The Build: Restuarant 201

At first glance, Hungry House reminds us of the experience we remember as a kid at the mall food court, the fantasy realized of having all of your faves available in one meal. However, Hungry House, its roster, and the way it works with its collaborators are much more than an indulgent trip to the mall. 

Founded by Kristen Barnett this past Fall, Hungry House is a brick and mortar and delivery platform that dubs itself the “anti-ghost kitchen”, having recently served as the COO of ghost kitchen Zuul. Serving up dishes from a seasonally rotating roster of chefs you may not have otherwise had access to. Including our friend Woldy Reyes, chef and owner of Woldy Kusina, a modern Filipino concept, who joins us today.
 

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Opening a restaurant is a challenge. In the sense of the word that it’s hard, it’s expensive, stressful, and much more. Today’s guests are tackling that challenge, of course, but they’re also using their new restaurant as a challenge to the industry, to the norms that have been created, and the exclusions that have been present in their careers and throughout the industry. They aim to build an experience that serves everyone equally and thoughtfully, with acceptance, balance, and fun.

We are here today with partners Chef Telly Justice and Camille Lindsley of HAGS, a community-driven tasting menu restaurant in NYC’s East Village by Queer women for everyone. Chef Telly has been working in restaurants for over 15 years since she was 18 years old, with stints at anarchist vegan restaurants in ATL to Michelin Star tasting menus in NYC. Camille Lindsley is a certified Somm and heads up the beverage program. Expect a fun, thoughtful, and communicative brand of hospitality that centers queerness at HAGS.

We have a new format today! We will be chatting, drinking, and cooking along with Telly and Camille as we chat about all things HAGS.

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We were first introduced to Edith’s in the summer of 2020 when we joined the line of several dozen other hungry Brooklynites looking for hand-rolled bagels and hot latkes. Fast forward 18 months and Ediths has 2 permanent locations including a brand new flagship complete with café and grocery. 

Founder Elyssa Heller is on a mission to highlight food of the Jewish Diaspora beyond the standard delicatessen offerings. Elyssa has previously worked in operations for big brands such as Milk Bar and Dylan’s Candy Bar and is bringing her love of Jewish Cuisine forward with Edith’s.

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Every restaurant, no matter how hard they try to avoid it, ends up with food waste. Slow nights, weather impacted outdoor dining, pandemic surges and dips, and just the normal ebb and flow of running a restaurant can leave food on the table, literally. There have been options in the past, but how does a case of celery on the brink or an overstock of milk help by itself?

ReThink Food tackled this problem with a solution that puts ready-to-eat meals directly in the hands of those that need it. Starting in 2017, ReThink has distributed nearly 6.9M meals to communities impacted by food insecurity. 

Here with us today is ReThink’s founder and CEO, Matt Jozwiak. Matt has worked in restaurants nearly his entire life starting as a dishwasher and eventually landing as chef de partie at EMP.

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Are pop-ups here to stay? According to our guests today, YES! They are doing just that with their Eastern European cuisine, and building their pop-up and frozen Pelmeni business, Dacha 46, from the ground up after a successful run of pop-ups, including a term at our previous guest, Libby Lark’s community space, KIT. Excited to welcome chefs Jessica and Trina Quinn to the show.
 

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Our restaurant delivery system is broken. Can we all just agree on this? Restaurants are getting hammered with percent-of-sales fees, delivery drivers are hurting for fair pay, stability, and safety, and customers have been trained to expect faster delivery times and wider accessibility. 

We are excited to welcome back to the show Josh Morgan, operating partner of Melt Shop and CEO/Co-Founder of Sesame, a new delivery platform for restaurants by restaurateurs, that is fighting back against the established aggregators. Sesame just launched its beta in NYC this past week.

Photo Courtesy of Josh Morgan and Sesame.

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We’ve tried this once before - booking a guest the day before they opened that is. And last time? Well, we had a quiet line… Today, though, our guest has made the time to chat with us on how he, along with his partner plan to open their doors to their new concept housed in a 150-plus-year-old iron foundry outside Philadelphia. 

We are happy to have Nicholas Elmi, former Top Chef winner and James Beard Finalist, joining us on the show today in light of I’m sure a very busy last-minute schedule. Nick along with his partner Fia Berisha will be opening Lark, a coastal Mediterranean restaurant, housed atop Ironworks at Pencoyd Landing.

Photo Courtesy of Nicholas Elmi and Lark.

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2 years ago, a restaurateur building out his outdoor patio before investing in his interior dining room would have sounded like some sort of farce to be balked at by the likes of Mr. Wonderful on the latest episode of Shark Tank. But today, it just sounds downright smart. Unless you're part of the lucky few with endless streams of cash, most folks, in getting their new venture off the ground have to prioritize how and where their funding goes. And in today’s dining world that can mean building from the outside - in.

Tarik Fallous is the chef and owner of East Village Lebanese hot spot Au Za’atar, home of the table side shwarma, now with its second location in Manhattan's midtown east.

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Daily Provisions from USHG is the kind of neighborhood spot everyone welcomes. It is true all-day dining, from the classic Bacon Egg and Cheese in the morning to the Roasted Chicken in the afternoon. Don’t pass on the addicting sweets like cookies and crullers. But even with the muscle from a seasoned team at USHG there can be unforeseen start-up challenges. 

Welcoming executive Chef and friend of Tilit Amanda Wilson and Jessamyn Waldman Rodriquez, managing director to the show.

Photo Courtesy of Evan Sung.

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The last year and a half has, amongst a few other things, upended the way we eat. We’ve embraced eating at home, whether it be cooking for ourselves or feasting on a bevy of elevated takeout menus. Giant grocery stores still exist, but many of us are ordering our staples online and turning to local specialty stores: specialty grocers, butchers, delis, and cafes that hark back to the early 1900s. That’s before the likes of King Kullen, Publics, and WalMart discounted our food system. I like this resurgence: Small businesses raising the bar of food sourcing, and bringing it into the community.

Myles and Rachael spent their careers in some of NYCs fine-dining temples; Myles cooking at EMP, Blue Hill Stone Barns, and Aska, and Rachael as Somm at the Beatrice Inn and Aska. Now they are taking their hospitality chops to a whole animal butchery and market called Kinship in the Virginia Highlands neighborhood of Atlanta, GA.

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