Read the OCT ISSUE #106 of Athleisure Mag and see 9CH3FS ROUTIN3S | Chef Eddie Jackson in mag.
This month, We're making the transition from the Summer to the Fall. We're thinking about all the things that this season is perfect for from still being able to enjoy being outdoors with a few layers, the crispness that begins to encompass the air, a number of fun festivals, apple/pumpkin picking, and so much more! The last few months have involved being out and about with friends and family, and of course the upcoming holiday season.
This sense of community and coming together with food is something that Chef Aarti Sequeira embodies. We've had the pleasure of interviewing her in our NOV ISSUE #71 a few years ago when her My Family Recipe Journal was released. At that time we talked about how she came to food, being a chef, Food Network's Halloween Wars, and more.
This month, we caught up with her to talk about her latest cookbook that came out last year - UNWIND: A Devotional Cookbook For The Harried and Hungry, food festivals that she is participated in and why she likes being involved, hosting Halloween Wars, why she likes being part of the Food Network family and more!
ATHLEISURE MAG: It was so great chatting with you a few years ago where we talked about how you got into food, your food journey and everything that led up to the Family Recipe Journal that you dropped as at that time, you were a few days out from dropping that book!
So before we talk about things that have gone on since that book and things that are coming up, we’d love to know if you remember the dish that you had that made you first fall in love with food?
CHEF AARTI SEQUEIRA: Oh wow! I mean, I don't remember doing this because I was just a baby but my mum, my most vivid memory of me with food is that she would be making dinner and she would just you know pick me up and put me on the counter next to her chopping board and she would just be slicing onions, garlic and ginger and she'd look away for a second. And you know, with my little like you know how babies don't have like knuckles, right?
AM: Right!
CHEF AS: They just have dimples. It’s just those teeny, tiny dimples in a fist and I'd grab the onions and I was just shoving them in my mouth!
AM: Oh!
CHEF AS: She couldn't, she couldn't believe it and I liked it! It’s ironic because I hate raw onions now.
AM: Right!
CHEF AS: But I loved it back then, and I think that, you know, just from then on that the kitchen is just always where I've wanted to be and there's always been food in my mouth haha.
AM: Which is a good thing! I feel like if people were less hangry, that things might be better!
CHEF AS: Well that is true!
AM: Well, when we last chatted you were like a couple of days out actually from the My Family Recipe Journal, but since that conversation in talking with you, you also have released UNWIND: A Devotional Cookbook For The Harried and Hungry. Can you tell us a bit about the book, why you wanted to create it, and what can we expect when we're reading this?
CHEF AS: Yeah, I really created it for people like me and maybe people who are not like me, but anyone who experiences that sort of 4:30pm/5:30pm salt in the wound?
AM: Yes!
CHEF AS: You’ve had a full day and you've been all things to all people and then you’re like, “and now I’ve got to make dinner?”
AM: Right!
CHEF AS: Are you kidding? And it feels you know, it’s the last thing usually between you and bed.
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: Haha or you and crappy television, you know what I mean?
AM: Exactly!
CHEF AS: It’s the last hump that you have to get over. And I just found myself taking this thing that had once been my joy and once been my Sanctuary and starting to resent. It was like I started to phone it in and that's not right because you know, I have children now!
AM: Right!
CHEF AS: I didn't want to be giving them or serving them resentment at the dinner table.
AM: Of course!
CHEF AS: So, one of the things that I remembered is that there was this woman that owned an Indian grocery store in LA. and when I had to talked to her about cooking, she had mentioned that she had always prayed before she cooked and that was such a light bulb moment for me! She's Hindu, and I'm Christian. and I just remember going, well if she's doing it - why am I not doing it, you know?
AM: Mmm
CHEF AS: So I did start praying before I cooked and I just found that it opened up a passageway, like a spiritual passageway that took this very mundane chore. This thing that I resented and helped me see it as a moment of sacred connection and it redeemed it, right? And what I found was that in what started off like, "oh Lord, please let this dish turn out right or okay,” you know what I mean? Or let the kids like it or not have anything fall on floor – turned into…
“You know, one of the reasons I'm really upset right now, Jesus is that I'm really feeling discouraged that I didn't get that job that I wanted.”
AM: Right.
CHEF AS: Or, “I'm really scared about this thing that's happening in my family or any number of things.” And so, while I was cooking, that's when that conversation was happening. And I found that there was so much healing.
AM: Yup.
CHEF AS: That healing that was happening through that whole process was amazing. And I was like, well, if it works for me, I would like to be the sort of guide that says, “hey guys, this can work for you too.” This can be a moment, a half hour, 45 minutes in the day, where okay, maybe you didn't have your quiet time today, or maybe you did, and you need another one. This can be It. And I think the lesson that I learned from that is that, you mentioned it! You know, so often when we're walking into the kitchen at that hour, we are tired and we are hungry and we are hangry. And that's when quite often we are in that space. So, if we can get into the practice of turning our eyes towards heaven, when we are at our worst in the kitchen, then we will do that when we are at our worst in the car, in a meeting, doing laundry, talking to someone that's very triggering.
AM: Oh yes!
CHEF AS: All of this stuff, it just builds up muscle in us. So, I now have learned after that experience and after writing UNWIND that how you show up in the kitchen and how you come out of that kitchen, is great practice for how you show up and leave every situation in your life.
AM: That really resonates because a lot of times when there's projects being worked on whether it's a series of business meetings or calls I need to make I'll do a prayer before.
CHEF AS: Yes!
AM: It could be a project or anything I’m doing where I need that reset, it allows my mind to take a pause a beat and then to almost get closer to certain things that maybe have nothing to do with what's going on. But you're able to kind of like categorize it and you just come out a lot better of a person versus me just running out and being like argh!!!
CHEF AS: It is good to sort of slow down. You know, I think a lot of people say, get present. And for me, getting present with myself is just not enough because myself is the problem. So I need to get present with God. That is the one that's going to pull me out of myself and actually fix it.
AM: That's true. That's very true. And, you know, do you find that, because I find that the books that you've done, it is so personal because you are talking about, you know, getting in touch with yourself, getting in touch with God, getting into a better place. Is it is it more difficult to have these books that have a cookbook component as well as this other inspirational component too? Do you feel the process in writing it is longer? Do you feel that you get, you know what I mean - like, because you're doing two different components putting it together. It's beautiful, and seamless, but I know a lot of times if I'm writing something that comes from more of a personal place in my heart, I'm gonna grapple with that for like 80 more hours.
CHEF AS: Yeah, 100%. I mean, I think writing a cookbook is a much more difficult process than I imagined. I think before I kind of got into this world, I was like, oh, well, you know, you just write your recipes and blah blah.
AM: Right!
CHEF AS: But then once it becomes your way of life, at least for me, you know, I'm super critical.
AM: Yeah, same.
CHEF AS: Super critical of myself and so I'm questioning every instinct, every idea, every finished product. Wondering if it's good enough, wondering, if I've written it well, wondering - you know saying the worst things to myself. And so, then couple that with trying to be an ambassador for God.
AM: Right.
CHEF AS: There is always like, there is so much room for failure. I did find it to be a really, really difficult process. We also did it so quickly. We did the whole thing in about 6 or 7 months.
AM: Whoa!
CHEF AS: You know, most people take like a year or 2 years because, you know, some of the people that I'm seeing putting cookbooks out, they're like, “you know, this has been the past 2 or 3 years of my life,” and I'm like, oh my God! You know, I don't know what's worse. Like I don't know if it's worse to live with something for 3 years and live with that kind of pressure for three years.
AM: Exactly.
CHEF AS: Am I a marathon runner or am I a sprinter? I think I've always been a sprinter.
AM: Yup.
CHEF AS: So I think that God kind of knew, you know, what kind of project it needed to be for me. But yeah, I mean, I think I even posted on my social media about how difficult it was that like the process of creativity was not like - was not like a scene from Ratatouille and it has never been for me. It's never been - it's very rarely a moment of like the muse, you know, and going to bed where it’s saying, “hey, why don't you pull tamarind and ginger together and build ribs,” like it’s very rare that that happens. A lot of it is full on. It feels like you're working out, you are throwing weights around picking them back up again, throwing them down again that was the process for me and getting to write that book meant that I had to employ 2 very different parts of my brain and try to make them make sense. But it was also a great challenge, like, I really enjoyed it and I sort of felt like this idea for me felt like a download from heaven and so I was like at this moment in time, I'm the only person that is doing this. So I have to believe that I am also being totally equipped to do it. I have to thank my husband who helped me so much because he loves words and he loves the Bible and so it's really helpful to have him at my side literally for some of them like writing portions of it and then me being able to then put it in my own words. He was like such a such a rock to me.
AM: That's amazing!
Are you already thinking about that next cookbook? I mean, you've already done, you know, these last two. I mean, I know you had one before obviously, but you know, that's so quick between the recipe book. Now it's UNWIND! Is there something in the future that you're kind of sketching out?
CHEF AS: I don't know, you know, I think cookbooks are so hard because frankly there are just so many of them and it's hard to capture people's attention in between. I mean, I'd love to write another one, but I think I also would like some time to really fine tune you know, where is my cooking at this point? What is it that excites me. And what you know? I just feel a little bit all over the place because my career has really, has really taken off it feels like this year.
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: I’m traveling, so much of that. I'm probably cooking for other people more than I'm cooking for my family.
AM: Wow.
CHEF AS: And yeah. And so, I want to get back to cooking for my family because I feel like that's like truly the essence of who I am or who I want to be. And so, I'm open to it, of course, and I'm open to even doing another one because I, I do think that I'm proud of it. I really, I'm really proud of it. And even, you know, and every time, just even the other day, someone sent me a photo of one of the recipes that they made and the fact that they were doing it in their small group and they were going through the devotions together. I mean, it just is like so meaningful to me more meaningful than anything else I've worked on, because yes, they're making the recipes, but they're also reading the words that I wrote and reflecting and when I read the words that I wrote, I'm so very convinced that I was not the one that was writing them because I don't recognize it!
AM: Haha right!
CHEF AS: You know, I'm a little nervous to go through that whole process again because, frankly, it was really rough. But when I look at it and I look at the fruit of it, I'm like, well, I mean, hi, I get to partner with God again and that’s kind of amazing.
AM: One thing I love when I'm looking at your IG, I love your Monday Motivations. I think they're so amazing.
CHEF AS: Oh thank you!
AM: And as we are dropping on Monday, do you have a Monday Motivation for us that we can share with our readers?
CHEF AS: Ooo. What have I been toggling in my mind? I think the message that I feel like keeps coming up is - if God is knocking on the door, he's kind of yelling through the door at you.
AM: Ha! I feel that one!
CHEF AS: Which is kind of, “are you more interested in what I can do through you or are you more interested in spending time with Me?”
AM: Ooo ...
CHEF AS: Because I have to say, I took inspiration from someone who posted it online - that concept, at least. But I have been feeling it -
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: You know what I mean?
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: The first one is about me.
AM: Yup.
CHEF AS: And the second one is about God.
AM: It's about Him. Yeah, you gave me goosebumps because I yeah, I thought about something very similar to that, a couple months ago, and I was like, well am I really trying to do that because I want to amplify Him or am I trying to do it so I can boost myself up? Like wow, yeah.
CHEF AS: Yeah, it hurts. So I did not like it.
AM: 100%
CHEF AS: When I saw it on IG and I still don't, but I think that's the point. I think that it's –
AM: It’s uncomfortable -
CHEF AS: It’s uncomfortable and I think those of us who are sort of our own turbines, who are in that sort of entrepreneurial space, it becomes a lot about me and what can I do? What can I accomplish and what's the next thing to build? How do I build on what I've already built? All that stuff and so then we try to kind of loop God into it saying, “you know use me for whatever it is that you want,” but you know intrinsically, we're like yeah we want to get some action, right?
AM: Right.
CHEF AS: You want to rustle up some action. And I think, especially for me, like I'm not really good at sitting very quietly.
AM: Same
CHEF AS: Or sitting in a posture of listening or just being or just any of those things.
AM: It's a good reminder.
CHEF AS: Yeah, that would be my Monday Motivation is just go sit and do nothing for a minute.
AM: Yeah, wow. Yeah.
CHEF AS: Haha I know!
AM: Well, you are always traveling! You were just on an amazing trip in Peru with some of our faves who have previously been in our issues - Chef Duff Goldman, Chef Fariyal Abdullahi who was our AUG ISSUE #104 cover, and Chef Marcel Vigneron. I love an immersive trip and it seemed like you guys got to combine your culinary knowledge along with those that were indigenous to the area and people, as well as to be part of some amazing cultural activities!
Right now your IG has a number of food festivals you’ve been at as well as those that are coming up! We are looking forward to the Food Network NYC Wine Food Festival that takes place mid Oct. and I know that you’re not involved in that one, but Iove being able to go to festivals like this. What do you love about participating in food festival and can you tell me more about the Del Mar Wine + Food Festival that is next month? I mean that Spice Girls Dinner seems pretty amazing.
CHEF AS: Yeah, food festivals are so fun because it's sort of like, you know, that everybody there is one of you, you know what I mean?
AM: Yup!
CHEF AS: Like, these are people that love food and love food television and love to celebrate and love to gather!
AM: Yes!
CHEF AS: The Gathering thing to me has really been feeling more and more important. I think because we have so many years of not gathering.
AM: Yeah that was tough!
CHEF AS: I heard once I was listening to a podcast and I'm not saying I've ever read Alexis de Tocqueville, but I guess when he visited America he was like, “the thing that's very interesting about Americans is that they love to gather.”
AM: Facts!
CHEF AS: They will find any reason to gather and so when we weren't gathering, it was like one of the most un-American things that we could have done.
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: So I think that's one of the things that I have come to really appreciate about food festivals is we're all together. We're breaking bread, we're maybe having a couple cocktails.
AM: Yes!
CHEF AS: You sort of feel like, this is who we are. This is the essence of our humanity, the essence of our identity as a people, you know? It's a very unifying moment. I think, especially for people who are creating content, whether it's, you know, on traditional streams, or on social media streams, or YouTube or whatever it is, you know, it kind of goes out into the ether and even if you get likes, yes, you get some sort of feedback, but to see the actual faces! To sort of interact with the actual spirits of people who were like, “I saw when you did that thing.” Oh, it feels real and it feels really gratifying in that moment, selfishly. And it feels very encouraging, honestly - to say, okay, I'm on the right path, I'm going to keep going because it can feel like a very isolating experience.
You know, basically, like I remember when Twitter came along we were all like, oh, doesn't it sort of feel like there's one million people and each of them has a megaphone and they're all yelling? So no one's listening to each other and so sometimes things like food festivals can be so gratifying because here are the people that have been listening!
AM: 100%
CHEF AS: You can see, you can then engage like, oh this is what touches people. And this is what people find necessary. And this is what sort of they find unique about when they come to my corner of IG and it can help sort of fine tune your voice.
AM: Exactly!
Tell me about the Spice Girls Dinner at the Del Mar Food Festival!
CHEF AS: Yeah, I'm excited about Del Mar because not only because it's a very beautiful food festival, this whole thing was spearheaded by Troy Johnson and his wife, Claire Johnson and you know I've known Troy forever for like decades through Guy's Grocery Games.
AM: Ok!
CHEF AS: No, no it’s not been that long! So this is the, you know, they already have babies, but this is another baby of theirs. They're really putting their money where their mouths are and trying to encourage the same thing, the sense of community and gathering, and celebration, and celebrating chefs who are, you know, taking risks in the kitchen and so, I'm really excited to go see people, but also support people who are risking it all you know.
AM: Wow.
CHEF AS: Like Troy and Claire, I think our dinner is going to be so interesting because I love Claudia Sandoval (winner of MasterChef S6, Judge on MasterChef Latinos, Host of Taste of the Border on Discovery+). I love the way she cooks. She has a really strong connection to where she comes from and in a way that I love because she sometimes will take the humblest of dishes, like, her grandmother's beans and she won't change it all that much. She will present it just like that because she's like they're actually good enough. That's very inspiring to me because there's, you know, a lot of the food that we all grew up with, it's not restaurant food.
AM: Correct.
CHEF AS: It's home food. I'm trying to figure out a way to gussy that up so that it looks pretty in an Instagram photo sometimes can feel very difficult!
AM: Daunting, yeah.
CHEF AS: So I I think that it's, I think it's really, it's been very inspiring to me to go, no, the dal, just the way it is. The dal just the way I grew up with is enough and good enough! So, I'm really excited to see where our spice palettes cross over, compliment each other, and contrast with each other. I think it's going to be a really fun dinner and I'm really excited also for the wine pairing because Neeta Mittal, owner of LXV Wines - she's Indian and so she's got a particular palette when she's looking at wines because she's going well, what wine will play well, with these spices - will amplify them and vice versa. So, I think it's gonna be a really interesting unique dinner in that way.
I'm relatively new to this circuit you know, compared to some people that have been doing it for a while and so you're only honestly, you're only as good as the organizers of the festival. It is such a beast to organize these things. There's always something that you didn't think about.
AM: Right, for sure.
CHEF AS: So that's a huge factor to me! I want to be at a festival where we’re all you know, you do your job, I do my job, but we do our job so that we can support each other and make each other look good. That's, you know, that's one of the big things.
AM: That's amazing.
CHEF AS: I love going to festivals where there's a lot of great food on display, you know, especially a lot of adventurous food because I'm like, oh, the people that are going to show up here are going to be willing to try things that, you know, they've maybe never tried before.
I just did the Ilani Wine and Food Festival at the Ilani Resort just outside of Portland. That one was so amazing because even though you know this festival's been going on forever, I made these Jackfruit Sliders with a date barbecue sauce. That was a two for two in terms of things that people haven't tried before. People were so willing like, when you know, I remember someone came over and they were like, “your pulled pork was amazing.” I was like, “that was jackfruit!” So I love going to festivals where I can bring something that someone hasn't had before. Not just for the the purpose of maybe trying something new but, then also that people go home and they're like, I'm going to buy that and I'm gonna work that into my meal plan, or whatever it is. You know, that's just like I want to be of service, and that's really helpful but I love festivals like that where I can be of service.
AM: I think that that’s amazing. And I saw those pictures of the Jackfruit Sliders. And I was just like, whoa, I've had jackfruit but never thought about barbecue sauce and dates – but ok!
CHEF AS: Yeah, well, you know, I had the barbecue sauce ready to go. I had that idea. I was just trying to think because I didn’t think that I was gonna have the time or the energy to like slow cook a ton of pork.
AM: Right.
CHEF AS: So then it was like, what about, you know, I think actually I was talking to Damaris Phillips (2013 winner of Food Network Star, Guy’s Grocery Games Judge, author of Southern Girl Meets Vegetarian Boy) about it and then we came up with that idea together, so that was super helpful.
AM: Love that! Ok, so Halloween Wars. I mean, first of all, I can't even believe that we're sitting in the fall.
CHEF AS: Yeah!
AM: It's rainy here in New York today and I'm like, wait, the holiday season is around the corner. I always know it's around the corner because I see the promos for Halloween Wars.
CHEF AS: Ha ha! I know! It’s all a long slippery slope from there!
AM: Yup! So what are you excited about for this season? I always look forward to the different things and I'm always amazed at how grotesque in the best way possible that some of the things end up being, I'm like, oh my God, who does that? I'm so scared! But at the same time, the baking capabilities and dedication to craft is next level when they’re on the clock!
CHEF AS: This season is so great because each of the teams is helmed by an All-Star. So each of these people have won before, they know what it feels like and they know what it takes. So, they’re kind of acting like team leaders to their teammates. There's a lot to, you know, you whenever you go into competition, you don't cook, carve, sculpt the way that you do –
AM: Exactly.
CHEF AS: At your bakery or at your place, you know? You've got to, you've got to do it in a way that is a work smarter not harder kind of mindset.
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: And yet, you're still going for perfection as possible. So that's why this season is so great because and that's why that from day one like the displays were already almost like finale level.
AM: Ooo.
CHEF AS: Perfect, right?
AM: Yeah -
CHEF AS: You had these people who are veterans informing the entire process. So that's what's so great about this season.
AM: That is so exciting!
Tyler Florence’s, The Great Food Truck Race is one of my favorite shows. So, seeing you on the finale, this last season, I was like, wait, there's Aarti!
CHEF AS: Ahhh. Yeah, the food was legitimately awesome! You know, sometimes it's like you know with competition you have a lot of grace because things are not gonna - you just don't have the same amount of time that you would at home or in a restaurant. So I was so impressed, every bite that I took, I was like this tastes completely dialed in. It was amazing. It was truly amazing.
AM: Well, are there any other shows coming up that we should keep an eye out for because I always love when I see you at, like, Tournament of Champions or you're on Guys Grocery Games. And I'm like, this lady is working.
CHEF AS: I'm trying to work. I am trying to work. I just got something and I don't think they've announced it yet.
AM: Okay.
CHEF AS: That's going to be super exciting!
AM: Amazing.
CHEF AS: Thank you! And then you know, all the usual like Grocery Games and all that kind of stuff is still coming down the pipe. Yeah, it's just always such a privilege to be part of the part of the family over at Food Network. Whenever we get to see people, you know, you get the sense that that Food Network is on all day.
AM: Exactly.
CHEF AS: For some people, you know what I mean? It's just very cool that even if I'm not currently shooting something and they turn it on, more than likely one of us is on there. You know? It feels really intimate to be in people's homes that way, and I think that that's how they feel about us, you know, based on the reactions we get. So it's really such a privilege.
AM: I love that and are there just any upcoming projects In general that you would like to share to get out there or or, you know, just things that you have going on?
CHEF AS: Yeah. I mean, one of the most exciting things that's coming up in the short term is that I'm expanding my line with QVC.
AM: That’s amazing!
CHEF AS: Yeah, really amazing! It's such a huge community to be able to dive into and QVC has been so generous and so sweet with me to sort of pull me into the fold and say, hey what do you think about doing this? And here are the kinds of things that our people love and how would you put your own spin on it. And so, you know, it's a select few people that get to do that and I was really hopeful when we started the line last year that we would get to do this, and It has expanded exponentially and some of the things that we've got in the line, I use on a daily basis. They're unbelievably good quality, you know, I really wanted to make sure that it would be something I would use and it's just really exciting, so I think that's going to launch at the end of October.
AM: Congratulations on the continued success of your line with them and I’ve seen the cute kitchenware!
That's so exciting. Yay!
CHEF AS: Yeah!
AM: I just love that every time I see you on shows, you just have such a love and zest for food, and like you're talking about community and people coming together! What do you want your legacy, you know, to be in terms of the imprint that you've left on all of these different things that you're doing and whatever ends up being in the future - that may not be happening at this moment?
CHEF AS: Gosh. Well, I mean, the most important thing to me obviously is my family, right? And just for my girls to know that I did the best I could to balance these two parts of my life. But that they were always way more important than anything else, you know, for them and my husband to know that.
But outside of the home, I guess that I want people when they think of me to think of someone – who really valued coming around a table. Like, I really think that there are so many things that are coming in to distract us from connection with each other, you know, phones and social media. And I know there's been a lot of discussion and study recently on, you know, the impact of phones on kids.
AM: Yes.
CHEF AS: And teenagers. And what that does to the family and I really think that something as simple as sitting around the table and having dinner as many nights as possible is one of the most powerful things that we can do to combat that. Like so that would be probably part of my legacy. Then the other part is that, so often when I'm competing and doing things like that, I'm doing stuff that I feel completely out of my depths doing.
AM: I feel that.
CHEF AS: I'm, you know, like just recently I got booked for a bunch of things and it made me so scared. I was like crying in a fetal position.
AM: Oh no!
CHEF AS: It was bad because I was like, I cannot do this. I don't know how I'm gonna fail like. That has no matter how many times I do it, it just feels like it's something that I'm constantly fighting and I don't think I'm the only one.
AM: Nope!
CHEF AS: So I suppose part of my legacy, I hope these are very big words. It's just that, I was loud about feeling unequipped to do things, but doing them anyway!
AM: Which is huge! I tell people all the time, I’m always in my head, mulling over things and nervous before I do something. Even if it's like a million times, whatever, because everything is a little bit different and you just, I don't know, it's a thing, but I was like, if I feel that shaky about it, I have to kind of tell myself that you feel shaky because you want to do so well, and you care so much about what it represents for myself and what it is for the other people involved. So I try to turn it, although I'll still sit there and be like, I gotta run to the bathroom. This is crazy, but in the end, it does end up being lovely.
CHEF AS: Yeah, I think that there's the sense of like, if it isn't going easily, then you must be doing something wrong or you must be in the wrong place. Yeah, you must have made the wrong decision and I think that as I mean I'm 46 now. So hopefully it'll stick this year …
AM: It hasn’t yet, but it’s tough.
CHEF AS: Yeah, hopefully, but you know for the first time this year, I was like, after I had my little fetal position breakdown. I was like wait. Why don't I ever say to myself, “yes, I don't know how to do these things. I feel completely out of my depth. But the second half of that is, I'll figure it out.”
AM: Yeah.
CHEF AS: Yeah, figure it out. Just saying that has started to change things where I'm like, okay, you know, it may not go smoothly and it may not go off without a hitch.
AM: Right.
CHEF AS: But, I will figure it out. You know what I mean? It doesn’t have to go perfectly. I'll land something out of there. And that has felt very empowering actually. I think that just saying that to ourselves can be very edifying.
AM: 100% I like that. I will try to remember that the next freakout that happens.
CHEF AS: I will figure it out!
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT/BACK COVER, PG 16 - 22 Rowan Daly | PG 25, 26 + 38 Food Network |
Read the SEP ISSUE #105 of Athleisure Mag and see FAITH, FAMILY, FOOD | Chef Aarti Sequeira in mag.
This month's The Art of the Snack takes us to SoHo after the first night of NYFW SS25. After taking in a series of shows throughout the day and early evening, we were ready to continue a bit of drama during dinner! We found ourselves at SUSHIDELIC which was a feast for the eyes as well as the tastebuds. We were transported to Tokyo, Kawaii, and interactive eating. After enjoying an epic omakase meal experience, we sat down with this restaurant's General Manager, Esmeralda Syku to find out about the art within its 4 walls, characters, what you can expect to enjoy when you're dining in, and of course the power of Kawaii that is infused throughout your meal here!
ATHLEISURE MAG: We had the pleasure of dining at SUSHIDELIC to kick off our first night of Fashion Week of the SS25 season and it was amazing to see the decor, the vibe, the sounds, and more. Tell us about the joint venture between AUTEC and Asobi Systems that came together to create this restaurant.
ESMERALDA SYKU: The joint venture between AUTEC and Asobi Systems was instrumental in bringing this vibrant restaurant to life. AUTEC, known for its innovative approach to sushi, introduces a fresh perspective on sushi-making that emphasizes creativity and quality. Meanwhile, Asobi Systems, recognized for its creative flair in entertainment and design.
AM: We love Kawaii as we got to experience it when we were in Tokyo and love how it is presented in the restaurant. For readers who are not familiar, what is Kawaii and what is the Kawaii experience that guests can enjoy when they come in to dine?
ES: Kawaii is the definition of cuteness, but it can resonate differently with everyone. When guests dine with us, they can expect to embark on a delightful culinary journey where our Executive Chef, Reina Tange, artfully combines unexpected colors and flavors, creating unique and playful dishes. It’s not just about the food; it’s about immersing yourself in a joyful, whimsical atmosphere that sparks happiness and nostalgia. Each meal becomes a celebration of creativity and cuteness, ensuring an unforgettable experience for everyone!
AM: We had the pleasure of meeting Sebastian Masuda who is known as the Godfather of Kawaii and was responsible for Kawaii Monster Cafe in Tokyo. We know that he created the stunning art that is at SUSHIDELIC, can you share more about the pieces that people can see when they come in?
ES: As you enter, you'll be greeted by stunning art pieces that reflect Masuda's signature style. The suspended, colorful lipstick lights create a playful ambiance, setting the tone for a delightful dining experience. Center stage, you’ll find three charming and curiosity-provoking cats, each sporting a playful expression that invites interaction and adds a whimsical touch. The rotating conveyor belt is a highlight, showcasing an array of artistic creations, from purses and shoes to a playful cat enjoying sushi.
AM: Tell us about the Delic Cats as we loved being greeted by them and how they correspond with the 3 cat sculptures that are suspended from the ceiling.
ES: We have Delic cats, each with their own, personality and spunk: Tipsy, Lovely, Sassy.
AM: We ate at the sushi bar which was great to enjoy watching the DJ, seeing the art on the conveyor belt and being at the center of the action! What can you tell us about the design aesthetic of the space?
ES: Everything in SUSHIDELIC is custom made and was designed by visionary artist, also known as the “Godfather of Kawaii”, Sebastian Masuda.
AM: Can you tell us about where Chef Reina Tange trained, schools she attended, restaurants she worked in before coming came to SUSHIDELIC?
ES: Chef Reina Tange was born and raised in Tokyo and has worked in prestigious hotels and resorts. Chef Reina Tange’s culinary journey started at her family’s restaurant, Sokodo-so, on Hachijojima, a subtropical island off the coast of Tokyo. She then pursued culinary arts studies at the Japan Culinary Arts College. Reina’s passion for food led her to Italy, where she attended the University of Foreigners in Perugia and gained experience working in local restaurants. After returning to Japan, she worked at the prestigious Bvlgari Hotels and Resorts in Ginza, Tokyo, where she honed her customer service and operations skills.
AM: What is the menu design process in terms of deciding what you would like to include on the menu?
ES: A lot of thought and creativity goes into our menus. Each item is carefully curated by Chef Reina Tange, drawing from her extensive experience and inspired by Sebastian Masuda’s artistic vision. The process involves selecting unique flavor combinations, prioritizing vibrant presentation, and incorporating seasonal ingredients to create a delightful Kawaii dining experience.
AM: We enjoyed the Pure Imagination six-course omakase! Can you tell us about this as well as the Painter's Palette?
ES: Currently, our Omakase style menu, PURE Imagination, features 5 courses – each course is a piece of art that bursts in your mouth, full of flavor - from the savory and sweet 1st course, which is the Hokkaido Scallop Macaron to the carousal wheel, giving the guest the opportunity to try our various delic rolls and nigiri. Our sauce palette is like a painters palette and we encourage guests to create their own journey and dabble into our different sauces to create a variety of flavors. Our. Sauce palette includes: Spicy Mayo, Wasabi, Carrot Ginger, Ponzu Mayo, Black Sesame and Yuzu.
AM: For those that opt to enjoy their menu a la carte, what are 3 appetizers that you suggest that we should enjoy when we come in for dinner?
ES: When delighting in our A la carte menu, we encourage guests to try these dishes: Tuna & Crab Croquette with soy marinated tuna, Chicken Kaarage and Fried Gyoza.
AM: From the Delic Rolls, what are 3 rolls that we should enjoy?
ES: Rolls we recommend include: Special Salmon Roll, Aburi Salmon and Wagu Uni Roll.
AM: Tell us about the Tokyo Signature portion of the menu and what are 3 items you suggest that we can enjoy with family and friends?
ES: Our Tokyo Signature portion of the menu are items inspired straight from Tokyo that are currently popular and our recommendations include: Poke Avocado Sushi Burger (hamburger style with a crispy rice bun filled with flavorful Poke Avocado), Delic Fries (loaded with flavor from Bonito Flakes, Salmon Roe & Fried Garlic), and Minced Pork Katsu Ball (with a curry sauce).
AM: Tell us about the Sushi Tower Deluxe?
ES: Our Sushi Tower is a tasting of all of our favorites! From our specialty Delic Rolls to fresh sashimi and mini cups of our popular Chirashi Parfait.
AM: From Tokyo Sweetness, what are 3 dishes that you suggest that we should think about?
ES: Our favorites include the Lost Red High Heel, a delightful chocolate and hazelnut cake adorned with an edible red high heel, and the Jiggly Lips Panna Cotta, which adds a playful twist to a classic dessert. Don’t miss the Harajuku Parfait, a creative mixture of desserts from the chef's imagination, presented with flair for a truly whimsical experience!
AM: Tell us about Sushi Sundays.
ES: Sushi Sundays is the perfect day to gather with friends and family to enjoy delicious sushi in a vibrant atmosphere. It’s a time to relax, share great food, and create lasting memories. Whether you're a sushi aficionado or trying it for the first time, there’s something for everyone to savor. Join us for a fun-filled Sunday where you can indulge in our creatively crafted sushi rollsand delightful sides, all while soaking in the Kawaii ambiance!
AM: You are open for lunch as well. Are there any dishes that are specific to the lunch menu only?
ES: Lunch at SUSHIDELIC is all about fun and relaxation! Join us to enjoy our enticing lunch specials, which feature a selection of salads, soups, and various sushi rolls. Be sure to try our Rolling-to-Lunch special, perfect for those looking for a quick yet delicious bite. Or indulge in the Sushi-Go-Round, which offers a delightful variety of sushi rolls to share and savor. It’s a great way to enjoy a leisurely meal with friends or take a break from your day.
AM: Cocktails are always our favorite part of the meal! What are 3 that you suggest that we should try?
ES: Lovely in Pink (named after our Delic Cat Lovely), Tipsy Sake-Tini (named after Delic Cat Tipsy), Sugar Plum Spritz.
AM: Does SUSHIDELIC change its menu throughout the year and if so, can you tell us about what we should expect for the Fall?
ES: Yes, we do change our menu seasonally! This fall, we’re excited to revamp both our PURE Imagination and à la carte menus, introducing a variety of delicious new dishes that capture the essence of the season. From cozy flavors to vibrant ingredients, our new offerings will celebrate autumn’s bounty. Stay tuned for the launch of our refreshed menu, coming mid-October—we can’t wait for you to try the new delights!
AM: Are there any upcoming events that you can tell us about that we should mark our calendars for or what we can anticipate for the upcoming holiday season such as New Years Eve?
ES: Join us for our spooktacular Halloween festivities, where our beloved Delic cats will transform into playful Zombie cats, adding a fun twist to the celebration! And that’s not all—stay tuned for exciting updates about our New Year’s Eve celebrations, where we’ll ring in the new year with style, delicious food, and unforgettable experiences. You won’t want to miss it!
AM: In addition to the sushi bar seating, you also have tables, what can you tell us about those looking to do group dinners or special events?
ES: For large groups, we highly recommend table seating, allowing you to relax and enjoy meaningful conversations with your friends while immersing yourselves in the vibrant atmosphere. This arrangement fosters a communal dining experience, perfect for sharing delicious dishes and creating lasting memories together. Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or just enjoying a night out, our table seating enhances the experience, making it even more enjoyable!
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | PG 100 SUSHIDELIC| PG 102 - 113 Paul Farkas |
Read the SEP ISSUE #105 of Athleisure Mag and see THE ART OF THE SNACK | SUSHIDELIC in mag.
We're always looking to add that next great restaurant to our list and when we're in London next, we have 2 Michelin-starred A. Wong as one of our stops! We took some time to chat with Chef Andrew Wong to talk about his passion for food, his culinary background, what led to him launching this restaurant and what we should have in mind when we come in for an epic meal. We also talk about what he does outside of the restaurant.
ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you first fall in love with cooking?
CHEF ANDREW WONG: I grew up in my parents' restaurant, and cooking wasn't something I was interested in. I went to university to have fun and escape work for a while, but I was drawn back in. It was when I decided to learn how to cook and enrolled in culinary college that I became more engaged with the whole thing and saw it as something I could make a go of.
AM: What was the moment that you realized that you wanted to be a chef?
CHEF AW: After graduating from culinary college, I travelled through China on a working tour to learn more about the roots of Chinese cuisine. This was eye-opening, as I discovered the vast regional differences in cuisine and understood the cultural context and history behind dishes and techniques. Once returning to London, I continued learning and researching Chinese cuisine, where it all began.
AM: What was your culinary background in terms of what led you to going to culinary school as well as kitchens you trained in?
CHEF AW: When I was younger, my parents ran a Chinese restaurant called Kym’s. It was an old-school Cantonese restaurant and takeaway, filled with brightly coloured sauces, dragons, and everything you would imagine an eighties Chinese takeaway to be. I worked in their kitchen as a teenager but always said I would never want to be a chef.
When my father passed away, I needed to step up and help my Mum run the family business. Over time, I became more interested in the history of Chinese cuisine. I spent some time travelling around China and perfected and honed my new skills before deciding to close Kym’s and open A Wong.
AM: You launched A. Wong in 2012, why did you want to open this restaurant and what was your approach to the menu?
CHEF AW: My parents had been running their restaurant on that site since the 1980s. The restaurant had sentimental value and a good location in Victoria. There was no reason to open anywhere else, and I’m pleased we didn’t.
Our approach at A.Wong is to celebrate Chinese culture, craft, history, and techniques. Over time, the menu and cuisine have become more personal. I would describe it as ‘A.Wong cuisine.' This reflects my heritage, our exploration, and how we approach dishes.
The menu celebrates techniques, some very old and some more modern. We draw on the vast array of ingredients from the Chinese kitchen—fermented, dried, and salty—with vegetables, seafood, and meat to create a balanced and harmonious dining experience.
AM: Tell us about the ambiance of your restaurant and what guests can expect when enjoying their meal here.
CHEF AW: Fun, unpretentious, explorative, inquisitive, researched, and a celebration of culture, still keeping up with modern ways while keeping our techniques and cooking methods traditional.
AM: For lunch, what are 3 Dim Sums that you suggest that we should have in mind when we come in?
CHEF AW: Black Pepper Beef wispy pastry with tamarind and dried shrimp caramel, Rabbit and Carrot Glutinous Puff & Bamboo Pole Noodles with King crab and Spring Onion Oil.
AM: What is the Touch of the Heart menu and what are 3 items from this menu that we should try?
CHEF AW: Touch of the Heart menu is our lunch menu, which still offers guests a beautiful journey across the borders of China. I think every item on the menu has its own story to tell, but the three I would pick would be the 999 Layered Scallop Puff with XO Oil, Steamed Duck Yolk Custard bun, and Memories of Peking Duck.
AM: For dinner, walk us through The Collections of China menu that we can have for dinner.
CHEF AW: The concept behind it came from when I was travelling. I read and spoke with many people about Chinese cuisine, but experiencing the diversity of flavours first-hand is very different.
I wanted to give our guests an insight into these diverse, regional flavour profiles, from flash-frying to steaming carbohydrate menus, the amount of pickle, preservatives, and the type of fermented product. All these things are integral parts of a region's identity and its role in China as a whole.
AM: Tell us about your beverage program.
CHEF AW: At A. Wong, we offer close to over 350 different labels and vintages, including both new world and old-world wines. Veering away from traditional service, the interactive wine program, at A. Wong is centered around the concept of 'adventure and personal exploration.' Our sommelier team encourages the guests to sample a wider selection of wines by exploring lesser-known wines and understanding the flavour profiles of well-known old wines. To create contrast and adventure, our beverage pairings at lunch and dinner are served as multiple flights, and include craft beers, Chinese teas and vinegars alongside the wines. We want guests to play and enjoy the wines within a collection of dishes, and discover for themselves what they enjoy.
AM: What is the Forbidden City Bar and are there cocktails that are offered here that are specific to this portion of the restaurant?
CHEF AW: The Forbidden City Bar serves as a venue for enjoying intimate moments with your loved ones, where we serve classic signature cocktails and our own Forbidden City cocktails. Enjoy your pre-meal and post-meal drinks. The bar also welcomes non-diners.
The most signature cocktail available at A.Wong is the Peking Duck Old Fashioned, which is made of Johnnie Walker Whiskey infused with traditional Peking duck fat and roasting spices, hoisin syrup, and Angostura.
AM: As someone with an Anthropological background, how has that inspired the foods and the ingredients that you use?
CHEF AW: I’ve been working with Dr Mukta Das for about five years now. It’s a real privilege and one I don’t take lightly. We introspectively look at the cuisine in terms of flavour, technique, balance, and cultural etiquette. I think all of this – taste, cultural, and social, affects our perception of the dining experience and taste.
Mukta’s approach is from a historical point of view, looking at all sorts of economic and social aspects behind whatever dish we are researching. I look at it from a chef’s perspective, what it will taste like, what the texture would be, and how I can logistically make this happen.
We do a lot of research to ensure that the base flavour profiles are nearly identical to historical and technical Chinese techniques. But at the same time, I like to think that our food is quite explorative, in the sense that we don’t specify that our food comes from a particular region or style. I want people to take an interest in the flavours of a dish. I want to try and encourage people to go out and explore other Chinese restaurants that they may not have done before. This opens us up to criticism, but if what we are serving isn’t deemed “authentic,” that’s ok because it’s not supposed to be.
AM: Can you tell us what SOAS is and how it has influenced your restaurant? What does it mean to become an Official Research Associate there for the Food Studies Centre?
CHEF AW: SOAS is the School of Oriental and Asian Studies, a university in London. I’ve worked with them before, and becoming a research associate means they support my endeavour to learn more about food and the cultural discourse around it.
It means I interact with food as a cultural phenomenon. For me, the idea of humans as social beings is essential. This means when you talk about running a restaurant, it's not purely about the food. It's also about how humans interact in a space, with each other and with the experience.
It's an understanding we are social beings, and we like to communicate. We want to taste, see, and touch, which is very important for a restaurant. Restaurants are not just purely about food, interaction with the space and concept are integral.
Food is not just flavour; it is an expression of history, location, ingredients and choices.
AM: You received your first Michelin star in 2015 and you received another recognition in Jan 2021 with a second Michelin star making A. Wong the first Chinese restaurant outside of Asia to achieve this. What does this mean to you?
CHEF AW: The first Michelin star was for my team at A. Wong, they all work incredibly hard, and to be recognised was wonderful. Receiving the second star was an extraordinary moment for us at A. Wong. It was a significant achievement for me personally and Chinese restaurants globally. It was for our community, our forefathers. I am just a tiny part of the thousands and thousands of restaurants that have come before us. It's good to see that a global brand like Michelin broadens and represents multiple cultures and cuisines.
IG @awongsw1
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | PG 92 , 96 + 99 James Gilles | PG 95 Jutta Klee |
Read the AUG ISSUE #104 of Athleisure Mag and see FOOD ANTHROPOLOGY | Chef Andrew Wong in mag.
As the Summer comes to a close, we're looking ahead to the Fall and Holiday! We love being able to take time with friends and family and those that are in our inner circles to connect and many times, these gatherings take place in our favorite restaurants! It's within these 4 walls that memories are made, food is shared, and horizons are expanded. With the restaurant as the canvas, it is helmed by those give us the foundation for this exchange to take place.
This month's cover is Executive Chef Fariyal Abdullahi of Hav & Mar which is located in Chelsea's Art District in the Starrett-Lehigh Building. We talk about how a passion for food, fine dining, sustainability, and advancement led to a culinary career that has included phenomenal restaurants and a track record of integrity; her helming and being personally selected by Marcus Samuelsson (Red Rooster, Streetbird, MARCUS ADDIS) for this restaurant that is in the Marcus Samuelsson Group; being the Chef for and walking the Met Gala red carpet in 2021; being a judge on Food Network shows such as Chopped and Alex vs America, and being a James Beard Award 2024 Finalist! We wanted to know more about her culinary journey, her approach to food, sustainability, and changing restaurant culture.
ATHLEISURE MAG: It’s been such a fun day in being able to hangout at your baby, Hav & Mar and your cover editorial here with, a number of looks, and to see your restaurant and you in this way.
What was the first dish that you remember when you realized that you fell in love with food?
CHEF FARIYAL ABDULLAHI: Um, ok, so I grew up in Ethiopia and I am the youngest of 6 siblings. My mom would cook all of our meals herself – breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We were a family of 8, it didn’t matter. She always made it herself. You know, people say that their mom was a good cook, I can tell you objectively as a Chef that my mom was very talented and she didn’t have any formal training or anything. She was just very intuitive and very good at it. Because of that, everybody used to come to our house for food because her food was just that good! Holiday and everything, my uncles would be at the house. They were not at their wives homes with their cooking. They would be at the house and I noticed that at a very young age. I was like, “mom, you have to put me on!”
So it’s not a particular dish. But, she started me out with salad from the beginning. It was nothing that had to do with fire and stuff. I was a Garde Manger Queen (Editor’s Note: The pantry chef, commonly known as Garde Manger or Garmo is responsible for the preparation of cold dishes, salads, charcuterie, and appetizers in a commercial kitchen) when I was 6 years old. I was like, I want to do this, I want to do what you do. But it was also the process of – we’re very close to our food source. So, I have photos of me from when I was a kid making salad! We would go to the farm which was right around the corner from our house and they would grow the lettuce. So it was a whole process. I would go get the lettuce, the tomatoes, and all of that stuff and I would have the connection of seeing all of this stuff going from the soil, the farmers that grew it, and then I would go back home and it was literally a simple salad. Romaine Lettuce, Serrano Peppers, and Tomatoes – you didn’t even make a vinaigrette for it – it was just lime juice and salt.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF FA: Yeah, that was my responsibility. It was very few ingredients, but it built my relationship that I had with food. It kind of made that first part where I had that connection with the people that grew my food. Then I turned what they did into something that was delicious to eat, and then everyone comes over - everyone pulls up. It was really that process where I was like, this is what I want. This is that thing that connects all of us.
AM: You graduated with a Bachelor’s in Clinical Child Psychology. When did you realize that you wanted to be a Chef as opposed to going down that track in terms of a graduate degree? You opted to go to the Culinary Institute of America in Nappa as opposed to staying on the psychology track.
CHEF FA: I always knew that I wanted to be in food. But, it’s the classic immigrant story where you leave your country and you go to America. The American Dream is that you are a doctor, lawyer, or engineer. Those are the 3 things. I would tell my mom when I was 14 or 16 that I wanted to cook and that I wanted to be a chef. And she would always tell me that that was a hobby and that it wasn’t a career. So when you’re a doctor, you can go home and cook as a hobby. That was your hobby, that was not a career. But I was like, “damn, that is really what I want to do!” As the youngest of 6 siblings, that’s what they did. So I have a sister that is a Neurosurgeon, my brother is an Immuno Oncologist – so he is doing cancer research, I have a brother and a sister that is doing Internal Medicine – so then it was my turn and I mean, I guess my second love is just knowing people and understanding behavior and that is why I went into Clinical
Psychology. But it never -
AM: It never really felt right.
CHEF FA: It didn’t! It really didn’t and I am a very empathetic person and so I got my Bachelor’s in Clinical Child Psychology and my sister who is in UCLA – both of my sisters are in UCLA, I went to go visit them and they said, “let’s show you the psych department.” They took me to where the children are and that’s what kind of changed me forever because I knew that I could not work with sick kids every day. I couldn’t do that and then go home with it! I knew that I would always go home with it! So that day, instead of applying to grad school, I applied to culinary school. I had my heart set on CIA because I had read 2 biographies from Grant Achatz and Anthony Bourdain and they both went to CIA and it is supposed to be the Harvard of culinary schools. I thought, hold on, if I get accepted to this school – this 1 culinary school, it’s go to be big right? So, I didn’t apply anywhere else, I just applied there.
AM: One shot!
CHEF FA: Yeah, one shot and I got accepted. So I told my mom, you have to let me do this.
AM: I used to have a teacher who felt that I should be a surgeon because in our labs when we were dissecting various animals, my precision in cutting was something that she loved. I had to explain to her many times that it wasn’t the work that I wanted to do, and that inspired me to find a piece that called back to that to bring it to this set. My mind will continue to run and replay a number of things and I can’t make my mind not work that way. I don’t know if I could take running a procedure in my head where something went wrong on that level and be ok.
CHEF FA: Yeah, I don’t know how they do it!
AM: So while you waited to hear about your application, you went to 18 countries and traveled for 3 months! What was it like to go to these places and for someone who already had an interesting palette already, how did you retrain that to take on all of these other areas that you had not previously been exposed to?
CHEF FA: So that was the purpose because I didn’t think that I had a palette. I don’t want to say advanced, but I didn’t think that I had a good palette yet. So the first 16 years of my life, I lived in Ethiopia, so I had a very high tolerance for spicy food, but also like very heavily spiced food. Things are very seasoned in Ethiopia so that is my threshold. I came to the States and my intro into American food became what I ate on campus.
I was like, “what is this flavorless, unseasoned – what is going on?” I swear that at 16, because I started college fulltime at 16, I used to walk around in my purse with Tabasco before Beyoncé said it, I swear to God that I had hot sauce in my bag! Because I was like, this ain’t it for me! It was just no flavor! It was that and the burritos, the burgers, and I’m in college. I kept thinking that there had to be an in between – hold on!
Yeah so, that was kind of the purpose behind my trip and I knew that there had to be more food out there. So it was 18 countries and now I’m on my 56th country. But in those 3 months, I did 18 countries and it was just to eat!
AM: That’s insane and amazing!
CHEF FA: It was cool because it’s like the whole 10,000 hours that Malcom Gladwell talks about (Editor’s Note: Malcolm Gladwell is a Canadian journalist, author and public speaker. He is known for his unique perspective on popular culture. He has been a staff writer with The New Yorker since 1996 and has published 7 books. He is also the podcast host of Revisionist History and the co-founder of the podcast company, Pushkin Industries. In his 2008 book Outliers, he states that, “10,000 hours is the magic number of greatness.” This theory means that to be considered elite or truly experienced with a certain craft you would need to practice it for 10,000 hours) it was the exposure of different flavors and textures that I would not have been exposed to if I had not traveled to these different countries. It became my little culinary school!
AM: Did you have a little travel journal and write down things as you navigated these countries?
CHEF FA: Yeah! I was solo too! I went by myself!
AM: Got it! Wow that’s a lot!
So what was it like to attend CIA and what were some of the kitchens that you trained in as you navigated to where you are here?
CHEF FA: So CIA, so I was responsible for my own tuition and that was the deal when I moved from Ethiopia. I did 8 hours of school a day, that’s how long our classes were – 8 hours, but then I would also work as a Teacher’s Assistant for the first 8 hours of my day. So that’s when I got into the 16 hour work day.
AM: Right!
CHEF FA: So, it was actually teaching me the work ethic that I needed honestly at the time, I didn’t know! I didn’t know how many hours people worked at restaurants. I had never worked in a restaurant before and there were no examples around me. So CIA in addition to obviously the culinary fundamentals, it was the first thing that taught me – ok, you can’t be tired. If you’re going to do this, you’re going to have to have the energy for this. I mean, it’s the Harvard of culinary schools and I do think that I got into Noma which was my first job ever – I mean Noma was the best restaurant in the world for 4 years in a row! It’s because I set myself up by going to the CIA!
AM: For sure!
CHEF FA: I felt like I was behind because when I was attending the CIA, my classmates were 18 years old and I was 25! I knew that I had to be on the fast track. Yeah, so it was essentially, a career change for me.
AM: Clearly, it all worked out as I’m sitting here talking with you in your restaurant!
CHEF FA: Yeah, I’m pretty much on a space ship and I’m on it.
AM: So, you were at Noma and I know that they are closing at the end of this year, but they will be more of a food laboratory and so that’s an interesting evolution with how they will continue their journey. So what are 3 things that you learned in your time of being at that restaurant? I mean when you hear of people who were at that restaurant, it’s no joke and it’s highly prestigious!
CHEF FA: I mean, especially with that being my first job ever! I remember when we were in culinary school getting ready to graduate and my classmates were like, we’re going to start off at this restaurant and then work our way up. I was like nah! I knew that I had to go straight to the top. They were like, you can’t do that. That’s not how the system is set up. You have to work your way up to Noma and I’m like, “cool, that’s what y’all are going to do.”
AM: But when you have a vision and you already feel like that you’re older than those that you have been with, you just can’t go at the same cadence because you have to make up for lost time.
CHEF FA: So the first thing that I learned at Noma is Integrity. Because my thing was that if I want to learn to be the best, I have to learn from the best! They were the best restaurant 4 years in a row and I was like, cool. What is it that makes them the best. It’s not always necessarily the food, what I learned there was Integrity is so high. Everybody was doing the right thing whether someone was looking or they weren’t looking. There’s no cutting corners. If this is how you’re shown how to do something, you do it. If there is something that is stopping you from doing it, you do it. Either way, you always do the right thing. That’s really powerful! So integrity!
10 years ago, the restaurant industry and kitchens are set up on this bully system I would call it. You get called all kinds of names, you get yelled at, that’s the relationship that you have with your Chef. The standard is always excellence and you will never reach that. So you're getting yelled at constantly every single day. So I was like, ok cool, this is how it is. If this is how it is, you just adjust to it. You learn how to have tough skin and you move on. But there is a changing area and I was getting ready to close out from the day and I heard René Redzepi (Editor’s Note: Danish chef and co-owner of 3-Michelin star Noma in the Christianshavn neighborhood of Copenhagen, Denmark) having a conversation with his leadership team and I guess there was this line cook that was being bullied and he just couldn’t take it anymore and he just left and he wasn’t answering anybody’s calls for 3 weeks.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF FA: And people were like ok, whatever, if he’s gone, he’s gone. That day when I was getting ready to leave, I was in the changing area and I heard the conversation that René was having with his leadership team and he was telling them, “we have to shift the culture. How do you guys not care? What if this guy isn’t even alive right now? What is wrong with you?”
AM: That’s what I was wondering!
CHEF FA: He was really laying into them. He said, we have to be better. So he was like, “cool, you guys are going to go to his apartment, you’re going to find him and make sure that he is fed.” He was an intern so he wasn’t getting paid, but he was like, “do we need to pay him?” He wanted to find out all of this information. René’s wife was pregnant at the time and he thought that he was having a son and he was like, “if my son told me that he wanted to work in the kitchen, I would tell him no.” That’s because it is very abusive and we have to shift the culture and we need to be able to create a system where people want to come to work and that they feel appreciated and cared about. I was like, what is he talking about? That is not how kitchens run. Don't you just get yelled at and told that you ain’t shit?
AM: Yeah and you go into the corner and do a cry where no one can see you so you can get back in the game.
CHEF FA: Right? You go to the side, handle it and go right back out!
AM: Right? That’s how it was for me in fashion and that was just how it went!
CHEF FA: Yeah and I thought that it would be like that forever! But that was the first time that I had ever heard anybody talking about changing and shifting the industry! I thought, ok I guess that it could be different. So that sparked the biggest thing in me where it made me say that I run my kitchen with joy. I lead it with joy. I think that that is why we have such a high retention rate here. People want to stay working here.
AM: We have been here for a few hours and I haven’t seen anyone slacking, slinking off or even watching us do a photoshoot and having me interview you. Everyone is just focused!
CHEF FA: Yeah they have a very heavy prep list. They are super focused! They are totally fine! I am really proud of what I have built. It all stems from my Noma days. Build a workplace that people actually want to come to and I learned that from René and have integrity! Always do the right thing!
AM: You leave Noma and prior to Hav & Mar, what are some of the restaurants that you were working at between these 2 periods?
CHEF FA: Right after Noma, I went back to LA because that’s where my family lives and while I was there, I got a call from a Chef here in NYC and he was an Executive Chef at a restaurant called Caviar Russe which is a Michelin-starred restaurant and he called me and he was like, “hey, I need a prep cook." I was like, “damn, starting from the bottom. I just came from Noma!” But it made sense because there is such a huge gap in my resume because I went from culinary school to the best restaurant in the world and while I was at Noma – you know, that’s the third thing that I learned.
I learned that you determine your own growth in terms of how quickly you grow. Because I went as an intern and interns don’t really get to work the line especially prep, but I was out of the prep kitchen after a month and they put me on the line.
I remember that there was a huge symposium that they do called the MAD Symposium (Editor’s Note: René created the MAD Symposium which is considered the G20 of Food Industry Change) where they bring some of the best culinary minds and René would be on huge pins and needles and he was very anxious to make sure that service went well. Obviously, they had all the interns in the prep kitchen and he came upstairs and he said, “what are you doing here?” I was like, “Chef, this is where I was put.” And he told me that I was going to be working on the line. He put me on the line for one of the most important services that he was about to do. So I said, “got it Chef.” I just put my head down and I did the work.
AM: Inside, you must have been like, argh!
CHEF FA: Oh yeah! I mean, we’re extremely close, but he could be very intimidating. So, we always knew when he was in town because when he is in the kitchen, all you would hear (Chef Fariyal pulls her keys out of her pocket and puts her finger through the keyring and flips the keys over and over through the loop) is those keys and you would say, “Chef’s here.”
So he put me on a station with a Sous Chef from Finland and he was this massive guy! He said, ok you're going to work this station with him. The Sous Chef was like, “don’t say nothing. All you have to do is shuck these 200 year old clams and that’s it!” I mean, dude, they were the size of my palm. I’m like wow 200 year old clams, but I was like, “yes Chef.” He let me know that no matter how intense it got, all he needed me to do was to stay calm and just shuck these clams. So I said, “yes Chef.” 5mins into service, René comes around the corner and starts screaming at the Sous Chef and asking him why his station was dirty. It was not even dirty. “Why is your station dirty? You know what, stop, everyone come here. Look at how nasty his station is.” He kicks the Sous Chef out of the kitchen and now I am in the station by myself.
AM: Oh no!
CHEF FA: I said, “the Sous Chef told me to shut up and just keep shucking so I’m just going to shut up and keep shucking my clams!” So I learned to stay cool and to stay calm. So nothing gets me out of my zone.
AM: Nope!
CHEF FA: So that is my 3rd thing. You determine your growth because I was the only intern working the line on a shift that René kicked my Sous Chef off his station that I worked at and then it became mine. That was all because I put my head down and I put in the work.
AM: We also know that you accepted that job at Caviar Russe.
CHEF FA: Yes so Caviar Russe was the first job after Noma. They called me and I said sure, prep cook is kind of crazy, but sure. So I came and I moved to NY for that. Fine dining is my love and it’s what I love to do. But 6 months of doing that, making minimum wage and you’re in NYC – I was barely surviving – barely. I was like I don’t know how much longer I can sustain this. When I was in school, we always used to have job fairs and there would be this restaurant group, Hillstone.
AM: Oh yeah!
CHEF FA: They would always be in the school and try to recruit kids from the CIA. They have a few restaurants in NYC.
AM: Yeah, they had the spot at 53rd & Lex as I used to eat there quite a bit in my early days of living in NYC. That was my place at that time.
CHEF FA: I was never interested in working at a place like Hillstone. I was like, I’m a fine dining girl from CIA – what are you talking about? I’m not trying to make burger and fries! But then I was like, ok, fine dining is not cutting it. I’m literally a starving artist right now and I’m hungry and can’t even feed myself. I got recruited to Hillstone and I said, let me see what this is about. I went and I remember when I did my stage, I was like hold on, they may not be making the type of food that I am interested in, but the restaurant is run like a fine dining restaurant. So I thought hold on, maybe I can do this. They pay you a 6 figure salary right off the bat and I thought, I can do this and not be broke!
I was like, this is compromising the type of food that I love making, but it is done to the same standards. Also, the paycheck is cute and I did the switch from fine dining to Hillstone. I did that for about 5 years.
AM: That’s a long time.
CHEF FA: 5 years, 9 different restaurants, I moved 9 times to different cities, and I became the opener. That’s how I got my experience in opening restaurants. Anytime you are asked to open a restaurant as a Chef, that is a huge compliment because you’re laying the foundation.
AM: Yeah the standard.
CHEF FA: They’re saying that they want you to instill and to inject your work ethic and the trajectory of the restaurant is all based on -
AM: Your brand standard!
CHEF FA: Yeah so I opened 9 restaurants in 9 different cities with Hillstone.When I was with them, they had 53 restaurants in a number of major cities. It was a $650 million dollar restaurant. It was 1 owner, he did not go public.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF FA: Huge!
AM: That’s a flex!
CHEF FA: That’s a flex! That is where I learned my leadership. That is 100% where I learned my leadership style. A lot of Chefs say that it is one of the best run restaurant groups in America. Hands down, easily.
So Caviar Russe to Hillstone and then I was like, I’m tired. By that time, I had been in the industry 8 years and there was never any Black women and even with Hillstone, I grew really quickly so after 9 months they gave me my own kitchen which was also very much so on the fast track. People had issues being led by a woman of color and they would make it very clear.
AM: Oh yeah.
CHEF FA: Like they would actually verbally say I’m not doing that. Why? Because you’re a woman and you’re Black. I would say, “cool, do you take a paycheck from a woman because guess who is writing your paychecks?” So if you’re cool with that, you’re going to do this task. But that was very exhausting. It felt like I was in a state of isolation. Because I was far away from my family, cities and states that I didn’t have friends or family in them. So I was very much so alone and then you go into work and they make it a point to feel even more alone. Even though I was Head Chef, you didn't really have much of a say. It wasn’t my food. I didn’t get to hire the people that I wanted. So I wasn’t making any of the changes that I wanted to make. I was tired and it was 2020 and I felt that I was done with the industry. I moved back to Ethiopia. I was like, “I’m done, this is wack and I’m not into it.”
Then I get a call from Marcus Samuelsson. “I was like, what the heck is happening right now?” He’s like, “Chef, it’s taken me quite awhile to track you down.” I was like, “what – what do you mean?“ I was so confused. He tells me about this restaurant. He told me that he was opening a restaurant in Chelsea and he wanted it to be run by me. I wanted to know more. He said that he wanted to build a sustainable menu and that he wanted it to be led by a woman of color as he felt that he had not put any spotlight on women of color.
So I was in Ethiopia for 6 months. I didn’t know what I was going to do. I was chilling. I still had my home and my brother still lives there – I was cool. There was no rush. So Marcus called and he said sustainable menu which really mattered to me a lot and having it led by women of color. I was like, “hold on, so I can make whatever food I want and I can hire whoever I want?” He was like, it’s you. It’s your restaurant. You can do what you want! So I was like, alright cool, I have to come back. Also, it didn’t feel like I was done with the industry.
AM: Right, you just needed the right fit.
CHEF FA: So this was my second chance at the industry. Then within a year and a half, we have had a stellar NY Times review, I’ve gotten my James Beard Nomination, all of this stuff and it’s like – wait, what?
AM: That’s so insane! You must have gotten off of the call and just been like – he’s been looking for me? I’m going to be working with this man?
CHEF FA: How? I mean – what? You’re looking for me? That don’t make no sense!
It was and it is and he is letting me do my thing. I’m really glad that I came back.
AM: It’s such a great story. I have had the pleasure of interviewing him before and I have also done a fun culinary video with him and seeing him at culinary events and competitions. Love his personality and his focus as well as everything about him is really amazing.
What does it mean to you for him to place you in this position and to have this massive responsibility as well as being able to chart your own path?
CHEF FA: It’s 2 things. There is that whole show that comes along with it. It’s a very public and media facing restaurant. I wouldn’t have known that I could be a voice for women of color in the culinary industry if he didn’t trust me with this you know? There is only 6% of women of color that are Executive Chefs which no wonder that we feel so lonely. I do know some women of color that are Executive Chefs, but they say that they don’t have to talk about it all the time. They feel that the more that you focus on race and all of that stuff, you’re taking away from your craft. But I’m like, people are making it a point to focus on it anyway.
AM: Exactly!
CHEF FA: Right, so why don’t you talk your shit?
AM: It’s intertwined!
CHEF FA: It is!
AM: You can’t do one without the other.
CHEF FA: People don’t want to separate it so I will talk about it. People immediately are only focused on the food. I am going to talk about it and he gave me the voice which I think really helps. Because now, so many women of color reach out to me and say, “Chef this is so inspiring. I almost gave up on the industry.”
But the other thing is that Marcus is the first and the only person to ever tell me this. When we first started opening the restaurant he could tell because I had never really worked for a restaurant where I was in charge that was this front facing. He started talking about that we would get reviewed in the first couple of months and I was like woah, “I have never had to deal with this.” I wasn’t sure if I could do it and he was the first person to ever tell me, “Chef, you’re here because you deserve to be. You know that right?” I’ll never forget those words. I’m like, “no actually. No one has ever said that to me. Not a single person has told me that you’re here because you deserve to be.” He told me that I worry about that way too much and that he brought me here because I made great food and I tell a great story. So he told me that, ”whoever walks through that door, if they don’t see you, that’s not your problem. You’re here because you deserve to be.” And that kind of felt like the shackles that I had the first 8 years of my career –“
AM: Broke.
CHEF FA: Yeah, it unlocked it. I was like, cool. I don’t have to prove myself to anyone. I’m here because I deserve to be. You know, you don’t see white men prove why they are there.
AM: No you don’t.
CHEF FA: Right, everyone just knows that that is what it is. They make the food, people see that is the chef and there isn’t anything else that has to be said or debated. So he gave that to me. He gave me the belief and the understanding that I am here because I deserve to be. He gave me that voice so it’s been very impactful. It’s the first time and I always tell my siblings that their job is important because they are literally saving lives. My job is not important and that is what I have been saying for the last 8 years, but now like I have been doing this for 12 years and it’s the first time that I have felt that what I do is important. I’m changing an entire industry in terms of how you can run a restaurant and also many people see that you need to bring more women of color into your restaurant.
AM: There are a lot of people out there in your space telling a story, but you need to also be out on platforms sharing how you’re rocking things too. To hear as you said that it’s less than 6%.
What can you tell us about this space, the ambiance, the design, and what can diners expect when they come here? I love how decadent it is when you look in. But there is a relaxing element to the space as well as whimsical with the Black mermaids which I love!
CHEF FA: Yeah! Well that’s all Derrick Adams! So when Marcus commissioned Derrick Adams to do the artwork here, he told him it was going to be a seafood restaurant and that it would be led by women of color. So immediately, Derrick Adams was like Black mermaids. He titled it, We Are From the Water Too.
AM: I love that!
CHEF FA: We Are From the Water Too! So Black mermaids. So Marcus always says, “when you lose the message of Hav, look at the mermaids.” Like, they will always bring you back to what our message is at Hav. Visually and aesthetically, the architects name is Zébulon Perron (Red Bull Music Academy, Broccolini Condo Store, Pancho) and he’s won awards for creating this space and he's actually amazing.
But I love how it looks simple, right? Which is why you can feel so relaxed and it doesn’t feel intimidating where you feel that you have to be buttoned up. But then you get into the details and it’s like woah, hold on!
AM: It’s very Matrix-y in some ways with the way that the fixtures are floating. There are sections and yet everything is still together. It’s mind trippy! A little bit like Salvador Dalí (Editor’s Note: A Spanish surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and his striking images. Major themes in his work included dreams, stretching and mixing realities, as well as the subconscious.)
There’s just a warmth.
CHEF FA: And you know, he wanted it to be an open kitchen obviously. So I always stand in the pass (Editor’s Note: This is where plates go for a final garnish or inspection before they’re sent to the dining room. It’s also where components of a dish that are prepped at different stations meet to be plated together,) so I am the first person that people see. If we’re going to have a restaurant led by a woman of color, we’re not going to hide her. We’re going to make sure that people know that she is at the helm of it all. So I take my position right there and we have guests that walk up. Sometimes people are like, “can we meet the Chef?”
AM: It’s like, hello!
CHEF FA: Haha yes, hello! Were you expecting someone or something different?
AM: Sometimes they are!
CHEF FA: Well most of the time they are!
We get so many people that come up! Little girls and they’re like, “I want to be a chef!” This space! When I first walked in, there was nothing! It was rubble – a pile of rubble! I was like, “I don’t know what y’all see!” They did it just like that – 2 months!
AM: Really?
CHEF FA: Yeah!
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: I love it here. I spend 80 hours in this building so -
AM: You know it very well!
CHEF FA: It’s not a bad place to spend 80 hours.
AM: What is the meaning behind the name?
CHEF FA: So Marcus is both Ethiopian Swedish. Hav is Swedish for ocean and Mar is the Ethiopian word for honey. So we are from the Sweet Waters which is how he describes it. But, it’s to pay homage to both his Swedish and Ethiopian roots.
AM: So what would you say the cuisine is and what are the ingredients and the flavors that are indicative of it?
CHEF FA: So when we were first talking about how we could make a sustainable menu, we kept coming back to seafood. Initially, he wanted to do a vegan restaurant.
AM: Part of me thought that this would have been a vegan restaurant.
CHEF FA: Right because when you talk about sustainability, that tends to be the best route to go. But then we were like, gosh, it’s really hard to tell our story through just plants. So we landed at seafood. I like to describe it as seafood. When we first opened it was, seafood told through the lens of the African Diaspora because it was very heavily influenced by African ingredients. I’m Ethiopian born and raised so a lot of Ethiopian influence, but I did a lot of West African ingredients too. Then we evolved because I have a Sous Chef from the Philippines and a Sous Chef from Puerto Rico.
PF: Oooo
AM: Yeah, both of us just said ooo at the same time!
CHEF FA: Yeah as the Executive Chef, the menu is mine. One day, I was feeling under the weather and my Filipino Sous Chef made me a traditional Filipino soup called Sinigang. I was in the pass and she saw me struggling as I was saying fire for the dishes. She said, “Chef, I made this for you.” I was like what is this and why is this not on our menu? She explained that it was from the Philippines and that they have a traditional soup made with fish. I was like, “you know we have a seafood restaurant?" Then I was like, hold on, I think that we should start bringing in their voices to the menu too. I don’t have to gatekeep this.
So then we started incorporating their dishes and then I think that that’s when Pete Wells (Editor’s Note: Pete Wells was the restaurant critic at The New York Times from 2011 – August 2024) came in to do the review and I was like, oh my God, we don’t really have an identity besides the fact that we are a seafood restaurant. He was like, “Chef Fariyal uses her global influence –.“ I was like, that’s who we are - we are a seafood restaurant. Some people will come in and say this is not African and I’m like we’re a seafood restaurant with a global influence. That’s it and now it has all of their global identities.
We have Puerto Rican flavors, we have Middle Eastern flavors, Filipino flavors – we have everything!
AM: That’s amazing.
CHEF FA: But the vessel is seafood. The seafood tells our story in terms of sustainability. It’s what keeps me up at night.
So when I was designing the menu and we were creating these dishes, we need to use as much of the ingredient as possible. I want very little waste. So the thing about restaurants is that we are one of the highest contributors of the Climate Crisis because we produce so much food waste and that ends up in landfills and I’m like how can we avoid all the waste that we produce here ending up in landfills? So it’s about using as much of the ingredient as possible.
So we are getting really creative so I have something called Ash Oil. So I was like, can we do anything with all of these scraps with the skins of scallions, onion skins, scallion tops that we throw away, garlic, and all of that stuff. Things that you would throw away and I thought that there has to be flavor in here! So we just put it in the Hearth oven which goes up to 800° and it gives it a nice char and then I blended it into a salt and then I mix that with oil so it has this super...
AM: Smoky
CHEF FA: Yes smoky flavor! So I was like, hold on this is edible and it gives this whole other dimension to dishes. So I was like, alright cool lets get really creative like that. Let’s use parts of ingredients that normally get thrown away. So that was Step 1.
Step 2 was how do I make sure that – obviously you can’t use 100% of everything.
AM: Right.
CHEF FA: How do I make sure that this doesn’t end up in landfills? So I did some research and found 2 different organizations one is called Afterlife. They come and pick up our compost every day. They grow mushrooms with our compost.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF FA: I built a dish around these mushrooms so it’s like a full 360 moment. But then, the most important thing is that after they are done growing these mushrooms they take the substrate which is the compost and they turn it into soil and they create something called Biochar. So Biochar is soil, but it has the ability to sink carbon for a 1,000 years.
AM: Wow so they are a Circular Farm.
CHEF FA: Right, so I was like hold on, this is really fly! So all of our compost goes to them. I work with them a lot and they are doing a lot of really amazing things.
AM: And they are based here in the city?
CHEF FA: Yeah! They do all of that and they make Biochar by using our compost and then they donate the Biochar to farmers and it helps them increase their yield. So farmers are getting better yield while making sure that we’re not increasing the output of Carbon Dioxide to the air. They also donate it to parks and it goes to Governors Island. So they do all of these wonderful things with our compost.
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: And then the second company, they’re called Billion Oyster Project.
AM: That’s the host of the dinner we’re going to on Thursday at Governors Island (Editor’s Note: You can read the story about this dinner from Outstanding in the Field in this issue).
CHEF FA: No way!
AM: Yeah Le Jardinier is the culinary portion and we’re very excited.
CHEF FA: Ok, that makes sense!
They are my second partner. So what they do is they collect oysters from restaurants and they are basically reconstituting the oyster population in the Hudson and all of the rivers here. What that does is it gives us a good filtration system. So they take our oysters because I’m like, let’s not get lazy with it. Technically, you could throw everything into a compost, but I’m like are there things that we can separate within the compost that makes better use? So since we have been open, Billion Oyster Project has been in the loop.
That is the most important thing to me. We can get all of the best accolades in the world. But the thing is, If you are contributing to a worse planet, what are you really doing?
AM: We have to do something and to keep researching for new innovations.
CHEF FA: Exactly!
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: I like talking about it because for example, Afterlife they have 20 restaurants that they have partnered with in NYC. Do you know how many restaurants there are in NYC? That’s wild that there are only 20 restaurants that participate!
I eventually want to end up in policy. I do work with Save the Children. I do a lot of advocacy work and I eventually want to end up there. But for now, if you can implement the stuff while you’re on the ground, that’s a great place to start.
AM: I can see you doing Food Advocacy work as Tom Colicchio and Todd English, both of them are doing what they can and making their voices heard.
CHEF FA: It’s important! Listen, I am a mushroom fiend! They are very tasty.
AM: In looking at the menu, the flow of it is really great! What are 3 dishes from your Raw & Cured that you would suggest for those coming in?
CHEF FA: Raw & Cured, so I am a little biased with my Tuna Tartare.
AM: I love a Tuna Tartare moment.
CHEF FA: It’s so good! Tuna Tartare is a must. Hamachi has been there since we have opened. It’s a ceviche that I use called the Black Ceviche which is non-traditional and I use the Ashe Oil in there. It’s very acidic, but that Ash Oil gives it that other dimension of what I was talking about when I was saying smoky. That’s not very traditional for a ceviche. I can never get rid of that. It will be on the menu forever. There are just some things – I mean we are a seasonal menu, but there are just some things that’s just like, there will be an uproar if we take that off the menu.
AM: People will be like, wait, is it even a restaurant if I can’t get this here? Forks raised in the air – where is it?
CHEF FA: For real – picketing! The Hamachi Ceviche and there is a dish called the Swediopian. So it is something that we have had since the beginning. Swediopian is our play on words where it’s Swedish and Ethiopian. So way before this restaurant opened, Marcus and I did an event for Pepsi and it was around the Super Bowl and he wanted a dish that represented both his Ethiopian and Swedish roots and he said to play around with the cured salmon. So I cured it using Swedish techniques, but then I used berbere which is an Ethiopian spice so it’s a twice cured salmon.
AM: Oh wow so it’s punchy.
CHEF FA: Yeah very actually. You guys need to come in and eat. Seriously.
AM: Oh we will, we want to be able to try that.
CHEF FA: So those three from the Raw & Cured are great!
AM: What are 3 Small Plates that you suggest that we should enjoy?
CHEF FA: Small Plates, we do a beautiful Scallop here.
AM: I love a Scallop.
CHEF FA: Yes, we have our Fall Menu coming in 3 weeks and so the format will change again.
Yes and the Salad is a big hit too! We always bring that in every Summer. I have this formula that I use. For this particular Salad I do a purée and it’s about what ingredient is at its best during the season? So for the Summer Salad, I do a corn purée then Heirloom tomatoes because you know and then I do a compressed watermelon.
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: What could be more Summer than that? So I always say get the Summer Salad and the Scallops – those are my 2 favorites.
AM: What is Happy Hour like here?
CHEF FA: Happy Hour is from 5-7pm. We have a separate menu that we do and our General Manager Tia, a woman of color whose Jamaican, she’s a Somm and she does the Beverage Program here.
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: So she wears many hats! So she makes awesome cocktails. We work in tandem and she takes ingredients from the kitchen that we are processed and done with and instead of throwing it away and making waste, she makes cocktails with it.
AM: Oh that’s smart and the sustainability continues.
So that means some of your cocktails are even a bit savory as well?
CHEF FA: Yup the Hav & Martini – so I make pickled red onions that I use as a garnish and I put beets in it to make that beautiful pink color. So when we're done pickling it, we used to toss out the juice. But she uses it in her Hav & Martini.
AM: I like that!
CHEF FA: Yeah it’s this beautiful pink hued beverage. She has this really beautiful way of explaining it because I don’t drink alcohol and I’m Muslim and I have never been in that world.
The way that she explains it she’s like this cocktail uses onions and this is why. I’m like, girl I don’t know, but it sounds good!
AM: It’s smart because there are a lot of studios in this area -
CHEF FA: Art studios.
AM: So you’re open for dinner every night. Do you ever foresee a lunch service? What was the decision behind this?
CHEF FA: So one thing that I love patting myself on the back for is because when you start getting to this whole thing – James Beard, Michelin, and all of that stuff – people equate how difficult it is to get into a restaurant with how successful that restaurant is. I always tell people – it’s not a competition, but when you look at and line up all of the restaurants, I have 140 seats. We are open 7 days a week and a lot of these restaurants are not open 7 days a week. They’re not and in this post COVID climate, it’s very challenging to have enough staff to be open and operating 7 days a week and that’s a really huge deal.
AM: Yup!
CHEF FA: And most of the restaurants, I mean this is a very big operation in terms of seats.
AM: When I walked in, I thought, they’re not playing.
CHEF FA: Yeah so 140 seats, 7 days a week. I’m like, you guys don’t understand – like when you guys are like who is the best chef? Look at the operation also, you know what I mean? I could run a 12 seat restaurant that’s open 4 days a week. I could run that very easily. So it already is doing the most because we are open 7 days a week in this restaurant. But Marcus does have pipe dreams of being open for lunch and I’m like, “Chef, where are these people? Where is the staff that I’m supposed to find?” I would say that that is the biggest challenge of being open for more service – it’s just not the same. The pool of people to hire is not the same at all.
AM: So speaking to that, what is an average day like?
CHEF FA: So the operating hours is that we are open from 5-10pm.
So there are 2 shifts. The AM team gets here at 8am. They are here from 8-4pm. They prep the food that all the guests are going to eat. So our rule is, “today’s food, for today’s guests.” So everything is made fresh inhouse every day. There is no rolling over. I have a Sous Chef, I have a Pastry Chef, 2 Prep Cooks, and a Dishwasher.
AM: Wow.
CHEF FA: So that’s who’s here from 8 – 4pm.
Then at 3pm, my line team gets here. So they are the ones that cook the food. So there is an hour overlap between the 2 of them. But they will be here from 3 – 11pm. So there is the prep team and the service team.
AM: Oh wow.
CHEF FA: I have to kind of be here for both.
So I get here between 12-2 and then I stay here until the last table leaves.
AM: So on your admin day, is that when you are touching base with the group?
CHEF FA: So with the group, we have weekly meetings every Wed. So we have our meetings with our Director of Operations. The only reason why she is here today is because our General Manager is in Chicago. But we have a meeting with her, our CEO, and our CFO every Wed. about our P&L. So I have to know every single penny that comes into this building and every single penny that leaves this building. So I always give them a presentation every single Wed. This is where we’re at, this is the goal, this is what my food cost is, this is what my labor cost is, and this is our bottom line. It’s every Wed. and I have to be prepared to talk about our numbers in and out.
But when I say admin stuff, it’s like every Mon. we do payroll. Bit every day, I process invoices. So there is always something. Or there is scheduling I do that every week.
AM: You are a woman of many hats.
CHEF FA: It never ends.
AM: So obviously we were talking about the Met Gala earlier during your shoot. You looked phenomenal on the red carpet. What did it mean to you to be part of that event in addition to obviously doing the menu itself? Just being in that apex of fashion.
CHEF FA: So in the moment, I obviously didn’t grasp how big it was!
Somehow in the end it looks like I’m a fashion forward person ...
That was important for me 1 – it was kind of my debut. We had done so many shoots with Vogue and a lot of stuff and it was like, Chef Fariyal, Chef Fariyal. I was always cooking behind the scenes and now it was like, people know me as a chef now. It was cool and that’s what kind of catapulted the whole TV and media. Because that is when I got a call from the President of Food Network. They were like, hold on, who are you and why are you not on TV? I was like what do you mean because I’m a Chef? What do you mean TV? But that is what catapulted it all. It was that Met Gala, that red carpet.
AM: You were on a lot of the main pages of a number of international editions of Vogue as well as the one here. It was like Lady Gaga what? I remember thinking wow and she’s a Chef on that red carpet – wow. It’s like that’s huge because I thought that she would be in the kitchen.
CHEF FA: I thought that I was going to cook, but no!
AM: What does it mean to your brand because you are doing Chopped as a judge or you’re on Alex vs. America as a judge, or you’re on your Roku show, Celebrity Family Food Battle, and you have done different kinds of things. What does that mean to you when you look at that particular component. Because it feels like being a Chef now – although you don’t have to do this – it has become elevated where you have to have these other touch points that includes TV.
CHEF FA: So it kind of goes hand-in-hand. One of the reasons that the restaurant has been successful is that obviously we’re blessed to have Marcus and his brand behind it and now it’s 50/50. Just as many people walk into the building to meet me as they do asking for Marcus and it’s because I do so many things and when they introduce me on TV they say, that is the Executive Chef from Hav & Mar. So it really helps and my brand is very closely tied to Hav & Mar. So we keep those butts in these seats.
AM: You’re rocking those 7 nights!
CHEF FA: Yeah!
AM: And being a finalist for James Beard. What does that mean to you?
CHEF FA: Oh my gosh, that was never – to me, it was one of those things like James Beard wasn’t even a North Star for me. It wasn’t something that I thought would ever be in my world or something that I could even attain. Then when I moved to Hav & Mar and we opened this restaurant, Marcus asked me what some of my goals were.
I was like, James Beard and he said, “oh, ok.” I was like, “what you mean?”
AM: And he was like what part did you not get? The O or the K?
CHEF FA: I want to be nominated for a James Beard. The other thing was Food & Wine Best Chef. I wanted to be in that category too. And he made me write a list and he said that these were all things that we could work towards. I didn’t think that it would come so fast within my first year of opening the restaurant.
So when I got my nomination for James Beard, I was on set at Chopped and the list came out. It was like right between takes and my phone because I always have it under my leg, it was going off. I was like is the restaurant on fire? What is going on? So I kind of snuck a look and I was like what? James Beard – whatever. And then in between, I read the first text and it was like, congratulations you are a nominated and I was like, what are they talking about? So I was with my co-judges and I was like, Tiffany, I just got nominated for a James Beard and everyone was like what that’s so cool! Then it was like, “and action!”
So literally this is happening in between takes and obviously everyone on set knew how big of a deal this was and what made it really special was that at some point, somebody went out and got flowers and a card. They made the entire team come out on set – every single person that works on Chopped came to give me flowers.
They announced it and said Chef Fariyal is a James Beard nominated Chef! It was very emotional.
AM: That is very cool!
CHEF FA: It was really emotional and how cool is that moment? I’m on the set of Chopped, we’re their celebrating a James Beard nomination and then of course, everyone was like wow just to be nominated is really important and a lot of people don’t even make it to the finals. The people were making sure that I didn’t get my hopes up. But sure enough, I made that shortlist too! It was like what? This is insane. So now, we’re really pulling up. We’re pulling up to the James Beard Awards – this is amazing. I thought that up until that moment that it was just the nomination that mattered to me.
But then, I am in the first category. I sat down, there was a quick presentation. First award of the night is the Emerging Chef Category. I had this super powerful and emotional speech written. I had envisioned it, I was going to go up there and Marcus had given me a pep talk and said that not that many people get it on their first nomination. So if they don't say your name, just try to find it within you to not be disappointed. Because the fact that you made it this far is insane.
AM: Yeah, it’s huge!
CHEF FA: Right so it’s my first nomination. I just remember that they didn’t say my name. I was like woah, I want that. But I didn’t know that I wanted to win. I thought – I mean my goal that I had written down was – I wanted to be nominated. But when they didn’t say my name, it was a 2 second thing where I said, I do want to win. Next year. Then afterwards, the President of James Beard came up to me and everyone was coming up to me and everyone was shocked. They thought that I really had this one. But they told me, you know you’re going to be here many, many, many more times.
AM: Exactly! And the dress you wore was amazing!
CHEF FA: That was like full on from my tribe! Because I did a little bit of it for Met Gala with the headband. But then I wore the full attire this time. That was part of the speech too! I was like gosh, I have to wear it every year now?
AM: Well, you set a little precedent for yourself.
CHEF FA: I did! But that was really important you know because I -
AM: Well representation!
CHEF FA: That’s the thing! I represent 4 voices in America – I’m Black, I’m a woman, I’m Muslim, and I’m an immigrant. 4 of the most underrepresented voices and I think about that every day. I just can’t carry myself like that – this stuff matters, you know what I mean? People are paying attention to me and I have to be very careful about how I speak, what I say, and it’s not all fun and games.
The reason why I was disappointed that I didn’t get it is because we talk about so much about how this is – I always talk about how we need to give women of color more opportunities in the kitchen. So when I got the nomination, it wasn’t just me, I was making a case and a point for why more people of color should be nominated in these things. Then when I didn’t win I was like, gosh, did I let everybody down? I don't know.
AM: No, not at all.
CHEF FA: I got us in the room.
AM: You got in the room and like you said, you will have many more opportunities.
Do you envision having your own cookbook? I know that you had a recipe that was included in a cookbook.
CHEF FA: They are on my case every day!
AM: Haha I can imagine.
CHEF FA: It’s definitely in the pipeline. It’s just a matter of me finding the time.
AM: Last year, we had the pleasure of covering the Food Network Wine Food Festival and this year, you are going to be participating. How excited are you to be part of it, is this your first time?
CHEF FA: This is my first time!
Well I’m doing -
AM: I know that you have a sit down dinner that you’re doing right?
CHEF FA: It’s a Hav & Mar X The Musket Room Brunch with the chefs from The Musket Room. So that’s Mary Attea and Camari Mick. How much more aligned can we get? Like Camari is also killing it in the game! So we got on the phone and we came up with the menu in like 3 seconds and we knew that this was going to be so fun. But I think that that will be so powerful. That should be fun so I’m excited.
I’m also doing the Blue Moon Burger Bash: Champions vs. Challengers presented by Pat LaFrieda and hosted by Rachael Ray.
That is going to be fun, a little burger competition.
AM: We loved the spread of coverage and the fact that you could to eat a number of amazing dishes, connect with people we have covered as well as to hang out with the food community, it’s a good time.
I love that we’re living in a time right now where people are understanding more and want to get a better awareness of the restaurant industry. That’s whether you’re watching Chopped, Top Chef, or The Bear.
CHEF FA: Oh yeah.
AM: I love The Bear!
On your IG, you’ve been talking about the industry, explaining terms, and giving people an inside scoop. Why do you also enjoy sharing this aspect so that people are able to know more about you, but also the industry?
CHEF FA: It was kind of a natural progression from people developing an interest from watching these programs. There are all these Food Network shows, but it’s not an insight into how restaurants are. I think it was The Bear that started this whole thing. People would start using kitchen terms and be like, “how does the pass work?” and I was like what? How did you know about the pass? Where did you -
AM: Carmy said it!
CHEF FA: Exactly, Carmy said it. Oh my gosh! But I am glad that if they’re going to take any information from a show, it’s The Bear because it’s 1000% accurate. Now obviously, there are some Hollywood liberties that they take so that it makes it more dramatic or whatever. But it is a very accurate representation of how restaurants are. So, it came from people being so interested and asking questions. Then on my end too, it’s like it was such a huge shift when the industry was shut down during the pandemic and then opening back up. I was like, people are going to be nice. Right? Because we’re all struggling collectively as humanity.
No, we would get people that were so mean to our servers and just being super mean, just like – beyond. So I thought, well maybe if you give people insight into how tough that it actually is to get the food to your table, you’d be more grateful for this experience.
AM: Tell me about Take Care of Home, why you created it, and what does it do?
CHEF FA: So it’s a non-profit that I started with my friends from Ethiopia. Education has always been at the forefront of my philanthropy work because my mom was set in an arranged marriage when she was 16. So she had to drop out of school in the 8th grade and she was married and started having kids at 16 and her only regret in life was that she didn’t finish school. She stressed that with us. She put all 6 of us thorough private school. It was really important to her. So it became important to me. In Ethiopia, there is a huge gap where in the capitol city, there are a number of schools. But in rural parts of the country, there aren’t actually that many schools because the government only has the funds to subsidize teacher’s salaries, but there are no physical structures because no one has the money to build these infrastructures. So on paper, the schools exist, but no one is going. You’re learning under a shed and under crazy circumstances.
So we were like if this is what is going on and all they need is funding to build the schools, why don’t we do that? So we created Take Care of Home just by the first year was just asking our friends. We were like, we could build a school with $20,000 US or $60,000 US depending on the size of the school. The first year we raised money just by asking our friends. Then it becamea formal thing. We became a non-profit, and we spent an entire year raising money and we just built our 9th school.
AM: Wow!
CHEF FA: We’ve been open for 7 years. We have also expanded our initiatives as well. The first school that we completed, we always go back and visit. We noticed that it was mostly boys that were attending school, but not girls. So when we started digging into that, we learned that in that part of the country, girls don’t really get to go to school because they have house things that they have to do. Especially, when it comes to getting water. None of these homes have direct access to water so the girls have to go to the river and it’s not always close or nearby. So they can’t go to school. So I said, what if we fix that problem?
So we started a second initiative where we build water pipelines to the homes. We started doing that and that freed the girls to start going to school. So we are learning as we go. We’re adding more initiatives in addition to building schools.
AM: 9 is huge!
CHEF FA: 9 schools and I’m very proud of it!
AM: Are there any upcoming projects that we should know about that are on your radar that you are comfortable in sharing with us?
CHEF FA: Not really – obviously you know that there are always talks like TV shows.
AM: How do you take time for yourself when you’re not doing all of the things at the restaurant or are on set for TV? How do you reset especially with the amount of hours you have for work?
CHEF FA: So my reset is if I do take 2 days off like a human being, and I am doing this next week, after I get off of work here, I go straight to the airport, hop on a redeye, to go be with my family for 36 hours and then come right back. So I usually catch the red eye coming back and I come here straight to work. I’m usually suitcase out and suitcase in. So my family is my reset.
AM: What do you want your legacy to be?
CHEF FA: See that’s an Oprah style question?
AM: Yes, she was my very first interview when I was 12.
CHEF FA: No way. But it makes sense. I’m not surprised!
Ok, what I want my legacy to be is the Chef that changed the culture.
AM: Yeah!
CHEF FA: Anybody could make good food honestly. I could give anybody the recipe and they could carry it out. But to make people feel seen and that they deserve to be here the same way that Marcus made me feel that I deserved to be here regardless of your race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation – none of that stuff matters when you’re making food. None of that stuff matters at all! But we have not created that yet and I think that that is what I have done with these guys. But I want it to go beyond these 4 walls. This should be how restaurants are run.
AM: 100%
CHEF FA: I’ve had these conversations with Chefs and they’re like, nope – it would never work. Like, if you want to make this kind of food, this is how you have to run the kitchens. Ok, but then why am I able to make it work here? It’s happening here now.
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Read the AUG ISSUE #104 of Athleisure Mag and see INTEGRITY EXCELLENCE SUSTAINABILITY | Chef Fariyal Abdullahi in mag.
This month, we had the pleasure to sit down and talk with Chef Alton Brown who is known as a TV Personality, super informative food scientist, author, voice actor, and cinematographer. Growing up, we enjoyed watching Food Network's Good Eats so much, which examined the origins of ingredients, and shares culinary customs and shared recipes with us. In addition, we enjoyed watching him host Iron Chef America on the network as well as Netflix's Iron Chef: Quest For An Iron Legend.
His passion behind the science of food, as well as its history, is always exciting to learn about. We took some time to find out about brain health, how he got into the industry and his partnership with Neuriva.
ATHLEISURE MAG: I have been a fan of your work ever since 1999 when I saw the first episode of Good Eats on Food Network!
ALTON BROWN: Oh wow! You were in grade school?
AM: Hmm ’99, I was in college!
AB: It’s funny, it still sounds recent. When I hear someone say 1999, I’m like that’s not too far away!
AM: Same! I was born in ’79 so I don’t feel it’s that far away!
AB: I graduated from high school in ’79!
AM: We’re always talking about health – fitness, gut, mental, and we don’t always get to brain health. But that is an important component as well. Why is it important to you?
AB: Well I really started to think about it a lot when I was thinking about the fact that I was going to turn 60 soon. I studied nutrition so much and I have read so much about it – I have probably forgotten a lot but, I hadn’t really spent a lot of time thinking about what my brain actually needed from me from a culinary standpoint, a supplemental standpoint, an exercise standpoint, or any standpoint. So I started doing a fair amount of research from a few years ago reading peer review papers and I have always enjoyed research. When I got a call from Neuriva, I was like, I already know what is in there, because I have already read papers on ashwagandha and papers on NeuroFactor and so it was very clear to me very quickly that they were very into the science, as was I. That’s how that started and that’s how I got interested in learning about what brains need and they are very complex organs. They do need things and a lot of what it is that they need, is that we need to feed them. The rest, I think supplementally helps.
For me, I break it down into exercise, quality sleep – which most of us do not get – as sleep is gigantic and really almost more important than exercise, nutrition, and what I call – brain stretching. For me, I always need to be in a state of always learning about something that I don’t know. It’s about studying and not just reading for fun. I have to have the ability to actively acquire information.
AM: Yeah, like putting the pieces together.
AB: Right, or my brain gets lazy. It does the equivalent of cracking a beer and sitting down in front of the TV if it’s not actively learning. That’s my brain – not me!
AM: Of course not you!
AB: I’m not a beer person!
And the other part is supplements. When I was studying nutrition from a brain standpoint, I thought there are a lot of things that I would like to get, but it’s just hard to get in food. You can, but not easily because you would have to eat a whole lot of something that you don’t want to. So I break it down into those 5 parts. I try to learn and now that I am in my 60’s, I need to try to learn enough so that my brain can continue to go for perhaps a little while longer.
AM: So what is Neuriva?
AB: You mean the actual supplement itself?
AM: Yes!
AB: Well, there are several of them. They have different things in them, but really, it’s a matter of adding, so the original Neuriva has this thing called NeuroFactor which is an extract from coffee berries – not the seeds, the berries. It also has Phosphatidylserine which is a phospholipid which supports cell membranes especially in the brain. So those 2 chemicals together – originally they were obtained from animal sources and then someone figured out how to get them from soybeans so it’s vegetable derived now. But those 2 things together formed a core of the two nutrients that I was interested in that I couldn’t just get.
You can get coffee berries for your beverage, but you need a lot and I’d rather take them in this supplement. On top of that I don’t really like the way that it tastes. For the Phosphatidylserine, it’s just almost impossible to get. So, those 2 things help you do maintenance for connectivity and cell membranes and then they added Neuriva Plus which brought B6 and B12 to they party. They are very symbiotic vitamins for brain health with those others. Then when Ultra came out, that added an extract from a member of the ginger family – Galangal – there are 4 different kinds of Galangals in the ginger family. They are wonderful for enhancing alertness. I like that one because it also works symbiotically with caffeine. It doesn’t have caffeine, but it works with it and I am a coffee person, so I have moved to that. It’s the same package plus the B Vitamins, plus that extract so it’s kind of like, you can get the base model or the extra! Of course when they come out with their next one, I don’t know! Because now that they have used Ultra, I told them to be careful about that as when it's out, what are you going to do? I mean what’s next, Super Ultra?
AM: Just hearing you talk about how you delve into the base parts of how things come together, how did you come to the culinary industry?
AB: I was a filmmaker, cinematographer, and director for TV commercials. I watched food shows and back in the late 80’s and the 90’s, I thought that they were boring and I knew that I wasn’t really learning anything. It was like, I have another recipe, great. But I don’t know why and I don’t know why any of this works?
I wanted shows that were more exciting and more visual. I wanted to know more on why that was going on and no one wanted to make that show.
So I quit and I went to culinary school. When I went to culinary school, I realized that they weren’t going to show me why either. Luckily, there was another college in this little town I went to for culinary school in Vermont and they had a library that we could use. So they would publish their chemistry reading list and I just went and started studying it because unfortunately, science is the answer to just about everything. There’s a science play everywhere, not necessarily for matters of the heart, but everything else.
So I think that I got addicted in a way that was chemical to telling those stories and to get people excited and to get people to be curious. It sparked in me a curiosity engine that I wouldn’t want to turn off.
AM: We love hearing about people's routines! What are 3 things that they enjoy doing, having, enjoying/being in the Morning, Afternoon, and at Night. We call this 63MIX ROUTIN3S.
AB: This has very much come out of my brain studies.
AM: I assumed!
AB: As a matter of fact, I'm not naturally a routine person. The only routine that I used to have was that I will stumble out somewhere and I will find coffee. When I went to bed, where I got to bed – at that time, everything was about work. I would work until 4 in the morning and then when I got up, I did it all over again.
So now with this routine that I have, it's about sleep and I have a bed time! I have a bed time. I have a bed hour that I have to get to bed during. Somewhere between 10:30 and 11:30, I must be in bed.
I can’t look at a screen at least 2 hours before then. It screws up everything. I can read, but it has to be a book. I have to get that sleep!
I also have a time that I get up and it’s no later than 6:30 in the morning. Because the morning to me is like stolen time it’s before you have to do things for other people. I’m working on my first collection of essays and memoirs stuff right know which has been a very challenging thing right now. I write better in the morning and I edit what I wrote at night better at this time. So that's a very big one.
My wife and I, Elizabeth, do not eat after 8pm at night. If that’s not enforced, you automatically set a clock where it forces at least a 15 hour break for the next day which puts me off my schedule for breakfast!
And then the other thing that I won't call a routine is that I used to say, ok, I'm going to workout. It's like, I have to put on clothes that I don't like.
AM: No 3-piece suits!
AB: It depends! I knew that it would be an hour and a half and that I would hate it. So instead, I have learned to break it up into chunks. I do micro workouts! I try to do 3 of them everyday. One of them has to be weight related. It doesn’t have to be a lot of weight.
One of them has to be 100% cardio. It can be fast - or when we're in NY, we have an apartment here and we live in Atlanta. If there is a coffeeshop that I want to go to like when we have our apartment here in NY, as opposed to picking the one on our block, I’ll pick one that is 3 miles away. So I earn -
AM: You earn that coffee!
AB: Yes! So there's always a cardio, there's always a weightlifting and this is going to sound so stupid, but my wife read this book called Breathe and convinced me that the entirety of my life, I had been breathing wrong. I don’t meditate because it makes me fall asleep, but I literally stop and work on nothing but breathing for half an hour.
AM: Breathwork is so important!
AB: Well I never knew that! I just thought that is was eh?
AM: I started doing it about a year ago and it really is effective!
AB: I was like, I'm already breathing! But the truth is, I'm a scuba diver and when I got the scuba diving training when I was much much younger, breath control was such a huge huge part of making your air last and not sinking all of the time, so it reminded me of that training that I went through and it's incredibly effective both mentally and physically! Two years ago, I wouldn't have been into it!
AM: It has been such a pleasure to chat with you and to be able to meet you and being such a fan of Good Eats as well as other shows that you have been on!
We enjoyed interviewing Alton and in addition to having time to talk with him, we enjoyed an intimate dinner party with him and the Neuriva team that would fuel our brain health.
Over our four course dinner at Hearth, Chef Marco Canora's (founder of Bone Broth brand, Brodo) Tuscan-American farm-to-table restaurant in the East Village of NYC, Alton walked us through each of the dishes! Of course, he provided the science behind them and why they are effective. Our first course was the Ribollita. It's an honor to share some select notes highlighted by Chef Alton from this special dinner.
AB: I’m so excited that we’re sharing this intimate dinner party together and as we enjoy our various courses, I’m going to tell you a bit about the brain nutrients that are involved in the dishes that we’re going to enjoy! The brain needs a number of nutrients for its health and you can get those outside of a supplementary way. One of the ingredients is coffee berries – I like coffee but I don’t like the berries and I’m not a fan of the taste and another one is Phosphatidylserine which is a lipid, a phospholipid that we used to get from brains in animals and now we get them from soybeans. It helps to build and maintain cell membranes and I want this stuff, I need to get this, and I can’t get enough of it in food. Then, all of a sudden there was the original Neuriva formula which I believe only contained those two things. So I knew it was the supplement for me as I wouldn’t be able to get enough of it in food.
So not too long after that, I was called up by them and I thought yes, get your scientists on the phone because I want to talk about white papers and everything. So it happened very naturally to partner with Neuriva and it’s been a couple of great years. I have been taking the product for awhile now and Ultra happens to be my favorite because it works really nicely when the caffeine hits.
We have a very stimulating evening ahead and we also have what I like to call instead of a Tasting Menu, a Thinking Menu as we talk about food. Everybody knows what the Mediterranean Diet (Editor’s Note: The Mediterranean Diet is a diet inspired by the eating habits and traditional food typical of southern Spain, southern Italy, and Crete, and formulated in the early 1960s.) is as it can be a bit loosey goosey and sexy and cool. It has had some great effects. From that is another diet that emerged from it known as the DASH Diet (Editor’s Note: Known as the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, it is a flexible and balanced eating plan that helps create a heart-healthy eating style for life) that some of you may not have heard of that is a version of the Mediterranean Diet that was designed specifically for people that were fighting hypertension problems. So if anyone with us was in the 80s we used to have these things called Graphic Equalizer Stereos that turned things up and down on different parts of the soundwave and that’s what that diet did. It went for the hypertension part and removed salt and then it did some other things. Then in the 2015, Martha Clare Morris came up with the MIND Diet (Editor’s Note: Known as The Mediterranean – DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay Diet combines portions of the DASH Diet and the Mediterranean Diet which have been shown to improve cognition) and it takes the same componentry of the Mediterranean Diet and changing it up for our brains. What would our brains want out of that diet? It’s a little bit different as it emphasizes some other components that might not have been as focused as much. For instance, all the diets have fruit! No one is going to talk bad about fruit. The MIND Diet says, you know what? The brain really wants dark berries. Blueberries - eat your blueberries. Have more olive oil, eat more leafy greens. No one is going to say anything bad about these things either. The MIND Diet has more poultry, even more than fish! There is a substance in poultry called choline (Editor’s Note: Found in poultry, this prevents abnormal storage of fat in the liver, which ensures proper body metabolism and efficient utilization of nutrients. It also supports the proper functioning of the nervous system and ensures its harmony.) which is really hard to get anywhere else, but in good lean, protein meat. Choline has a lot to do with enhancing the way that phospholipids work in the brain and our membranes as well. The good news is that unlike other diets, red wine is on the MIND Diet currently. There is some research for that. Tonight, we’re going to eat 4 courses. We’ll try to enhance and bring to the party, some of those foods that are incorporated into the MIND Diet and we’ll talk about it course by course as we go through it.
We are very fortunate to be at this restaurant! Hearth is one of the best restaurants in NY and I have known Chef Marco Canora for many years. There are brilliant, brilliant cooks here. Chef Michael Keough is here tonight and I hope he will come in and say something to us in a bit. I had some questions for him this morning and he was so gracious about answering about things that are on tonight’s menu.
Our first course is going to be a soup called Ribollita. If anybody has spent time in Tuscany, this is a soup that you would have seen there. It's a basic - I hate to say the word the word but here it comes – rustic soup. What this one does is it’s going to hit one of the major notes and chords of the MIND Diet – beans! When we talk about green beans, we’re also talking about dry beans. This is a bean soup in vegetable stock and we will be enjoying those vegetables tonight! There will be carrots, there are some onions, and I believe there is some cabbage in there. This also has some sage and garlic infusion. The cool thing about this in its traditional form, is that is bread based. It is thickened usually with moistened bread and always served with crisp, giant croutons on top. There is also a dusting of parmesan cheese. But most of the flavor will be coming from those beans. That’s going to guarantee that we are getting those beans that we want. Of course you can enjoy the bread as well as the olive oil which is also perfect for this diet as well.
We enjoyed this hearty soup which was flavorful and nourishing. It really set the stage for the next portion of our meal which was a Pizzocheri, a ribbon pasta.
AB: As we continue on in the MIND Diet, the next course is a Pizzocheri. We don’t talk much about mushrooms in brain health and brain support, but there’s a lot of research that suggests that we should be focusing on them a lot more. They’re good for our bodies, our planet, and our brains. This Pizzocheri is topped with a little bit of fontina cheese and what we’re getting is some great vegetation with the cabbage and some brain healthy mushrooms that are not currently listed on the MIND Diet, but I think that they will be in the next few years and a whole grain pasta which is a perfectly acceptable way to get your grains.
This was yet another dish from the night that was filling an full of nutrients that are beneficial to our health. We all agreed that this was something that we would enjoy eating throughout the winter! Where the first, second and the fourth course are dishes that are currently on Hearth's menu, but were adjusted to have the brain health specific ingredients that are part of the MIND Diet, our third course is a recipe from Alton Brown that we were excited to try as we know his love for chicken!
AB: We are at the Main Course event for tonight! This is my recipe and it is actually a conglomeration of two of my spatchcock recipes. I like to cut the back of my chickens – some people call it butterflying, I think that spatchcock is far more sexy! So this features a couple of Middle Eastern spices that I am a big fan of, Aleppo pepper and Za’atar that I know that you all are very very familiar with. So we’re getting our poultry in which is definitely on this diet. But also, we’re taking in our greens from another chicken dish of mine, a Sesame Glazed Dark Greens which it is being served with it tonight. I believe we’re going to have a Black Kale and 2 other greens, I’m not sure what they ended up with tonight, but it is 3 very different organic greens. They have been sauteed and it’s whatever they got from the market today. The sauce is a straight forward pan sauce that are the drippings from the chicken with a little bit of butter and poured right over the chicken. This is something that I like to do once I got into the MIND set of the MIND Diet which is combining various things that were in the diet to support each other. I love chicken, it’s my favorite meat. There are days where I don’t want to eat my greens and I try to hide them – I will tell you that! But because they are brought together by the lemon glaze with sesame, it unites the dish in a really handy way! So I hope you enjoy it and smell it!
Without a doubt, this is a chicken that we could have again and again! The greens were also something that we want to put in our rotation as well! We have the recipe for both of these dishes that you can make for yourself for Alton's Butterflied Chicken with Aleppo and Za’atar as well as his Lemon Sesame Glazed Greens!
Of course, we ended this amazing meal with dessert and enjoyed a Tangerine Almond Cake.
AB: Dessert! Believe it or not, on the MIND Diet, desserts can be had especially when they contain nuts! Nuts are a big part of this diet because nuts have a lot of fantastic fats that are not only good for your body, but also for your brain. It’s the phytochemicals that are still being studied as we speak. This is an almond with most of the cream off to the side and kumquats. Of course, they are a great source of Vitamin C and so this is a dessert in the Italian style where the accent is really on the flavor of the ingredients rather than an added sweetness. Enjoy!
We enjoyed being able to chat with Alton as well as to be invited to his dinner party to enjoy a great meal as well as one that benefits our brain health!
We also learned about the brand's 30-Day Brain Health Challenge, an easy and fun way to redefine cognitive potential and establish a brain-healthy routine. This allows consumers to choose their Neuriva of choice and taking it for 30 days to help support up to 7 indicators of brain health, including memory. You can also download the Neuriva Brain Gym app, to play stimulating Brain Games daily and see the results for yourself.
IG @altonbrown
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | PG 60, 65 + 67 Discovery+/Good Eats: The Return | PG 62 Neuriva | PG 69 - 73 Netflix/Patrick Wymore |
Read the FEB ISSUE #98 of Athleisure Mag and see BRAIN HEALTH IS KEY | Alton Brown in mag.
YAO opened on Jan. 29th of 2024. Executive Chef-Owner, Kenny Leung, immersed himself in a government culinary program in Canton, China. After graduating, Chef Kenny flourished at Canton’s prestigious White Swan Hotel and Restaurant; it was the only restaurant to earn a Michelin Star. In 1988, he moved to NYC to join the culinary landscape. In 2015, he co-founded August Gatherings with Thomas Tang.
Thomas is an Owner-Operator, who grew up as the son of one of China’s top chefs who catered for regal events. As an adult, he moved to New York City. He met Chef Kenny while working together in the original location of August Gatherings. They decided to purchase the Canal Street location and have been partners since.
Every detail of YAO’s interior reflects the harmonious blend of Chef Kenny’s culinary art and meticulous eye for design.
YAO is a modern Cantonese cuisine located in the Financial District. Center to the YAO’s ethos are the crown jewels of Cantonese cuisine, abalone, sea cucumber, and fish maw.
The six-course tasting menu, named “Jia Yan”, a Chinese word loosely translating to “a celebratory family gathering” or “banquet begins with an amuse bouche followed by Shikoku Bamboo Shrimp Dumpling. The banquet continues with Gold Leaf wrapped Fried Abalone, sustainably sourced grade-6 wild abalone from South Africa that is deep-fried, sitting atop a house made sauce on a crispy wonton skin, wrapped in edible gold leaf. This creates several layers of texture, notable in Cantonese cuisine.
One of the main stars of the progression is the Alaskan King Crab Wensi Tofu Soup. The broth is a two-day production, made from the shell of the crab with ham and chicken, not boiled, then placed in a water bath. Grilled Angus Short Rib is tenderized with kiwi, drizzled tableside in a pear and oyster sauce. Longevity Noodles with Fish Maw is a jewel in Cantonese cuisine as it's rich in collagen. The final course of the progression is their seasonal signature dessert, a warm Deep Fried Mochi Sesame Ball filled with Red Bean Paste served on top of a homemade seasonal fuji apple sorbet.
The six-course tasting menu is available for both lunch and dinner, Monday through Sunday from 11:30 a.m. – 10 p.m.
In addition, you can order from the a la carte menu as well. For appetizers, we suggest Brown Sugar Duck Thigh, Shumai Abalone and Pork as well as Fried Crab Meat with Shrimp dim sum. For entrees, we suggest Oven Roasted Black Angus Short Rib, Wensi Tofu Soup and Assorted Organic Mushrooms in Hot Stone Pot.
PHOTO CREDITS | YAO
Read the FEB ISSUE #98 of Athleisure Mag and see ATHLEISURE LIST | YAO in mag.
Read the DEC ISSUE #96 of Athleisure Mag and see THE 9LIST M3NU in mag.
This month, The Art of the Snack takes us down to Brooklyn where we plan on spending the holiday season enjoying savory seasoned bites as well as cocktails that will transport us! In addition, we're loving that the attention to detail for the audio experience is next level as well! We took some time to chat with the owener of Bohemein Bar, Tarek Debira to talk about this spot, what we should enjoy on our next visit, why it was created, and why the audio is so key!
ATHLEISURE MAG: When did Bohemien Bar open?
TAREK DEBIRA: February 2020.
AM: We like the concept of an upscale cocktail bar and listening room. Tell me the vision behind this concept and why you wanted to create a space that incorporated these elements together?
TD: Being a melophile, I was so excited to create a space that would have creative cocktails, nice design but also a great sound system.
Bars with good sound system have been around in Japan for while now but there’s only a hand full in NYC, so having the opportunity to open Bohemien Bar in my neighborhood was such fun and fulfilling experience. The vision was to give as much attention to details to all aspects of a cocktail bar, with a focus on sound experience.
AM: What is the ambiance of the space like?
TD: The ambiance is light and comfortable, transporting you away from the environment you’ll find at many other bars in Brooklyn. We wanted to create a sophisticated, yet easy-going vibe, and a go-to destination for an array of events, whether it be for celebration, a first-date, or just a drink after work.
AM: Who is the owner of Bohemien Bar and tell us about their background and why they wanted to create this space?
TD: Bohemien Bar is the most recent passion project from Husband-and-Wife team, Tarek Debira, (formerly at Hotel Costes in Paris and Nobu Los Angeles) and Patricia Ageheim, (formerly at Standard Grill and Indochine), who have an extensive resumé in the fine dining and the hospitality world. The pair also own one of Brooklyn Heights' most celebrated speakeasies Le Boudoir and beloved French bistro Chez Moi. Their passion and attention to detail come to life at Bohemien Bar, where they combine a high-fidelity listening experience with meticulously crafted cocktails and a chef-curated menu.
AM: Tell us about Perry Brandston and other projects, his background and how he came to Bohemien Bar?
TD: For the last few years, Pete has been hosting DIY audio meetups in Brooklyn for folks who like to build their own audio gear, and that's where Pete met Perry. Perry was describing a pair of line arrays he designed and built, and a few months later Pete hosted one of his meetups at Perry's space to give them a listen. Later on, a friend connected Pete and Tarek, Pete suggested a version of Perry's arrays for the bar, and the rest is history.
Perry has been in live sound and more creative sound implementations for the last 40+ years. He worked very closely back in the day with some of the pioneers of club sound. His designs come from a place of trying to recreate an authentic ecstatic experience - it has to sound great, but he's not chasing after the same audiophile nonsense others chase after. His last project was Oda - a small pair of compact flat-panel speakers that recreate the sound and feel of a live performance.)
AM: Pete Raho is the owner of Gowanus Audio. Can you tell us about his background and how he came to Bohemien Bar?
TD: Pete started Gowanus Audio to focus on classes for folks to build their own audio gear and build custom audio and speaker projects - pieces that sound incredible, made by hand, and look as good as they sound. When Pete and Tarek connected thru a friend, it was a natural fit to partner with Perry on this. We wanted to create something that sounded incredible, but that looked the part too - surprise and delight everyone who walks in, visually and aurally.
AM: What is the sound experience that one will have when here and can you tell us about the speakers that are here?
TD: We wanted to create a system that would sound great anywhere in the space - consistent throughout, not too loud or boomy anywhere - and that's easier said than done. We wanted folks to enjoy it, hear the details, and still be able to have a conversation. The opposite of typical "bar sound" where you put speakers in all four corners and call it a day.
To accomplish this, we placed two large Altec Model 17s in the rear - a speaker from the '70s the size of a small refrigerator with a lineage going back to the '40s that still sounds incredible - and then placed a pair of rather visually arresting floor-to-ceiling line arrays at the front. Small custom speaker "pendants" hanging from the ceiling throughout the bar fill in the rest.
The arrays look stunning - entirely custom for Bohemien - and project sound into the room a bit differently than more traditional speakers - all speakers together in the array are acting as one - each quiet on its own, but together they fill the room. Standing next to it, you can still have a conversation - it doesn't sound loud - and hear the music from the other array across the room. It's a really cool effect.
Overall, it "sounds like" the music is coming mainly from the Altecs or line arrays (depending on where seated), but the pendants have a deceptively large role filling in the sound since they're delayed by a few milliseconds (but don't tell anyone!) - your brain doesn't register their output. Nowhere is it too loud, or too is boomy - it just sounds "right" throughout the space.
To find out more about the sound system at Bohemien Bar, you can read more about it at Gowanus Audio.
AM: What is the meaning behind the name, Bohemien Bar?
TD: Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people and with few permanent ties. It involves musical, artistic, literary, or spiritual pursuits.
We loved the name and the meaning behind it. Bohemien bar’s concept, décor, food and cocktail list is inspired by free thinkers, artists, musicians, wanderers and adventurers. Each decision in its creation and daily operation is made through that lens.
AM: What kind of music can guests expect when they're at the lounge?
TD: We play all kind of genre depending on the time of the day or day of the week, but some of our favorite for the early part are Psychedelic rock, surf rock bands like Kruangbin, Arc de Soleil, Latin western band like Hermanos Gutiérrez, chillout downtempo and even some of our server Amy Vachal’s songs.
Later in the evening when the bar fills up, we change it up to genres like funk, afro house, Brazilian disco, reggae. We also have DJ’s Fridays and Saturdays.
AM: Tell us about Executive Chef Steven Barrantes background and how he came to the Bar?
TD: Executive Chef Steven Barrantes (formerly Executive Sous Chef at Times Square Edition Hotel and Restaurant Daniel), who has created a menu that matches the sophistication and artistry of the cocktails has worked at Chez Moi back in 2012 with Patricia & Tarek where they became friends and stayed in touch. Steven has always had an amazing palate and is talented that we had to ask him to be involved with Bohemien.
AM: What is the thought behind offering small plates?
TD: We wanted to offer a wide selection of options in a small plate style as that’s our favorite way to eat.
We love trying many things every time we go out and thought it be a great way to go with the cocktails.
AM: What are 3 vegetables that we should order?
TD: The crudités, the crispy zucchini with smoked paprika aioli, and the beet dip with labneh and walnuts. All three selections provide a refreshing flavor, perfect to pair with your cocktails.
AM: Cheese as well as Small Bites are two categories that you offer. What are 3 dishes that you suggest that we should have from this portion of the menu?
TD: Baked Brie with herbs de Provence, Crispy Waffle Fries, and Mac & Cheese Bites with bacon jam.
AM: What are 3 dishes from Land and Sea that you suggest?
TD: Tuna on crisp is a must, Lamb chops with mint yogurt, and Duck flatbread with leeks and smoked gouda.
AM: What are 3 desserts you suggest?
TD: Warm chocolate cake, Crème Brulee cheesecake, and a bowl of candies to snack on.
AM: The cocktail menu which is so playful between the glassware and a number of the names incorporating songs for the cocktails. Tell us 3 drinks that we should consider for our next visit!
TD: Espresso Martini: Vodka, Mr. Black, espresso, bitters, coconut water, coffee smoke
Birdbirdy Num Num: Gin, sugar snap pea, jasmine tea, peach, topped with cava
Depende: White wine, green apple brandy, cardamom, spiced apple cider, pear
AM: In terms of beer and wine, what are 3 that you suggest?
TD: Terra Roza | Muscat of Alexandria Muscat ----- amazing skin contact wine from Greece
La Patience | Vin Blanc Grenache Blanc, Rhone ----- cool organic wine from France
Kölsch | Reissdorf German beer
AM: What are 3 mocktails that we should have on our radar?
TD: Roselle: Ritual Tequila Alternative, bitter orange cordial, lime & hibiscus Ice
Chrysalis: Butterfly pea flower, tea, fresh ginger, lime, seltzer
Piano: Clarified green apple juice, celery, lemon, chamomile, mirin, aquafaba
AM: Are there any special events that we should know about?
TD: Yes, we are having a Christmas pop up during the month of December where we decorate the whole bar with Christmas decoration and offer special cocktails in santa mugs, ginger bread mugs etc…
IG @bohemienbar
PHOTOS COURTESY | Bohemien Bar
Read the NOV ISSUE #95 of Athleisure Mag and see THE ART OF THE SNACK | Bohemien Bar in mag.
The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival presented by Capital One takes place starting today on Oct 12th - Oct 15th! During these days, there will be a number of signature events, Walk Around Tastings, Intimate Dinners, Demo & Dine, Master Classes, Cocktail Parties, and more! Events will include some of your favorite chefs and Food Network Stars such as Michael Voltaggio, Marcus Samuelsson, Duff Goldman, Eric Adjepong, and Brooke Williamson, who we have included in previous issues of Athleisure Mag!
You'll also find a number of our favorite restaurants and chefs that are involved this year from Rosa Mexicano, The Standard Grill, Buddakan, STK Steakhouse, Pig Beach, Shake Shack, Archer & Goat, 5 Napkin Burger, Little Owl, Serendipity3, Boulud Sud, Fig & Olive, and Lamia's Fish Market to name a few!
Be on the lookout to meet your favorite chef, to taste a dish that will be next level or to be at an event such as Bacardi presents JJ Johnson's The Cookout: Hip Hop 50th Anniversary Celebration featuring DJ CASSIDY, Rev Run, Ice-T, DJ Mick, Tamron Hall, and Angela Yee. We also have our eye out on Brunch at the Blue Box Cafe hosted by Daniel Boulud and Martha Stewart which is at the iconic Tiffany & Co. store on 5th Avenue. There are also a number of intimate dinners with some of your favorite chefs that are presented by Air France. As there are a number of events taking place over these 4 days, make sure to go to the website to see if tickets are still available as some events are sold out.
As you know, Athleisure Mag always enjoys sharing our favorites in food through our indepth articles, our monthly feature The Art of the Snack, Athleisure List, and our podcast Athleisure Kitchen. We're looking forward to this year's festival and in the OCT ISSUE #94, we'll tell you about the events we attended as well as interviews with those that we have covered previously and those that have yet to be included in our issues. Make sure you follow @AthleisureMag across social handles so that you can also see what we're tasting, watching, and attending during that weekend!
To get ready for this year's event, here are some of our favorite moments from last year's festival. Without a doubt, this is definitely a series of events that are not to be missed whether it's enjoying dishes and restaurants that have always been on our list or those that are new to you! Grab your culinary bestie and be prepared for numerous satisfying bites!
IG @nycwff
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Food Network New York Wine Food Festival
Read the SEP ISSUE #93 of Athleisure Mag and see FOOD NETWORK NEW YORK CITY WINE FOOD FESTIVAL PRESENTED BY CAPITAL ONE in mag.
When you're enjoying a meal, each bite creates a memory of the sights, sounds, and occasion that is taking place. But in other cases, each bite creates a bridge to culinary and cultural history as a means to ensure that a heritage and dedication to flavors lives on. This month, we sat down with Chef/Owner Philippe Massoud of one of our favorite restaurants, ilili here in NY. We have made our own memories at this restaurant and enjoyed a number of meals here as we have our favorites when we dine here.
The name ilili translates to "tell me," and in each bite, Chef Philippe is telling and building an intricate food storytelling canvas that connects us his to his people from centuries ago. In our discussion with him, he took us on a vivid journey of how growing up in a culinary family in Lebanon that navigated war, while also offering hospitality to its guests, led him on a quest to maintain a connection to his culture by recreating dishes that we are now able to enjoy here in NY as well as in it's DC location. We talk about his passion for hospitality, commitment to food, the flavors of Lebanon, bringing authenticity of the cuisine to those who may have been previously unfamiliar, and the impact of his legacy.
ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you fall in love with food?
CHEF PHILIPPE MASSOUD: I fell into food before I fell in love with it. Being in a family who has been in the business since back to the 1800s, both my paternal grandfather and paternal grandmother were in their respective families, into food. They started, my grandfather used to walk from his village to go work as a cook in the home of the rich and the famous as a prep cook. Then subsequently, he traveled with his brother to Alexandria, Egypt which back then was the hub, the capital of the aristocracy, nobility, and the pizzazz. He went and worked in palaces and hotels or what have you. They they came back to Lebanon and they opened a restaurant in downtown Beirut in the 1800s. Him and his 3 brothers actually brought in Austrian pastry chefs to teach the Lebanese how to do pastries, ice creams and chocolates. In that restaurant, you had a little chocolate stand, an ice cream stand, and a pastry stand, and you had the restaurant which also did a lot of catering.
So long story short, fast forward to when I was born, I was born into that DNA. My father used to cook for us every Sunday and we used to have these glorious meals and food was always a topic of conversation. When the war broke out in Lebanon, I ended up becoming a refugee in eventually what became our family business which was a hotel. The family grew from a restaurant to my grandmother and grandfather doing a Bed & Breakfast in the mountains of Lebanon. My grandmother sewed all of the bedsheets and the curtains. My grandfather ran it and eventually, they sold that, bought a piece of land and had the courage to build one of the first beach resorts in Lebanon which was called the Coral Beach. So when the war broke out, we were coming down from the mountains and we said, “ok, we can’t go home. It’s not safe. Let’s go to the hotel and then we’ll go home as soon as the quarrels stop.” We never went home. We lost our home in Beirut and we lost our home in the mountains. They were robbed, pillaged, and burned because we were from one religion and our homes were in an area of another religion. All religions behave really badly unfortunately.
So living in the hotel because we were confined to the hotel on many occasions, and because the hotel also became the refuge of many refugees, the hotel became my little park. My alternate world, my world of stability and to escape from the bombs, the bullets, the death, and the destruction. So I used to walk into the kitchen and to the patisserie and to steal petit fours and eat them. I would enjoy the tempered chocolate that was resting on the top of the baking oven of the patisserie and just eat spoonful’s of sugar and chocolate and grand patisserie and what have you. I did not know that this would be my calling at the time, but I think that that’s where my formation started. Because I was exposed to that and I loved eating, I loved tasting, and subsequently as a little kid, my first experience really – we had a French restaurant in the hotel that was a Michelin level restaurant where we had the gueridon and with it the steak au poivre table side with the sommelier table side – Baba au Rhum and Crepe Suzette. We had all of the French classics of the time. So, watching the maître d working the pan and sautéing the filet and then putting the cognac on and all of that, it was mesmerizing to me.
So, I asked one of the maître d’s to teach me to do that as a young boy. I don’t know I think I was 6 or 7 or maybe even 5. I dabbled with it right? Subsequently, during the war, but things had subsided a bit as we had gotten used to living with the war, we moved to an apartment and all of a sudden, I find myself in this apartment going food shopping with my mother in the super market and buying ready made cakes from Duncan Hines or whatever it was called back then. I’m appalled by how they taste because I was eating all of this freshly baked stuff that was freshly made and all of that. I wasn’t going to have any of it. I started calling the chef at the hotel and I said, “listen, I want to do this. How do I do it? Can you share a recipe with me?” So as a young 8 year old, I started baking cakes, crepes, figuring out how to make pastries, sweet cream, and understanding why the pastry cream wasn’t rising. In essence, it was because I had lost the access to all of this amazing food that I needed to have that food; therefore, was compelled to learn it and to figure it out at a very young age.
Then when my parents would be hosting guests, we would do catering from the hotel and I would spend my time in the kitchen with the chefs helping them plate because I loved all of this multi-tasking, 4 different pots on the stove, the hustle and bustle and all of that. I watched and I developed a palette and a taste at a very young age. Subsequently, when I became a teenager, I would be the one that would cook for my friends. When we went out, if we were out late after hours, I was the guy that would bring out the pan and would start cooking and setting up at 4 o’clock in the morning to drown all of your alcohol so to speak! That went on and at the time, my father didn’t want me to do any of that because he wanted me to get a degree like all parents want – to be a lawyer, a doctor, or become a neurosurgeon. This industry is back breaking and is difficult.
Subsequently, when I came to the US and I experienced Lebanese food as it was being served and reproduced, I was having none of it. It was so far from the foods, it was so far from the authenticity and I could not for the life of me understand why it wasn’t being reproduced correctly. I knew how to do it and I would even quarrel with my aunt whom I was living with at the time. I came as a tourist and then my parents called me and I was 14 years old and they told me that I could not come back home and that I needed to stay in the US because it was no longer safe in Lebanon. Therefore, I became a refugee. I was accepted in the public school system thankfully and I am extremely grateful for this country giving me the opportunity and therefore, I missed everything that made me who I was which was the food. I started cooking again and my aunt would cook and I would say, “this doesn’t taste like the Coral Beach.” She would then ask me what I would want to do and then I would say that we should do this or do that. She would say that it would take too much time and then she’d say, “if you don’t like the food, don’t eat it.” She was fed up with me because I was complaining all of the time!
All along, I took notes in a little recipe book that I kept – just basic stuff and all of that. I went to Cornell University and I studied for a degree in Hotel and Restaurant and Resort Management. Part of that program is that you have to do kitchen training, you have to understand food production and what have you. I discovered the recipe card and when I saw the recipe card, I thought, “oh my God I never thought about food this way.” I realized that at the end of the day, a recipe in a way, is a mathematical equation. It’s a balanced equation between the flavors, the textures, and the technique. I love that! So I started putting my little scratchy notes with my chicken shit writing into the recipe card and I started experimenting because I missed the food. There was a restaurant on campus that was kind of a fast casual at the time serving the food, but the food was really not there. Every morning before class, I would stop by and quarrel with the chef and beg him and say, “listen, we can do this better. Why don’t we do it?” Unfortunately, with a lot of immigrant cuisines, because our industry is so back breaking, they’re ok bending the flavor profile, bending the textural profile because they are doing the best that they can. The audience does not know the difference between the authenticity and not. This is where for me, it was an absolute no no because why are we teaching people how to eat this food incorrectly? Why are we modifying it? It’s really good, it’s really delicious and we should be serving it unadulterated in its authentic form and in the right way.
So while I was in college, my father got killed and the hotel that I thought that I would eventually go to work in got sold because we had to sell it under the gun. We were pretty much kicked out of the region that we were living in because we were Christians at the time. The same thing happened to Muslims on the other side. It’s not like Christians were behaving better than the Muslims and vice versa. Everybody was misbehaving and being evil. I found myself orphaned of a destiny that I thought was already written for me. I realized that I didn’t see myself working as a front desk manager in a hotel. I don’t see myself doing housekeeping. I really see myself working with this cuisine and correcting its path. I decided that I was going to jump into the food and jumping on the bandwagon, enhancing and elevating Lebanese cuisine. So I started really developing a menu and then all of the different ideas that I had. I started developing recipes for them based on my memory and what it was that I ate as a child. Don’t get me wrong, I failed and failed and failed. I burned and it tasted like crap and it gave me a stomach ache and it took me a long time. But I am a Capricorn and I have horns and I don’t give up easily and there is nothing such as failure in my vocabulary or my drive. I subsequently decided to prove to myself that I could cook the food and that I could really do it right.
While I was in college, I did 2 things. I did co-ops, my practical training that I had to do every semester. I did it in hotels in Spain. I worked in restaurants in Spain in the kitchens and worked in the pastry department, the savory department, prep departments, and it was back breaking. Back then, we didn’t have clogs and Birkenstocks and whatever. I was working in moccasins like all of the Spaniards were.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF PM: It was not fun! But I loved it. I was working in very busy hotels - 250 rooms. So I understood and it was natural to me. It’s not like I was out of my element because unbeknownst to me, it created a lightbulb moment! You know when Malcom Gladwell talked about the 10,000 hours of training that you get to really become an expert in your area or what have you. I got a lot more than 10,000 because my entire life was in that.
I went to Lebanon and there was a famous – one of the top Lebanese restaurants at the time - called Bourj Al Hamam whose owners had worked with my grandfather in the past. You have to realize that a lot of the chefs in Lebanon and a lot of the pâtissiers when you’re talking about the 1800s and 1900s, had either worked, collaborated, or trained or did their internships with a business in which my grandfather had been involved because it was a very small country. My grandfather was like the Danny Meyer (Blue Smoke, Manhatta, Gramercy Tavern) of his times or the Stephen Starr (The Dandelion, Barclay Prime, Parc) of his time in Lebanon. They opened up the doors for me like it was my own restaurant.
I had my chefs pants and white coat from college. I had a video camera and I filmed everything and tasted everything. I wanted to reconcile what I had produced in the cuisine from my own experimentation with how it had been produced in the restaurants. I was like, “wow I got it!” I really got it going. Obviously, I didn’t know all of the little tricks that help you do things better, I didn’t have the technique to chop down 30 cases of parsley into tabouleh and all of that, but I knew where the flavor was. I spent about a month or so in that restaurant and I went to another restaurant and I trained in the art of making shawarma. Basically, how to butcher the meat, how to skewer it, how to cook it, how to shave it, how to make the perfect sandwich, the perfect prep, the balance between the meat, the greens, the tomato, the tahini sauce – how all of them have to be perfectly balanced to really give you the right flavor. All along, I’m taking notes and correcting my own recipes and what have you.
Then I decided that I wanted to see how Lebanese food is produced outside of Lebanon and I ended up going to Paris and I worked there for 3-6 months if my memory serves me right in all of the top Lebanese restaurants in Paris. I learned how to make all of the Lebanese pastries – the baklava, powdered creams, the canape, the cookies, semolina cookies and what have you. Also, I was able to see how a concept that had multiple creations creates a consistency and stability. So having seen all of that, I thought, “you can do it my man, you can do it!” So it was time to put my ring into the hat. That’s what I decided to do. Now mind you, I tried to open a restaurant in the city from ‘94 – ’98 and every time I called the landlord, they asked me if I had ever run a restaurant or owned a restaurant in NY and I would say no and they would hang up on me saying who the hell did I think I was?
Subsequently, I got called from a restaurant owner in DC. The owner of Capital Restaurant Concepts who owned Paolo’s, Georgia Brown, and Old Glory, J. Paul’s and Georgetown Seafood. He said, “listen Philippe, we’ve heard about everything that you have been trying to do in NY, we want to do the same. Why don’t you come and develop the concept?" At the time, they had the Executive Chef, they had the whole corporate structure. Obviously, I was 29 years old and to make a long story short, we opened that restaurant with the chef, I was concept director so I did both front of house and back of house. It wasn’t my restaurant. I tried to do the best that I could and I elevated the food up to what I was allowed and it was a great success. It was called Neyla in Georgetown on Main Street. 4 restaurants had failed in that location and everybody thought that we would fail, and of course, we succeeded and then in 2004, I resigned because I saw that there was no more growth and I was frustrated that I couldn’t express myself artistically the way that I wanted to. I took a year off to try to figure out what I wanted to do and one of my current investors contacted me and said, “hey listen, we used to drive from NY to DC to go eat in the restaurant that you were running in DC because we knew that we would be well taken care of and that the food would be as good as it would be. Why don’t you come and open in NY?” I was like, “are you kidding me? I haven’t been in NY in 5 years, I’ve lost contact with everybody. I don’t know any sous chefs, any cooks, bartenders, managers." I felt like I was going to pass out from anxiety right there and then.
So I took a leap of faith and I went to NY and when I walked into the location which is where ilili is, it’s as if the skies parted and the Gods smiled and the organs played and the angels came down and I felt that that was the space. At the time, my mission was very simple. I knew that to change the conversation about the cuisine, I needed to do something very big. The cuisine was very disrespected because it was always associated with street food, casual food, and I wanted to change that discourse. I wanted to change the conversation and I knew that we could because it’s a beautiful cuisine and I knew that it had a tremendous potential.
At the time, I was attacked for being a lunatic and who was this crazy guy that was opening a 10,000 sqft restaurant in Flatiron which is the most destressed neighborhood in NY and who do you think you are? But hey, I’m still a Capricorn -
AM: With those horns!
CHEF PM: Right, watch me do what I want to do. There I was on opening night with 80 Americans and me being the only Lebanese. 80 Americans who had never served, eaten, or cooked the food and they all knew what it was that I was trying to do. They all became American Lebanese because they understood the story and they believed in what it was that we were accomplishing and we did it! ilili is an homage to my heritage, it’s an homage to my culture, it’s an homage to 3 generations of Massoud’s that have been in the food and beverage business. I have family that is in the wine business. All my other cousins are either the equivalent of the Dean and Deluca’s of the high end groceries or super markets in Lebanon. The entire village is in the food industry. They are either chefs or in retail foods because of my grandfather. They saw that my grandfather succeeded. So that’s really what ilili is and it’s telling that story. Because I am telling my story, I wanted the whole restaurant to be about telling your story, having fun, celebrating each other, celebrating your guests, celebrating the moment - that's what we do.
“At the time, my mission was very simple. I knew that to change the conversation about the cuisine, I needed to something very big. The cuisine was very disrespected because it was always associated with street food, casual food, and I wanted to change that discourse... it’s a beautiful cuisine and I knew that it had a tremendous potential.”
AM: I think that’s amazing. I’m originally from the Midwest. So coming to NY, I came here in 2002, and the diversity of foods and flavors, we didn’t have that in the Midwest at that time that I was aware of. So I spent the first 2 or 3 years tasting all of these different things that I had never had including hummus, tabouleh, but I would go to the East Village and all of the places to get it. I loved it, but I always wondered if there was more to this cuisine than just street food. Although it was really tasty, I wondered what it would be like when elevated and I didn’t really known anything beyond that.
Then your restaurant opened. I think it was in 2008/2009 when I went and I was blown away. It became a place that if people asked me for a business meeting where I wanted to go – ilili, NYFW – ilili, my birthday – all the occasions. My family, they loved it. We’ve had our business meetings there! Just the food and the warmth, the space is so large and the hospitality that is shown just makes it such a beautiful place. I’ve been introduced to more beautiful foods in this cuisine because of your restaurant that makes it a place that I always want to go to.
CHEF PM: Thank you!
AM: Yes, so thank you for that!
CHEF PM: That’s very kind of you!
AM: Yeah!
CHEF PM: You asked me about why the staff is so customer friendly driven. So when we were in the hotel, every guest was a family member. They were all in their homes and our homes. We took care of guests in a way that whatever the request, whatever needs, met whatever anticipation that we could think of! We had a box of cigars that we would pass around to the big spenders and they got complimentary cigars from the maître d. If one of our employees had an apple grove in his village, we would bring apples from the village and distribute them and send them by car to every guest. We really went out of our way to be almost extended members of the family of our guests. Besides being in a war, that was the level of hospitality that we had grown up. I made it very clear to our staff that there was was no no in ilili and that every guest matters and a grace and a hospitality are fundamental to the cuisine as well.
Now the mere fact that you’re not having a linear experience in the context of an appetizer, main course, and dessert, and the fact that you have Thanksgiving every time that you’re eating here. That helps also! It breaks the ice, it’s more festive and you’re less guarded. The tension at the table is substantially subdued because the celebration starts the moment that you sit down and you’re getting all of these different plates that are coming down. So the concept helps, but it also has to do with the company culture. We take care of our employees in NY the same way that my grandfather and father did in Lebanon. We married our employees, we helped them buy their first homes, we helped send their children to college, we helped a guy propose to his wife! These are the things that we did. So, I consider my staff as important to me as my guests. I go out of my way to do the best that I can in that environment in the hopes that they pay it forward to the guests. It works. Don't get me wrong, we have days where we fall flat on our face – we’re not perfect and people have bad days, so what, it’s not the end of the world. we're human beings we're not robots.
There’s a certain beauty – restaurants are a snapshot of life. It‘s an amazing ecosystem where you have one table that’s celebrating, another table that’s mourning, another table that just met, an employee that had a bad day. The amount of psychological energy that exists in a restaurant is just amazing and we try to keep it light and fun and the food helps to do that.
AM: It definitely shows. I used to be a person that could never eat by myself for lunch and I would have such anxiety about it. I remember one day, I was really craving going to lunch at your restaurant it was during NYFW and I was in between shows, but I was alone. The care was so sweet that it actually broke the issues I had with solo dining when I wanted to eat alone.
CHEF PM: That’s so sweet!
AM: Haha yeah I don’t know I think when you’re growing up as a kid, you never wanted to eat by yourself, but there are times when you’re in the city that you’re not going to be able to have someone with you. I didn’t know if it was going to be weird, but the staff was amazing and I really enjoyed it.
CHEF PM: Yeah and also, the fact that you’re not eating only with a fork and knife, you have the pita and you can scoop the food, and you have the lettuce and you scoop on the Tabouleh, that interactivity breaks down some of the rigidity of the dining experience. This is why we open the door to the cuisine and we planted the flag. I’m so happy now that there are plenty of restaurants in this field that are serving this cuisine.
I think it’s because society is shifting a little bit. So small plates and what I like to call, the Thanksgiving Effect, is something that we crave now. We’ve become a lonely society and so our only friction points with our fellow human beings are when we go out dining. It’s really – if you think about it, you used to go out shopping and you rubbed elbows with people. You're ordering everything online. You used to go to the super market, everything is online – at least if you’re in the big cities. Because you don’t have time to go. At 3 o’clock you have done your shopping list – you don’t have time to go there for 45mins. So, restaurants, in my humble opinion, are the last and only area to feel human warmth and to have human friction which is so vital and important to our collective wellbeing when you think about it. It’s becoming a big problem and COVID has proved that to be a 1000th multiplier. So yeah, what better way to do it than to share food?
AM: Absolutely!
What are the spices and ingredients that are indicative of Lebanese cuisine for those that are not familiar?
CHEF PM: Allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, sumac, and aleppo pepper are generally used. You then have coriander, ginger, and of course, all of the herbs. But in sticking to spices, usually, you’ll have wherever you have allspice, you’ll have cinnamon that’s right behind it. There’s just a bit of hint of it. It’s never like cinnamon only. That’s usually what you will taste taste in a lot of the vegetarian stews, whether it’s okra stew, eggplant stew, or string bean stew. Remember, the cuisine originally is a vegetarian cuisine.
People did not have money to buy beef or to slaughter a goat or a lamb frequently. You slaughtered a goat or a lamb on the rare occasion that you could afford to do it or if it was a religious holiday. So people were eating an overwhelmingly vegetarian diet. So, all of those stews would be made with these spices.
The way that I like to do it to make it simple for the readers out there, whenever you have 1 part allspice, you’ll have half a part cinnamon, you’ll have 1/4 part clove, and 1/8 part nutmeg. So if you do that blend, then you’ll get yourself there if you want the Lebanese palette when it comes to the seasonings. Now keeping in mind that Lebanon was on the tailend of the Silk Road. The caravans used to buy spices, seasonings, and silk. Lebanon was a silk exporter and the economy fundamentally at that time was silk. So, you have a lot of movement between Asia and the Lebanese coast going out to Turkey and Aleppo, Syria so eventually, we did get stuff that were influences from China and it’s quite interesting that for example, we have a bread that we make on an inverted wok and I’m always scratching my head to wonder if we got that from the Chinese or did they get it from the Lebanese – who took it from whom? Or who borrowed it from who?
But usually in our cuisine, seasonings are behind the ingredient. They are not ahead of the ingredient. They let the ingredient sit on the throne and if you want, the seasoning comes as a caress and a whisper, but not as a punch. That’s what makes the cuisine light. Don’t forget that if you over season, it’s not so good for your digestion. A lot of people have allergies that they are not aware of. They don’t understand that sometimes they go to restaurants and eat and they feel light, and then others it’s like they just poured a pound of concrete in their stomach. Well, it’s because of the balancing act that you have to do and I myself, you know, suffer from a lot of digestive issues. So, everything I do, I consider myself the Guinea pig. So if this works for me, it will work for my guests. I really take care to ensure that I am giving you the lightest and most tasteful version of the cuisine, keeping in mind your wellbeing as well.
“There’s a certain beauty - restaurants are a snapshot of life. It’s an amazing ecosystem where you have one table that’s celebrating, another table that’s mourning, another table that has just met, an employee that had a bad day. The amount of psychological energy that exists in a restaurant is just amazing and we try to keep it light and fun and the food helps to so that.”
AM: Well for the restaurant that is here in NY, what are your favorite dishes that you feel that people should try when they come by?
CHEF PM: To be honest with you, it all depends on the day of the week. Our roast chicken is a huge favorite. People just don’t understand how it can be so succulent and tender with so much flavor.
AM: I’m people!
CHEF PM: Mind you, it’s marinated in almost 14 different ingredients, right? It’s cooked to order and that’s why it’s so juicy and tender. It’s not pre-cooked, it’s not part cooked and then reheated. It’s cooked from scratch. So the roast chicken I love. The lambshank is a dish that I really adore. If I want to do the South of France or a Mediterranean experience, I’m going to order a bottle of rosé, I’m going to order the whole Bronzino, the Black Island Shrimp, The Octopus, a Hummus, a Salad and I’m good to go! I just took a trip to the French Riviera or the Puesta de Sol or Beirut right? That’s the fun part of ilili, in the sense that you can do that one day and the next day, you want to go meat centric and have that delicious California, Lebanese, or French wine and Leg of Lamb and you can have that robust meal just as well. You can also go with the chicken and get yourself a delicious white wine. So that’s the fun part about the concept. You really have a beautiful dish that stands on its own and can really give you the dining experience.
And of course, the Mixed Grill, who doesn’t want to go and have a little barbecue flavor? A little kebab that has all of the aromatics. But then there are moments when I really really jones for the Steak Tartare – Kibbeh Naye Beirutiyyeh. Eating it, I have so much fun with it. Sometimes I add cilantro leaves to it, I’ll add the Harissa and paint it on it so that it’s nice and spicy. So really, I don’t have a favorite. It’s about the day of craving and what I have a target for when I come in. If not, then I will go some place else and not go into ilili. Don’t get me wrong, I love pasta too!
AM: What led you to open another ilili in DC?
CHEF PM: Well because I had lived in DC and I had a great time and fell in love with the city and because we had created memorable times in that restaurant that I led, people today still have memories of Neyla. At the time, when I was in DC, it was crazy. I was DJing, I was cooking, I was maître d’ing – I’d finish working the grill, change my chef coat, put on civilian clothes, sit at the bar with my Radio Shack mixing table and DJ every Fri and Sat. It was crazy! We had a line out the door. All around the block. We were spinning music and people were dancing.
So, I had really beautiful memories of DC. When The Wharf approached me, and I visited The Wharf, I was mesmerized by the transformation of the area as I remembered what it was like back then! I really liked it and I said that it was a no brainer. We had been in NY long enough and it was time to grow. Why not DC as the next step?
Now little did I know that COVID would come and we would all undergo the trauma that we did. But we built the ilili in DC during COVID. We used to drive almost every week for 4 hours because we couldn’t get on a plane and it was a nightmare. There were supply chain issues and what have you. DC if you want, was all about celebrating life. In DC, the space when I walked into it with Nasser Nakib our architect, we were like, “wow this is a Navy area, this is a greenhouse. This is like a courtyard in the old world. We need to transport people into that moment of time.” We were all coming out of COVID and we wanted to flip COVID the bird so to speak and to say, life is good, life is vibrant, and things are coming back. I mean, it was dark! NY was very dark. I’ll never forget. I laid down on the street in 5th Ave for 15mins and there was nobody and nothing. I was just lying down and serene.
So we went with a celebration approach, we went with what does the space want to be? This is why I’m not a cookie cutter, I’m doing restaurants that tell the story of the space that they’re in, the geography that they’re in, and the culture that they’re in. For example, this is why we have the Hummus with the crab meat, the falafel, and a little bit of Old Bay because I wanted to do a little bit of an homage to the neighborhood that we’re in. That’s why the menu is a little bit different and I wanted to elevate things a little. DC is smaller so it’s much easier to elevate it a little bit. I don’t know if you know, but every piece that we have in DC is custom made from the floor tiles, to the chairs, there is nothing to the exception of the table bases that we bought in the US – everything else was imported from Lebanon and put together by yours truly and the rest of the team that was there. That’s because we care deeply about the story that we are telling and we don’t want to cut corners, it’s not about the dollars and cents, and it’s not about the return on investment. Yes it’s important and it counts, but it’s about really putting your heart and soul into the space and hoping that your guests when they come into your space, that you have really given your all for their pleasure. That’s what we try to do in DC.
AM: Well we have not gone to that one yet.
CHEF PM: Oh, you’re going to love it!
AM: I looked at the pictures and the location is beautiful. It’s different than NY but I love the vibe.
CHEF PM: They don’t do it justice!
AM: I imagine!
Do you plan on opening in other cities as well?
CHEF PM: Yes, we have been looking at Miami for quite sometime but the market is so hot that it has been hard to find the right location. We love Miami, there has been some interest in Los Angeles, but we need a local real estate partner as we need the right space. I’m not going to grow for the sake of growing. And I’m very happy to stay where I am and to grow what I have. But I want to do transformative restaurants and when the right location comes, we will do it!
Yes, Miami is important, Chicago – these markets are soliciting us, but we haven’t found the perfect – well not perfect as perfection is the enemy of progress, the right location has not been found.
AM: What is an average day like for you? I can only imagine that your hands are in so many pots.
CHEF PM: I’m not going to lie to you, I have taken a bit of a backseat to empower my leadership teams to do more. I used to work 80-90 hours a week, 7 days a week pretty much. I am trying to be more disciplined and do 5 days a week – but I do 5.5/6 days. I usually wake up around 6am in the morning, I have my Espresso, read the news, catch up on everything, I am at the restaurant anywhere between 8 o’clock and 9 o’clock depending on whether I slept a bit later. I come in, I read all of my emails, I’ll go down and check in on the kitchen and now we’re doing a bit of R&D so I give some instructions to make sure that things are prepared. I start doing versions of the recipes so that we reach a point where we are happy with the product. I’ll taste with the rest of the team because I like to be collaborative. There will be a good hour of R&D and cooking. Then meetings – with the management team. We have a lot of managers so we have to spread them over a period of time. We go over financials, mentoring, creating transformative moments, and I’m usually done around 6/6:30 sometimes 7 – sometimes I leave at 5. Then I start all over again the next day!
AM: Oh wow!
How do you take time for yourself just so that you can relax?
CHEF PM: I meditate. I like sound therapy. I find it to be really beneficial and wonderful. I like to cook. Cooking at home in my apartment is my way of calming down and relaxing. My team is very surprised because this year I have cooked in my apartment more than I have cooked in a very long time. I don’t know what’s happening to me, but I’m feeling very creative! So, cooking, meditating, walks – I love going on walks and going out around town with friends celebrating!
AM: That’s amazing.
If we were having brunch at your home, what would you cook?
CHEF PM: Well, I like to make a mean Benedict, I’m not going to lie to you. So if you were that kind of crowd, I would do that. Otherwise, I usually make olive oil poached eggs. The secret to these delicious eggs is very easy and I encourage your readers to try it. I usually do 3 eggs Sunnyside Up, I put them in a pan in olive oil – enough olive oil for the egg to sit on the olive oil, but not so much that it’s like drowning in it. You want to have an 1/8th of an inch in the pan. You crack your eggs and then you put your burners on the minimum. So if you have a gas burner, you put it on the absolute minimum where the flames are very light. You put a timer anywhere between 8-10mins, and you let the eggs and the whole pan all come up to temperature together. That will create the creamiest, most delicious egg that you have ever had. Of course, a bit of salt and pepper, I like to toast some sourdough and put that on there. So there would be eggs, there would be Labne, there would be mixed olives, sliced tomatoes, probably some fresh mint and there will of course be bagels or homemade bagels and home-cured salmon depending on the crowd! Whether it’s going to be beet cured salmon or fennel cured salmon. Let's see what else, I'm not going to lie to you, I'm a sucker for really good Almond Croissants from the neighborhood baker and maybe some berries!
AM: You come from such a great legacy and you’re continuing that here, what do you want your entire legacy to be known as?
CHEF PM: That I did the best that I could to touch the people that I work with and the people that eat my food in a positive way! Simple as that.
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | PG 64, 69 - 82 Courtesy ilili | PG 66 + 84 Scott Morris |
Read the JUL ISSUE #91 of Athleisure Mag and see BEAUTIFUL CUISINE | Chef Philippe Massoud in mag.
PHOTO CREDIT // CREATIVE DIRECTION Dominic Ciambrone | PHOTOGRAPHY Bryam Heredia | PHOTO COURTESY of SRGN Studios |
In this month’s issue, our front and back cover story is with Bravo's Top Chef Season 6 Winner, Titan Chef on Food Network's Bobby's Triple Threat, countless appearances as a judge on Beat Bobby Flay, Guy's Grocery Games, and trailblazing Chef/Restaurateur, Michael Voltaggio. We have been a fan of his since he appeared on Top Chef and we love seeing his passion for food, guest experience and hospitality as well as he continues to increase his brand and portfolio by working his brother, Chef Bryan Voltaggio as well as their partnerships with Live Nation and MGM Resorts. We wanted to know what he was working on now, the upcoming 2nd season of Bobby's Triple Threat and how he navigated the industry. We also caught up with Chef/Founder Philippe Massoud of ilili here in NY as well as its DC location.We have attended this Lebanese restaurant since 2008 and we have a number of dishes that we enjoy there. We wanted to know more about how he brought the cuisine of his home in Lebanon to NY and elevated it! He gave us his culinary story that is filled with passion, memories, and the need to continue storytelling with each guest that comes to his restaurant. He also talks about how he got into the industry as well as an the importance of connection through his food. We sat down with decorated Team USA Swimming Olympic Medalist, Nathan Adrian. We enjoyed watching him as he participated in the Summer Games of Beijing, London, and Rio. He talked about being a freestyle swimmer, having teammates that included: Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Matt Grever, Cal Dressel and more! He also told us what he has been up to since then as well as the importance of safe sun! When it comes to haircare, Chaz Dean, Hairstylist, Colorist, and Founder/Creator of WEN which is a hair system that revolutionized the industry by removing lather from your hair routine. He talked about how he became a hairstylist, how creating products became part of his role, the fundamentals of Chaz Dean Studio, and his line, WEN. If you have yet to watch Netflix's The Deepest Breath, we highly suggest that you do. In our conversation with its director, Laura McGann, she talked about creating this documentary that focuses on a world champion free diver and her safety diver. In this story we learn about the sport, the incredible kind of training that takes place when competing and participating in this sport, the beautiful locales around the world, and the relationship of these roles and this duo specifically. You can stream this now.
This month’s 9PLAYLIST comes from DJ Mia Moretti which we have seen perform a number of times here in NY and EDM DJ's Kris Kross Amsterdam. This month's 9DRIP comes from Chaz Dean. Our 9LIST STORI3S comes from FAST X's Jordana Brewster and The Bachelorette contestant, Jason Tartick. Our 63MIX ROUTIN3S comes from Chef Michael Voltaggio, and EDM DJ/Producer John Newman.
Our monthly feature, The Art of the Snack shares a must-visit to Jiwa Singapura in Tyson’s Corner. This month’s Athleisure List comes from Ritz Carlton, Bacara Santa Barbara and Ichibantei. As always, we have our monthly roundups of some of our favorite finds.
Read the JUL ISSUE #91 of Athleisure Mag now.
PHOTO COURTESY | Chef Kardea Brown/Food Network’s Delicious Miss Brown
Food storytelling has been something that we have talked about multiple times. In enjoying those bites, you’re able to get the intention that the chef has whether it’s their style of food, infusing a culture that they represent or are passionate about as well as how they want you to feel! Once you consume it, you have memories that are set that you will come back to again and again!
Chef Kardea Brown is the host of Delicious Miss Brown which gives us recipes and stories about Southern cuisine from the low country that highlight Gullah culture on Food Network! She is also a judge on the same network for Spring Baking Championship alongside Nancy Fuller and Duff Goldman! We wanted to know more about how she got into the culinary industry, her passion for food, having her show, her partnership at PEPCID, and upcoming projects that we should keep an eye out for! We talk about how food found her, coming to TV, being nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award and being a New York Times Bestselling Author.
We also delve into the issues surrounding food insecurity and her attendance on June 12th for Chef’s Tribute to Citymeals on Wheels fundraiser in New York, an annual tasting event, where PEPCID is the exclusive heartburn brand sponsor and 100% of public proceeds help Citymeals prepare and deliver nourishing meals to older New Yorkers in need. She teamed up with PEPCID, the #1 doctor recommended over the counter acid reducer brand, and is proud to support their efforts in the fight against food insecurity with Meals on Wheels America through their $50,000 sponsorship.
ATHLEISURE MAG: It’s such a pleasure to speak with you as we have been such fans of your show! Where does your love of food come from?
CHEF KARDEA BROWN: It would have to be not only the city that I come from, but my grandmother and my mother! They are some cooking women. They absolutely love cooking and I believe that it is one of our first loves. We have always found ways to spend time in the kitchen. I grew up around women that really loved being in the kitchen and I love food you know! Good food is always good for the heart and the soul!
AM: When did you realize that you wanted to be a chef?
CHEF KB: You know, I believe that it chose me. My first initial thought was that I was going to become a social worker and that I was going to work in the not-for-profit sector, in my life. The universe would say that it was a bit of a course redirection like, “this is great, you’re doing great there, but I think that I have something bigger and better for you there that’s going to involve food.” That’s how it kinda chose me and I’ve always loved cooking, but I never thought that I was going to do it for a living! It was kind of like, this is your purpose and this is your mission. Here it is!
AM: It’s so great to hear that! How did you get your own show, Delicious, Miss Brown which we love and we also love that you talk about your background coming from Gullah influences and things like that. How did that all come together?
CHEF KB: So, I was dating a guy at the time. We are no longer together, but we’re still great friends! I’m pretty sure that I owe my career to him! He signed me up to be on a show for the Cooking Channel and out of thousands of submissions, they chose me to do the show with Bobby Dean and it was all about taking that Southern food and making it light and fresh. He wanted to go to a house of someone who cooked heavy Southern meals and kind of flip that and make it into a lighter meal. So, I did that show and it didn’t get picked up by the network, but the network’s executives saw the show and said, “man, she’s really great! Has she thought about doing food television?” At the time, I was working at Big Brothers, Big Sisters and I wasn’t thinking about doing food or cooking on TV! Somehow, I ended up being on several shows after that and eventually, they pitched me to the network to have my own in the kitchen show and I would say about 5 years later, I got my opportunity to host my own show and now I’m in my 8th season!
AM: That is incredible and congratulations on your recent nomination for your Daytime Emmy Award as a Culinary Host and in your category is Guy Fieri, Emeril Lagasse, Justin Sutherland, Andrew Zimmern, and Ina Garten! That is amazing!
CHEF KB: Blew my mind! To be mentioned in the same room and category with these greats, with these people that I grew up watching is insane and so it’s a great filling!
PHOTO COURTESY | Pepcid
AM: You’re going to be part of the 36th Annual Chef’s Tribute to Citymeals on Wheels, tell me about this and why you’re excited to be part of it?
CHEF KB: Oh my gosh! I personally use PEPCID in my life! If you have ever seen any of my shows, I cook – you know I like to fry things, I like my spicy foods and all of the things that give you heartburn and so when the opportunity was presented, I thought it was a no-brainer.
The Chefs Tribute that is going on Jun 12th – I am really excited to be there! It’s for a great cause with Citymeals. They’re combatting food insecurity and that’s something that is very important to me because what I do for a living is to teach people how to cook. I can’t do that for people, especially when the demographic that watches Delicious Miss Brown, it’s usually between the ages of 25 – 56 and even older! So a lot of these people watch the show and I want them to be able to have the opportunity to be able to go to their local supermarket or have food delivered that makes my job easier! I want to be able to show you how to cook it and I need you to be able to have the food in order to be able to do that! So Citymeals is doing a really great job of that and combating food insecurity especially here in NY.
For this event taking place, PEPCID is the only heartburn brand that will be there and they have personally sponsored Meals on Wheels America with $50,000. So as soon as I heard of the initiative and PEPCID’s involvement, I said, sign me up!
AM: That’s definitely exciting.
What is it that you enjoy about taking PEPCID? Do you take it before you eat something or is it after for those that have yet to use this?
CHEF KB: So, you don’t have to take it before. I usually take it after especially when I kind of feel the heartburn kind of starting. I know immediately that when I eat something, especially at night, I might eat something spicy or tomato-based which we do a lot in the Gullah culture. When I eat my red rice, I know that I will have to take some PEPCID immediately after to have a good night’s rest! Even when I film my show, I’m tasting, I’m eating constantly. I can’t do that if I’m suffering from heartburn. If you have ever suffered from heartburn, you know that it’s not pleasant. I take PEPCID immediately, it works just like that and it makes my job that much easier!
AM: In addition to you hosting Delicious Miss Brown, you’re also judging Spring Baking Championship on the same network! We’re also huge fans of this show! What are you looking forward to with this show?
CHEF KB: Oh my gosh, Spring Baking Championship is one of those shows that I really stumbled in and it’s an amazing show! I have learned so much. It took me awhile to get into baking. I have always been a savory person, but now I do both! But now that I feel that being part of this show has taught me so much and being on the judging panel with Nancy Fuller everyone’s grandma and then Duff Goldman who is a pastry and cake genius! I’ve learned so much and I’m just really excited about what’s to come with the show and many more seasons! The show did really well last season so I’m really excited about more season with Spring Baking!
AM: It’s such a fun show and everyone is so creative! We couldn’t do any of those things, but we always love hearing Duff talk and how excited he is when he’s eating things!
CHEF KB: Yes! He really does get into it and he’s like the cake genius! He is the mechanics of the show and I feel like I bring in the heart where I’m like, “oh this is good, girl!” You know, that type of thing.
AM: You need both!
CHEF KB: Yes, you do! It’s a good balance!
AM: Last year, you dropped your cookbook, The Way Home: A Celebration of Sea Islands Food and Family with Over 100 Recipes, what was it like working on this project and you’re also a New York Times Best Selling Author!
CHEF KB: Yes, it was really fun! It was my first cookbook so I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into, but it was a learning lesson and it was an experience. I’m really happy about it because for so many years and actually decades, my family had these recipes within my family, but we never had a way to keep those recipes beyond word of mouth. So now, there’s a place where recipes can live and I really feel like I’m making my great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother proud by creating history within our families! Being that it is right out of the gate and it made it to the NYT Bestsellers was just mind-blowing to me. A little girl from Charleston, South Carolina had big dreams and I never dreamt that it would be this.
AM: Your journey has been amazing and we’d love to know more about your frozen food line! What’s it going to be and what can we expect from it?
CHEF KB: Oh my gosh! I can’t give all the details yet, but it’s going to be with a major distributor/retailer, and it’s going to be all the things that everyone loves about the South and the low country as many of the foods that you have probably seen on my show or people who have watched it who say, “man, I wish I could taste that!” You will be able to soon!
AM: We can’t wait to see it! Just looking at all of the things that you have done in your career, these are really big moment! Food is such a big vertical at Athleisure Mag, what do you want your legacy to be whether it’s on the culinary side or being an overall entrepreneur?
CHEF KB: You know, I want my legacy to be that I wasn’t afraid to take that leap of faith and that I somehow landed on my feet. If anyone ever has a dream, a hope, or something to aspire to – just do it! I literally did it and I had no clue what to do and somehow I ended up in a very great place! I want my legacy to be that I jumped, I landed, and it did well! If I can do it, anyone else can!
IG @kardeabrown
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There is something about a great meal that allows you to enjoy the flavors, the ambiance and so much more. When the food becomes a gateway to a deeper understanding about the people and culture, it's truly an immersive experience that leaves you with a bigger takeaway.
This month, we're pleased to sit down and chat with Chef Yia Vang, who infuses his passion for food by sharing his love for Hmong food, his parents as well as the people that it comes from. This multi-nominated James Beard Award chef whose restaurant is up for Best Chef: Midwest for a 2nd year in a row, has two restaurants in Minnesota, Union Hmong Kitchen and Vinai. He is also the host of Feral, competed on Iron Chef: Quest for An Iron Legend, hosts his podcast Hmonglish and more. He tells us about the food, his philosphy and the importance of representation.
ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you first fall in love with food?
CHEF YIA VANG: You know, food and I have a really weird relationship. If you say food in terms of kitchen cooking, I would say that kind of for me, it’s kind of like that high school sweetheart that you started dating and then said, “I don’t know man, I’m going to college and we’re kind of like different people right now.” So I did some other things and then we went through this really weird break up thing where we were together, broke up, and got back together and then like 15 years into it, I said, “I think that I kind of love you!” I might as well put a ring on it! Then, when I got into that mode where it’s like, “hey man, we’re each other’s kind of ride or die right now, huh?”
I always say that about 10 years ago, what happened for me was that I re-fell in love with my first love. I always knew that there was something about working in kitchens. It made sense to me and there was this thing inside of me that it made sense, I just didn’t know why. It took me awhile to figure out my why and once I figured out my why, everything connected and through the hard, the bad, the good, the ugly, and whatever, I knew that this thing made sense.
AM: At what point did you realize that you wanted to be a chef?
CHEF YV: I never – I don’t think that, see I was the dude that grew up saying, I don’t want to do this. I’m not trying to be you the guy who says, don’t give me that title. I really believe that titles are something that you earn and it’s something that is given to you, so I never went out claiming that I wanted to be a chef you know? I knew that I loved to cook, but again, it had to be more than just food and cooking for me. So for me, it was this idea of storytelling. My father is a great storyteller. We always as kids growing up – when he put us to bed or you know, when we would sit down, he would tell us Hmong legends and myths and he was really good at telling stories. So, I found myself as a kid, have you ever seen the movie Big Fish?
AM: I have!
CHEF YV: Yeah, you know how the whole movie, Billy Crudup’s (Jackie, Watchman, Almost Famous) character has weird issues with his father because of the stories that he tells and he doesn’t understand him. That was me growing up because I didn’t understand my father. As I got older, I realized that I am my father and as much as he is a primal storyteller, he can captivate an audience, that was also a part of me. Instead of using pen and paper, a typewriter or a computer, we get to use food as a canvas to tell stories.
AM: What was your journey in terms of where you trained or kitchens that you came up in to get to where you are today?
CHEF YV: I never knew that culinary school was a thing. I didn’t do that and I’m so glad that I didn’t do that. For some people it works! We have chefs that work with us who came from culinary school and they’re incredible you know? I’m one of those people that if my hand touches it, then I can understand it. If I understand how the concept works, then I will be able to do it. My dad, he doesn’t understand English but if you give him a table, he can look at it and reverse engineer it in his brain and he can build it. So for me, that's how I work also. It was just me working in kitchens and I was so young when I started that I was too dumb to realize that what I was doing here, that was very hard. I was just working on my feet for 12 hours and felt that that was what everyone did. I know that I had a sense of what was “kitchen culture,” when I first started, 20 years ago it was like, “hey kid, you just go and you just earn your spot.” Because, that’s just what you do. Don’t try to talk about how you feel. I worked in a lot of kitchens and again, while I was doing it, I never thought that I would actually be doing this. I felt that that was a job, I was doing it at that point to get to the next bigger and better thing.
AM: In preparation in speaking with you, I like reading that you said, that for you, cooking is about intention and interpretation and that that came from your background as a communications major at University of Wisconsin – La Crosse. That struck a chord with me as I was a Telecommunications major at Indiana University and I got that! Can you tell me what you meant by that?
CHEF YV: Again, my first goal in college when I got in, all I cared about and I was kind of a gym rat. I wanted to play football and I wanted to play college football. That meant that you had to be an Exercise & Sports major or you had to be a Science Teacher. Right when I got into Biochem, I was like, “dang this is too hard!” So, I literally changed majors a couple of times and I ended up with communications. In my first class, the professor asked, “what is more important? The interpretation of the message or the intention of the message?” We had this big discussion and she gave us this study and we read that 70% of the people based on this qualitative and quantitative study said that the interpretation of the message is more important than the intention of the message. So as cooks, when we’re cooking food, I can say, “oh yeah, this is what my intention is and this and this.” I want to do it this way, because it should be eaten this way. But if the interpretation of the message isn’t interpreted like that, I think that as cooks, we need to readjust ourselves. That doesn’t mean that we’re changing our values and beliefs in what we’re doing, but we have to say, how do we get the message across? In communication, communication is not a monologue. It's a dialogue between 2 people. So, if I am trying to explain something to someone and they’re not getting it. I have to ask myself, “what do I need to adjust on my end?” I think that we live now and the pendulum swings right? It started with the customer is always right. I think that the pendulum swung to that side and then there’s a whole group of chefs who are like, “F- you! The customer is not always right, and we need to explain our intentionality.” Now, it has swung to the other side and what we’re doing is we’re having guests who are dining with us and they don’t get the food. They pretend that they do because you have to look good in social media. So that’s why for us, that’s why I say, “hey, there’s a happy medium over here.” I want to talk about Hmong food. What makes Hmong food, Hmong food? Even Hmong people, we can’t make a decision and be consistent on what is Hmong food. If our own people can’t figure out what it is, how are cultures from the outside going to be able to figure it out? So for the last 7 years, we have had the pleasure – I call it the pleasure, the pain, and the everything to try to say how do we create guard rails, not rules and guidelines around Hmong food. So yeah, it’s been a pleasure in being able to do that.
AM: It’s great that you said it like that because when I interview chefs that are known for Mediterranean cuisine, Italian, French etc. I will ask questions that focus on foods, ingredients and tastes that are indicative of those culinary styles. But again, in watching your videos and hearing you talk about this food and how you see it, you say that Hmong food is a philosophy, and it involves the people that are woven into the food. That is such a great concept. How important are the people to the food in your opinion?
CHEF YV: It is the most important thing. Our food is our people and our people is our food! When you get a group of people that doesn’t have a home and doesn’t have a country of their own, and they don’t have any kind of “marks of identity,” what they do is gather around food.
Because if you think about food, food is so core to survival right? It’s that thing that keeps us alive. Well of course what keeps us alive and is so core to our survival is the closest things to our hearts. It is for us, the way that we think about food, it’s the same way that some people think about their family. They think about the people that are the closest to them.
You know, when my parents came to America, they had to change the way that they cooked because cooking in the mountains of Laos over woodfire, pots and pans in huts made out of tree barks and bamboo, is different than cooking in a duplex apartment in Wisconsin, you know?
AM: Right!
CHEF YV: They had to change and they had to adapt and to survive the way they did things. The reason why is that they had to raise and take care of their kids! As a kid who’s 5 years old who comes to America and then I eat the food that my mom and dad cooks here in the United States and of course it’s going to be different than where they’re from and have a different flavor and taste! But the heart of it is still the same! What we love talking about is the food that we grew up with is Hmong food because it’s made by Hmong people. It’s Hmong food because it’s touched by Hmong hands. Our people if you can see back from generation to generation, it’s about survival and for the first time, my generation, my group of people as I’m 38, those of us that are here now, all the millennials that are the Hmong kids, this is the first time in a long long time in our history, that we don’t have to worry about uprooting and constantly having to move. We don’t have to worry about war and we don’t have to worry about death. When you have a civilization that doesn’t have to worry about that, they have the ability to grow, to dream and to imagine. They have the ability to wonder. I was just joking with a friend this morning and I told him that I felt like Moana from Disney! I can wonder beyond the reef! I feel like I can ask those questions like mom and dad, what’s beyond the reef? Because everything that I have known is in the reef, but now we’re one of the first generations like myself and my nieces and nephews and those that are younger, they can wonder and talk to themselves and think about this idea of wanting to be an architect – what’s an architect? I want to go into finance, what's finance? All of these things are completely different and it's a whole new world! The reason that we can do that is off the backs of mom and dad who cooked this food for us. I’ll be damned if I look at that and say, “well, I’m going to make a twist on it.” How dare I make a twist on anything? I get to add on to what they do. So that’s the way that I think of Hmong food and that’s the way that we can challenge the way that people think of it. We get a lot of push back here and there. But the truth of the matter is, I think that that is food generally. Isn’t that what it’s about?
We have a big family! So there is that thing of wanting to have something better and being able to sacrifice for it. It’s the same thing that our parents did for us. It’s great that we pay an homage to the old school stuff. I think it’s amazing and I do that all of the time. But to say that this is how we have to be – no, that’s how a civilization or a group of people remain stagnant. We live in a world of advancing forward. For our food company, we always say that our core DNA, our core functional values are 3 words are “moving forward together.”
We got those words and are inspired by them because of my mom and dad’s journey escaping Laos after the war.
My dad always said that as a group of people that lived in the jungle for months and months to escape the murders, the genocide as a group, we always had to keep moving forward together. Move forward together.
The question of why are there melting pots all through the Midwest?
AM: Yup!
CHEF YV: Like go to Dearborn, Michigan. There is a huge Muslim population there. Like Dearborn? Dude, they didn’t go to Dearborn, Michigan because of the weather. St. Paul, Minneapolis, has the largest Hmong population. We didn’t come here because we love the winter. We’re from the hills where it’s sunny and muggy, here it’s -30˚ for 5 months!
We didn’t do that, it was survival! In that connection of survival, especially with food, it connects our humanity together. As much as we are different, we’re not that different. That’s what we choose to tap into. In a society and a world that’s all about the pendulum’s swing where it’s let’s all the be the same or we can’t all be the same – that pendulum continues to swing back and forth to create that dichotomy in this country. I say, “hey, we are different, but we’re not that different.” We can share that with Hmong food. We don’t have to wait for a culture to dub us worthy or to hear our stories. No, we have our stories and if you allow us a little corner of the stage, allow us a little corner of a soapbox, we want to tell you that story.
AM: We have spent the last 2 years trying to get an interview with you because of everything we've seen about you on TV and although we have yet to go to your corner of the world to eat at your restaurants personally, We love the messaging and awareness that you do through your food. It’s an honor to be talking with you right now.
CHEF YV: Thank you so much! That means so much! At the end of the day, I have these college buddies of mine and we’re so tight and they always ask, how do you keep it together and I’m like, “I don’t know, I hang out with you idiots!” I tell them that they keep reminding me that I’m just a Wisconsin boy that still doesn’t really know what he’s doing. I love that you know? I love going home and my mom – I remember the first year that we got our first James Beard Award nomination and I was so excited and told her. She was like, “that’s nice honey. Just take the trash out when you leave.”
AM: Haha well that’s the Midwest in us!
CHEF YV: Oh yeah, that is! I remember last year when we were finalists and I was explaining to my mom what it is and she was like, “oh, does everyone in Minnesota get one of these?” And I’m like, yeah, yeah mom sure haha! It’s like bless her heart you know? I feel very very honored to be here and to be able to do all of these things, the TV and it’s such an honor to be part of all of these things.
AM: You’re the chef/owner of Union Hmong Kitchen. Like you said, it was a James Beard Award nominated semifinalist, tell me about this restaurant and what are 3 dishes that we should try on our next visit?
CHEF YV: For sure, we have all of these things going on and we’re very blessed that Union Hmong Kitchen started as this tiny little pop up tent thing at Farmer’s Markets. We always say that Hmong food consists of 4 elements. We don’t say that Union Hmong Kitchen is authentic Hmong food. We don’t say that. It’s a gateway to understanding our people and our food. So we always have the following. Think of meats and three. We always talk about that. It’s the best way to communicate with people especially Southerners when you’re talking about meats and three.
So Hmong food consists of 4 elements. There’s a protein, there’s some kind of rice – it’s either jasmine rice, sticky rice and then you have some kind of vegetable. Sometimes our vegetable is in a broth or sometimes it’s just a vegetable. The 4th element is a hot sauce and there has to be a hot sauce. So when you come to Union Hmong Kitchen, that’s what you’re going to get. You get to pick your meat – your protein and you have your sticky rice – we have purple sticky rice which is historically connected to Hmong people and then you pick a vegetable side. Sometimes it’s a noodle or straight up right now it’s Brussel Sprouts or something and we’ll change it up since Spring is coming. Then we have a couple of different hot sauces that we traditionally grew up eating. So it’s meat and threes, it’s dealers choice.
What we’re very proud of is the Hmong sausage that we created. It is a recipe that my dad showed me growing up. It wasn’t like he taught it to me. He made it and I watched. As I grew older, I would say, “hey dad, can we try that?” We won a couple of awards with it and it’s funny. Again, I told my dad, I mean we’re from the Midwest so you have all of these sausages since it’s sausage central and I said we won it with the Hmong sausage that he created. I brought the trophy to my dad and he was like, “really they liked that silly recipe?” I was like, well this is in your honor I guess! To me, that’s a very very special thing. It’s part of dad’s legacy. We’re to the point with that where a really great Eastern European sausage company, they now make this for us with our recipe. It’s the coolest thing ever to see a Hmong recipe being made in a Ukrainian family which is almost a 70 years old company here.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF YV: Yeah, you know what I’m saying? How amazing is that?
Nick, the son who is the owner, he’s just like, this is one of our best sellers here. A Ukrainian family making a Hmong sausage which they love themselves using and now it’s in Twin Stadium and now we’re trying to get it out to local shops and stuff like that.
AM: That’s really cool.
CHEF YV: Exactly, so me and Nick are talking together and with everything going on in Ukraine – all the refugees in Ukraine and all the war in Ukraine. I’m talking to him and I understand that as a kid who is a refugee and comes from war too. It’s different parts of the world and yet again, we’re very different, but we’re not different.
That was a tangent but yes, we have Hmong sausage and we worked very hard on our pork belly. Obviously, we have the chicken, and our tofu is good as well! Again, I don’t want to say, these are our 3 dishes, just come in – but we do have what we call the Graze Feast! For me, it came from when we were very poor in college. But when all of the dudes scraped all of our money together, we would pitch in and we would go to Famous Dave’s and we would get the Trash Can Lid BBQ. Do you know what I’m talking about?
AM: Yeah I have had friends who went there!
CHEF YV: Yeah so basically, you get the highlights of the menu on a trash can lid and Famous Dave’s still has that. So this is an homage to that and we call it the Graze Feast. It’s served on a bamboo rice basket. We lay it out on a banana leaf and we put everything on it and it’s like the best of both worlds. If you’re 4 people, I tell them to get it because it is the bang for the buck. You get the whole tour and secondly, you also get a whole fried fish on there too. We have a fried Bronzino fish that we throw on there and that’s another mom and dad classic. My mom loves cooking a whole fish and deep frying and grilling it for dad. Dad just sits there and lives his best life now. His favorite thing that he loves to do when he has the whole fish and all of the sauces on it, if his grandkids are around, he likes to pick off all the meat and to put it on their plates so that they don’t have to fuss with it.
AM: That’s really cute!
CHEF YV: It is. Apparently for King Crab as my nieces and nephews love it, he takes them out of their shell and for shrimp, he peels it for them. I look at them and I stare at them in their eyes and I say, “you don’t know what struggle is kid!” We used to have to pick our own meat and now they’re living it up, those Gen Z kids!
AM: True, but that’s a food memory! They’ll be 20/30 years old and every time they eat that, they will remember what their grandfather would do for them.
CHEF YV: Yup and Kimmie, they’re going to all be soft! They’ll complain that they have to pick it off themselves.
AM: You also opened up Vinai. What does that name mean and I love this residency concept and we’d love to know more about it.
CHEF YV: Over the last summer, we had the chance to run this residency. Vinai again has been that problem child. I love it so much, but they don’t sleep and it cries all of the time. We struggled a lot with the financing to get that building going. So the last 6 months has been an exciting time for us as we can now visually see that this is coming together the way that we thought. My parents always taught me this idea. You don’t just sit there and sulk when there is a problem. My dad always says that you work the problem and you keep moving forward. My mom said that when they were in the refugee camp, it wasn't with us. They had to live everyday and just continue to move forward.
So we said that Vinai wasn’t really about a building. It’s about the people, it’s about the food. So what we have been able to do with Vinai, is to do this residency. After COVID, there were spaces that were open and they were looking for partnerships – a lot of bars, cocktail rooms, etc. They were like, frick, we have to figure something out to get people back and to get butts in seats. So we connected with some of our friends that had these places and partnered up. So we started these residencies so that we could give people a glimmer of what Vinai would be.
Vinai Is the name of the refugee camp that my parents met in ’77, they got married in ’78, I was born in ’84 and as a family, we left there in ’88.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF YV: Oh yeah, they were there for 10 years. So Vinai from 1975 to 1992, hosted about 90,000 refugees. Out of those 90,000 refugees, 90% of them were Hmong people. And all of those Hmong people who came through Vinai, ended up in the Midwest – all over from Ohio to Wisconsin, Kansas City and Minnesota. So mom said to us, Vinai is not where our story ended, but is where our story started.
So Vinai, the current brick and mortar that we are working on right now, is a love letter to my mom and dad. It is their legacy captivated in a menu, in a building that has a specific design. Vinai is also one of those things that as we were growing up, as Hmong kids, we would talk to each other and ask which camp you were in. It was a way that we would identify with each other. To the white kids that heard us, they didn’t get it that we were born in a camp somewhere that was a summer camp. We’re like, “yeah it’s a summer camp, but not really – you don’t know when you’re going and you don’t get letters.” I just wanted to be able to make these names that we grew up with to become very normal just like if someone says Washington, D.C., Seattle, and NYC. In American culture, we know those names. I wanted to take the name Vinai outside of the Hmong vernacular and conversation so that it becomes part of majority culture. So when people talk about Vinai, I get to talk about mom and dad. I get to talk about the war and how they suffered for 10 years and not knowing as it was a stop gap for all of these Hmong people – 90,000 refugees. The Thai government didn’t want anything to do with them. The US government didn’t want them to come in because of issues regarding refugees. To claim these refugees would be claiming that the US was at war and there was a secret war in Laos that the US had won, but people didn’t know and there was a deal that was made with all of the people that fought. Fought like my father that regardless of what happened, that he would be able to come to America and get free citizenship because he fought for the US government. Then that conversation became one that people said that that didn't happen.
So there was denial in that. So all of that was going on during those years and just a little name, we can talk about that.
So that’s what it means and the dishes that we get to do in there, it comes from mom and dad’s table. Now is it going to be exactly like there’s? Absolutely not. I don’t think that our mom and dad would want us to do that. I know that they don’t want us to do that. My mom has said don’t make it like this, add your touch to it, but this will always be a part of you. We get to showcase our chefs and we have some incredible chefs. The majority of our chefs aren’t Hmong. We always talk about that and I’m very clear. Hilltribe, our mother company, is not about Hmong people just for Hmong people. If you look at the history of the word Hilltribe, those were the tribes of the people that lived in the mountains. It was the people that nobody wanted, the people that they said were the low people and they were not wanted by others. I couldn’t imagine living off of the mountains. I told all of our staff that we were the people that when people said that we were cooks or working in kitchens that we weren’t going to amount to much. It’s where a lot of the troubled kids go to right? It’s that culture mentality, the never will – so I tell them, we need to prove them wrong. What happens when a group of people come together and say we’re going to change the way that we live. We're going to deal with mental health issues, we’re going to deal with substance abuse and deal with all of this stuff. We’re not going to run away anymore from this. That’s why our company is called Hilltribe and we always say, cook from who you are. I don't expect you to be a Hmong cook. But I do want you to love your background, your culture and to love all of that as much as I love being Hmong. To my Mexican brothers and sisters who work with us, I want them to dig into that. To my Ecuadorian brothers and sisters, I want you to dig into that. To Tony who is Chinese, I want you to dig into that Tony. So Hilltribe isn’t just Hmong for everyone, it’s a place where the people can come – the outcasts and the broken can come in and show people what a group of broken people as they come together can go and reach out for more broken people and to create a place of refuge.
That’s why at Hilltribe, our restaurants have to be out more than just the food. If we're only all about food, then all we're going to do is just have pats on the back and accolades so that magazines can write about us. But it has to be more than just that.
So that’s the culture of what we’re driving, but everything comes from mom and dad. Our kitchen table was always open to anybody. If mom was making dinner, she didn’t care what color you were, what you were socioeconomically, or your background. You always had a place at that table. I learned that watching them. I want to be able to continue to do that for all of our restaurants.
AM: That sounds amazing and just doing that is a lot. Yet, you are constantly on so many different TV shows. You have Relish the PBS show which is a great look at the culinary cultural heritage of a number of people who are in the Twin Cities. Such a great concept and are you working on another season of this?
CHEF YV: Yeah we actually are next week! This time instead of doing these 10mins vignettes where we stitch together all of those 10 mins to create an entire show, we’re going to do full episodes. So we’re starting on Mon and it’s Relish but they call it a Relish 2.0. I think that the show is so much fun especially being in the Twin Cities. It's great to engage with people and the show is so much fun. We’ve been super blessed to be on so many different media outlets and many different shows.
I can always tell because I will get stopped you know in public once in awhile and they’ll say, “I love your show!” I can always tell by the age of the person who’s saying it, what show they are talking about. It’s like, are you talking about the Outdoor one, are you talking about Netflix or our feature on Bon Appetit or whatever? It’s always that age group that’s at 62 or above you know it – it’s PBS, public television. Prime time on public television is Sun at 2pm. So when they’re saying it, I know you’re talking about Relish. They’re so funny. They always think that we filmed it last week and we just put it on. So they’ll say, that I was talking about a certain restaurant and they’ll describe it to me and I know it was 2 years ago. They'll say that it sounds good and they should go visit it and I have to tell them that with the pandemic, they had to close.
AM: Right!
CHEF YV: Yeah and they’re like, “but the episode was last week!” So I have to explain to them how TV works and how production works. It’s always fun and that one I really love. My agent is always really funny about it. She’s LA and she’s always focused on getting the best deal. I love her and I get what her job is. She’s like, there’s no pay in that and she doesn’t want me to do things where she feels that I am not getting my worth. I’m like, Lauren, I love this and the producers Amy and Brittany they’re always great to work with and initially the concept was that my mom and I would cook together, but when the idea was pitched, they let me know that they wanted me to host this show for 6 episodes. People ask me where I went for my media training and I tell them that I learned at PBS. I was very blessed and the producers and directors are amazing. I love them and now with this other season coming up, we’re growing it and it’s going to be really big.
AM: That’s awesome! Last summer I enjoyed seeing you on Netflix’s Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend. I’m a huge Iron Chef fan so seeing you on Quest, I was like, what?
CHEF YV: That show was incredible!
You know, first of all, I was just dumbfounded that Gabriela Cámara was standing next to me. Dude, in my mind, I was like, don’t fanboy man. Act like you have been here before, be professional. In my head, I was like, “I love you!” She’s the sweetest lady ever. Very small and petit, but huge personality! She gives me a big hug and after we were done, she hugs me and whispers in my ear, “yeah, I didn’t want to cook against you, I wanted to cook with you.”
AM: Nice!
CHEF YV: I thought oh wow, could we record that for everyone so that everyone can understand that she said that to me and I didn’t make it up? It was amazing and it was a great time! We filmed it in the midst of the pandemic.
So as a group, and as a restaurant, we were like, we need this win. Not like to actually win it, but to be there and to do this for fun and to celebrate together. It was incredible and the response from it globally, was incredible. Hmong people from all over the country and there’s a group of Hmong people that ended up in France because of French colonization in Southeast Asia. One of my favorite things is that I got a DM from a young Hmong lady who lives outside of Paris.
She said, “hi I want you to know that I’m Hmong. We watched the show because my boyfriend is a huge Dominique Crenn fan and she was on there. When I was scrolling through there, I saw you and your name and I thought to myself, I think he’s Hmong. When I watched that episode and that first introduction, by no means of me doing anything, I cried because it was the first time that I saw our people on this global level.” She continued by saying, “my boyfriend’s French, I’m disconnected from my culture and I felt so proud being Hmong at that time. I looked at my boyfriend and I said to him that’s our people, that’s our story. She told me that being in France, they don’t talk about Hmong people.”
It was a global thing. There were Hmong people in Australia that DM’d us letting us know that they loved sharing the episode with their friends to let them know about our people. That to me, I’m not a huge competition TV person. I knew that when Netflix came and they had that offer, we had to do it and we were doing it, we would do it the Hmong way. We were going to do Hmong food on there. Even though some of the producers wanted us to be more global, we told them that we were sticking with Hmong food. I knew going in that we probably wouldn’t win. I didn’t care, just being on there was a win for us! As chefs, we were like, “dude, if we beat Gabriela Cámara then we know that this was rigged!” That was amazing and it was fun to be part of that and to be in that Iron Chef family.
AM: You also have Feral! Congratulations on the 1st season and I know you’re renewed for the 2nd season as well which drops later this year.
CHEF YV: I don’t mean to interject, but we’re actually just shooting season 3.
AM: What?
CHEF YV: Yeah, I leave in 10 days to start shooting season 3!
Season 2 was all filmed this fall right before the beginning of winter. But I’m leaving in a couple of weeks here to shoot season 3. The 3rd season was renewed about a month and a half ago. I think that they have all the creatures down and the locations down. They just need to clear up a couple of them. I’m really excited about that.
I tell my team that filming wise, I need about 8 weeks a year to do filming projects. 10 months out of the year, I’m there, I’m a restaurant guy. We train and we have an incredible team that takes care of business. They take care of everything while I’m gone which is the equivalent of 8 or 9 weeks.
There are some creatures coming up where I’m like, ok holy crap. I have no idea how I’m going to handle that, but I will just have to get it done. There’s some freaky stuff where I’m like – frick!!! Season 2 was pretty crazy, we had some freaky moments where I was like, what the hell am I doing here? It was amazing and season 1 was awesome. I learned a lot from season 1 to season 2 and heading into season 3. Sometimes you learn that nature doesn’t go along with filming production crews. You just have to say, ok, I'm trapping a beaver right now. The beaver literally looks like an overgrown rat and I have to skin and cook it up. It has some weird teeth looking at me, it’s 40lbs and it’s heavy, and it smells like wet dog. You gotta do it!
AM: What drew you to the show? It’s an interesting concept, you have these animals that are invasive in the environments that they are in. You learn how to trap them and then you cook them. What was it about this that made you want to host this show for all these seasons?
CHEF YV: So, here’s a couple of things. Before I get into anything, I always ask myself, what am I doing? First of all, I will be very very honest. I have been very honest about this. When you think of Outdoor, you think of white dudes, hillbilly hicks, hunters that lean towards the right. When you think of the Outdoor Channel, you know the persons that you’re thinking of, right?
AM: Yes.
CHEF YV: I get that. To be completely honest, some of the media stuff that we did for Outdoor - this is a media outlet. We live in a world and a country where it’s ok to have different perspectives. Right away I knew that this was different. Most of them have never heard of Hmong people. They have never heard of the Hmong story. They never heard about the fact that if you want to talk about patriotism, the Hmong people like my dad at a young age, was contracted out by the US government and trained by the CIA and Special Forces to fight in the mountains of Laos for American interests. They were patriots before ever being guaranteed any citizenship to the US. So when you have people who are saying, true citizenship and patriotism, my father is one of those. He loved America so much that he risked his life to fight for America not even knowing if he would ever come to America. I get to talk about that, the whole intro of our show is about that.
At the end of the day, the idea that going out into the woods, the jungle to some waterway and finding whatever invasive creature is out there to harvest and to hunt them, and cooking them – that is what they do in the mountains of Laos. Lizards, bats, sparrows, weird looking eels, and fish. That’s what my parents did. That’s what my dad did as a boy. I get to do what our people have been doing for thousands and thousands of years. I get to do that and there is a show about it. While others might think that it’s weird or gross, eating an iguana or a lizard for Hmong people in the mountains of Laos, it’s not eww or gross, it’s actually a Tuesday. That’s the protein that they can get. Having pork and beef, that’s a luxury. Saying you have pork to us, that’s amazing that’s a celebration!
AM: Like you said, it’s about survival and what you have that is in abundance to you. There are dishes that can support this if this is what you have in order to nourish your body. It’s important to juxtapose that and let people know that this is not just something that happens in other parts of the world, but in various parts of the US as well. Either by necessity or people simply enjoying it.
CHEF YV: I also think that what I am trying to say to the audience is this, look at home, you may make Chicken Dumpling Soup, but now, we’re making Squirrel Dumpling Soup. You’re just changing the protein out. Again, we’re different, but we’re not that different. Because the base to both of these things is still the base. The reason why you use chicken is because it’s easier to get chicken at your store. Why is Darrel from Southern Illinois using squirrels? Because that is in his backyard and the closest grocery store is an hour away. This isn’t him trying to be cool and to use it as a shock factor, he’s using that squirrel because there are plenty of squirrels that have been gnawing on those frickin’ acorns and they have that extra thick hind quarters, you know what I’m talking about? Like 3c’s kind of thick.
AM: Squirrels are vicious!
CHEF YV: Yeah like if that squirrel had yoga pants on its ass would be turning heads kind of thing. That’s delicious! We’re still talking about squirrels right?
AM: So in addition to your work in TV, you also have your podcast Hmonglish. It focuses on people, culture and Asian excellence. How does it feel to use your platform in this way, but also to talk about people that you also want to highlight?
CHEF YV: Prior to Hmonglish, we had this little podcast called White on Rice. We were interviewing all these people from Minneapolis and it was kind of our way to counter not being able to hang out and be with people during COVID. So, we thought, we’d bring people in a room that were 6' away from us so that people could hear what they were doing. It was cool because people enjoyed and felt that they were getting to meet all all of these people because of our longform podcast. We weren’t really smart about anything. But then when we really started thinking about it, Hmonglish came from when we were growing up, we would speak to our parents in Hmong but then there would be these English words. So if I was asking for a computer, I would say it in Hmong but then would say computer in English. So the Hmong kids, we just started calling in Hmonglish. I noticed that what Hmonglish really meant was this beautiful collision of 2 cultures. When you have 2 cultures collide, you’ve created a 3rd culture and in that culture, you’re trying to make sense of what it means. When you create a new culture, you’re trying to figure out what the norms are. You’re trying to figure out how to speak another language like for example you do fashion and all of that stuff, so when like Hip-Hop culture struck mainstream culture, there was this 3rd culture that was created right? Because mainstream had this culture where everything was formal and you enunciate very clearly and then you have Hip-Hop culture that hit it and that was more of a go with the flow and you had this different flowage and then it’s like does mainstream culture become Hip-Hop culture? Is Hip-Hop culture mainstream culture? Or how does mainstream culture affect Hip-Hop culture or does Hip-Hop culture become more diluted? There’s all these questions and all of these conversations.
The same thing with Hmong people or Hmong Millennials who either came to this country really young like I did or was born in this country. The Hmong Gen Z. I was born, I’m an American, but man, I’m still Hmong. How does this work? So we just had all of these Hmong guests come in who straddle these different cultures and who talk about their experiences.
Like Xee Reiter is a good friend of mine and is an incredible, incredible artist. Water painting, water color – all of that stuff. Her husband is white and they have been married for 15 years and she’s talking through that. We’re talking to another friend of mine, Pahoua Yang Hoffman who is the Senior Vice President of Government & Community Relations of one of the largest healthcare provider here. She’s an executive and she's Hmong. What does it mean to be an executive and you're rolling with all of the big boys that make the decisions that are billions of dollars. How do you do that not only as a woman but as Hmong? There are all of these expectations like Hmong women are docile and submissive – how do you navigate that? It’s such an incredible podcast and we dig deep into that.
We have these incredible guests such as Lee Pao Xiong who is the foremost and knowledgeable Hmong historian of our people. He traced our people back to 7,000 years in China. So, talking to him and listening to what he has to talk about in the Hmong stories and in our culture. It helped me understand that this is where we come from. We get to share that with a huge audience group. And again, we have gotten some really incredible responses. People DM our producer and it’s one of those things that I want to be able to put some really good production value on it so we spent a few good pennies on it to make the production value really well. We believe that in doing something beautiful, we want to make it great. We also know that for Hmong people sometimes, it’s just about getting the product out there, it’ll be good. We were like, no, we’re in a world where looks matter, the way it sounds and how it’s put together strategically – it’s been really cool!
AM: That is amazing and just looking at the accolades, the restaurants, the awards, being a TV personality, being a host, having your podcast and I’m sure you have a ton of other things that you have coming up as well, what do you want your legacy to be seen as?
CHEF YV: Honestly and I mean this with all of my heart, I actually don’t want to be seen in terms of a legacy. There is no legacy here. It’s mom and dad’s legacy. I am merely a mirror that reflects them. I want people to look at what we do and then I want them to be driven by these 2 people. My mom and my dad who are in their 70s, who are grandparents, who live in the suburbs, they have a little plot of land where they have a small farm where all of their produce comes to our restaurant – no money asked, no money put down.
AM: Wow!
CHEF YV: All they want to do is that they want us to live a life where they knew that they could never have. But they want us want us to live it. So that’s all it is. I want people to look at what we do and I want to direct them back to my mom and dad.
So the reason why is this. Last year I won when I was a nominee and then a finalist, my sister is a therapist. She’s the family therapist. But she always therapizes the whole family and I don’t even know if that’s a real word, but I always say that. I’m pretty sure she called my mom and explained to her what the James Beard is and what that honor meant. Because my mom wouldn’t know that by herself. When mom called me randomly that night after it was announced, to say that I was so proud of you, I was like, oh my sister called you.
I’m driving home from work and I’m pretty drained and tired. She congratulated me and said that she was so proud of me. She told me that she wanted to tell me a story that she felt a little ashamed to tell me. She said her plan was not to tell us kids about it until she was on her death bed as she felt ashamed about it. She said that when she was younger, she was caught and put in this war prison. She said that they were in there for a year. It was the worst time ever. There was no food. Communist propaganda would come in and say, just leave your family and marry a Communist man and forget your life. There was not enough food for the children, kids were dying and her first husband was killed. Her babies were all taken away and she said that it was the worst thing possible. We grew up in a Christian household, so when she was there, she told me that every morning she woke up in that camp and she would pray to God that he would let her die as an act of mercy. She felt that life was so tough, that the only way that she thought that she could escape is to die. She wanted to die, every morning she wanted to die. She said that one morning she woke up and she had that same prayer asking for God to let her die that day. She said that what was different in that morning was that there was a voice inside her heart and that that little voice said to her that, “I’m not going to let you die, because I have great plans for your children. They are going to change the world. They will do big things so I’m going to need you to survive a little longer and I’m going to need you to push forward a little longer.” She said that when she heard that my name is among the names of all of these great people in the country and you were one of the best, and they were looking to you for leadership, “I knew in that moment that it made sense. That moment 50 years ago made sense. That’s why God didn’t let me die in that camp and I can hear that today.”
I don’t know Kimmie, when you hear things like that, for me, everything changed. For me, it was no longer about this legacy that I was going to leave, it’s them. Somebody suffered, somebody went through pain, somebody went through a war camp – talk about trauma. To live on a glimmer of a hope that one day your children, to know that there is a special plan for your children and I need you to go through all of this to take all of this and one day you’re going to see it.
AM: Wow.
CHEF YV: That’s it, I don’t give a shit about my legacy. I don’t want to be known. I love these interviews. I get to talk about them. Do you know why I do this TV stuff? I don’t want to be a TV star, it’s too much bullshit in it. I do that so that people can look at it and say wow, we have to go to this restaurant, wow we want to know more about his mom and dad, we want to know more about their story. I’m just an echo. If there is a word about legacy, I want to be an echo of them. That’s it, hands down. The rest of the stuff is just little details.
AM: I have never talked to someone where in every facet of everything that you do, is paying homage to your parents, your people and how it is ingrained in every single thing. I’ve never talked to someone who has just been so authentically that.
“That’s it, I don’t give a shit about my legacy. I don’t want to be known. I love these interviews. I do that so that people can look at it and say wow, we have to go to this restaurant, wow we want to know more about his mom and dad, we want to know more about their story. I’m just an echo. If there is a word about legacy, I want to be an echo of them.”
CHEF YV: We were interviewing PR groups and one of them said, “yeah the whole family thing and culture – that’s your schtick.” I was very angry and I wanted to say F- you dude. If you think that this is a schtick, I don’t think that you're the right people for me to work with. This isn’t a schtick man, this is life. There’s going to be chefs that come out and out cook us, great - awesome - good for you. But they’re not going to tell our story better then us. I live this and I will die this, you know? I don’t give a crap. I will live in the basement of wherever to keep everything at low cost so that we can put all of our funding into making this work. I want you to know that I am the first to make all of the sacrifices. I’m the first to inject my own personal money when we can’t get payroll going for last month. We’re going to do that and there’s no amount of cost that I wouldn’t do and we’re going to do this.
That’s the thing that I want to be able to teach our chefs on our team. Find something in your life that you’re that passionate about. I don’t care what it is. Find it and work for it, fight for it in the same way just like mom and dad. To this day, they still do that. They’re retired, we’re all adults. They don’t have to do that. We have our own lives and we do our own thing. They still on my frickin’ birthday gives me $100 and he’s like, this is for gas. I’m like, what and he tells me that he wants to make sure I have enough in my car. They’re still warring for us! It never stops and I think that they’re heart has this go go nature. I look at my father and I don’t give a crap, I had a great example of what a man is, what a good father is, what a good man is and I tell people.
How do you know what it means to be a good man? Look at my father. If I can be quarter of who he is, how he takes care of us, how he loves us, how he fought a war to get us here – if I can be a quarter of that, if I can be a good husband one day and hopefully to be a good dad one day – that’s who I’m looking to!
My mom ferociously loves us. She never gives up on us. When I visit her, she always tells me that she’s praying for me and the restaurant. She says it constantly and even when I want to give up on myself and say that I’m done, she’ll pull me aside and say, “hey, this too shall pass. It’s ok.” This is coming from someone who sat in a war camp as prisoners and tells me that it will pass. She has seen it all, she has seen hell, she has seen evil. She still says that it will will pass. In COVID, they looked at us and said it was ok and it would pass. She said that they had been through things like this before. They never panicked about COVID. I love it, that’s my parents. Like I said before, the food is just the tip of the iceberg. There is something deeper and richer here.
I really appreciate media outlets like yours that want to dig into that. Like we have the easy and low hanging fruit like culture, being all about family and if you want to do a 500 word piece on that, that’s great and we can do that too. But for those that sit there and say that they’re going to sit down for 2 hours and hear about this, I’ll go deep man! I’ll go deep deep into this!
AM: We have a lot of stories and we love sharing them!
CHEF YV: It’s awesome to see the different kinds of groups of people that are there. There’s also people there that I admire myself and I’m like oh that’s awesome! So I felt all fanboy like yeah!
IG @yiavang70
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | PG 30, 52, 55, 56 + PG 132 63MIX ROUTIN3S Eliesa Johnson | PG 33 - 34 + PG 132 3MIX ROUTIN3S Courtesy of Chef Yia Vang | PG 38 - 44 Netflix | PG 48 Outdoor Channel/Feral | PG 51 TJ Turner Photograpahy PG 58 Emilie Ann Szabo |
Read the APR ISSUE #88 of Athleisure Mag and see BEING THE ECHO | Chef Yia Vang in mag.
On today's episode of Athleisure Kitchen, we know that there is something about a great meal that allows you to enjoy the flavors, the ambiance and so much more. When the food becomes a gateway to a deeper understanding about the people and culture, it's truly an immersive experience that leaves you with a bigger takeaway.
Today's conversation with Chef Yia Vang explores a history that is infused with his passion for food by sharing his love for Hmong cuisine, his parents as well as the people that it comes from. This multi-nominated James Beard Award chef whose restaurant is up for Best Chef: Midwest for a 2nd year in a row, has two restaurants in Minnesota, Union Hmong Kitchen and Vinai. He is also the host of a number of shows including: The Outdoor Channel's Feral, Food Networks' Stoked, and PBS' Relish. He has competed on Netflix's Iron Chef: Quest for An Iron Legend and hosts his podcast Hmonglish just to name a few of his projects. He tells us about the food, his philosphy and the importance of representation.
Athleisure Kitchen is part of the Athleisure Studio Podcast Network and is a member of Athleisure Media which includes Athleisure Mag. You can stay in the loop on who future guests are by visiting us at AthleisureStudio.com/AthleisureKitchen and on Instagram at @AthleisureKitchen and @AthleisureStudio. Athleisure Kitchen is hosted by Kimmie Smith and is Executive Produced by Paul Farkas and Kimmie Smith. It is mixed by the team at Athleisure Studio. Our theme music is "This Boy" performed by Ilya Truhanov.
Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.
PHOTO CREDIT | Courtesy of James Beard Foundation
Earlier today, the James Beard Foundation shared the finalists for the Media Awards for the James Beard Awards. With this series of announcements which we have covered over the last few weeks as they have released various categories, we are sharing the full list of those that are semifinalists, finalists and nominees. The winners will be announced on Jun 5th in 2023. We’ll share the winners that were announced on this day. It’s so great to see various people that we have featured in Athleisure Mag issues as well as our podcast Athleisure Kitchen that are on this list!
2023 James Beard Awards: Restaurant and Chef Finalists
Copine, Seattle, WA
Coracora, West Hartford, CT
Friday Saturday Sunday, Philadelphia, PA
Lucia, Dallas, TX
Mita’s, Cincinnati, OH
Brandon Chrostowski, EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute (EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute, edwins too, EDWINS Bakery, and others), Cleveland, OH
Greg Dulan, Dulan’s Soul Food Kitchen, Dulan’s on Crenshaw, and Dulanville, Los Angeles, CA
Aaron Hoskins, Sarah Simmons, and Elie Yigo, City Grit Hospitality Group (SmallSUGAR, CITY GRIT, and Il Focolare Pizzeria), Columbia, SC
Yenvy and Quynh Pham, Phở Bắc Sup Shop, Phởcific Standard Time, and the Boat, Seattle, WA
Ellen Yin, High Street Hospitality Group (Fork, a.kitchen + bar, High Street Philly, and others), Philadelphia, PA
Rachel Miller, Nightshade Noodle Bar, Lynn, MA
Niki Nakayama, n/naka, Los Angeles, CA
Erik Ramirez, Llama Inn, Brooklyn, NY
Rob Rubba, Oyster Oyster, Washington, D.C.
Hajime Sato, Sozai, Clawson, MI
Damarr Brown, Virtue, Chicago, IL
Rashida Holmes, Bridgetown Roti, Los Angeles, CA
Serigne Mbaye, Dakar NOLA, New Orleans, LA
Charlie Mitchell, Clover Hill, New York, NY
Amanda Shulman, Her Place Supper Club, Philadelphia, PA
Causa, Washington, D.C.
Dept of Culture, New York, NY
Don Artemio, Fort Worth, TX
Kann, Portland, OR
Lupi & Iris, Milwaukee, WI
Neng Jr.’s, Asheville, NC
Nolia, Cincinnati, OH
Obélix, Chicago, IL
Restaurant Beatrice, Dallas, TX
Tatemó, Houston, TX
The Black Cypress, Pullman, WA
Bottega, Birmingham, AL
Lula Drake, Columbia, SC
The Quarry, Monson, ME
Sepia, Chicago, IL
Cote, New York, NY
Lazy Bear, San Francisco, CA
Nancy’s Hustle, Houston, TX
Ototo, Los Angeles, CA
Spencer, Ann Arbor, MI
Bar Leather Apron, Honolulu, HI
Drastic Measures, Shawnee, KS
Garagiste, Las Vegas, NV
Las Ramblas, Brownsville, TX
Rob Roy, Seattle, WA
Veronika Baukema, Veronika’s Pastry Shop, Billings, MT
Elaine Uykimpang Bentz, Café Mochiko, Cincinnati, OH
Vince Bugtong, Viridian, Oakland, CA
Margarita Manzke, République, Los Angeles, CA
Shawn McKenzie, Café Cerés, Minneapolis, MN
Angelo Brocato Ice Cream & Confectionery, New Orleans, LA
La Casita Bakeshop, Richardson, TX
Kuluntu Bakery, Dallas, TX
Yoli Tortilleria, Kansas City, MO
Zak the Baker, Miami, FL
Jim Embry, Sustainable Communities Network, Slow Food USA, and Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance
Valerie Horn, CANE Kitchen, Cowan Community Center, and City of Whitesburg Farmers Market
Savonala “Savi” Horne, Land Loss Prevention Project
Ira Wallace, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
Rowen White, Sierra Seeds
Emerging Leadership: The Burgerville Workers Union
RELATED
Gilberto Cetina Jr., Holbox, Los Angeles, CA
Kyle and Katina Connaughton, SingleThread, Healdsburg, CA
Brandon Hayato Go, Hayato, Los Angeles, CA
Justin Pichetrungsi, Anajak Thai, Sherman Oaks, CA
Carlos Salgado, Taco María, Costa Mesa, CA
Omar Anani, Saffron De Twah, Detroit, MI
Diana Dávila Boldin, Mi Tocaya Antojería, Chicago, IL
Tim Flores and Genie Kwon, Kasama, Chicago, IL
Andy Hollyday, Selden Standard, Detroit, MI
Sarah Welch, Marrow, Detroit, MI
Jesse Ito, Royal Sushi, Philadelphia, PA
Dionicio Jiménez, Cantina La Martina, Philadelphia, PA
Kate Lasky and Tomasz Skowronski, Apteka, Pittsburgh, PA
Michael Rafidi, Albi, Washington, D.C.
Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon, Kalaya, Philadelphia, PA
Sanaa Abourezk, Sanaa’s Gourmet Mediterranean, Sioux Falls, SD
Gregory León, Amilinda, Milwaukee, WI
Francesco Mangano, Osteria Papavero, Madison, WI
Itaru Nagano and Andrew Kroeger, Fairchild, Madison, WI
David Utterback, Yoshitomo, Omaha, NE
Salvador Alamilla, Amano, Caldwell, ID
Michael Diaz de Leon, BRUTØ, Denver, CO
Suchada Johnson, Teton Thai, Teton Village, WY
Kris Komori, KIN, Boise, ID
Ali Sabbah, Mazza, Salt Lake City, UT
Nasim Alikhani, Sofreh, Brooklyn, NY
Mary Attea, The Musket Room, New York, NY
Amanda Cohen, Dirt Candy, New York, NY
Shaina Loew-Banayan, Cafe Mutton, Hudson, NY
Junghyun Park, Atomix, New York, NY
Valentine Howell, Krasi, Boston, MA
Christian Hunter, Community Table, Washington, CT
Sherry Pocknett, Sly Fox Den Too, Charlestown, RI
Yisha Siu, Yunnan Kitchen, Boston, MA
Renee Touponce, The Port of Call, Mystic, CT
Joshua Dorcak, MÄS, Ashland, OR
Vince Nguyen, Berlu, Portland, OR
Thomas Pisha-Duffly, Gado Gado, Portland, OR
Beau Schooler, In Bocca Al Lupo, Juneau, AK
Aaron Verzosa, Archipelago, Seattle, WA
Sam Fore, Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Bites, Lexington, KY
Josh Habiger, Bastion, Nashville, TN
Sam Hart, Counter-, Charlotte, NC
Terry Koval, The Deer and the Dove, Decatur, GA
Paul Smith, 1010 Bridge, Charleston, WV
Ana Castro, Lengua Madre, New Orleans, LA
Timothy Hontzas, Johnny’s Restaurant, Homewood, AL
Alex Perry and Kumi Omori, Vestige, Ocean Springs, MS
Henry Moso, Kabooki Sushi, Orlando, FL
Natalia Vallejo, Cocina al Fondo, San Juan, PR
Oscar Amador and Francesco Di Caudo, Anima by EDO, Las Vegas, NV
Kaoru Azeuchi, KAISEKI YUZU, Las Vegas, NV
Andrew Black, Grey Sweater, Oklahoma City, OK
Jeff Chanchaleune, Ma Der Lao Kitchen, Oklahoma City, OK
Justin Pioche, Pioche Food Group, Upper Fruitland (Doolkai), Navajo Nation, NM
Reyna Duong, Sandwich Hag, Dallas, TX
Benchawan Jabthong Painter, Street to Kitchen, Houston, TX
Emiliano Marentes, ELEMI, El Paso, TX
John Russ, Clementine, San Antonio, TX
Ernest Servantes and David Kirkland, Burnt Bean Co., Seguin, TX
Baking and Desserts
New European Baking: 99 Recipes for Breads, Brioches and Pastries by Laurel Kratochvila
Tava: Eastern European Baking and Desserts from Romania & Beyond by Irina Georgescu
What’s for Dessert: Simple Recipes for Dessert People: A Baking Book by Claire Saffitz
Beverage with Recipes
The Bartender’s Manifesto: How to Think, Drink, and Create Cocktails Like a Pro by Toby Maloney and Emma Janzen
Cure: New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em from the Award-Winning Bar by Neal Bodenheimer and Emily Timberlake
Wild Brews: The Craft of Home Brewing, from Sour and Fruit Beers to Farmhouse Ales by Jaega Wise
Beverage without Recipes
Drinking with the Valkyries: Writings on Wine by Andrew Jefford
Exploring the World of Japanese Craft Sake: Rice, Water, Earth by Nancy Matsumoto and Michael Tremblay
To Fall in Love, Drink This: A Wine Writer’s Memoir by Alice Feiring
Bread
Breadsong: How Baking Changed Our Lives by Kitty Tait and Al Tait
The Miller’s Daughter: Unusual Flours & Heritage Grains: Stories and Recipes from Hayden Flour Mills by Emma Zimmerman
The Perfect Loaf: The Craft and Science of Sourdough Breads, Sweets, and More: A Baking Book by Maurizio Leo
Food Issues and Advocacy
Eating While Black: Food Shaming and Race in America by Psyche A. Williams-Forson
Gastronativism: Food, Identity, Politics by Fabio Parasecoli
Retail Inequality: Reframing the Food Desert Debate by Kenneth H. Kolb
General
The Cook You Want to Be: Everyday Recipes to Impress by Andy Baraghani
I Dream of Dinner (so you don’t have to): Low-Effort, High-Reward Recipes: A Cookbook by Ali Slagle
Sunday Best: Cooking Up the Weekend Spirit Every Day: A Cookbook by Adrienne Cheatham with Sarah Zorn
International
Masala: Recipes from India, the Land of Spices by Anita Jaisinghani
Mezcla: Recipes to Excite by Ixta Belfrage
Mi Cocina: Recipes and Rapture from My Kitchen in Mexico: A Cookbook by Rick Martínez
Literary Writing
California Soul: An American Epic of Cooking and Survival by Keith Corbin with Kevin Alexander
Savor: A Chef’s Hunger for More by Fatima Ali with Tarajia Morrell
To Boldly Grow: Finding Joy, Adventure, and Dinner in Your Own Backyard by Tamar Haspel
Reference, History, and Scholarship
A Place at the Nayarit: How a Mexican Restaurant Nourished a Community by Natalia Molina
Slaves for Peanuts: A Story of Conquest, Liberation, and a Crop That Changed History by Jori Lewis
What a Mushroom Lives For: Matsutake and the Worlds They Make by Michael J. Hathaway
Restaurant and Professional
Bludso’s BBQ Cookbook: A Family Affair in Smoke and Soul by Kevin Bludso with Noah Galuten
Please Wait To Be Tasted: The Lil’ Deb’s Oasis Cookbook by Carla Perez-Gallardo, Hannah Black, and Wheeler with Meshell Ndegeocello
Turkey and the Wolf: Flavor Trippin’ in New Orleans by Mason Hereford and JJ Goode
Single Subject
Masa: Techniques, Recipes, and Reflections on a Timeless Staple by Jorge Gaviria
The Miracle of Salt: Recipes and Techniques to Preserve, Ferment, and Transform Your Food by Naomi Duguid
The Wok: Recipes and Techniques by J. Kenji López-Alt
U.S. Foodways
Gullah Geechee Home Cooking: Recipes from the Matriarch of Edisto Island by Emily Meggett with Kayla Stewart and Trelani Michelle
I Am From Here: Stories and Recipes from a Southern Chef by Vishwesh Bhatt
The Woks of Life: Recipes to Know and Love from a Chinese American Family: A Cookbook by Bill Leung, Kaitlin Leung, Judy Leung, and Sarah Leung
Vegetable-Focused Cooking
Plant-Based India: Nourishing Recipes Rooted in Tradition by Dr. Sheil Shukla
In Praise of Veg: The Ultimate Cookbook for Vegetable Lovers by Alice Zaslavsky
The Vegan Chinese Kitchen: Recipes and Modern Stories from a Thousand-Year-Old Tradition: A Cookbook by Hannah Che
Visuals
Chinese-ish: Home Cooking Not Quite Authentic, 100% Delicious by Joanna Hu and Armelle Habib
Homage: Recipes and Stories from an Amish Soul Food Kitchen by Brittany Conerly
The Sofrito Manifesto by Bernardo Medina, Rafael Montalvo, and Ángelo Álvarez
Audio Programming
Copper & Heat; “Abalone: The Cost of Consumption”; Airs on: Various podcast platforms
Dish City; “The complicated legacy of Asian-owned carryouts in D.C.’s Black neighborhoods”; Airs on: WAMU and various podcast platforms
Good Food; “‘Maíz is life’ — the history, science, and politics of masa”; Airs on: KCRW and various podcast platforms
Audio Reporting
Jane Black and Elizabeth Dunn; Pressure Cooker; “The Twisted History of School Lunch in America”; Airs on: Various podcast platforms
Tyler Boudreaux; “The Blacker the Cherry: The abolitionist history of the Black Republican Cherry”; Airs on: KCRW
Lisa Morehouse; California Foodways; “‘We Just Have Faith’: Gold Country Jewish Community Strives to Connect Through COVID”; “Ojai’s Famous Pixie Tangerine Struggles to Survive Wildfires and a Hot Real Estate Market”; “Cafeteria Cook Brings Gourmet Dishes Inspired by Palauan Childhood to Lassen Community College”; Airs on: KQED and various podcast platforms
Commercial Media
Jaylee Adams, Lindsey Hagen, and Martha Stoumen; California Natural by Martha Stoumen Wines; Airs on: Vimeo
Hallie Davison, Jorge Gaviria, and Daniel Klein; Masienda Presents; Airs on: YouTube
Hallie Davison, Daniel Klein, and Yazmín Ramírez; Las Chicatanas: The Oaxacan Ant Delicacy That Is Harvested Just Once a Year; Airs on: YouTube
Documentary / Docuseries Visual Media
Coldwater Kitchen; Airs on: Various film festivals
James Hemings: Ghost in America’s Kitchen; Airs on: Various streaming platforms
Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter; Airs on: Apple TV and Amazon Prime
Instructional Visual Media
Big Sky Kitchen With Eduardo Garcia; Airs on: Magnolia Network and Discovery+
Techniquely with Lan Lam; Airs on: YouTube
What’s Eating Dan?; Airs on: YouTube
Reality or Competition Visual Media
Restaurant Takeover ft. Matta; Airs on: YouTube
Top Chef; Airs on: Bravo
We Put 11 Cameras In NYC’s Busiest Brunch Restaurant | Bon Appétit; Airs on: YouTube
Social Media Account
Erwan Heussaff; Erwan; Instagram
Andrew Huang, Ewa Huang, and Jeromy Ko; Nom Life; Instagram and TikTok
Kalamata’s Kitchen Staff; Kalamatas Kitchen - Of Course It’s Kid Friendly; Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok
Visual Media—Short Form
CBS Sunday Morning; “Black, White, and The Grey”; “How Erin French found herself at The Lost Kitchen”; Airs on: CBS
How One of Philly’s Best Pizza Spots Creates Jobs for the Formerly Incarcerated — The Experts; Eater, airs on: YouTube
Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien; Airs on: Syndicated
Visual Media—Long Form
Mafia Land; Airs on: Vice TV and YouTube
Somebody Feed Phil; Airs on: Netflix
The Whole Animal; Airs on: SOMM TV
Beverage
“Lost in Translation — How Flavor Wheels and Tasting Tools Can Evolve to Speak with Global Beer Drinkers” by Mark Dredge for Good Beer Hunting
“The Great Mezcal Heist” by Emma Janzen for Eater
“Who’s Allowed to Make Sotol?” by B.E. Mintz for Texas Monthly
Columns and Newsletters
“The Case for the Supermarket Supershopper”; “A Maximalist New Wave for Instant Noodles”; “We All Scream for Asian American Ice Cream” by Cathy Erway for TASTE
“Tetelas Are the Tasty Triangles You Need to Try Right Now”; “Birria Is the Greatest Threat to Taco Culture—and Its Savior”; “Trompo Tacos Are So Much More Than Tacos al Pastor” by José R. Ralat for Texas Monthly
“Taking down a mammy complex”; “Decoding the Guild Guide”; “Seducing truckers with ‘nanner pudding” by Hanna Raskin for The Food Section
Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Review Award
“Poncho’s Tlayudas, a window to Oaxaca, serves one of L.A.’s defining dishes”; “At Chinatown’s Pearl River Deli, the menu is always changing — and worth chasing”; “Anajak Thai is our 2022 Restaurant of the Year” by Bill Addison for Los Angeles Times
“Vietnamese Food Goes Rogue at Portland’s Berlu”; “Kann Is Portland Monthly’s Restaurant of the Year: 2022”; “Michelin-Starred Chef Matthew Lightner Seeds Oregon’s Next Food Revolution at Okta” by Karen Brooks for Portland Monthly
“The most exciting new restaurant pop-up in Oakland is also its best-kept secret”; “After 33 years, an Indian food icon in Berkeley is better than ever”; “Stars like DJ Khaled and Steve Aoki have Bay Area restaurants now. They’re all uniquely terrible”by Soleil Ho for San Francisco Chronicle
Dining and Travel
“Feasting on the NOLA Suburbs” by Brett Martin for Garden & Gun
“The I-95 exit-by-exit eating guide”; “Don’t leave home without your I-95 eating guide” by Hanna Raskin for The Food Section
“Best New Restaurants” by Elazar Sontag for Bon Appétit
Feature Reporting
“Trouble Brewing” by Charles Bethea for The New Yorker
“The Last Oyster Tongers of Apalachicola” by David Hanson for The Bitter Southerner
“Blood Sweat & Tears” by Shane Mitchell for The Bitter Southerner
Food Coverage in a General Interest Publication
The Bitter Southerner
Oxford American
San Francisco Chronicle
Foodways
“Kimchi With a Side of Whale” by Jennifer Fergesen for Eater
“The Elusive Roots of Rosin Potatoes” by Caroline Hatchett for The Bitter Southerner
“Come Hell or High Water — Oysters, Brewing, and How the Come Yahs & Bin Yahs Could End Sea Level Rise in Charleston” by Jamaal Lemon for Good Beer Hunting
Health and Wellness
“How the Supreme Court Decision Exacerbated the Dire State of Bar Industry Healthcare” by Betsy Andrews for SevenFifty Daily
“Coffee vs. tea smackdown”; “What are ultra-processed foods? What should I eat instead?”; “The best foods to feed your gut microbiome” by Anahad O’Connor for The Washington Post
“When ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’ Miss the Mark: Restaurants Rethink Gender’s Role in Service” by Rax Will for The New York Times
Home Cooking
“Chinese Scrambled Eggs With Tomato” by Jenny Dorsey for Serious Eats
“How to Hot Pot: the Method (and the Madness) Behind Our Favorite Communal Meal” by Elyse Inamine for Bon Appétit
“Sour Power” by Lara Lee for Food & Wine
Innovative Storytelling
“How One New York City Restaurant Fought To Survive” by Crista Chapman, Gray Beltran, and Gary He for The New York Times
“Uneven Ground: Exceptional Black farmers and their fight to flourish in the South” by The Tennessean Staff for The Tennessean
“Night Market” by Thrillist Staff for Thrillist
Investigative Reporting
“The fight to keep little-known bacteria out of powdered baby formula”; “Formula shortage adds to financial crunch for farmworker families”; “Whistleblower report on baby formula didn’t reach top FDA food safety official” by Jacob Bogage, Kimberly Kindy, and Laura Reiley for The Washington Post
“Animal Agriculture Is Dangerous Work. The People Who Do It Have Few Protections.”; “‘I Was Coughing So Hard I Would Throw Up’”; “Tyson Says Its Nurses Help Workers. Critics Charge They Stymie OSHA.” by Christina Cooke, Alice Driver, and Gosia Wozniacka for Civil Eats
“Chef’s Fable”; “Can This Farm Fix Agriculture If It Can’t Fix Itself?”; “Feed the Rich, Save the Planet?” by Meghan McCarron for Eater
Jonathan Gold Local Voice Award
“The Doughnut Kids Are All Right”; “The Subtle Brilliance of Pijja Palace, Silver Lake’s Indian Sports Bar”; “A Soul-Crushing Work of Staggering Genius” by Cathy Chaplin, Eater
“When I Feel Unmoored by Life, I Always Find My Way Back to Either/Or”; “At Mira’s East African Cuisine, One Family’s Iftar Traditions Take the Forefront”; “Why Isn’t There an Overdose Kit Stocked Behind Every Bar in Portland?” by Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater
“How Black-owned vegan restaurants in West End prefigured Atlanta’s passion for plants”; “The Luxury Car Wash: Dog Spa, Hookah and Even Lamb Chops While You Wait”; “Eby Marshall Slack, an original staffer at Atlanta’s iconic Paschal’s restaurant, on building community” by Mike Jordan, Atlanta Magazine; The Wall Street Journal
MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award
“Sardine kofta in Palestine: A love story” by Maram Humaid for Al Jazeera
“Feasting on the NOLA Burbs” by Brett Martin for Garden & Gun
“Blood Sweat & Tears” by Shane Mitchell for The Bitter Southerner
Personal Essay with Recipes
“Coming to America: How One Family Preserved Their Culinary Traditions After Moving to the Midwest in the 1960s” by Lan Samantha Chang for Food & Wine
“In My 40th Year, I Finally Made Pita Bread” by Layla Khoury-Hanold for Food52
“Dog S#!t Dacquoise” by Diep Tran for Food & Wine
Personal Essay without Recipes
“Slave Food and Other Insults” by Dr. Cynthia R. Greenlee for Oxford American
“On Boba” by Kyla Wazana Tompkins for The LARB Quarterly of the Los Angeles Review of Books
“How These Chinese Doughnuts Helped Save My Refugee Family” by Jean Trinh for Los Angeles Times
Profile
“Being Paula Camp” by Monica Eng for Chicago
“Tribe to Table” by Carolyn Kormann for The New Yorker
“The Sweetest Harvest” by Kayla Stewart for Food & Wine
Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.
On today's episode of Athleisure Kitchen, we're embracing all the reasons to be out and about with friends, traveling to new destinations, and having the best meals at new and treasured restaurants. When it comes to the culinary industry, there have been a number of luminaries that elevated this space and showcase how they interpret and infuse their passion in this field.
I'm pleased to have 4X James Beard Award winner, Emmy nominated, Las Vegas Food & Wine Festival's 2022 Chef of the Year, restaurateur, entrepreneur, food advocate, best-selling author, philanthropist, and Host/TV personality, Chef Todd English. He is also Athleisure Mag's MAR ISSUE #87 cover! We enjoyed eating at his restaurant Olives, here in NY back in the 2000s as well as eating at his restaurants in Las Vegas.
His passion for his love of cooking rustic Mediterranean, creating an immersive ambiance when you're at his establishments, and having that Todd English aesthetic when you're at his properties is something that we enjoy. He has blown our collective minds, palettes, and senses with such utter delights over the years - with so much more coming!
I sat down with Chef Todd to talk about his culinary background, how he got in and navigated the industry, providing insight into what it meant to be in the industry when there weren't the resources that we have access to today, English Hospitality Group (its portfolio includes Olives, Figs, The Pepper Club, Bluezoo at Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort, The English Hotel to name a few), an array of projects, luxury in hospitality, cannabis, and food advocacy. In our conversation, he provides an inside look at how he approaches ingredients, the state of food, and the power of relevancy as a brand.
Athleisure Kitchen is part of the Athleisure Studio Podcast Network and is a member of Athleisure Media which includes Athleisure Mag. You can stay in the loop on who future guests are by visiting us at AthleisureStudio.com/AthleisureKitchen and on Instagram at @AthleisureKitchen and @AthleisureStudio. Athleisure Kitchen is hosted by Kimmie Smith and is Executive Produced by Paul Farkas and Kimmie Smith. It is mixed by the team at Athleisure Studio. Our theme music is "This Boy" performed by Ilya Truhanov.
Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.
PHOTO CREDIT | James Beard Awards
The James Beards Awards shares who semi-finalists and nominees of a number of the awards that they give. They already announced the James Beard Awards Semifinalists and the Restaurants and Chef America’s Classics Winners and today, they announced the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Nominees. This only leaves the nominees for the James Beard Foundation Media Awards which will be announced live in NYC on April 26th! Tickets will go on sale to attend the awards ceremony in Chicago on Mar 31st for the event in June.
Rachel Miller, Nightshade Noodle Bar, Lynn, MA
Niki Nakayama, n/naka, Los Angeles, CA
Erik Ramirez, Llama Inn, Brooklyn, NY
Rob Rubba, Oyster Oyster, Washington, D.C.
Hajime Sato, Sozai, Clawson, MI
Copine, Seattle, WA
Coracora, West Hartford, CT
Friday Saturday Sunday, Philadelphia, PA
Lucia, Dallas, TX
Mita's, Cincinnati, OH
Causa, Washington, D.C.
Dept of Culture, New York, NY
Don Artemio Mexican Heritage, Fort Worth, TX
Kann, Portland, OR
Lupi & Iris, Milwaukee, WI
Neng Jr.'s, Asheville, NC
Nolia, Cincinnati, OH
Obélix, Chicago, IL
Restaurant Beatrice, Dallas, TX
Tatemó, Houston, TX
Brandon Chrostowski, EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute (EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute, edwins too, EDWINS Bakery, and others), Cleveland, OH
Greg Dulan, Dulan’s Soul Food Kitchen, Dulan's on Crenshaw, and Dulanville, Los Angeles, CA
Aaron Hoskins, Sarah Simmons, and Elie Yigo, CITY GRIT Hospitality Group (smallSUGAR, CITY GRIT, Il Focolare Pizzeria), Columbia, SC
Yenvy and Quynh Pham, Phở Bắc Sup Shop, Phởcific Standard Time, The Boat, Seattle, WA
Ellen Yin, High Street Hospitality Group (Fork, a.kitchen + bar, High Street, and others), Philadelphia, PA
Damarr Brown, Virtue, Chicago, IL
Rashida Holmes, Bridgetown Roti, Los Angeles, CA
Serigne Mbaye, Dakar NOLA, New Orleans, LA
Charlie Mitchell, Clover Hill, Brooklyn, NY
Amanda Shulman, Her Place Supper Club, Philadelphia, PA
Angelo Brocato Ice Cream & Confectionery, New Orleans, LA
La Casita Bakeshop, Richardson, TX
Kuluntu Bakery, Dallas, TX
Yoli Tortilleria, Kansas City, MO
Zak the Baker, Miami, FL
Veronika Gerasimova, Veronika's Pastry Shop, Billings, MT
Elaine Uykimpang Bentz, Café Mochiko, Cincinnati, OH
Vince Bugtong, ABACA, San Francisco, CA
Margarita Manzke, République, Los Angeles, CA
Shawn McKenzie, Café Cerés, Minneapolis, MN
The Black Cypress, Pullman, WA
Bottega, Birmingham, AL
Lula Drake, Columbia, SC
The Quarry, Monson, ME
Sepia, Chicago, IL
COTE, New York, NY
Lazy Bear, San Francisco, CA
Nancy's Hustle, Houston, TX
OTOTO, Los Angeles, CA
Spencer, Ann Arbor, MI
Bar Leather Apron, Honolulu, HI
Drastic Measures, Shawnee, KS
Garagiste Wine Room | Merchant, Las Vegas, NV
Las Ramblas, Brownsville, TX
Rob Roy, Seattle, WA
Gilberto Cetina Jr., Holbox, Los Angeles, CA
Kyle and Katina Connaughton, SingleThread, Healdsburg, CA
Brandon Hayato Go, Hayato, Los Angeles, CA
Justin Pichetrungsi, Anajak Thai, Sherman Oaks, CA
Carlos Salgado, Taco María, Costa Mesa, CA
Omar Anani, Saffron De Twah, Detroit, MI
Diana Dávila, Mi Tocaya Antojería, Chicago, IL
Tim Flores and Genie Kwon, Kasama, Chicago, IL
Andy Hollyday, Selden Standard, Detroit, MI
Sarah Welch, Marrow, Detroit, MI
Jesse Ito, Royal Sushi, Philadelphia, PA
Dionicio Jiménez, Cantina La Martina, Philadelphia, PA
Kate Lasky and Tomasz Skowronski, Apteka, Pittsburgh, PA
Michael Rafidi, Albi, Washington, D.C.
Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon, Kalaya, Philadelphia, PA
Sanaa Abourezk, Sanaa's Gourmet Mediterranean, Sioux Falls, SD
Gregory León, Amilinda, Milwaukee, WI
Francesco Mangano, Osteria Papavero, Madison, WI
Itaru Nagano and Andrew Kroeger, Fairchild, Madison, WI
David Utterback, Yoshitomo, Omaha, NE
Salvador Alamilla, Amano, Caldwell, ID
Michael Diaz de Leon, BRUTØ, Denver, CO
Suchada Johnson, Teton Thai, Teton Village, WY
Kris Komori, KIN, Boise, ID
Ali Sabbah, Mazza, Salt Lake City, UT
Nasim Alikhani, Sofreh, Brooklyn, NY
Mary Attea, The Musket Room, New York, NY
Amanda Cohen, Dirt Candy, New York, NY
Shaina Loew-Banayan, Cafe Mutton, Hudson, NY
Junghyun Park, Atomix, New York, NY
Valentine Howell, Krasi, Boston, MA
Christian Hunter, Community Table, New Preston, CT
Sherry Pocknett, Sly Fox Den Too, Charlestown, RI
Yisha Siu, Yunnan Kitchen, Boston, MA
Renee Touponce, The Port of Call, Mystic, CT
Joshua Dorcak, MÄS, Ashland, OR
Vince Nguyen, Berlu, Portland, OR
Thomas Pisha-Duffly, Gado Gado, Portland, OR
Beau Schooler, In Bocca Al Lupo, Juneau, AK
Aaron Verzosa, Archipelago, Seattle, WA
Sam Fore, Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Bites, Lexington, KY
Josh Habiger, Bastion, Nashville, TN
Sam Hart, Counter-, Charlotte, NC
Terry Koval, The Deer and the Dove, Decatur, GA
Paul Smith, 1010 Bridge, Charleston, WV
Ana Castro, Lengua Madre, New Orleans, LA
Timothy Hontzas, Johnny's Restaurant, Homewood, AL
Henry Moso, Kabooki Sushi, Orlando, FL
Alex Perry and Kumi Omori, Vestige, Ocean Springs, MS
Natalia Vallejo, Cocina al Fondo, San Juan, PR
Oscar Amador, Anima by EDO, Las Vegas, NV
Kaoru Azeuchi, KAISEKI YUZU, Las Vegas, NV
Andrew Black, Grey Sweater, Oklahoma City, OK
Jeff Chanchaleune, Ma Der Lao Kitchen, Oklahoma City, OK
Justin Pioche, Pioche Food Group, Upper Fruitland (Doolkai), Navajo Nation, NM
Reyna Duong, Sandwich Hag, Dallas, TX
Benchawan Jabthong Painter, Street to Kitchen, Houston, TX
Emiliano Marentes, ELEMI, El Paso, TX
John Russ, Clementine, San Antonio, TX
Ernest Servantes and David Kirkland, Burnt Bean Co., Seguin, TX
Jim Embry, Sustainable Communities Network, Slow Food USA, and Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance
Valerie Horn, CANE Kitchen, Cowan Community Center, and City of Whitesburg Farmers Market
Savonala “Savi” Horne, Land Loss Prevention Project
Ira Wallace, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
Rowen White, Sierra Seeds
Emerging Leadership: The Burgerville Workers Union
The 2023 Humanitarian of the Year Award honorees are the co-founders of the Black Farmer Fund: social entrepreneur and impact investor Olivia Watkins, and farmer and activist Karen Washington.
The 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award honoree is legendary cookbook author, writer, teacher, and actress Madhur Jaffrey CBE.
When we think of a live well lived, it's one where you take on opportunities that align with where you ultimately see yourself personally and professionally as well as those that are unexpected that create a full 360 experience to roads less traveled. Along the way of our travels in life, we meet others that continue to infuse and inspire us as there isn't a personalized rule book that shows us how we can get from Point A to Point B, but it's the moment of feeling that spark that can initiate an enhanced path that can take us to unimaginable destinations.
This month, our cover editorial is with Chef Nyesha Arrington. She utilizes food as a way to tell stories and brings her passion and intention to each plate that she creates. As a Co-Host and Mentor for FOX's Next Level Chef alongside Chef Gordon Ramsay and Chef Richard Blais, she inspires those in the culinary industry and provides expertise, intel and techniques that they can continue to use as they navigate the industry.
When we last talked with her in 2021 for our JUL ISSUE #67, we talked about how she got into her career and her passion for putting her soul on the plate she was in the midst of production for the first season of Next Level Chef and we talked about identity.
Since then, Nyesha continues to do what she does best, exploring the world through travel, and participating in a number of pop-ups and multi-day food events around the world, she is currently on Next Level Chef UK airing on ITV and she'll be back for the second season of Next Level Chef here in the US on FOX that starts immediately following Super Bowl LVII on Feb Sun 12th!
We talked about her recent TEDx talk where she shared her life recipe, the importance of mentorship and being in spaces that fuel your fire and allow learning about others and about yourself. Of course, we talk about the success of Next Level Chef and what makes it a perfect fit as well as Native by Nyesha Arrington which is at LAX's Delta Terminal 3!
ATHLEISURE MAG: You know we’re always cheering for you from the sidelines! It’s always fun to see what you’re up to and we’re chatting on IG off an on and we’re so excited to have you as cover for the JAN ISSUE #85!
CHEF NYESHA ARRINGTON: It’s an incredible time. I’m 22 years into this business and now that I am charting the course, I wish I could have been able to tell 10 year old Nyesha that it was going to be ok!
Oh my gosh! It’s been an exciting journey thus far and I am just grateful to be able to put back in to the field that raised me. It’s a completely different time now and stories are being told and celebrated and that’s all part of it. So you know, I’m really grateful!
AM: In the last interview we did with you, we talked about heritage, identity and many of the things that you’re involved in and I happened to watch your TEDx Berkely talk which was about Identity, Through the Lens of a Chef which I think was amazing. So in this talk, you focused on identity, being Afro-Korean, exploration of self and creating a life recipe. What was it like to be able to share this powerful message?
CHEF NA: First of all, when they reached out to me, I was like, "um what? Do you have the right person?” Because it was a pinch me moment. I don’t know, I always kind of saw myself being in my purpose being able to share the message of life. I’m living and learning simultaneously. So, the person I am today, isn’t the person I was 5 years ago, 10 years ago, 20 years ago. So to be able to kind of - honestly, it was the first time in my journey that I was able to stomp down and look at the database and collect it. You know, I do network television, I’ve done digital stuff and I meet a lot of people and have traveled the world. I would say that in true honesty, that was the most vulnerable that I have had the opportunity to share sort of my life message with. Because, it’s truly from an authentic and lived place. The first day when I go to Berkely and I did my trial talk, there was one person in the audience and after I finished, he clapped and came to back stage and had tears in his eyes. He said, “you know, that message is really going to resonate with people.” I didn’t have a lot of time to write it, maybe a month and I didn’t have any coaches. I learned after that people have all of these coaches and do all of these things. I didn’t know that.
It was hard like any creative process. You just kind of get the first draft down. I read it mostly to my family, my dad who’s my best bud and to my close friends. I was able to distill it down to the parameters set for the TED talk in terms of time and implementing the Power Point tools and things like that. It’s hard! It’s a really hard thing, but girl it was seriously so rewarding because I cried so many times through it and I think that it was just a really cathartic process. I came up in the early 2000’s when there weren’t a lot of chefs that were of color. I never really had that kind of opportunity to work next to women of color and I never really thought about it in all honesty. I was like, ok, I’m going to culinary school and this is what you have to do and this is the path. White tablecloths and fine dining is the pinnacle of excellence and I was like, bet that’s what I’m going to do. You know, and I did it! I never took inventory along the way. I was grinding head down. Lots of tears and lots of trial and error period and going along the come up. When I wrote that, I felt like ok, what’s my message for myself as a time piece? I will look at this 10 years from now and I will probably be a completely different human and also simultaneously, what is the message or life recipe that I can give to people to have that same resilience. Shit's not easy you know? So, especially when you have the opportunity to do Next Level Chef. Sure, it’s a television show, but honestly, it’s literally the best for me, because I can reach a vast audience and now globally after season 1 and like now, the DMs blow up. Not because, “oh we’re a fan of you,” but it’s, “hey can you mentor me” or they’re having this situation. By now, I’ve pretty much seen a lot of shit and so now to be able to have time piece, I thought what is the recipe? It’s sort of a macro/micro lens to look through. When I took that inventory, it was the first time that I stopped and looked at how did I get here? Because that’s what a lot of people ask. Even I say it and that’s what it was. That was seriously one of the most rewarding things that I have been able to do and to be able to share that. It’s true. It’s like this analogy of actually creating a real recipe in the kitchen, but also taking those tools and applying it to everyday life.
AM: In listening to this, it’s only 14 minutes, but it is such a profound 14 minutes. It made me think of a quote that Muhammad Ali said, “If you’re 50 years old and you think the same way at 50 as you did at 20, you have wasted 30 years.” He encouraged people to take inventory and to tweak as you navigate life. Hearing you do it, it sent chills and I had no idea that you didn’t have a coach – I assumed you did as all of the friends that I know who have done it, told me about how they prepared for it. It was beautiful, succinct and so applicable regardless of what your vertical is that you work in.
CHEF NA: That’s the thing!
AM: I love that!
Coming off of that, I know that you believe in sustainability and eliminating food waste. Why are these so important to you in your cooking? I know that this is a huge conversation that people are having in this area.
CHEF NA: Well, oh my gosh, I love this question! It shouldn’t be seen as a fad right or an “on brand lens” to look through. I think it’s freaking really empowering. The term "sustainability" can actually mean so many things – there are so many facets to that term sustainability if you’re talking about growing your own produce, having chickens, upcycling right? Using non-single use plastics and if you are going to, know that you don’t have to throw that resealable bag away. I am not ashamed to wash a Ziplock bag. Those are the terms that I mean when I say sustainable because in a consumer driven world where we are constantly being marketed to on billboards, ads, our phones and emails and website pop-ups, we just get immersed. I will say that I have had really and truly incredible opportunities to travel. When I go to other countries, it really widens my perspective because I don’t feel as bombarded by being marketed to if you will. I want to share that message because I don’t know if everybody gets to see and have that opportunity to go to where people live in the countryside of Bali ever. It’s like, no, we grow our rice, we collect the rainwater and it gives back to us. That idea can be exercised in different ways. Like last week when it rained a lot, I put 3 buckets out, I got all the rainwater and I watered all my plants with it this week. It’s like, those are the things that I mean by sustainable. Mother Nature, without sounding to woo woo about it – it gives us all the things that we freaking need. Yes, I have a compost pile and literally, it’s so easy to get dirt, put earthworms in it and put food waste in it and grow vegetables. I have 3 little avocado trees that grew from eating the avocado. Those are regenerative practices that are also in the lens of sustainability.
Yes, there are those conversations of thngs being greenwashed and it’s on brand to be sustainable, but there are things that you can do everyday and I think that in terms of biproduct use, for me when it comes to scallions or things that have regenerative and natural capabilities, whenever I use them, I keep the bottom 2” and I throw them in dirt and in a week or two, I have brand new scallions shooting up. Those types of things are doable for people whether you live in a NY high rise or you live on lots of land in Southern
Southern California. Those practices are really important to me on the smaller scale and also on the larger scale when you’re buying for events and aligning yourself with different brands. I think that being intentional with who you are buying from is another sustainable practice for the economy. So I think it ultimately distills down to intentionality. I will say this, it has been a journey for me as well. Coming up, I was in fine dining a lot. We would legitimately fly in a particular kind of aluminum foil from Italy because it had certain qualities to it. I just feel that the 1% who gets to enjoy those $1,000 meals, it’s cool. It’s a craft, I get it. But also, after years and years of that, how can I actually take this inexpensive cut of meat and just by understanding the anatomy and the make up of and knowing what that animal ate, and what can I make that is really bomb by spending a little more intentionality and time with it. Point and case, I think there are a number of different ways to look at the term sustainability. When I was traveling through Morocco, I went to this family’s home in Marrakesh and they literally lived in a mountain range and the whole family lives there – the grandmothers, aunts and cousins. They grow all of their own stuff. They have chickens and they have cows and they built their kitchen which was like a cave and they made these hearth fires. They burnt live fire to cook that way. There was zero electricity and that is a way to be sustainable. It’s about harnessing the life tools that we already possess. I get that that’s not for everyone and it’s not practical in some ways, but those ideas can definitely carry over in other ways.
AM: You’ve said that food is energy transfer. What do you mean by that as I love that phrase.
CHEF NA: Oh my gosh, I love that too!
AM: You know we ask great questions!
CHEF NA: You really do! You’re really speaking to me!
It is. For an example, there was this woman and she was sitting and eating my food. I had never met her before and I walked right by her and she kind of looked despondent – a little in her feelings you know. I walked by and then I circled back around and said, “how are you miss? Everything good? Thanks for joining.” She said, “Chef Nyesha, I flew here to have this meal and I have not been able to escape the intention in this.” She recognized and felt everything from the plate that the food was on – which was handmade by a friend of mine who made the plates for me. The food was sourced from local farmers who I don’t think could care more as it’s their livelihood and they generational legacy and they tend to the soil, they pull up the crop and they share this with me being the conduit who gets to apply my creative process to it through my culinary journey onto the cooks who prep it – the chefs who get to create this dish and ultimately the servers that get to tell that story that I shared with them. All for that person to enjoy a work of art in that moment, right? It gets to live in the soul and it becomes food data for that person to reflect on for years and years and it lives there. When I say it’s an energy transfer, it’s like a kinetic energy that’s almost like a static buildup that lives in that and it’s a life force. It’s something that for me, I’m grateful that I am able to travel based on that sort of mindset to go to a new land if you will and to understand that terroir and celebrate that and then apply my culinary knowledge. I feel like I am living in my purpose on why I am on this planet. It means that much to me!
AM: What is the best bite that you have ever had?
CHEF NA: Wow, wonderful question. I will say this and all I can go with is the most memorable. I would say that when I was working with a Chef Monsieur Joël Robuchon, he was dubbed the Chef of the Century and he has this dish which was called, the Caille or quail in English. That dish, I didn’t understand how such a simple, elegant dish could have so much phenomenal flavor. Then I learned how to make it and I was basically visiting a friend and then I ended up working at that restaurant. The whole entire plate, the way that the herbs were picked, they were so fresh and so lightly dressed with this sort of mild vinegar sort of flavor on the greens that didn’t over power it, but just accentuated it. The quail was cooked so perfectly and the jus – I’m such a sauce person.
AM: Same!
CHEF NA: The jus from the natural reduction of the bones and the trim and that’s another sustainable practice – nothing is going to waste. It was stuffed with duck liver and the truffles. He has this dish where picture a potato purée, and it’s making my mouth water as I talk about it.
AM: Same, because I love potatoes.
CHEF NA: Girl, I mastered that technique to learn how to make them. I think that ultimately, to be honest to sidebar for just a second, I think that that’s what got me on the show to be able to mentor on Next Level Chef, because I actually made those potatoes for Gordon Ramsay on Master Chef and that’s when they called me a couple of weeks later. They said, “hey, we have this concept that we’re working on.” Because I didn’t even know that Gordon and I had worked for the same chef. That probably was one of the most memorable dishes that I have ever had, the Robuchon Quail dish with the Potato Purée – incredible – truly!
AM: If we were at your home, what are foods or spices that you tend to always have on hand in your kitchen?
CHEF NA: Wow, I love this question, I’m such a spice girl!
AM: Same!
CHEF NA: Same! Yeah, right? It’s a really easy way to add lots of depth of flavor. Well, I would say that the spices that I always have on hand – I love cumin. I always have cumin, paprika, coriander, fennel seed and also cardamon!
AM: Ooo I love that too!
CHEF NA: Girl, I love it! I feel like it is such an under used spice!
AM: With the Big Game coming up, people get to hangout with one another and they’re watching the game. There is always an array of food and beverages. If we were hanging out with you, what would we have on football’s biggest night, especially since season 2 of Next Level Chef will be premiering immediately after!
CHEF NA: So football was my dad and I’s thing! We used to watch the Super Bowl a lot – like every year before I started traveling more. So snacks was always the thing. I actually love these little things called Pigs in a Blanket.
AM: Oh yes, I’m from the Midwest so that’s the thing.
CHEF NA: Yes! So it’s like how do I add veggies to these things? So get this and it’s a really incredible dish actually. It’s kind of like – you don’t have to sweat it! I feel like, football snacks don’t always have to be these opulent you’re in the kitchen cooking Thanksgiving kind of things. It just has to hit, so basically, these Pigs in a Blanket, I like to dip them in mustard.
AM: Same! I’m not a ketchup girl.
CHEF NA: SAME! That’s a no no! So, ok get this, I basically braised down mustard greens and then I basically fold it into some Dijon mustard and then inside the dough, I put the little smokey and a little bit of the braised mustard greens and chop it up and then roll it up. I put egg wash on the top and then I put sautéed or popped mustard seeds on top with a little flaky sauce and then bake them. So you get these crunch elements, a bit like poppy seeds and then these flaky salt bites and then you get this bit of a dip inside so you get a bit of that moisture element to it. You kind of feel like you’re eating healthy, but you’re not really. I also do this Dijonnaise with Kewpie mayo which is this Japanese mayo!
AM: Love Kewpie!
CHEF NA: I love a Kewpie moment! So that with Dijon mustard and fresh chives. You dip that in there and it’s like the best bite ever!
AM: Oh my God. Between what you just told me and I interviewed Chef Kristin Kish a few months ago and she had a kimchi Pigs in a Blanket version – so this Super Bowl, I need to do something different to incorporate these things.
CHEF NA: Mmm, yes!
AM: You were talking about Morocco earlier and I saw it on your IG and I remember when you were doing it that I thought it was so amazing. You’re known for storytelling through food. Why did you want to go to Morocco and what was that like for you?
CHEF NA: Oh my gosh! Well first of all, I just wanted to be able to get to the continent of Africa and that was my first taste at it and I can’t wait to get back! I want to travel to Ghana and Nigeria next.
I just have had some amazing opportunities to storytell through food. It started the first year in Belize and that was in 2019 and then I did Morocco, I did Bali and I did Hong Kong.
I think for me, it was an opportunity to connect. I traveled with 12 people and basically, led them on a culinary journey where I took them through the markets! Oh my God, the most beautiful thing is that we traveled through Marrakesh, Fez and the Ourika Valley and I was collecting ingredients along the way and then we cooked an amazing huge dinner. I think that for me, to have perspective on other places from where I was born, I think it really just adds to my repertoire. I have a very unique perspective on cooking because I don’t want to just know one style. I learned French fine dining because I feel that the technique – right, which is different from the ingredients and the cultural influence is the mother of cooking right? How to braise, how to make a sauce, how to chiffonade, how to cut a brunoise – all those things are applicable to the ingredients or the terroir of where I am. So if I can go to a new place in the world and learn about a particular thread of saffron or a way to cook couscous which is such an art to learn those things. Like, bread making first hand from the matriarchs – I get to weave that through my tapestry which becomes a personal approach to cooking, right? I did it in my TED talk, I believe that we as human beings are simply the bridge and gateway from the past to the future. So, it is something that I wear with a badge of honor, so that’s really why I try to travel as much as possible and I’ll actually be doing another pop-up in Q2 of 2023 in Hong Kong.
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF NA: I know! People are so excited! They don’t want me to cook food and give them my take on Chinese food, they want to feel who am I on a plate. That’s what I feel what my super power is – to storytell through my food.
AM: You participated in Kwame Onwuachi’s The Family Reunion at the inaugural launch in 2021. You moderated Stories From the Matriarchs: Then vs. Now which included Virginia Ali of the iconic Ben’s Chili Bowl, Chef Tiffany Derry and Chef Mashama Bailey as panelists. The Family Reunion was held at the beautiful Salamander Resort & Spa which we’d love to check out later this year. Can you tell me a bit about this multi-day event and why did you want to do it?
CHEF NA: Well, I’ll see you there! He reached out. Kwame’s a long time friend and colleague and we came up together. When he asked me to do one of the closing ceremonies which was to pay respects to the founder of Ben’s Chili Bowl.
AM: Which is insane!
CHEF NA: I mean, I was like, what? I moderated this panel which focused on matriarchs past, present and future. It was just a vibe. I don’t even know how to articulate it – it was truly a vibe. I did that the first year and then the second year, I cooked and I’m not trying to talk big headed, but people said it was probably the dish of the whole event and it was so bomb! It was braised short rib but I had this Afro-Korean influence with it and this sweet potato grits. People lost their shit and you know, you make dishes and you’re like this hits, this is great, but this was one of those dishes where I was like, “dang, I put my whole foot in this dish.” Seriously, for weeks, people were hitting me up on IG and even at the event saying dang! It was just one of those things. That’s that love transfer from conception to the menu articulation to people making the dish. You have to inspire constantly, and you have to inspire to be inspired truly. It’s a full circle of like!
The Family Reunion, I’m always grateful to be invited to it and every time I leave that event, I just feel that my cup is full.
AM: It looks amazing!
CHEF NA: It is a vibe. I don’t even know what else to say! From the playlist that’s playing throughout the Salamander to the conversations. We’re all out here pushing and then you get this moment to kind of stop and connect. You can share ideas, it’s really cool.
AM: So will you be at this year’s?
CHEF NA: I will!
AM: Amazing! I was talking to my Co-Founder who is also my boyfriend and we happened to catch Kwame at StarChefs International Chefs Congress back in 2019 and talk about rice and the impact of the diaspora as it went from West Africa to the US and I was like, we definitely need to check out The Family Reunion, see the resort and be able to hang with you as well as other chefs and to enjoy the culinary experience!
CHEF NA: Love it!
AM: You’re also going to be at the Mohegan Sun the last weekend of Jan for the Sun Wine and Food Fest. Why did you want to be at this food festival, what is happening and what will you be doing there?
CHEF NA: So, I’ll start with my dish. I’m going to be doing a Toasted Rise Porridge with a Chicken Ai-Soon Meatball which is my grandmother’s name on my mom’s side. It has this crispy garlic and scallions. I’ve been playing with this idea of Afro-Korean cuisine and this is kind of a dish that will reflect that. I chose this because it is an opportunity for me to connect with my peers, to connect with a part of the states that I don’t really get access to. I like to do these events, because I don’t necessarily have a restaurant where people can come patron so it’s important for me to take my food out on the road and to be on tour if you will! So, I do a lot of private events in LA, but this is my way to do public dinners. It’s kind of amazing and hits all the touchpoints for me because I get to connect with my colleagues and then I get to share the message of food. I’ll be able to do the dine around where people will get to meet all of the chefs and then also I'll get to demo a dish.
The demos are my favorite part. For me, I get to demystify cooking because I am up there and I am showing it. Anyone can find a recipe, but if I am showing you how to do it, it makes people feel more empowered and maybe they can make the recipe at home. So this year, it may sound simple, but these are the kinds of things that people should know how to make to really up their game. A freaking salad dressing! Last year, I showed people how to make ramen noodles. I like showing people about things that they generally go out and buy so this year, I’m going to show people how to make a signature thing that I make which is called a Shatter Batter. This batter stays crispy for forever and really it’s a game to see how you can capture the most amount of bubbles in the batter as possible. So I show people the techniques, but also the science behind it. When to fold in your egg whites, when to use baking powder, baking soda and what do these do scientifically? Once you have those elements of chemistry, people can take that and apply it to their cooking. I’m basically going to show people how to make this Shatter Batter, I’m going to be deep frying things and generally, everyone has these ingredients at home. I’ll be demoing that and then doing the dine around event with the Chicken Meatball and it should be a fun time!
AM: I love that you’re always doing different types of events that show different types of facets. I know that you have the one that’s coming up with the St Louis Community College – Falling in Love ... In the 5 Courses Gala at the Four Seasons and the fact that students who are culinary artists will be able to get to work with you as well, it’s really cool to see how you’re always giving of yourself and doing things in a different way. Why did you want to be included in that event?
CHEF NA: Oh my God, I love it – you know all of the things!
AM: I love you as a person, but I also think it's important that when a person has a signature and they have a throughline, I love seeing how true it is – which yours obviously is. But you’re always doing different things and infusing mentorship through food and you’re raising people up that are making their way and I think that’s cool that you do that consistently.
CHEF NA: I agree because it feeds my soul as much as I hope that it feeds theirs. This one, I’m really excited about it because I didn’t have the bandwidth in my schedule to do it last year. This year, having time to circle back around, it’s going to be exciting because I was talking with the chefs and these culinary students, I always have to say that the first day that I sat in culinary school, I knew that I never wanted to do anything else. I was going to see it through to the end and now to have the opportunity to give back to these young minds and nurture - is a part of me in creating that legacy in our field. It’s a vertical – it’s either going to grow or not and it takes tilling the land to make it grow and be fruitful and this is my way of doing that! It’s also really cool because I came up literally in the best kitchens that you could work in in the world. To be able to wear that hat for a day without having to tend to it every single day if I had a fine dining restaurant, selfishly, it’s kind of a way for me to be able to wear that hat for a minute. It’s what I’m good at. I really love that part of it. 5 courses for 500 people is no small feat. The amount of pre-production that goes into such an amazing gala like that is very challenging. It’s very rewarding and I don’t ever want to be like, “oh, I’m a celebrity chef and I’m too big to do the things.” I’m a worker first and foremost and that’s how I got to where I am today. To be able to do that, I want to make sure that I am actually doing the things.
AM: Looping back to Next Level Chef and looking at the first season, when I interviewed you last time, you weren’t able to tell me all the things, but after watching the first season I was so hooked. I loved the fact that you had these different levels that had these different resources. You don’t always get to be at the tip top and you have to do a lot with less and still make it look amazing. Being able to figure things out individually as well as being able to do so as a team – what did you walk away from as someone who was a mentor, having a person who won from your team and working alongside Gordon and Richard?
CHEF NA: That’s a great question! Truly, I don’t think that I could be more grateful to be on this type of program because ultimately, I’m a blip on these chefs life radar. Yes, it’s cool that I’m on a show blah blah blah, but it’s not about me, it’s about them! For me, not being that far from cooking competitions myself, I can completely relate to how they feel. To be tasked with putting a dish together in 45 minutes, you haven’t seen all the ingredients, you don’t know what level you will be on – it’s a gauntlet. You really start to see after the 3rd cook that they may have had the opportunity to be on all 3 levels. So they’ve kind of had the opportunity to take inventory and they can strategize and game plan. But it’s really hard! To be able to be a voice of reason sometimes, I get it. Once that light turns green, you’re like go and your mind is on a bullet train to be like, “ok, I need to grab all of these different ingredients, not freaking cut myself, but I’m also on TV so maybe I should smile!” It’s a lot and I get it! I feel like I’m that ghost teammate. Yes, I’m their mentor, but I’m part of their brand and part of their hands. I don’t feel like there is this hierarchy where I’m on top of you, I’m with you! Just to be able to be that voice of reason for those chefs – that may need less salt or that needs a pop of acid and then they win, those are the most rewarding moments. You can see the gratitude that they have for the entire journey, win or lose. Pyet DeSpain took it home last year and she put the work in, but it’s like – a lot of the magic actually happens outside of the program because these chefs get 4 months of mentorship between myself, Richard and Gordon outside of the show plus that $250,000 to seed their dreams. I mean, you have got to really freaking hand it to Gordon. In 2006, I remember working in this 2-star Michelin restaurant and feeling like dang, I was just 5 years into the game and for me, I was like, I want to work in harvest kitchens and that’s what I did. So I was like, ok and the more that I started to peel back the layers, I was like, “dang, I don’t know anything."
But what I did know was that I had work ethic and I was ready to take it on. But, I knew I needed to look at who was killing it and it was Gordon. He had the most Michelin stars, he was killing it in media to the point of watering the soil. To have a show like this where I get to dedicate this year's and years of ups and downs and the journey lived to these young minds, there is no other show like it. Yes, there is this competitive component but it’s rewarding for the mentors also.
To be able to work next to him every day, I can’t even tell you girl. I go to bed excited and I’m excited to wake up! No moment am I like, “Oh my God it’s hard waking up at 4am in the morning every day.” I go and I wake up, I go to the gym and I sit in the makeup chair for 2 hours and I’m ready to crush it every single freaking day. I love it! I would say that it is the most professional set that I have ever been on and it’s the most inspiring because he leads his sets like you’re in a kitchen. To be on a set led by a chef’s mind, is different then being on a set led by a production person. He has a production mind, so it’s like for me, it’s the best of both worlds. I’ve had the opportunity to do a good amount of TV by now, but most of my life lived has been in kitchens. So, I feel like I’m grateful because I’m in the best place for me.
AM: What was your favorite challenge from season 1?
CHEF NA: Ooo my favorite challenge from season 1 was the cultural mash-up challenge. The chefs were tasked to take two
different countries and create a synonymous dish and that’s not easy! It’s not just like this term that people loved using in the 90’s – fusion. For me, it’s a mild trigger work. It’s not fusing 2 continents together, it’s like what we spoke about earlier. For me, the best way to articulate storytelling in a dish is to use techniques from one part of the world and ingredients from another.
The elements that make up a dish – so if you say this is a protein an Ibérico ham from Spain and I want to do it with some sort of a citrus element. Maybe you’re not using a particular orange from that region, but you’re using a lemon from a different part of the world, but it’s still an acid. It makes sense. It’s not just about shoving a square peg into a round hole to put two different parts together. That’s part of the journey to get those chefs to understand how to build and storytell through a dish. I would say that that was definitely one of the most memorable!
AM: I remember when I watched that episode and I thought, “ooo that could go really well or it could be really bad!”
CHEF NA: 100%! You really have to be able to understand ingredients.
AM: So how did you get onto Next Level Chef UK which is currently running right now, right?
CHEF NA: Yes ma’am! How did I get onto Next Level Chef UK, I just tried really hard during season 1 and I think that that is something that you just can’t fake. I genuinely in full transparency, some sleepless nights thinking about how I can be the best mentor to these chefs. When they don’t win, I take it personally. How could you not? I think that that resonated with the antithesis of the show. The ethos of the show is rooted in mentorship and it is something that I don’t take lightly, win or lose. It’s not even about losing, it’s about the opportunity for growth. I think that that really resonated with the team and they asked me if I wanted to be part of the team for the UK version and without question, I was honored. That was something that was unexpected, I didn’t anticipate that at all. It’s currently running and it was really cool for me. To be able to see how different people cook, especially, the most surprising thing for me was the range. They’re all British, so seeing the range, I was like, “what am I going to get?” I got a pretty wide range from Indian, Asian, Jamaican and traditional British cuisine. For me, I was a little nervous to see how an American chef would be received.
AM: That’s what I wondered!
CHEF NA: Girl, like learning the verbiage, but it was actually all second nature because in fine dining, a lot of French brigade style kitchens use those terms anyways. It’s just part of the European culture, like rocket for arugula or aubergine for eggplant and coriander for cilantro, so it came natural to me. I think that part of it is just the ability to communicate. At the end of the day, 2 human beings from 2 different parts of the world, we were able to connect over food and it was just some of the most enjoyable experiences that I have had being over there.
AM: To know that in a few days, we have the 2nd season that will be here. Last fall we were talking with Richard and he was like, “oh yeah the 2nd season starts right after Super Bowl Sunday!” I was so excited! How excited are you to be back here again and what are you looking forward to?
CHEF NA: Wow! Well, I can’t believe it. What am I looking forward to? You know what I love? We spent a lot of time vetting our teams prior to the launch of the show which makes sense for the progression of the show. This season, instead of episode 1 with us picking our teams, we’re just going to get straight into it!
AM: Oh wow!
CHEF NA: I know! I love that because we have now built the base and people know the concept of the show. There’s a lot more opportunity for people to follow along with the actual competition and they really love that part of it. I’m really excited to have more episodes. We’re actually coming back with more episodes this season. I don’t know if there is a better opportunity of a slot to be airing right after the Super Bowl, it’s kind of a big deal!
AM: For sure, I was talking with Richard about chili and he just slipped it in there and I was like, “wait, right after the Super Bowl?” I was like, “oh crap!”
CHEF NA: Girl, the fact that Rhianna is playing at halftime, I’m so here for it!
AM: Coming from the Midwest, I love the Super Bowl. I like to get up and watch all of the pre-coverage and hear the stories etc early in the day!
CHEF NA: Me too!
AM: By the time it’s the actual game, I’ve been up for hours and so ready for it! This is so exciting. So to be able to end all of that by watching another form of competition, with their grit and know how, that’s so cool and I’m happy to hear it.
Do you think that you will be attached to additional seasons whether here or other global versions?
NA: I don’t know! When I first met Gordon and was a guest chef on Master Chef for his finale, my parting words to those chefs were to look at the kitchen like a playing field. You have to have an athlete mindset to win. It’s not just one component or the other to excel in it. It’s a team sport and you have to approach it every day with a competitive mindset to not also ask but to demand excellence from yourself. I think that that is 1 super cool thing that will be a synonymous dialogue through all of the parts and wherever this show goes. There are so many layers to it, so many facets and to have that spot after the Super Bowl is incredible. I’m excited to be on the UK version. I’m not sure about what the future holds, but we’ll see. I’m just excited that in this moment, I can’t express enough gratitude to the FOX people, the Studio Ramsey people – it’s incredible. Words can’t explain actually how incredible it is to be on that show. If it ended tomorrow, I will feel glad about what I had to offer and if it went on for 10 years and I was part of it, that would be amazing too.
Regardless I will say that when I was looking at who was killing it in the game and it was Gordon, for me to be able to have so much time to spend time with him so far, has been a dream! I couldn’t ask for more actually.
AM: As a viewer, it looks so natural. Sometimes when you have certain kinds of pairings regardless of the show or the vertical, you can see that someone was pulling to make that happen or that an advertiser got their way and there is no connection. But when I see the 2 of you, it feels natural, and it’s a blessing because sometimes you have to make a mountain out of a mole hill and this, it’s just what it is.
CHEF NA: Girl, I’m saying! When we had the launch party in the UK, a couple of weeks ago. I wasn’t ready for it. They brought us up on stage. We were in front of the producers, culinary, press, culinary students, friends and all of these people in the building. He thanked everyone for coming and passed me the microphone and told me to say some words.
I started speaking and I was so overwhelmed with so much emotion and gratitude and started to tear up. I pushed on through my words, I said my things tearfully and after people kept coming up to me and said that they were balling their eyes out listening to me speak. To your point, it comes from a very authentic place. Point being, after I spoke, Gordon spoke and he said he was so grateful to work next to me also and said that the thing about it and the thing about this show is that it always comes back to the food. No matter what, good days or bad days. We will never not have that part. That’s what makes it the most authentic. That will never falter. Every day, we have team meetings and we think about the concept of the day. These challenges – we think about it. What would we make with this? We really treat it like it’s a kitchen and that’s where all of that comes from and it’s a root system. It’s not just produced by these freelancers and producers that come in just to try and build a storyline. It is a true chef show. So it’s cool!
AM: Since you’re always on the go, what do you do for your own self-care so that you can reset and be ready for your next adventure? You literally could be anywhere.
CHEF NA: Yeah, it’s very true. I look at it like a very big grid system and I think about it like that. I have been conditioned and I grew up playing team sports and I look at it the same way. I grew up working those 10 and 12 hours days. If I know that I am in London next week, the few days leading up, you know I might do a juice cleanse, I might workout a little extra harder so that I can sleep a little better. I might negate sleeping a little the night before so I can sleep on the plane. It’s all about managing time ultimately and being intentional about how it is being spent in terms of your time lived. I think that that is the most important thing.
I will say that 2019 was a huge growth year for me. I think before I was managing my stress differently whether it was a few glasses of wine, over indulging in food – I have turned that around drastically, where I have put that same energy into my gym routine. That for me, was a life game changer, not just for my career, but also my regular life. I sauna a lot, I ice bath, I do a lot of CrossFit – those things - functional fitness, it makes me function in my regular life. I have way more bandwidth to take on these larger feats you know! I will say that that is my main thing and how I am able to maneuver. I will be honest, I would not be able to do it alone. I have a team that keeps me on track and manages my calendar and helps me! I don’t like to come from a reactionary state, I’m a very proactive person. So that is the only way that I am able to manage such a demanding schedule. I would say that it’s a lot of self-care girl, it’s a lot of meditating and I wear my Oura ring and it tells me when I am not doing things properly and I adjust. I do IV's - I do the IV game and we talked about this last time. I do redlight therapy.
AM: Same!
CHEF NA: I get my B vitamins, I’m very very intentional with my body.
AM: Philanthropically, how do you give back to your community and those in the culinary arts?
CHEF NA: Well, I think that things like this Gala event, we’re raising a lot of funds to go towards this culinary school. I mentor outside of these hosted events as much as possible. I do a ton of private dinners all over LA and I always make it my business to hire the team - the next generation coming up and specifically, women of color if I can because it’s just good to be intentional with where the dollars are going. Knowledge is power and we know that. The more that I can show the next generation, the better. I think that it’s ultimately through mentorship as much as possible.
AM: Are there other projects that you have coming up that you are able to share?
CHEF NA: I just opened a restaurant, Native, a couple of months ago in the Delta Terminal in LAX.
AM: Nice, that I didn’t know!
CHEF NA: Really? I’m working on that project with potentially more to come! I would say that definitely if people are interested to check me out in my Hong Kong pop-up, that’s a really cool time to connect! Yeah, the restaurant in LAX at Delta Terminal is killing it right now! It is very exciting! Those are the things that I can talk about now, there are other things swirling around, but I think that it is too early to tell.
AM: What do you want your legacy to be?
CHEF NA: Wow! I love these questions! What do I want my legacy to be? You know what I want it to be? I want people to feel that they can be more vulnerable and open to conversation. I think that for me to be able to storytell through my food is a way to connect with people and to break down these walls that have been so systemically ingrained within us especially in culture and in race. I want my legacy to be the glue that bonds humanity.
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PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT COVER, PG 16, 20 - 23, 26 FOX | PG 19 + 9LIST STORI3S PG 48, 51 Brian Parillo | PG 25 Michael Becker/FOX | PG 29 Nyesha Arrington | PG 30 Pedro Cardoso | 9LIST STORI3S PG |
Read the JAN ISSUE #85 of Athleisure Mag and see STORYTELLING EXPLORED | Nyesha Arrington in mag.
