Eater's Digest

Here at Eater, we’ve come up with more than a few tricks to elevate our dining game. From tips on how to snag the best table, to the brunch menu item you should always avoid, everyone’s got their move.

On this episode, we into some of the most well-honed, oddly specific restaurant hacks with Eater's editors and reporters. Put them to the test yourself, and let us know what you think! We also get into the top stories of the week, from the latest updates on Popeye's madness to a sneaky border-crossing doughnut entrepreneur and the booziest hard seltzer on the market.

Stories:

• Everyone's Got Their Move

• This Guy Drives 200 Miles for Krispy Kreme

• Taprooms for Anything But Beer

Featuring:

James Park (@JamesyWorld)

Sonia Chopra (@SoniaChopra)

Hillary Dixler Canavan (@HillaryDixler)

Meghan McCarron (@MegMcCarron)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

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Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

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Hospital food has long been the worst of the captive audience cuisines, outpacing even airplane food in its terribleness. But it wasn't always this way. Preparing nourishing food for the sick was once a domestic art and an essential part of caring for the ill. We’ve fallen a long way, but now one hospital is making good food part of the treatment plan. 

We talked to Eater New York Senior Critic Robert Sietsema about his recent hospital food experience, and Chef Michael Vetro from St. Jude Children’s Hospital about how he’s bringing home to the hospital by recreating family recipes for sick kids.

Then, we get into the biggest stories of the week, from a new foie gras ban, to the New York Times’ brutal takedown of a legendary Brooklyn steakhouse and more.

Stories:

• Why is Hospital Food So Disgusting?

• GrubHub’s New Strategy is to Be an Even Worse Partner to Restaurants

• Is Peter Luger Still Good?

• Waiting on the Cosmic Crisp Apple

Featuring:

Robert Sietsema (@RobertSietsema)

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (@StJude)

Jaya Saxena (@JayaSax)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

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Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

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Maria Sharapova, tennis legend, decorated Grand Slam champion and noted pal to a certain royal family, doesn’t believe in using her star power to score tables at super popular restaurants. That's because she's a true food lover who believes in the serendipity of waiting it out with the rest of us.

Maria's found some of her favorite places after rubbing elbows with other gourmands at bars and communal tables around the globe, and she joined Amanda in studio to dish on her favorite restaurants worldwide and why she started Sugarpova, her candy company.

We also get into the biggest food stories of the week, from the newest Michelin news to one chef's fiery exit from a famous department store and more.

Stories:

• Blue Hill at Stone Barns Notches 2 Michelin Stars

• This Bloomin' Onion Tastes Orwellian

Featuring:

Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

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About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Very rarely are dinner parties about the food on the table. Throughout the history of evening mealtime gatherings, hosting was never so much about feeding friends and family as it was about flaunting wealth. From the dinner tables of ancient Greece and Rome to Victorian England and suburban America, an underlying sense of class anxiety has motivated us to call our social circles to the table in an attempt not to display our skills in the kitchen, but rather our banquet halls, china patterns and dedicated dining rooms.

Alison Roman is calling bullshit on all that. She’s been compared to Julia Child and Martha Stewart for her knack for empowering even the least experienced cooks to find joy in the kitchen, but this self-described “older millennial” cringes at the word “entertaining” where the domestic goddesses of yore leaned into it. Alison joined us in studio to talk about her new cookbook, Nothing Fancy (out October 22), and how she's redefining the art of the dinner party. We're also joined by Nisha Chittal, a Vox.com journalist, to talk about the history of entertaining at home, and why millennials are doing it differently than their parents. Then we get into the biggest food stories of the week, from Rachel Ray's new "ghost" restaurant, to the rise of the sushi bro and that viral Panera TikTok video.

Stories:

• Did Millennials Kill the Dinner Party?

• Top Notch Sushi with a Side of Bro

• Is Panera Making Sous Vide Mac & Cheese?

Featuring:

Nisha Chittal (@NishaChittal)

Alison Roman (@alisoneroman)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

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Get in Touch:

[email protected]

About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pat Brown is on a mission to save the planet by cutting one thing from our lives: cheeseburgers. The Impossible Foods CEO is determined to cut the consumption of cows to save our planet from the devastating effects of big agriculture, but there's one thing standing in his way: Richard Berman, a powerful Washington lobbyist.

He's a formidable opponent protected by a shadowy non-profit called the Center for Consumer Freedom, but Impossible isn't scared. In fact, they think Berman's involvement means the beef lobby is terrified for the future of their industry, and scrambling to save their buns. This week, Daniel hears from Brown and Rachel Konrad, Impossible's Chief of Communications, to find out more about the meat war.

Then, we get into the biggest stories of the week, from the latest in stupid sexism to restaurant ripoffs and more.

Stories:

• Don't Blatantly Ripoff Your Neighbors

• Sexist Bartender Says Something Sexist

• Who Owns a Recipe?

Featuring:

Pat Brown (@ImpossibleFoods)

Rachel Konrad (@rachelkonrad)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

Check out more great reporting from the Eater newsroom.

Subscribe to Amanda’s weekly newsletter here.

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Get in Touch:

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About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Simon Kim has been a fighter all his life. From schoolyard fights in Seoul, South Korea to bar brawls in Long Island, his scrappiness was borne of a restlessness that plagued him until he found his calling: hospitality (ironically).

After working his way up from a front desk agent at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas to the manager of a lavish restaurant there, Kim made a name for himself as the guy the whales, or uber high-stakes gamblers, wanted to see. Kim joined us in studio to trace his path from 7th grade earth science to opening two Michelin starred restaurants in just over a year, highlighting the hospitality lessons he's learned along the way.

Then, we get into the biggest food stories of the week, from pop-up woes to boozy advent calendars, kids on iPads in restaurants and more. We've also got a survey out that'll help us make the Digest better and better. It takes no more than five minutes, and it really helps us out! Take it here.

Stories:

• Beer for Christmas

• Please Don't Let Your 4 y.o. Lose in Restaurants

• Rome Restaurant Scams Tourists Out of Hundreds

Featuring:

Simon Kim (@simonkimnyc)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt),  Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

Check out more great reporting from the Eater newsroom.

Subscribe to Amanda’s weekly newsletter here.

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Get in Touch:

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About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthony Bourdain once called St. John the "restaurant of his dreams." The London restaurant, which has long been considered the most influential in Britain and the origin of the modern nose-to-tail movement, is celebrating its 25th birthday this week with plans to open its first ever location outside of Britain's capital... in a Los Angeles mall. What does this mean for the restaurant's sterling legacy and L.A.'s growing food scene? Can a London hometown hero open in a Culver City development and still be cool? To find out, we called up Adam Coghlan, Eater's London editor who first broke the story, and Farley Elliot, Eater's Los Angeles editor.

Then, we get into the biggest food stories of the week, from Nick Cage's foray into truffle hunting, to what's going on with weed cafés on the west coast (with the Washington Post's Maura Judkis) and what happened when Dan fell asleep in a library (we promise it relates to food!).

Also! We've got a survey out that'll help us make the Digest better and better. It takes no more than five minutes, and it really helps us out! Take it here.

Stories:

• St. John is Opening in LA

• Nick Cage Set to Play a Truffle Hunter

• Burger King is Taking Pictures of Their Sleepy Customers

Featuring:

Adam Coghlan (@adamcoghlan)

Farley Elliott (@overoverunder)

Maura Judkis (@maurajudkis)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

Check out more great reporting from the Eater newsroom.

Subscribe to Amanda’s weekly newsletter here.

Follow Us:

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@eater on Twitter and Instagram

Get in Touch:

[email protected]

About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How did popcorn become the standard theater snack instead of say, soup? From the nickelodeons of the Great Depression to the multiplexes of today, what we eat in front of the big screen has changed a lot. So Amanda and Daniel are headed to the theater to pull back the curtain on food at the movies and find out why indie theaters and legacy players alike are installing professional kitchens next to the popcorn machine.

Then, we get into the biggest food stories of the week! We've got a look at an icky restaurant dress code, the latest in weird tech v. restaurant dynamics, and thoughts on a wacky new canned alcoholic beverage.

Also! We've got a survey out that'll help us make the Digest better and better. It takes no more than five minutes, and it really helps us out! Take it here.

Stories:

• This Dress Code Sucks

• LaColombe and MillerCoors Enter the Canned Beverage Wars

• Be Nice to Your Hostess, Ok?

Featuring:

Professor Jonathan Kuntz (@ucla_tft)

Jessica Giesenkerchen (@nitehawkcinema)

Jennifer Douglass (@AMCtheatres)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

Check out more great reporting from the Eater newsroom.

Subscribe to Amanda’s weekly newsletter here.

Follow Us:

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@eater on Twitter and Instagram

Get in Touch:

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About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A baby walks into a bar and the internet loses its mind. Why is that? To understand why some people truly cannot tolerate infants and young children in bars and restaurants, regardless of how well behaved they and their parents are, Amanda and Daniel talk to a few people who know a thing or two about babies in bars.

First up, writer Kate Willsky lays out the do's and don'ts of grabbing a drink with your baby in tow, and explains why she as a new mom needs a damn cocktail every once in awhile. Then, filmmaker Alison Grasso gives us some historical context to the bar as a community space and Amanda's kids make their Digest debut at The Fly in conversation with restaurateur Nialls Fallon.

Plus, we get into the wildest stories of the past couple weeks, from a rogue tomato in the East River, to the Uberfication of restaurant work and why a vegan woman in Australia is taking her neighbors to the supreme court.

Stories:

• How to Bring Your Baby to the Bar

• A Tomato Grows in the East River

• LeBron <3s Taco Tuesday

• Uber for Restaurant Workers

Featuring:

Kate Willsky (@katek8katek8)

Alison Grasso (@grassowhat)

Nialls Fallon (@theflybrooklyn)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt), Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

More to explore:

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Subscribe to Amanda’s weekly newsletter here.

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Get in Touch:

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About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With fall looming large around the corner, it’s time to bid farewell to summer and all the wonderful things that includes. But take heart in knowing that not all hope is lost. There’s plenty of good stuff on the horizon this fall, which, we’d argue, is the most exciting season for new restaurants, cookbooks and food-focused TV.

Eater restaurant editor Hillary Dixler Canavan, pop culture editor Greg Morabito and managing editor Ellie Krupnick joined Amanda to talk about the season’s most highly anticipated restaurant openings, food TV premieres and forthcoming cookbooks. Daniel is on vacation this week, and we couldn’t possibly do stories without him, but he’ll be back next Friday!

Stories:

• 9 Food Shows to Watch This Fall

• The Most Anticipated Restaurants for Fall

• Don’t Put Your Kid on Weight Watchers

Featuring:

Amy McCarthy (@aemccarthy)

John deBary (@jnd3001)

Hosts:

Amanda Kludt (@kludt),  Editor in Chief, Eater

Daniel Geneen (@danielgeneen), Producer, Eater

Produced by:

Martha Daniel (@martha_c_daniel)

Follow Us:

Eater.com

Facebok.com/Eater

YouTube.com/Eater

@eater on Twitter and Instagram

Get in Touch:

[email protected]

About Eater:

Eater obsessively covers the world through the lens of food, telling stories via audio, television, digital video, and publications in 24 cities across the US and UK.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices