Pot Luck Food Talks: Kitchen Stories From Behind the Pass
Pot Luck Food Talks: Kitchen Stories From Behind the Pass

Pot Luck Food Talks: Kitchen Stories From Behind the Pass

Chef Phil & Eric | Experienced Cooks & Restaurant Insiders

Overview
Episodes

Details

Two decades on the line leave scars, stories, and a way of seeing the world that doesn’t wash off with the apron.Pot Luck Food Talks is where the chef lifestyle gets laid bare—raw chef talk, the kind you don’t hear in PR interviews.Phil & Eric aren’t here to romanticize. They’re here to trade food stories that smell of sweat, butter, and burned fingers. Stories about the beauty and brutality of restaurant culture, the quiet rules, and the loud disasters.It’s the truth about Michelin Star kitchens, the whispered restaurant secrets, the victories no one tastes but the cooks, and the mistakes that teach more than any school.If you want sanitized food media, go elsewhere. If you want chef conversations about life, gastronomy, and why flavor is the only compass worth following—pull up a chair.

Recent Episodes

Even the Coleslaw: Nothing's Too Basic for a  Great a Restaurant Menu
MAY 24, 2026
Even the Coleslaw: Nothing's Too Basic for a Great a Restaurant Menu
<p>🎙️ EP187 — If done right, it's one of the best salads there is. Sweetheart cabbage. Sharp vinegar. Dressed à la minute. Everything we've learned and haven't learned about coleslaw.</p><p></p><p><strong>🎧 In This Episode:</strong></p><p>🥬 One of the best salads there is</p><p>⏱️ Dress à la minute (or it weeps)</p><p>✅ Sweetheart cabbage, not Napa</p><p>🧪 Kimchi and food-as-medicine?</p><p>🥄 The dressing: mayo + yogurt + acid</p><p>💥 Sharp distilled vinegar hack</p><p>🧅 Cut the onion the right way</p><p>🌶️ Pitt Cue's green chili coleslaw</p><p>🍏 Green apple, kohlrabi, carrots</p><p>📋 Phil's full coleslaw recipe</p><p>🍍 Arturos and Venezuelan pineapple coleslaw</p><p>🐟 Brussels hearts &amp; kimchi-juice beurre blanc</p><p>🥟 Forgotten German cabbage cooking</p><p></p><p>📩 <strong>Follow &amp; Support Us:</strong></p><p>🍽️ Everything in one place: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/">https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/</a></p><p>📸 Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks">https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>▶️ YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks">https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>🗞️ Newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/">https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/</a></p><p>📢 Want to advertise with us? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast">http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast</a></p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>🔥 Enjoy!</strong></p><p></p>
play-circle icon
30 MIN
The Garlic Episode: A Professional Cook's Approach to the Clove
MAY 17, 2026
The Garlic Episode: A Professional Cook's Approach to the Clove
<p>🎙️ EP186 — Smash your cloves. Wait 10. Then cook it. Everything we've learned and haven't learned about garlic.</p><p></p><p><strong>🎧 In This Episode:</strong></p><p>🧄 Can there be too much garlic?</p><p>👨‍🍳 Ben Morgan's nixtamalized garlic at Mugaritz</p><p>🔬 Dani Lasa taking the soul out of a clove</p><p>🇱🇧 The original alioli had no egg</p><p>🍅 Stop drowning your pan con tomate</p><p>🥒 The tiny-garlic-big-umami pickle rule</p><p>🫒 The methodical Basque way</p><p>🍜 Mayu: The black garlic oil</p><p>🖤 Why we're over black garlic</p><p>💙 What makes garlic turn blue</p><p></p><p></p><p>📩 <strong>Follow &amp; Support Us:</strong></p><p>🍽️ Everything in one place: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/">https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/</a></p><p>📸 Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks">https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>▶️ YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks">https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>🗞️ Newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/">https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/</a></p><p>📢 Want to advertise with us? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast">http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast</a></p><p></p><p>🔥 Enjoy!</p>
play-circle icon
29 MIN
Culinary Elegance: Why Simple Food Is So Hard for Cooks
MAY 10, 2026
Culinary Elegance: Why Simple Food Is So Hard for Cooks
<p>🎙️ <strong>EP185 — </strong>Great dishes have no unnecessary BS. Just good craft stripped down to the essentials. This episode gets into restraint, confidence, quiet technique, and the kind of cooking that has nowhere to hide.</p><p></p><p>🎧 <strong>Topics Covered in This Episode:</strong></p><p>🍽️ What Makes Food Good</p><p>🧱 Substance Over Style</p><p>🐓 The Problem With Chicken</p><p>🍝 Why Cooks Avoid Pasta</p><p>🔥 Restaurants That Get It Right</p><p>⭐ When Michelin Is Worth It</p><p>👨‍🍳 The Chef’s Chef</p><p>🇬🇧 British Produce Done Well</p><p>🔪 Classical Technique</p><p>⏸️ Food That Stops Time</p><p>🧠 Confidence in Cooking</p><p>📝 Menu Writing Mistakes</p><p>🤫 Quiet Food, Loud Skill</p><p>🏛️ St. John &amp; Restraint</p><p>⚖️ Elegance Without Bullshit</p><p></p><p></p><p>📩 <strong>Follow &amp; Support Us:</strong></p><p>🍽️ Everything in one place: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/">https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/</a></p><p>📸 Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks">https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>▶️ YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks">https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>🗞️ Newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/">https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/</a></p><p>📢 Want to advertise with us? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast">http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast</a></p><p></p><p>🔥 Enjoy!</p>
play-circle icon
34 MIN
Harsh Truths About Kitchen Management: The Stuff That Actually Makes You A Better Cook
MAY 3, 2026
Harsh Truths About Kitchen Management: The Stuff That Actually Makes You A Better Cook
<p><strong>🎙️ EP184 — </strong>An IBM data scientist wrote harsh truths about performance. We went through the list one by one.</p><p></p><p><strong>🎧 In This Episode:</strong></p><p>🔥 Fear Signals Importance</p><p>🍽️ Cooking Other People's Food</p><p>🧠 The First Draft Is Always Shit</p><p>💪 Discipline Is Self-Care</p><p>🎯 Take More Pressure, Less Inspiration</p><p>👂 Your Ego Blocks the Best Feedback</p><p>⚡ Inaction Costs More Than Failure</p><p>✂️ Strength Is Restraint</p><p>🌊 Struggles Don't End</p><p></p><p><strong>📩 Follow &amp; Support Us:</strong></p><p>🍽️ Everything in one place: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/">https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/</a></p><p>📸 Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks">https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>▶️ YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks">https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>🗞️ Newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/">https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/</a></p><p>📢 Want to advertise with us? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast">http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast</a></p><p></p><p>🔥 Enjoy!</p>
play-circle icon
29 MIN
A Cook's Process, Pt. 3 – Opening a Restaurant: Great Cooking Won't Save a Bad Concept
APR 26, 2026
A Cook's Process, Pt. 3 – Opening a Restaurant: Great Cooking Won't Save a Bad Concept
<p><strong>🎙️ EP183</strong> — Very few chefs can open a restaurant and keep it alive. This episode is about knowing the difference between good food and good concept.</p><p></p><p><strong>🎧 Topics Covered in This Episode:</strong></p><p>🍽️ When Your CV Isn't Enough to Open a Restaurant</p><p>🧠 Detaching From Your Own Taste to Build a Real Concept</p><p>🏚️ Why the Best Restaurants Started as Taverns</p><p>🔪 The Truth About Kitchen CVs and Fake Skills</p><p>👥 How to Build a Team From Scratch in the Middle of Nowhere</p><p>💀 The Four-Days-a-Week Trap That Kills Restaurants</p><p>📋 Why You Need a Mock Schedule Before You Hire Anyone</p><p>🤝 Scouting vs. Trusting People You Already Know</p><p>🗣️ What Your Cooks Aren't Telling You</p><p>⚠️ When to Walk Away From a Client Who Won't Listen</p><p></p><p><strong>📩 Follow &amp; Support Us:</strong></p><p>🍽️ Everything in one place: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/">https://linkin.bio/potluckfoodtalks/</a></p><p>📸 Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks">https://instagram.com/potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>▶️ YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks">https://youtube.com/@potluckfoodtalks</a></p><p>🗞️ Newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/">https://www.potluckfoodtalks.com/start/</a></p><p>📢 Want to advertise with us? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast">http://potluckfoodtalks.com/advertise-on-the-podcast</a></p><p></p><p>🔥 Enjoy!</p>
play-circle icon
32 MIN