Menu Talk Winsight Podcast Network

This week on Menu Talk, your hosts, Restaurant Business senior menu editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food & beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality, caught their breath after a whirlwind long weekend at the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago, and they shared insights into what they saw and tasted there.

Pat was struck by the prevalence of cardamom on the show floor, including in an Indian lassi and a new soda flavor from Tractor Beverage Co.

Bret noticed sprouted coffee, green coffee that is treated with moisture, time, and controlled temperature so that it sprouts, resulting in coffee that is lower in acid and less bitter.

Their colleagues at the show came across a wide variety of boba drinks, but Pat and Bret were more struck by the presence of caviar and caviar-like items, like Australian finger limes with pulp that bursts in a way similar to good fish roe, and other popping spherical food, such as encapsulated and flavored fortified fish broth that provided a lower-cost option for attractive presentations.

Caviar has become an increasingly popular embellishment at full-service restaurants, even in fairly casual venues. Pat also sampled dulse, a seaweed that she said tastes like caviar.

Restaurant Show attendees also often get invited to other events in Chicago, especially if they’re members of the media, and Pat and Bret both attended one by Unilever Food Solutions at fine-dining restaurant Esmé, where they were presented with a multicourse meal that, apart from being beautiful, interactive and delicious, represented some of the broad trends that Unilever explained to the guests.

And finally Bret played clips from his interview with Nathan Myhrvold, author of the food encyclopedia “Modernist Cuisine” and subsequent books, including his latest, “Modernist Bread at Home,” co-written with Francisco Migoya. Myhrvold debunked some common myths about bread baking, and our hosts learned that over-proofed bread doesn’t need to be thrown away: It can be saved.

Listen to the podcast to find out how.

Menu editors Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn were among the guests who celebrated the winners of the 2024 MenuMasters awards on Saturday. We were in the thick of the event at Morgan Manufacturing in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood, sampling the chef-prepared food at the various stations and talking to the eight chefs honored this year.

Chef and restaurateur Nancy Silverton was inducted into the MenuMasters Hall of Fame, and we talk on the podcast about her accomplishments as a chef and restaurateur. She was particularly touched to receive an award from the industry, and commented on how these awards celebrate the diversity of restaurants represented at the ceremony. Other winners included fast casuals Cava and Tender Greens, quick-service players Del Taco and McDonald’s and casual-dining concept Fogo de Chao.

Indian entrepreneur Meherwan Irani and digital cooking guru Samuel “Sam the Cooking Guy” Zien were also honored, further reflecting that diversity.

We also dish on the wild MenuMasters “after party,” where special effects, music, dancing and more food and drinks kept guests hopping until almost midnight.

MenuMasters took place during the National Restaurant Show, so we roamed the exhibits and chatted about our favorite tastes, sips and happenings.

This week on Menu Talk, Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food and beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, share their take on some recent happenings in the world of food, drink and restaurants.

Pat recently visited Coqodaq, a classy NYC Korean fried chicken restaurant with a casual vibe run by the owners of upscale steakhouse Cote.

Both Bret and Pat attended an event for Rocco DiSpirito, the James Beard Award-winning chef and TV celeb who just released a new cookbook called “Everyday Delicious.” Although DiSpirito isn’t currently affiliated with a restaurant, he earned acclaim as the hot and talented young chef helming the kitchen at Union Pacific.

And we played clips from Pat’s podcast with Doug Willmarth, president of Mooyah Burgers, Fries and Shakes, the 72-unit better burger chain. Willmarth talked about how Mooyah differentiates itself in the crowded fast-casual burger segment with its laser focus on quality ingredients cooked from scratch.

Menu Talk is a collaboration between Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food & beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality. You can subscribe to it wherever you listen to podcasts.

This week on Menu Talk, Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food and beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, share their take on some recent happenings in the world of food and drink.

Bret is settling into his new Brooklyn digs, discovering the vast assortment of pickled and smoked fish available in his new neighborhood. And buckwheat—that’s the grain of choice in the shops that surround his apartment.

Pat was recently a guest at a “Nikkei Twist” dinner in which private chef Will Ono created a five-course Colombian-Japanese menu. Off-duty private chefs, restaurant sous chefs, line cooks and other culinary pros develop the menus and cook at these events. There’s also a sommelier at the dinners to pair wines. It’s a new kind of dining platform that’s becoming a win-win for both chefs and consumers.



We listened to clips from Bret’s podcast with Joe Schaeffer, VP of Culinary for Atlanta-based Electric Hospitality, about Muchacho, the group’s Southern California-inspired taqueria. Schaeffer created six unique fresh salsas using a variety of chilies, some raw, some roasted or simmered, to infuse each with complex flavor.

This week on Menu Talk, Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, Senior Food and Beverage Editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, share their take on some recent happenings in the world of food and drink.

Bret recently moved from one Brooklyn neighborhood to another, and the culinary scene is very different. He’s surrounded by Turkish food and already tried a Turkish breakfast specialty that’s currently trending on TikTok but has been served in mom-and-pop restaurants forever.

Pat shares a virtual taste of three memorable pizzas she shared with colleagues at Pizzeria Bianco while in Phoenix, which sparks a lively discussion of pizza styles.

We also comment on clips from podcasts recorded at the recent Restaurant Leadership Conference. Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises’ Christopher LaBarbera, and Ricky Richardson, CEO of breakfast-lunch chain Eggs Up Grill. They mention sustainability initiatives, equipment upgrades , along with new programs and menu items

Menu Talk is a collaboration between Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food & beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality. You can subscribe to it wherever you listen to podcasts.

This week on Menu Talk, Restaurant Business Senior Menu Editor Pat Cobe and Bret Thorn, senior food and beverage editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, share their take on some recent happenings in the world of food and drink.