On today's episode, I am excited to share the audio recording of a live event I recently emceed for HRN. Lessons Learned: Tales from Small Business Owners features captivating stories from four storytellers who opened up about their trials and tribulations in the restaurant business. Sponsored by TD Bank, the event took place at the Tilit NYC Showroom. In addition to introducing our fabulous guests, I sprinkled some of my own stories throughout the night. The first small business storyteller was Eric Huang of Pecking House, Brooklyn. An Eleven Madison Park alum, the pandemic caused Eric to ree ..read more

On today’s episode, I'm joined by Steven Satterfield, the executive chef and co-owner of Miller Union, a celebrated ingredient-driven restaurant located in Atlanta's West Side neighborhood. The restaurant, which opened in 2009, has become an institution and has been recognized as a top restaurant in America by Eater, Bon Appetit, Food and Wine, and Esquire.  Together we talk about opening his restaurant and how he has kept it running smoothly after all these years of operation; growing up in Savannah; seasonal Georgia cooking; and the many local ingredients he works with, including peanu ..read more

On today’s episode I welcome Jeff Byrd and his daughter-in-law Lauren to discuss their restaurant Two Birds Taphouse in Marietta Georgia. The restaurant is truly a family labor of love. Jeff, his wife, his son and Lauren joined forces to open Two Birds in 2016.  Jeff was a recently retired attorney and had no previous experience in restaurants or hospitality and from the start took on the massive role of being the day to day operator on site, a job which he continues to this day. Lauren, who now lives in Brooklyn, had extensive hospitality experience coming into the project but had never ..read more

On today's episode of theLINE, I have the pleasure of presenting an episode of Dyed Green, a podcast about food and culture in Ireland. Hosted by my brother, Max Sussman, and his wife, Kate McCabe, each episode features dynamic conversations with chefs, farmers, scholars, and more - exploring Ireland’s rich culinary history, its dynamic creative culture, and challenging outdated stereotypes.  In this episode I got the chance to join Max in interviewing Jess Murphy. Jess is a celebrated chef, restaurant owner, writer, and activist. Originally from New Zealand, she moved to Ireland and open ..read more

On today’s episode, I welcome Chef Jae Jung, the chef and owner of KJUN, a Korean-Cajun pop-up currently operating in New York City.  A graduate of the CIA, she moved to New Orleans where she became enamored by Cajun cuisine. Since moving to NYC in 2014 she has worked at Oceana, Le Bernardin, the NoMad Restaurant, and most recently as the sous chef of Café Boulud.   In 2021, she launched KJUN as a pop-up operating out of a ghost kitchen, introducing New Yorkers to the exciting blend of Korean and Cajun flavors.  She has been featured in the New York Times, Eater, FOOD & WINE Maga ..read more

On today’s episode of theLINE, I welcome Ben Van Leeuwen, the co-founder and CEO of Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, where he leads product development and commercialization.  Van Leeuwen has come a long way since the first yellow truck hit the streets of NY in 2008. The company has grown from ice cream trucks to national distribution and brick and mortar locations in New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, with Colorado and Connecticut soon to open. They recently secured an additional round of fundraising which will allow the company to expand even more over the coming years.  On this ..read more

On Today’s episode of the Line, I welcome the co-owners of the Austin, Texas restaurant Birdie’s. Tracy and Arjav moved from NYC to Austin with the hope of building an equitable neighborhood restaurant. Birdie’s is a casual order-at-the-counter spot that serves elevated plates. Tracy, a Texas native, handles chef duties, and Arjav, who was born in New Delhi and grew up in Portland, handles the front-of-house and the wine list.  Together they wanted to create a restaurant for the long term both for themselves and their employees, so they built in things like healthcare, an equitable pay an ..read more

On today’s episode, Eli welcomes Lauren and Peter Lemos, owners of Wax Paper in LA. With over 30 years of hospitality experience between them, they launched their restaurant in 2015 on a shoestring budget in a shoebox-sized space. Now with two locations of Wax Paper Co., a growing team, and a new restaurant concept called Lingua Franca on the way, Lauren and Peter sat down to share their story of opening a restaurant and truly figuring it all out along the way. If you are an industry veteran looking to start your own thing, this episode is definitely for you. Get ready for a wide-ranging and e ..read more

On today’s episode, Eli is joined by Tara Hankinson and LeAnn Darland, the founders of Talea Beer Co. After several years of planning, fundraising, and overcoming the many roadblocks it takes to get a physical location up and running, they opened the Talea Brewery and Taproom in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in March of 2021.  Talea is the only exclusively woman and veteran-owned and founded production brewery (and taproom) in NYC. We discuss balancing work and family, ABV, opening during the pandemic, and their future expansion plans. Photo Courtesy of Talea Beer. Heritage Radio Network is a l ..read more

Chef Todd Richards is an award-winning chef known for his contemporary cooking style rooted in Soul & Southern cuisines. Todd is the founder of The Soulful Company Restaurant Group in Atlanta which includes Lake & Oak Neighborhood BBQ, Soul: Food & Culture, and the upcoming Kuro. He is also the author of SOUL: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes and the host of the HRN podcast Soul By Chef Todd Richards. We recorded this episode live at Samesa while Todd was in New York doing research for his next cookbook. We discuss how he started his career, the mentors that have shaped h ..read more