day is a good day." He's a James Beard Award-winning chef who rose to national prominence cooking the sumptuous whole-hog barbecue he grew up eating. He's been the subject of a documentary, won accolades for his cookbook, and has plans to expand his restaurant empire everywhere. But back when he was a music-loving kid in Hemingway, South Carolina, annoyed about spending his vacation days working in the fields, chopping wood, or flipping pigs for his family, he never dreamed that barbecue would become his legacy. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
By the time Daniel Boulud was in Food & Wine's first class of Best New Chefs in 1988, he'd already been working in restaurant kitchens for almost two decades. At 14, he knew school wasn't for him and that despite his parents' concerns, he wanted to be a cook. Now with 20-plus restaurants and countless accolades in his knife roll, the world-famous chef looks back at the moments that made his legendary career, including grueling work in a windowless Lyon basement, creating the first viral burger, and the time he soaked 7,000 stamps off of envelopes so he wouldn't go broke. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Food & Wine has led the conversation around food, drinks, and hospitality in America and around the world since 1978. Season Two of the Tinfoil Swans podcast continues that legacy with even more intimate, informative, surprising, and uplifting interviews with the biggest names in the culinary industry and beyond, sharing never-before-heard stories about the successes, struggles, and fork-in-the-road moments that made them who they are today. This season, you'll hear from icons and innovators like Daniel Boulud, Rodney Scott, Asma Khan, Lee Anne Wong, Emeril and EJ Lagasse, Cody Rigsby, and others going deep on the moments that made them, their joys, inspirations, doubts, and dreams, and what's still on the menu for them. Tune in every Tuesday for a feast that'll feed your brain and soul. New episodes starting May 7. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our season one finale, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman catches up with her brilliant friend and colleague, Ray Isle, a few weeks before his debut book "The World in a Wineglass" arrives in stores. Growing up in Texas, the self-described "word-drunk kid" was years away from discovering the pleasures of fermented grapes, but he was clearly a born storyteller — and even ended up as a character in a famous novel. The executive wine editor shared his winding, wonderful path to becoming one of the most trusted and beloved writers and educators in the business, the bottle that changed his life, why Morrissey is such a disappointment, and how fast food tacos can help you feel more confident when you're learning about wine. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Madhur Jaffrey published "An Invitation to Indian Cooking" in 1973, she had no idea that half a century later, the book would not only still be in print, but also get an anniversary reissue that will welcome future generations in the vast and varied cuisine of her homeland. In the twelfth episode of Tinfoil Swans, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman finally meets her lifelong culinary hero and gets some sage advice from the writer, teacher, and actress about self worth, righteous anger, perfectionism, and what actually matters to you when you turn 90.  For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 1999, when Food & Wine named Rocco DiSpirito as one of its Best New Chefs he was only in his early 30s, but he'd already been in the industry for a couple decades. At 10 years old, Rocco started working at a local pizzeria – a natural fit for a kid whose Italian American family grew most of their own food and started talking about lunch before breakfast was over. His innovative cuisine at Union Pacific made him a darling of both industry peers and jaded New York diners, but it was his cookbooks and stints in front of the camera that made him a household name. In this episode of Tinfoil Swans, DiSpirito opens up about the pressures of being a public figure, what's changed in the restaurant world since he started, the dream restaurant he'd like to own, and what he'd tell that younger version of himself. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our tenth episode, executive features editor Kat Kinsman managed to find chef Stephanie Izard in a rare quiet moment when she wasn't fussing over the final details of opening a new restaurant (or two), in front of a camera on "Tournament of Champions" or "Hell's Kitchen", testing a new sauce for her This Little Goat line of products, or at work on one of the billion other projects she has going on at any given time. If you'd shared a snapshot of this future with Izard back in the days before her groundbreaking "Top Chef" win, James Beard Awards, and F&W Best New Chef accolades, back when she was playing "restaurant" with her childhood friends or working the host stand at The Olive Garden, she might have fainted — and it wouldn't be the first time. Izard reflected on her trajectory from competitive swimming, to owning a restaurant in her twenties, to becoming one of the busiest chef-restaurateur-author-entrepreneurs in the food world while still trying to find time for pickleball. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our ninth episode, executive features editor Kat Kinsman gets raw with Gregory Gourdet. You might know him from "Top Chef," "Iron Chef," or playing himself on "Portlandia." You might be a fan of his cookbook "Everyone's Table: Global Recipes for Modern Health." Perhaps you've read Korsha Wilson's profile of him in the August issue of Food & Wine or spent months scheming to get into his James Beard Award-winning Portland restaurant Kann. Gregory Gourdet is — and should be — at the forefront of restaurant cuisine in America. And he's pretty surprised to be here and takes none of his life for granted. Gourdet didn't hold back about being a chef in recovery, learning to swim, his nerdy passions, and why De La Soul is so important. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Note: This episode contains mentions of substance use disorder and suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org to connect with a trained crisis counselor 24/7. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our eighth episode, executive features editor Kat Kinsman checks in with Enrique Olvera as he's on the verge of expanding his international restaurant empire. There's a good chance you're picturing him in a "Chef's Table" glow, making the mole and tostadas and other dishes that has made his Mexico City restaurant Pujol into a global destination since 2000. That flagship was followed by New York outposts Cosme in 2014 and Atla in 2017, then Los Angeles in 2020 with Damian, and he's now adding more to the roster with Atla in Venice Beach, and Tacos Atla in Brooklyn. Fans and fellow chefs plan trips to Mexico City around their Pujol reservations and flock to his restaurants on America's coasts because he's got so much to teach them about the beauty and bounty of a cuisine that has long been undervalued outside of its country of origin. Olvera delves into what keeps him going, how he shares this motivation and passion and energy with the people he trusts to keep such a big empire alive, and the beauty of taking some time to sweat — in a good way. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our seventh episode, executive features editor Kat Kinsman gets personal with Padma Lakshmi. The author and TV personality had a stunning 17-season run as a host, judge, and executive producer on "Top Chef," has written multiple bestselling cookbooks and a memoir, and won both James Beard Awards and Emmys. Just days after this recording, it was announced that she was leaving the show, and will be diving full force into "Taste The Nation" – a show that she created for Hulu, focusing on the food culture of immigrant groups from across the nation. In this intimate conversation, Lakshmi opens up about her experience as an immigrant to America, the fear and bravery in calling herself a writer, the onesies she gives to guests, identifying as a dork, and how she's found purpose in using her hard-won platform to amplify marginalized voices. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our sixth episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman sits down with the multifaceted David Chang. In 2006, Food & Wine named him as one its Best New Chefs, but no one could have predicted the impact that his restaurants, books, consumer products, TV shows, podcasts, magazine, and more would have on food culture — least of all Chang, who didn't expect to live past 35. Ten years past that self-predicted end, the chef who was once as well-known for his volatile temper as his groundbreaking food is finding himself more comfortable in his own skin, but it's a work in progress. Chang opened up about anger, aging, letting go of being cool, being kinder to himself, and an unexpected apology he'd like to make.  For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our fifth episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman catches up with Maneet Chauhan, the chef and restaurateur behind Chauhan Ale and Masala House, and other excellent Nashville spots, as well as the author of "Chaat: Recipes from the Kitchens, Markets, and Railways of India". These days, Maneet is a force on shows like "Chopped", "Iron Chef America", and "Tournament of Champions", but before all that, she was a self-admitted "complete brat" as a kid, running from house to house in her small community in India, bugging the aunties to teach her to cook, and dreaming of the day she'd get to call herself a chef. Maneet shares her journey to the Culinary Institute of America, the art of running a restaurant empire with her husband, and how making mistakes is the best thing that ever happened to her. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our fourth episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman catches up with the eternally optimistic Shota Nakajima. Many people may know him from his incredible run on Top Chef Season 18, his appearances on Food Network shows like Tournament of Champions, his array of Seattle restaurants, or his extremely entertaining and educational Instagram feed. But before his rise to fame, Shota was a "punky looking" high school drop-out with his head deep in a sketchbook, or wandering into the woods looking for mushrooms and bugs, hoping to find his place in the world. Shota opened up about motivation, anime, moving a couch with his friends, never making a Plan B, and always valuing hospitality over food. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our third episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman speaks with her friend Antoni Porowski. His rise to fame may seem meteoric, with a star-making role as Queer Eye's food and drinks expert leading to bestselling cookbooks and tours, and a Netflix competition show of his own. But Porowski has been preparing for this moment since he was a multilingual, food-fixated, Martha Stewart-loving kid in Canada with his eye on the silver screen and beyond. Antoni and Kat chatted about panic attacks, Red Lobster, meeting his idol, and the beautiful, dog-and-chicken-filled future he's finally daring to dream. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our second episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman speaks with the inimitable Mashama Bailey. You may know her from Chef's Table. her James Beard Awards for Best Chef, Southeast and Outstanding Chef, or her book Black, White and the Grey, which she co-authored with her business partner Johno Morisano. You may have caught her on a screen on the back of an airplane seat, sharing the secrets of Southern cooking. Mashama Bailey is everywhere — as she should be! But before all that, she was going to cooking school and getting a degree in social work, but not quite feeling like she had found her place. And then a fateful trip came along that set her on the path to superstardom. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In our debut episode, Food & Wine's executive features editor Kat Kinsman speaks with the one and only chef Guy Fieri. He's become a household name as a restaurateur, cookbook author, host of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Guy's Grocery Games, Tournament of Champions and more smash-hit shows — and in recent years, as a mega-philanthropist who has raised millions for first responders and hospitality workers. But before all that, Guy was just a kid with big dreams and a Kool-Aid stand in a small town in California. Kat and Guy chatted about how he hustled enough cash to send himself to high school in France, the thing Emeril Lagasse said that gave him chills, his adventures as a flambé captain, and the most defining moment of his career so far. For more info visit: foodandwine.com/tinfoilswans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Food & Wine has led the conversation around food, drinks, and hospitality in America and around the world since 1978. Tinfoil Swans continues that legacy with a new series of intimate, informative, surprising, and uplifting interviews with the biggest names in the culinary industry, sharing never-before-heard stories about the successes, struggles, and fork-in-the-road moments that made them who they are today. Each week, you'll hear from icons and innovators like Guy Fieri, David Chang, Mashama Bailey, and Maneet Chauhan, going deep on their formative experiences, the dishes and meals that made them, their joys, doubts and dreams, and what's still on the menu for them. Tune in for a feast that'll feed your brain and soul — and plenty of wisdom and quotable morsels to savor later. New episodes every Tuesday starting June 13. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices