Lez Eat! Queers & Food, Midwestern style.

Join us as we catch up with Chef Urban (who we interviewed in Season One), formerly of Broadway Youth Center, at their new venture as the Director of Silver Work, a culinary workforce development program at Center on Halsted, Chicago’s LGBTQIA+ center. (For full disclosure: JT joined the Silver Fork’s 38th Cohort after this interview and subsequently got a job at Dom’s Kitchen & Market as head of their Demo Team in Lincoln Park.) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

In this episode, I sit down with Vanessa Parrish, the Executive Director of the Queer Food Foundation. The Foundation’s mission is to be a nationwide Resource and platform for LGBTQIA+ Individuals in food. They promote, protect, and fund queer food spaces. In this episode, we discuss their Queer Food Fund project, their workshop series with the James Beard Foundation and talk about Vanessa’s passion for queer farming, sparkling cocktails, and her favorite flavor of ice cream. You can find them at queer food foundation dot org or on social media @queerfoodfoundation. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Headshot, courtesy of GAZ Creative Agency Chef Dominique is a classically trained chef turned nationally recognized pitmaster. First garnering culinary experience in some of the most prestigious kitchens in Chicago under the direction of chef icons such as James Beard award-winning owner/chef Tony Mantuano and Executive Chef Sarah Grueneberg (Monteverde) at MICHELIN starred Italian restaurant Spiaggia, as well as with award-winning author and chef Raghavan Lyer at The Art Institute Museum. Leach then branched out with her wife Tanisha in 2016 to create her own catering company, “Cater to You Events & Drop Offs.” Inspired by fond childhood memories of her grandmother, Betty King of Lexington, Mississippi, who filled the house with flavorful aromas of home-cooked meals, Dominique then took those aromas and applied techniques to launch a successful food truck, Lexington Betty Smokehouse. Her expertise and soulful food would lead to her victory on The Food Network’s BBQ BRAWL in 2023 with Bobby Flay as well as earn her a spot on CHOPPED and as a judge/contestant on Food Network Canada FIREMASTERS, recognition as the “Best Barbecue in Chicago” by Good Morning America, and a full brick-and-mortar home for Lexington Betty on the South Side of Chicago following a pilot project to help promote black-owned businesses in the region. Chef Leach and her wife’s hard work and persistence in a male-dominated industry have helped them carve out a name for themselves in the culinary world in Chicago and beyond. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Join Honey and JT as we interview Chef Jenny Urban about their new work at Howard Brown Health Center and the Broadway Youth Center, their pandemic work at Inspiration Kitchens, and their long history of feeding the food insecure in Chicago and mixing social justice with yummy food. Bonus: What Ani DiFranco eats for lunch! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Join Honey and JT as they explore the world of intuitive eating with Nutritionist/Food Coach Whitney Hull-Benson. Learn about f*cking diet culture, how to explore new ways of nourishing our bodies, and a little bit about BURNING DOWN THE PATRIARCHY THROUGH FOOD. (Featuring Special Guests "Our Pets" and the "Disembodied Recording Alert Lady Voice of Zoom"!) --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Jojn Mixologist and Beverage Consultant Meredith Barry as she talks with JT and Honey about creating beverage programs for chefs, her badass distillery test kitchen, and what goes into a perfect negroni. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Honey and JT talk to queer activist and the founder of Victory Cheese (a pandemic project that turned into a great way to support indie and artisan cheesemakers) about the pandemic, the cheese industry, its response to Black Lives Matter and grappling with BIPOC representation in the industry, and how to find delicious indie cheesemakers in your area! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Hosts JT and Honey introduce themselves and talk about their personal experiences with food, foodie-ism, the title "chef", and more. Join us for a peek into why we do what we do and what you can look forward to. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Join Honey and JT as they welcome Portland's Pizza, Darling chef Izzy Gouldberg to the pod! They discuss all things pizza, community, and Izzy's uncanny "ability to allow others to chill" alongside JT and Izzy's mutual crush on Chef Alton Brown. Lez Eat, Episode 2: Pizza, Darling with Izzy Gouldberg References J. Kenji Lopez-Alt The Food Lab Leonora Ching: Hawaii's Pickle Lady YouTube Channel Binging with Babish Alton Brown Good Eats (where to watch) Nicole Byer (Host of Nailed It!) Podcast: Why Won't You Date Me? --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com

Chicago Chef Rachel Tumerman joins Honey and JT as they explore the culinary landscape with an LGBTQAAII+ lens. Chef Rachel discusses her work with Chef Friends for Justice. Check out her yummy treats at Steingold's Delicatessen. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lezeat/message This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lezeat.substack.com