It’s the luck of the Irish - the drink of the Irish! Irish Whiskey is a key part of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations - meet two founders on this episode of DeRusha Eats. Kieran Folliard started as a pub owner in Minneapolis, created a whiskey and ginger ale cocktail that went crazy, and then founded his own Irish Whiskey. After Folliard sold Two Gingers, he founded an even better whiskey - Red Locks. And direct from Slane Castle in County Meath, Ireland, Alex Conyngham talks about the history of rock and roll at his family’s estate and the future of his Irish whiskey brand, Slane, in partnership with American whiskey legend Brown Forman.

Bottoms up: this episode of DeRusha Eats is all about bourbon and cocktails. Luke Castle was a bourbon aficionado with a real job who bought his favorite liquor store, Ace Spirits in Hopkins. What’s the future for this highly allocated and sought after spirit? Jesse Held was one of the bartenders who helped usher in the era of the craft cocktail in Minnesota. Now he owns his own distillery and restaurant, Earl Giles. What’s the future of fancy cocktails? 

Like many downtowns, Minneapolis has struggled to regain a working population in the years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two restaurateurs are doubling down: Brent Frederick’s Jester Concepts has a steakhouse, an Italian restaurant in a hotel, and a North Loop upscale restaurant. Now he’s leading the rebirth of a restaurant that soared to heights before the pandemic, Butcher and the Boar. Plus, Vincent Francoual has been the premier name in French cooking in the Twin Cities, his self-named Vincent A Restaurant was among the top restaurants in the state. Now he’s a dad and running a French bistro named for his young daughter, Chloe.

It’s all about beef - from the rancher specializing in regenerative agriculture and grass-fed beef to the multi-unit burger restaurant guy who grew up in the business. John Abdo is the President of My Burger, a local chain of burger restaurants, with ambitions of blowing up. Matt Maier started supplying grass fed beef to restaurants, now Thousand Hills Lifetime Grazed beef supplies grocery stores and co-ops all over the country.

Skilled chefs leaving the world of sit-down restaurants to start fast casual spots. Christian and Karen DeLeon’s taco shop is in a very unusual spot: the corner of a south suburban gas station convenience store. How they found each other and found a spot to build a dream called El Sazon. And Paul Backer worked in some of the finest restaurants in the Twin Cities: he left that grind to build his own dream, a counter service restaurant in the suburbs called Toma Mojo Grill

It’s more than just dry January - the non-alcoholic beverage sector is growing like gangbusters. Peder Schweigert was in charge of the most acclaimed bar program in the Twin Cities, Marvel Bar, before he decided to stop drinking. Now he’s launching a non-alcoholic beverage brand, DryWit. And Erin Flavin ran her own hair salon in Minneapolis - during COVID she felt her drinking was getting out of control - she also stopped drinking. She talks about opening her own NA bottle shop, Marigold.

Replacing a local icon, Jon Cheng talks about his unusual path to being the main food critic for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He shares his view of what a 2-star, 3-star or 4-star restaurant should be, as well as how he judges the role of a critic in a social media world. And an icon in her own right, Sue Zelickson. 88-years-old, 4’7” tall, a dynamo of the food scene, Sue has been an incredible cheerleader for the restaurant industry. What she’s seen as far as changes over the last five decades, and what some of her favorites are.

Four blocks apart in South Minneapolis, two families have developed into a culinary powerhouse. Broder’s built a Little Italy at the corner of 50th & Penn beginning with a market in 1982, growing to a pasta bar and a wine bar. Now the next generation is running that business - we speak with the matriarch Molly and one of her kids, Charlie. At 54th & Penn, Peter Campbell and his wife Jackie started with a pizza oven at farmers markets, and gained a national following thanks to appearances on Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-ins and Dives as well as Guy’s Grocery Games. He talks about pizza as well as the growth in CBD-infused drinks at his restaurant.

Chef Yia Vang has become a national celebrity for his work talking about Hmong cooking and tradition. We visit at the Minnesota State Fair, where he was debuting Union Hmong Kitchen. Pedro Wolcott has brought a Caribbean / New Orleans tapas flair to the North Loop’s Guacaya Bistreaux. And Milissa Silva continues her family tradition by growing and expanding El Burrito Mercado in St. Paul.

Overrated or underrated? Matt’s Bar of 508 Club? The Jucy (juicy) Lucy debate gets heated with Mpls/St Paul Magazine editor Stephanie March. Plus Carley Kammerer talks about her coffee shop, Wildflyer Coffee, which hires young people experiencing homelessness.