TAKE AWAY ONLY

As Zuni Café's chef de cuisine, Nate Norris oversees one of the most seminal kitchens in San Francisco, a place that's as much a community anchor as it is a restaurant. But what happens when the needs of the community change rapidly and a restaurant is asked to play a greater role? Nate Norris joins us to discuss what actions Zuni has taken, how those actions will shape the restaurant's future, building trust amongst a new and vulnerable audience and what Zuni's plans are for reopening with take away on May 6th. 

Being married to a New York City nurse means COVID-19 has impacted every aspect of chef JJ Johnson's life, including the mission of his restaurant, Fieldtrip. Hear about the healthcare workers he's been feeding, the Harlem neighbors he's been meeting and why JJ thinks his business is ready to scale up--and scale now. 

Chris Shepherd joins us from Houston to discuss the extraordinary work of his Southern Smoke Foundation, the survival and upcoming evolution of his four restaurants, the restorative power of "page 38 chicken," and finding unexpected relief on a massive scale at his local grocery store. 

As Danish society slowly begins to reopen, René Redzepi joins us to discuss living with uncertainty, a new direction for Noma, alternative revenue streams, the reality of profit margins, group mental health, newfound reflectiveness and creativity, a new fund for former employees, preparing for future crises and establishing greater security both for his own family and for the business that represents his life's work. 

As co-founder of Whetstone Magazine, host of the podcast Point of Origin and a longtime restaurant worker himself, Stephen Satterfield tells stories about food and the issues surrounding it with inimitable sensitivity, grace and intelligence. On this episode, Stephen joins us to explore what roles stories must take on during and after this pandemic, why empathy is a cornerstone of his work, how restaurants help shape our identity, where he's finding comfort now and what he believes this moment can clarify for workers, diners and anybody with a beating heart.  

Cristina Martinez and her husband, Ben Miller run South Philly Barbacoa, one of our greatest and most soulful restaurants, not only for the inimitable lamb barbacoa and consommé that comes out of its kitchen starting at 5am, but for the restaurant's steadfast and rousing defense of undocumented workers. Martinez's story is epic as an immigrant and as a chef. She's now on lawyer number 3 and has spent an untold amount of money in legal fees just trying to get her papers sorted. All the while, Martinez and Miller strive to take care of the undocumented restaurant workers around them by speaking up for their cause and truly giving them visibility--a step many restaurant owners are unwilling to take. Ben Miller joins us on this episode of Take Away Only, post-shift, to continue energetically going to bat for undocumented workers while Christina, who speaks Spanish, completes yet another 15-hour shift to keep Philadelphia barbacoa-rich in the midst of a pandemic. 

Formed by refugee and immigrant women in Baltimore in 2017, Mera Kitchen Collective has been built for catering, pop-ups and selling meals at the farmers' market. Mera's members are from places like Syria, El Salvador and Burkina Faso; they specialize in dishes such as saffron-infused charcoal-smoked rice, sorel chicken stew and pupusas. With the spread of COVID-19, the Collective's members decided to change their business model completely. Now, they're cooking their regional specialties for neighbors in need. Emily Lerman and Aisha Alfadhalah of Mera and Irena Stein of partner restaurant Alma Cocina Latina gather to discuss the nature of hunger, serving their community while communicating across cultures and the singular facets of this extraordinary and expanding operation. 

Kith/Kin's Kwame Onwuachi talks about joining the Independent Restaurant Coalition, why he identifies with Spider-Man, the glory of unboxing a giant salmon at home, the virtues of service and listening, Eating Clean While Quarantined and managing a sense of anxiety and hopelessness all while fighting to maintain sanity and show his team how much he loves them.

As President of One Fair Wage, Co-Founder of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United), and Director of the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley, Saru Jayaraman spearheads some of the most important efforts being made to establish restaurants as safer and more equitable places to work. Hear about the millions of workers Saru is fighting for, why the minimum wage is linked to slavery, the myriad problems with unemployment insurance, the service-industry parallels between COVID-19 and 9/11 and why One Fair Wage is essential to providing a better future for workers, employers and consumers. Plus, how to support One Fair Wage's emergency efforts to get money and food to the workers who need it most.

The travel industry accounts for 10% of the global GDP and represents more than one hundred million jobs. According to industry visionary David Prior, travel also supports culture, from museums to celebrations around the world. On this episode of Take Away Only, David blessedly shares some transporting stories, while discussing what happens when communal expressions of culture go on pause. Plus, how to sustain tradition and beauty while isolated, the intensified future of experience-driven travel and how facing adversity can give even the most avid traveler a new sense of belonging and purpose at home.