Podcast

Felix Salmon has lived in and around NYC for over 25 years, and he’s one of the sharpest observers of food culture and trend without officially writing about food. He’s the current chief financial correspondent at Axios and host of the terrific podcast Slate Money. He’s also the author of The Phoenix Economy: Work, Life, and Money in the New Not Normal. On this episode we talk about NYC dining, in and out, and his family’s fascinating history in the London food world. We also discuss the early snark of Eater, the Keith McNally legacy, early 2000s dining trends, and what he thinks about the future of food media. What a great talk! Felix is one of our faves, and we hope you enjoy it. Also, did you read our big story about Trader Joe’s this week? It got a lot of attention and we are joined by the piece’s terrific writer, Adam Reiner, to talk about the company’s questionable private label practices. Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.  MORE FROM FELIX SALMON: The Real Reason Cocoa Prices Have Soared [Axios]Slate Money [official]We Need to Talk About Trader Joe’s [TASTE]

This week Laura Lee Ochoa, best known as the bassist and founding member of Khruangbin, sits down with Carmel Holt to discuss Khruangbin's brand new album, A LA SALA - or, to the living room - and shares her journey from her own childhood living room that inspired the title. From her pursuit of visual art, to picking up the bass and starting the band, the role of her alter ego Leezy and how that is evolving, and integrating her newest role as a mother into her life as a touring musician with her chosen family of Khruangbin.

"The book is like cake, you don’t want to eat it too fast!"

interview with rapper Cavalier

It’s really great to catch up with Cree LeFavour, a novelist, cookbook author, and chef who just returned from four months at the South Pole, as documented in her excellent Substack. What is it like to bake bread at elevation in the world’s largest freezer? Her story is pretty entertaining, and we hear about how the world’s harshest environment can inspire creativity in the most interesting way. We also talk about her cookbook career and some of the cool projects she is working on since returning from the Pole.  Also on the show, Aliza tells us all about her recent trip to New Orleans. Fewer oysters and more…roti! Visits include carrot yogurt at Molly’s Rise and Shine, the “White Claw of cheese” at Mister Mao 😭, the “fajita effect” (but with bananas foster) at Brennan’s, good hurricanes at Cane & Table, and the griddled biscuit at Panola Street Cafe. Do you enjoy This Is TASTE? Drop us a review on Apple, or star us on Spotify. We’d love to hear from you.  MORE FROM CREE LAFAVOUR:My Antarctica [Substack]Private Means [Grove Atlantic]

Yes, Bill Addison is back on the show. We’ve long been a fan of Bill’s writing, going back to his well-considered restaurant criticism in Atlanta, Dallas, and San Francisco, for Eater as a roving national critic, and for the past four-plus years as the head restaurant critic at the Los Angeles Times. Bill is our favorite critic, writing about our favorite food city in the United States, and we catch up with him in Los Angeles about some of his recent reviews and tap into his thoughts on LA’s modern Korean food scene. It's a grab bag of topics. Bill also gamely takes our TASTE check, which is one of our favorites four minutes in audio. Bill is always welcome back on the show, and this is one for the books. Also on the show, Matt shares details from his recent trip to Los Angeles, including some of the places he dined at including: Sicilian corners and GOAT cheesecake at Quarter Sheets, celery salad at Stir Crazy, creative banchan and the new flow at Yangban, soba at Otafuku, 💯 grilled sweet potato and miso butter at Budonoki, Majordomo is still really good, and a final stop for the ages. Or, this age.     Send questions, comments, hot takes to: hello@tastecooking.com and we may read it on a future episode. MORE FROM BILL ADDISON:Inside NYC’s Korean Wave [Los Angeles Times]A Destination Restaurant in the High Desert [Los Angeles Times]21 of the Best Bagel Shops in Los Angeles [Los Angeles Times]This Is TASTE 194: Bill Addison [TASTE]