HiddenFandB Helen Mitternight

The traditional Valentine’s pairing is red wine and chocolate. You see it on all the ads. But Lauren Patz used to pair wines with chocolate for a living and she’ll tell you red wine really isn’t the best wine pairing. Today, she’s head distiller at Purple Brands and she’s creating flavors that she hopes will be as classic as Valentine’s Day. Lauren Patz on the Hidden F&B.

Art DeCaro is the trainer at Waters Edge Winery and he has a lot to say about pairing wine and cheese, and the one wine and cheese pairing he would NEVER do. Art is a big advocate of using technology smartly in the wine business. Art DeCaro,on the Hidden F&B.

Pork, cornbread, seafood...Marcie Cohen Ferris looks at a place's history and culture through its food. She talks about that in her book, "Edible NC," and on the Hidden F&B! 
 

We're talking with Jon Murray and Wilson Brannock of Noko Nashville. They've joined with a third partner to create their dream restaurant in Nashville. Besides the food, they want nothing less than to change the whole model of the hospitality industry. They are offering their employees health insurance, a travel stipend, and more. As Murray says, “We want our guests to be happy, but we want our people to be happy.” The two talk about how to make that happen, how a restaurant can afford to make it happen, and how it shows up in customer service. Jon Murray and Wilson Brannock of Noko Nashville on the Hidden F&B.

Ryan Mitchell and his dad, Ed, of North Carolina, have just released a book about whole hog barbeque. Ed’s first time cooking a whole hog came when the older guys in the family were passed out from a bit too much moonshine, but his son, Ryan, says cooking a hog can be an almost spiritual experience. Ryan Mitchell, on the Hidden F&B.

Zak Melang, one of the owners of 10 Matador Restaurants across the country, says he’s done everything you can do in restaurants, from washing dishes to managing. Owning seemed a natural extension.