Hot Dogs and Caviar

A short episode, with no real agenda.  Tarver is back!  We answer reader questions, talk about HR, and discuss funny expo calls.  

2:11 Reader Question: Best Ways to Cook Octopus

3:00 Fun Expo Calls

4:52 The Ethical Issues of Eating ‘Pus

8:10 On Baby Octopi

10:22 Why Octopus Gets So Tough

12:31 What’s Up With Appalachian Cuisine

17:07 Brunswick Stew Vs. Burgoo

21:36 Books on Appalachian Cooking (and other Southern Cooking)

26:04 Revisiting the Issue of Hostesses

28:44 The Dreaded Ascended-Hostess Manager

32:44 Tarver’s Brilliant, Next-Level Solution to the Ascended Hostess Problem

34:38 The Moto Story

Hi guys!  Nate and Jesse have an impromptu discussion of issues in the restaurant business.  There is some immaturity sprinkled in to lighten the mood.

Time Stamps:

1:30 Jesse’s Jackrabbit Filly Experience

6:07 Jesse’s Constructive Criticism

9:22 The Indaco Incident

12:44 Fine Dining Versus Casual

14:35 On Overcommunicating

18:36 The Emeril’s Incident (and Nate’s Fish and Cheese Interlude)

22:17 How Servers Size Up Diners

29:02 The Spookiest Charcuterie Plate in Charleston

31:41 The Hostess Problem

36:14 The 492 Service Pivot

39:50 The Guys Get Introspective

41:11 On Different Ways to Mitigate Food Cost

45:15 The One Metric that Matters

46:54 On Manipulating Food Cost Percentages

49:18 Why Hors D’Oeuevres are Crucial

51:12 Pharma Dinners!

54:16 What Happens When Your Loss Leader Is Your Best Seller

56:30 Why Fine Dining Is Hard

57:50 Why Hotels Help So Much

1:00:00 TK’s Really Mean Bibb Lettuce Prank

1:00:36 Jesse’s Totally Reasonable and Justified Nate-Scare Prank

Hi guys!  First, we discuss spice blending, and the total lack of decent resources on the subject.  Then, we get into whether it's OK to make your employees work on Christmas (a fraught topic, every year.)  Finally, we discuss some of our hits and misses over the years on our Christmas menus.

Time Stamps:

1:00 The Story of the Mouth of the South

3:54 Listener Question: Good Books About Spice Blending?

6:46 Madras Curry

9:30 Nate’s Hail Mary Recommendation.

12:22 Jesse’s Insane Spice Research Idea

16:13 Reverse Engineering

17:52 The Spice House

20:00 Back to Curry Powder and Vadouvan

21:55 On the Dual Nature of Cinnamon

23:43 The Biggest Difference Between Nate’s Cooking and Jesse’s

27:00 Restaurant Cooking on Christmas

31:28 The Fiscal Evils of a Special Christmas Menu

32:04 On Reservations and Tickets

33:19 People REALLY DO Eat at Restaurants on Holidays

40:42 Heather’s Gingersnap Cookie

41:49 Nate’s Great-Grandma’s Spiced Chocolate Cookies

42:50 On the Feast of Seven Fishes

43:57 On Italian Seafood Simplicity

45:47 Jesse’s Feast of Seven Fishes Dish

49:50 The Difficulty of Getting Rid of Leftover Turkey, and the Worst Charcuterie Plate EVER

52:20 On the Once-a-Year Potato Puree

55:25 On 86’ing Specials and Why That’s Not a Bad Thing

56:22 Jesse’s Xmas Dessert Fail

59:32 The Tale of the Dreaded Minty Sanchez

It finally happened!  The Guys got together and talked wings, including explaining the INFAMOUS Jordan Moore method!  Also, goofy conversation, and the Boner Game!  (Explicit, natch.)

00:54 The Boner Game

3:40 Introducing Jordan Moore

10:26 Nate’s Thoughts on Buffalo Wings

15:05 Refinements on Buffalo Sauce

17:02 The Legend of KY-Jelly

20:04 Pressure-Frying

23:30 Jesse’s Home Deep Frying Method

26:11 The Guys Get Confused About Brine

31:53 Jordan Moore’s Wing Method

35:55 Tarver’s Wing Method

41:34 The Question of the Double Cook

42:10 A Digression About Fries, and then Chaos

47:39 Jesse Waxes Romantic About Peckers

53:10 Ranch Sucks! Thoughts on Blue Cheese

Hi guys!  The much-discussed wing episode has been postponed again, so Nate and Jesse do a deep (and totally improvised) dive into the world of meatballs.

1:12 The Warrior Story (The Second-Most Pissed Off Sheree’s Ever Been at Jesse)

3:28 The Red Velvet Cake Incident (The Most Pissed Off Sheree’s Ever Been at Jesse)

6:10 Nate’s Key to Meatballs: Not Too Much Meat!

9:55 The Three Meat Blend

12:40 Nate’s QUOTE OF THE YEAR

13:54 Jesse’s Notion of Culinary Black Magic, and the Alice Waters Vinaigrette Trick

19:20 Back to Meatballs: Panade

20:58 Nate’s Ricotta Trick, and Fundamental Meatball Ratio

25:49 The Secret of Juliette’s Meatballs

28:01 Tech Talk on Salt and the Protein Matrix

31:20 Sausage Rules the Wasteland

34:30 Nate Bodily Drags Jesse Back onto Topic

37:10 The Dried Oregano Debate: Teach the Controversy

41:06 To Sear or to Roast?

43:32 Nate’s Italian Wedding Soup

46:50 Azerbaijani Meatball Soup

48:55 On Lamb Meatballs in General

54:07 On Kefta, and the Power of Mint

57:25 Nate and Jesse’s Diverging Paths

Hi everyone!  This was a FUN one!  Sorry it took 2 weeks to come up, Jesse had some technical issues with his macbook last week (JESSE SMASH).  But all is well, and we're back in business.  

Also, Jesse would like to apologize in advance for his state, the only time he and Nate could find to do this was after a social function that left Jesse somewhat worse for wear.  This wasn't exactly a Cocktail Hour episode, but homeboy was a little loose.  Listen up at 3:08 for an epic belch.  (All jokes aside, it's getting harder and harder to find time we are both off, since Nate works mornings and Jesse works nights, but we are getting creative.  If we have to cut an episode after a night out, you'll just have to deal with the consequences of Jesse, just like everyone else does.)

So anyway, we went into the mailbag and answered a few questions.  We got into the best way to cook a steak for home cooks, we gave a little gravy boot camp, and we answered a really fun question from alert listener Tim Lillig about the possibility of making a Reuben pie.  Oh, and Jesse blindsides Nate with an Iron Chef-style challenge that was patently ludicrous.  Have fun!

1:50 The First Question: How to Best Cook a Steak

3:08 Jesse’s Epic Beer Belch (You Have Been Warned)

4:00 How to Buy a Steak

6:38 The High-Low Principle

8:14 The Tempering Principle

10:14 Jesse’s Method (The Fine Dining Butter Baste)

12:30 The Flipping Controversy

14:47 On Digital Thermometers

16:50 The Importance of Carryover Cooking

18:55 2-Zone Grilling

20:16 The Second Question: What Are Some Great Gravy Tricks

20:30 Great Gravy Starts with Great Stock

24:20 The Grocery Store Chicken Trick

25:49 The Wondra Solution

28:39 Kitchen Bouquet is the Dirty Secret

30:27 Korean Soy Sauce

34:24 Jesse’s Crazy Iron Chef Game

41:55 Tim’s Insane Reuben Pie Question


52:35 The Spaghetti Incident

Hi all!  A continuation of last week's Jesse and TK special, featuring Tarver's daughter Henley on backing vocals.  Recorded on location at the playground, if you want to know why the sound quality is a little wonky.  Note!  Listen to Part 1 before you get into this one.  It's a two-parter, and the previous episode has a lot of necessary context.

1:58 Tarver’s Soup Course

11:13 Jesse’s Fish Course

23:14 Tarver’s Bread Service

24:55 The Guys’ Collaborative Meat Course

41:00 Jesse’s Cheese Course

52:45 Tarver’s Dessert Course

Hi guys,

Nate had a family commitment this week, so TK and Jesse went it alone, and did something new.  We designed a 7 course tasting menu in real time, live, with zero prior discussion.  It took a while, so this is the first half.  Head over to hotdogsandcaviar.blogspot.com to have a look at links and menu copy.  

Time Stamps:

2:50 Themes and Parameters

8:43 A Brief Interlude for Tarver’s Best Hot Dog

11:02 The Guys Get Down to Business

11:10 Tarver’s Hors D’Oeuvre Course

28:39 The Woodlands’ ‘Oysters from Cold to Hot Dish’

30:36 Back to the Hors Course

48:34 The Only Good Thing About Colonialism

1:02:43 Jesse’s Fish Course

Hi all!  The guys had drinks and discussed eggs.  For, like, a while.  We managed to pare it down to about an hour and a quarter.  We had SO MUCH FUN doing this one!  

Time Stamps:

1:00 The Tale of Chilo ‘Fes’ Costa

6:20 Alex M’s Listener Question: What Do We Think of Roy Choi

20:05 Tarver’s Grilled Cheese Trick

23:50 The Guys Get Into the Topic du Jour

26:00 The Voodoo Story

28:05 Back to Eggs Again

30:44 Getting into the Details of Royale- Creme Brûlée, Etx

37:21 Tarver’s Double Boiler Method

40:19 Nate’s Extra Yolk Trick

41:44 The Jesse Variant

43:32 Jesse’s New Method

45:40 TK Shoots on Marco Pierre White

48:30 The Buffet Question

50:32 TK’s Insane Pressure Cooker Trick

52:45 The Quay Induction Burner Trick

53:45 TK’s Egg White Tofu Trick

54:47 Jesse’s Gribiche Vendetta and the Peeled Grape Story

58:40 Jesse Reveals his Hypocrisy

1:01:16 TK Pisses Off Nate Shapiro

1:05:00 The Guys Get Into Fried Eggs

1:05:40 Michelin 3-Star Fried Eggs

1:09:27 On Basting and Steaming

1:11:00. The Egg in a Basket Debate

Hi all!  Here's the second part of the first ever Hot Dogs and Caviar Cocktail Hour.  I think I still might be hungover.  Trigger warning (specific to Tarver's mom): there's a fair amount of profanity in this one.  I try to keep a lid on your baby boy, but I'm just one man, and today was past my editing skills.

Time Stamps:

1:58 Tarver’s French Laundry Story

10:42 The Ramen Discussion Begins- with Tampopo

12:52 On the Impact of Dave Chang

17:26 On Cultural Differences and Pavlovian Conditioning

20:08 Tarver’s Dan Dan Noodle and Chile Crisp Rant

32:09. On Industrial Cooking Smells

35:11 We Are Hardwired to Want BBQ

39:23 A Shout Out to Jordan Moore

40:33 The Guys Get Back to Ramen

41:36 The Ramen Fundamentals

47:28 Nate (Predictably) Gets Into the Science

50:37 The Ramen Otaku Issue

53:53 Lemon Salt!!

54:37 Schmaltz!

55:46 The Molleux Egg Method