Chris Cosentino is a celebrity chef and avid cyclist, best known for his many television appearances on shows such as Top Chef Masters (which he won), and for owning restaurants across the US. Chris first made an appearance on the podcast in episode 16, and returns this week to talk about the state of the restaurant industry. Perhaps no area of the economy has been hit harder by the pandemic, and Chris has experienced this first hand. Last fall, he made the decision to close his San Francisco restaurant, Cockscomb, which had been a labor of love since it opened seven years ago. Chris tells Payson about how he finally came to the difficult decision to close the restaurant, the painful process of letting go of such a major part of his life, and how long he thinks it will take the industry to bounce back. He also talks about how he’s learning to embrace the time away from the kitchen, some his new chef-related ventures, and how cycling his helping him move through it all.

Instagram: @withpacepod
YouTube: Payson McElveen