Jeff and Jamie Feed

This week on Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with Chayil Johnson, Executive Chef of Community Matters Cafe in Charlotte, North Carolina, to explore how hospitality can be a powerful tool for transformation.

Chayil shares the story behind the cafe, the innovative training programs that help individuals rebuild their lives, and the challenge of balancing a meaningful mission with the realities of running a successful restaurant. We discuss leadership, staffing, food quality, growth, and why Charlotte has been such an important part of the organization’s journey.

It’s an inspiring conversation about community, second chances, and the unique ability of hospitality to create lasting impact.

This week on Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with Eric Cacciatore—host of the wildly popular restaurant podcast Restaurant Unstoppable—for a deep dive into the business, culture, and future of hospitality.

Eric shares how growing up around restaurants shaped his passion for the industry, what he’s learned from interviewing hundreds of restaurant owners, operators, and chefs, and the common traits he sees in the people building truly great businesses.

We also get into some of the biggest challenges restaurants are facing right now—from staffing and sustainability to burnout and rising costs—and why Eric believes collaboration, transparency, and stronger community between operators could be the key to helping more restaurants survive and thrive.

It’s an honest, insightful, and inspiring conversation for anyone who loves restaurants or works in hospitality.

On this episode of Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with Level 3 Advanced Sommelier Michael Klinger for a conversation that goes far beyond what’s in the glass. We dive into what it really takes to become a somm, the art of showmanship at the table, and some of the most exciting trends happening in the winemaking world right now. Plus, Michael shares his favorite wines for warmer weather and what foods pair best with them. Whether you’re deep into wine culture or simply want to order with more confidence, this episode is packed with insight, stories, and plenty of great recommendations.

Jeff and Jamie sit down with Jess Berresse and Garrett Tichy of Seemingly Overzealous, a local dairy, egg, and gluten-free ice cream shop, for a behind-the-scenes conversation about what it really takes to grow a small business into something bigger, without losing what made it special in the first place. From navigating the complexities of multiple locations to building a thoughtful, sustainable growth plan, Jess and Garrett share the wins, the growing pains, and the lessons learned along the way.

The episode also dives into the unique dynamic of working together as a couple: how they divide responsibilities, handle pressure, and stay aligned through constant change. Plus, in a fast-evolving city where trends move quickly and competition is fierce, they open up about the ongoing challenge of staying relevant while staying true to their brand.

This week, Jeff Tonidandel and Jamie Brown sit down with their own marketing director, Allie Papajohn—the woman behind @eatdrinkclt. What started as a personal passion project back in 2014 has evolved into one of Charlotte’s most trusted food Instagram accounts, giving Allie a unique perspective on both sides of the influencer world.

She shares how she built her platform organically, what makes content resonate in 2026, and how she approaches authenticity in a saturated space. The conversation also pulls back the curtain on how she manages influencer partnerships for the Tonidandel-Brown Restaurant Group—what works, what doesn’t, and how restaurants can build meaningful relationships with creators.

Whether you’re a restaurateur, content creator, or just curious about the business behind the posts, this episode offers an honest look at the intersection of hospitality, marketing, and modern influence.

In this episode, Jeff turns the mic on Jamie to talk about her new book, Eleven Tables. What begins as a conversation about writing quickly opens into something bigger—an honest look at what it really takes to bring an idea to life and turn it into something real.

They dig into the small, often invisible steps behind big projects, the role of resilience in building a business, and how Jamie carved out time to write in the middle of a full restaurant life. At the center of it all is belief—the willingness to trust an idea before it fully exists, and the discipline to see it through.

This is a conversation about starting, continuing, and finishing—held together by the power of taking even the tiniest steps forward.

This week on Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with Colleen Hughes—James Beard–nominated mixologist and recent recipient of Michelin’s “Exceptional Cocktails” award for the Southeast.

Colleen gives us a behind-the-scenes look at how she builds standout cocktail programs, from her creative process to the systems that keep her nimble in a constantly evolving industry. We dive into the rise of spirit-free cocktails, the growing role of THC beverages, and what it really takes to stay ahead of the curve in today’s bar scene.

Whether you’re a bartender, server, restaurant owner, or just someone who loves a great drink, this conversation is packed with insight, perspective, and a glimpse into where the future of beverages is headed.

In this episode of Jeff & Jamie Feed, Jeff and Jamie talk about filming the final three episodes of Season 1 of Fork & Hammer in Atlanta, including what it was like working alongside Jamie’s brother and the behind-the-scenes rhythm of television production. The last two episodes of the television program bring the team back to Charlotte, where the focus shifts to the final stretch before opening Leluia Hall—finishing design details, continuing to tweak the menu, and hosting a full staff practice night to get ready for the real thing. Listen in for an inside look at the controlled chaos that comes right before a restaurant finally opens its doors, and the filming for Fork & Hammer season 1 comes to an end. 

In this episode of Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with Kristen Miranda of Blume Studios to talk about the powerful intersections of dining, theatre and immersive entertainment. As restaurants evolve beyond simply serving food, we discuss how dining out is increasingly becoming a form of theater — an experience that blends atmosphere, storytelling, performance, and connection. Kristen shares how Blume Studios weaves food and beverage into their immersive arts programming, intentionally curating environments that invite guests to step into something unexpected and unforgettable. With experiences like “The Magician’s Table”, Blume Studios is blending food, drink, and performance to create something far beyond a traditional night out. We explore how they thoughtfully curate each experience and how similar theatrical elements show up in our own restaurants. This conversation is about a current and rising moment in hospitality: where art, storytelling, and the table come together to create theatrical moments guests won’t forget.

On this episode of Jeff & Jamie Feed, we sit down with visionary Charlotte leader Tim Belk to talk about building a stronger local food system. Tim shares the story behind his family’s Wild Hope Farm located in Chester, SC—and why having farms near fast-growing cities like Charlotte is essential to the future of food. We dig into how restaurants and farms can work together more effectively, the realities of scaling sustainable agriculture, and his work with the Carolina Farm Fund to invest in the next generation of regional farms in a sustainable, thoughtful way. This is the unique farming infrastructure being planted now that will impact chefs and locals alike in generations to come in Charlotte. It’s a conversation about land, leadership, and what it really takes to feed a city well.