What's Eric Eating - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

Episode 275 - Pace Webb of Daddy's Chicken Shack Mar 16, 2023

Show notes

Today's podcast opens on a sad note, Eric Sandler alongside Michael Fulmer and Matt Harris remember longtime Houston restaurateur Lee Ellis who passed away last Monday (3/6) at the age of 63. The guys reflect on Lee's career, his impact on the Houston restaurant scene, and share their memories of Lee. Eric and Matt get into other news from the week that was including Hobby airport's new concessions contract that has Killen's BBQ among it's new options for food and Kraftsmen Café closing in The Heights. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Jun is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Pace Webb of Daddy's Chicken Shack. Pace speaks with Eric about getting into the food business, coming from a family of entertainers, becoming a chef, the life changing events that led her to the culinary world, making the leap from catering to leaning into the chicken sandwich side of things, the early chicken sandwich grind, how their chicken sandwich is different, developing the different types of sandwiches they offer, educating customers, growing from a 100 foot to go counter to what they are today, bringing the business to Houston, why it was nostalgic for her to come back to Houston, the response so far, expansion plans for Houston, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 274 - Justin Turner of Bocca Italian Kitchen Mar 09, 2023

Show notes

On the podcast today Eric is joined by Linda Salinas to discuss the latest happenings from the restaurant and bar scene in Houston. The two discuss Sébastien Laval and Philippe Schmit pairing up for a new concept called PS21, the new bar and lounge concept Best Regards making it's home in the space that formerly housed Chivos, and Dallas based restaurant group FB Society bringing it's concept Haywire to Houston for the restaurant's third location. In the Restaurants of the Week portion PrimoHoagies is featured. In the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Justin turner of Bocca Italian Kitchen. Justin speaks with Eric about returning to the podcast for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic back in 2020, reflecting on the decision to close Bernie's Burger Bus amid the pandemic, getting connected with McCord Development, being part of the Generation Park development project, taking on the challenge of an Italian concept, what he's learned about Italian cooking during his time with Bocca, the offerings on Bocca's menu, connecting with the northeast side of Houston, why they pivoted at Lupo Caffe, what's on his radar for other possible concepts that could fill the area, why a hidden omakase style concept is appealing to him, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 273 - Michelle Wallace of B'tween Sandwich Co Mar 02, 2023

Show notes

Today on the show Eric is joined by the Swanky Maven herself Felice Sloan to go through the latest happenings from the Houston restaurant and bar scene. The pair discuss the closing of 1751 Sea and Bar, Ben Berg's latest concept Buttermilk Baby, and Eloise Nichols Grill & Liquors' switch to a more casual format. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Fat Boy's Pizza is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Michelle Wallace of B'tween Sandwich Co. Michelle speaks with Eric about the development of Gatlin's Fins & Feathers, how fried chicken set the stage for the development of it, when she knew she could step away from Gatlin's, why she decided to go with sandwiches post Gatlin's, what makes a great sandwich, why a pop-up was the right next move, the types of sandwiches on the menu, the response so far, plans for the future of the concept, the many upcoming culinary opportunities she has, being part of BBQ Brawl, and most importantly the ideal PB&J sandwich.
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 272 - Seth Siegel-Gardner of the Southern Smoke Foundation Feb 23, 2023

Show notes

On today's podcast, Eric is joined by Michael Fulmer to go through some of the latest from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Dallas Tex-Mex staple Mi Cocina returning to Houston, 3 Houston area restaurants making it onto Texas Monthly's best new restaurants list, and the owners of Traveler's Table introducing a new sister concept called Traveler's Cart. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, LuLoo's Day & Night is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Seth Siegel-Gardner of the Southern Smoke Foundation. Seth speaks with Eric about getting into the restaurant industry, how his culinary journey led him to New York, what it was like working with Marcus Samuelsson, what brought him back to Houston, getting Pass + Provisions started, the amazing team they assembled at Pass and Provisions, how they innovated at that time, why they ended up closing Pass and Provisions in 2019, his time in Marfa, the latest with Marfa Spirits, Chris Shepherd approaching him about the foundation, what his day to day is like working with the foundation, what they're planning for this year's big festival event, and much much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 271 - Ultimate Tex-Mex Draft Feb 16, 2023

Show notes

It's a special edition of the podcast today, as Eric assembles a panel of Tex-Mex aficionados for the Ultimate Tex-Mex Draft. Eric alongside David Cordúa, Bryan Caswell, Mary Clarkson, Matt Harris, and Michael Fulmer select their favorite Tex-Mex dishes from different restaurants in the greater Houston area to create their ultimate Tex-Mex meal. The panel are picking dishes in the following categories: fajitas, enchiladas, tacos, chips & salsa, chips & queso, and a wildcard selection. Find out which participant picks the ultimate Tex-Mex meal, picked by special guest judge Russell Ybarra of Gringos!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 270 - Brooks Bassler of BB's Tex-Orleans Feb 09, 2023

Show notes

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Avondale Food & Wine owner Mary Clarkson to go through some of the latest news from the Houston restaurant and bar scene. The pair discuss the Cle Group selecting a location for a new concept called the Post Oak Lodge, Chris Cusack bringing a second location of Betelgeuse Betelgeuse to the market, and Café Express' arrival in The Woodlands. In the Restaurants of the Week section Sushi by Hidden is featured. In the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Brooks Bassler of BB's Tex-Orleans. Brooks speaks with Eric about his experience in the restaurant industry, developing the concept of BB's, why po' boys, starting the crawfish side of the business, theories on what created the crawfish boom in Houston, the insane numbers of crawfish they're doing, how crawfish season is going so far this year, the growth of BB's, why San Antonio was the right next city to expand into, what makes an area the right area for a location of BB's, the possibility of other types of concepts, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 269 - Abbas Dhanani of Burger Bodega Feb 02, 2023

Show notes

On today's pod, Eric is joined by Matt Harris to go through the latest from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including the James Beard Foundation releasing it's list of award semifinalists that includes 10 Houston restaurants, Ben Berg's newest concept that has some questions surrounding it, and Hubcap Grill on 19th Street shuttering. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Karne is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Abbas Dhanani of Burger Bodega. Abbas speaks with Eric about the early days of his career, growing up in a successful restaurant family, what inspired him to launch Houston Eats, the food blogging scene, why he wanted to pursue/open Burger Bodega rather than working within the family business, why he went with burgers for his concept, the research that he put in for Burger Bodega, why the design was so important for him, how things have been going with the restaurant so far, how things came about with the shakes program at Burger Bodega, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 268 - Sherman Yeung and Jio Dingayan of Money Cat Jan 26, 2023

Show notes

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by frequent cohost and co-founder of the Houston BBQ festival Michael Fulmer. The guys discuss the latest news from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Western Addition Restaurant Group bringing a new seafood concept to Houston, the iconic Spanish Village shuttering in March but the legacy will live on in another project soon, and the newest bar concept from the Kirby Group that has a familiar face from the bbq scene involved. In the Restaurants of the Week section Gatsby's Prime Seafood and Home Slice Pizza are featured. In the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Sherman Yeung and Jio Dingayan of Money Cat. The guys speak with Eric about how they both got started in the restaurant industry, how Sherman acquired Tobiuo, how they started working with each other, getting Money Cat started, why upper Kirby was the right location for Money Cat, why a new concept like Money Cat was the right next move rather than another location of Tobiuo, why Jio wanted to make the leap to savory by becoming the chef de cuisine at Money Cat, the benefits of staging for Money Cat's development, how Money Cat breaks with some Japanese food traditions while honoring others, some of the highlights from the menu, how things have been at Money Cat so far, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 267 - Steve Rogers and Rob Wright of The Warwick Jan 19, 2023

Show notes

This week, Eric is joined by beverage expert/consultant Linda Salinas to go through some of the latest Houston restaurant and bar news. The pair discuss Kata Robata's Yun Cheng and chef Manabu Horiuchi teaming up to launch a new concept called Katami, some sad restaurant closures that occurred toward the end of 2022, the cocktail program at Phat Eatery that Linda rolled out, and they also share some memories of Griff's Irish Pub after the bar was destroyed by a fire earlier in the week. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Money Cat is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Steve Rogers and Rob Wright of The Warwick. Steve and Rob speak with Eric about how they got into the hospitality industry, getting the Sugar Hill Lounge started back in the day, creating the ultra sports bar with Prospect Park, what it's meant to them to be the creators of a series of places that have become destinations for people, the creation of The Warwick, why the location was the right spot, the decision behind going with a fine dining concept, how the first few months have gone since opening The Warwick, the dishes people have enjoyed the most, details on their new concept Rockhouse Southern Kitchen, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Episode 266 - Emmanuel Chavez of Tatemó Jan 12, 2023

Show notes

For the first podcast of 2023 Eric is joined by the Swanky Maven herself, Felice Sloan! The pair discuss some of the latest happenings in the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Common Bond Bakery entering a new phase of growth with the Garza Management Group, Michelle Wallace leaving Gatlin's BBQ/Gatlins Finns & Feathers to pursue a new project with pop-ups on the way, and Little Pappas Seafood is reopening this spring under a new name. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, Ciel is featured. In the Guest of the Week section of the podcast Eric is joined by Emmanuel Chavez of Tatemó. Emmanuel speaks with Eric about how he first got interested in becoming a chef, getting an ultimatum from his family after collage, his early stops in his career, his time in Seattle, developing his style/techniques that served as the foundation for Tatemó, coming back to Houston, developing the concept that became Tatemó, how things are going so far at Tatemó, creating the menu, getting inspiration from what Jonny Rhodes is doing, aspirations to becoming one of the best restaurants in people's minds, and much more!
Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com:

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

What’s Eric Eating

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected