The Atlanta Foodcast: A Food Podcast

Jared Karr and Jules Tompkins didn’t start out as friends, per se. A bit more like “frienemies.” Their paths crossed in their earlier years here in Georgia and again later in life — as business partners. Fast forward to today and you step into the bright, beautiful space of East Pole Coffee Co — found in the same industrial part of Atlanta near Sweetwater Brewing, Armour Yards, and so on. Coffee is seldom part of the culinary realm that many come to understand fully. The plant, the process, regions, varietals, roasting methods — especially the farmer. Jared and Jules set out to bring something different to the coffee community here in Atlanta. They roast their own (right in the coffee shop, in fact), but they take extra care and steps to know who is growing it. The guys had me over to their space a little after hours so I could hear more of their story. Here they are.

Leslie Lennox started making pesto when she and her family purchased a home here in Atlanta — back in the late 90s. This wasn’t just any home, though. It came with a 1200sqft greenhouse which was pretty prolific in terms of basil production. Fast forward to 2007, she, her husband, and daughter, Hope, start selling their pesto, Hope’s Gardens Pesto, at the Peachtree Road Farmer’s Market during their first season. They were a part of the market for many years and, since, Leslie hasn’t slowed down on pesto — now for 20 years. So much, in fact, that she just released a book entitled Pesto: The Modern Mother Sauce. I’m a big fan of Leslie, friends. She and her husband were a part of things back in 2007 that helped shape much of what we’re reaping the benefit of today. Leslie was in town recently for this conversation so I could hear her story and learn more about her book.

10 years. In the course of life for a restaurant, this is either insignificant — or it’s everything. Oftentimes, getting through the first 365 days of service can set the pace for the next nine years and good golly are the stories what make it all worth it. Thusly, we’re celebrating an incredible restaurant, culinary team, restaurant group, and generally wonderful mess of people here in Atlanta. The Iberian Pig, part of Castellucci Hospitality Group, is turning 10. These guys got their start back in 2009 in Decatur Square and they’ve seen a lot in the years since getting things going. In fact, the story of one restaurant is also the story of many others under the Castellucci umbrella — which you’ll hear more of in this episode. Seriously, though, some of the stories you are about to hear are absolutely insane, hilarious, and absolutely worthy of appreciation. I sat down with Fred and John Castellucci and Edwin Molina — who has been with them since the very beginning. We/I laughed a lot during this recording.

Think of the last time you went to “see your butcher.” Back in the day, your butcher was the person who took care of everything for you — steaks, burgers, sausage, a whole chicken, bacon… everything, right? Knowing your butcher is now back on the rise as we all seek to learn and understand more about food and foodways. Enter: Rusty Bowers, Butcher and owner of Pine Street Market and Chop Shop. Pine Street hit the city back in 2008 and brought a side of butchery that celebrated the whole animal and especially paid homage to the hard-working folks who raised them in the first place. Now, Rusty and his team are continuing to expand Pine Street, and, they just opened Chop Shop — a market in direct partnership with Riverview Farms.

I love restaurants. The culture, the people, the opportunity to experience the cuisine. Everything. Over the past few years, I’ve gotten to know more people actively working to make Georgia an incredible state for growing. Agriculture. Two of those people are Ilana and Zach — Owners and Farmers at Levity Farms up in Milton. I met them a few seasons back at the Ponce City Farmer’s Market. Every Tuesday, we’d walk away with incredible produce they they planted, nurtured, and wrested from the earth — and that’s all it took. So, here’s a first for The Atlanta Foodcast (and certainly the first of many). We went up to the farm, walked the rows and plots, picked produce, snacked on veggies of all kinds, and stopped for a bit to record a podcast.

Kraig moved to Atlanta back when things were still taking shape… in fact, many aspects of food, good beer, the Beltline… and generally Atlanta as we know it today was the distant future. He opened Hop City a little over 10 years ago to offer a place for Atlantans to fill a growler, pick up all the gear needed for home brewing, a few bottles of wine, and more. Since that first location on the Westside, they’ve expanded the stores across the city and into Birmingham, AL. The other side of Kraig’s story you’ll love is that he found his way into opening restaurants through his love, and the need, of good beer.

The story of Hawkers doesn’t revolve around singular talent in the kitchen. The goal of Hawkers was always to bring the experience of eating at a hawker stall on the streets of Asia. Thusly, four friends brought the concept to life in Orlando in 2011. Since then they’ve been celebrating the recipes and flavors of generations past that are now still being enjoyed today — all the way here to the Atlanta Beltline Kaleb Harrell and Allen Lo are two of the founding members of Hawkers. We caught up earlier this summer so I could hear their story and how they’ve grown the restaurant concept over the years.

Suffice is to say that I love the story of Angie Mosier. She’s a decorated, celebrated, and beloved food photographer who also happens to be a Georgia/Atlanta native. Her work can be seen alongside names like John T Edge, Eric Rippert, and Kevin Gillespie and her work is stunning. The one thing I enjoyed most about her story is this — she spent much of her career working as a caterer and pastry chef/cake decorator. Angie is constantly putting out incredible work. Check out her website here: Placemat Productions. We caught up at her studio in College Park for a conversation. So, here she is — Angie Mosier.

Tal grew up on in Haifa, Israel. It’s up on the coast and quite literally one of the most picturesque places on the planet. The flavors that come from this region of the world are some of the oldest, most bold, and rich in history that our world truly knows. So, naturally she and her team open Aziza and Falafel Nation at Westside Provisions to mirror the Israeli dining experience of shared plates and bold flavors… However, before all of this takes place, we need to rewind a bit. Tal spent a large portion of her life in Florence, Italy where the culinary inspiration and of Slow Food International brought her back to open Bellina Alimentari in the Food Hall at Ponce City Market — replete with incredible house-made pasta, breads, great wine, and classes where you can learn how they do it. Tal’s story is truly incredible and absolutely inspiring. We sat down at Aziza just before they began service a week or so ago.

Pat grew up in Connecticut. He worked his way through restaurant jobs from an early age, went to college, changed courses and went to culinary school, and opened his acclaimed restaurant, Bar Sugo. After a life spent in the northeast, he and his family made their way down here to Atlanta and landed at The Optimist — pasta ever in his mind. Come 2018, he opened The White Bull in Decatur which has continued to steal hearts and appetites through pasta. Now, he and his team are working on opening Grana in Piedmont Heights. Whew! So, there’s a quick synopsis, but it barely tells the half of it. Pat’s whole story is incredible and packed with jaw-dropping moments. Plus, Pat is just fun guy to chat with. (He needs his own podcast). You’re going to love this episode. Here he is: Chef Pat Pascarella of The White Bull and Grana.

Scott Serpas has done something that no one else in the city can claim — he opened his flagship spot, Serpas, in O4W long before the Beltline was paved and scooters were zipping by. To say Scott is a fixture of Atlanta dining hardly does him justice. He saw something in the east side of town that wasn’t there before. Having over 10 years and a long line of faithful diners, Scott has built great recognition for his southern cuisine that is influenced by his upbringing and heritage from Southern Louisiana. Scott and his team continue to introduce things to the city that are all based on eating good food. They opened Dixie Q a while back in Brookhaven and they’re serving up some damn-good BBQ for everyone. We caught up at the restaurant on a weekday so I could hear his story. So, here’s Chef Scott Serpas of Serpas True Food and Dixie Q.

Another fantastic year at one of Atlanta’s greatest summertime festivals — Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival. Hosted by Chef Ford Fry at Westside Provisions. I look forward to this one every year. Every dish does something to tomatoes that is truly novel, respectful of the fruit, the season, and especially the farmer. So, we hit the streets and made around to some of the chefs and restaurants who participated in this years shindig. Who did we interview? Chef Craig Richards of Hampton & Hudson Stephen Franklin of DAS BBQ Chris Wilkins of Root Baking Co. Chef Jen Yee of Hopkins Hospitality Chef Linton Hopkins of Holeman & Finch Pat Pascarella of The White Bull Zac and Ilana from Levity Farm Ashley and Hannah from Rogers Greens and Roots Thomas Davis from King & Duke Anita and Ron Hsu from Sweet Auburn BBQ and Lazy Betty Scott Serpas, Chef/Owner of Serpas in O4W Alice Rolls - President of Georgia Organics Also, in case you missed it a few weeks back, check out our interview with Chef Ford Fry.

In Partnership with Georgia Organics and Peachdish This is a really fun one here on The Atlanta Foodcast. As you may have watched this past season of Top Chef, Kelsey Barnard Clark took the show by storm and the hearts of viewers across the country. Kelsey was in town this past weekend for a slew of events and one of them happened to be a Saturday Brunch, Cocktails & Conversations, (by the Cast Iron & Collards Society) at King & Duke. Kelsey partnered with local Levity Farms and Chefs Damon Wise and Thomas Davis from Ford Fry’s team at the restaurant. Kelsey and I sat down for a LIVE episode of the podcast in front of the brunch’s guests, which is what you’ll hear for this episode. Her story is wonderful and you’ll get to catch some of the Q&A from the crowd as well. Other great aspects of the event: Bloody Marys from Cathead Vodka and Sister’s Sauce Bloody Mary Mix All dishes served on beautiful and elegant pottery/dinnerware from East Fork — based in Asheville, NC

This week, we sit down with one of the most well-known restaurateurs in the city behind one of the most dined-in restaurants on the east side of town -- none other than Tom Murphy of Murphy's in Virginia-Highland. His restaurant has defined dining in one of Atlanta's coziest neighborhoods (especially through Brunch), housed multiple chefs who have made waves throughout the city, and continues to stay on the top of dining culture for ATLiens.So, here's Tom's story.

So, here’s a story you may not think to seek out, nor would you expect such a story to come from two individuals in charge of a major aspect of development in Atlanta’s Summerhill neighborhood. Meet Jack and David from Carter. Now, I know what you’re thinking and believe me — the real estate side of things is not always of the foremost thought if you’re a diner in this city. However, Summerhill is slowly becoming the next darling neighborhood of Atlanta and the guys at Carter play a major role in what is happening on Georgia Ave. So, I wanted to hear their stories and also have them give me the full picture of what is happening in the neighborhood, some history behind everything, and what’s coming in the near future.