Episode 157: Tom is Back!

The podcast above features me and my co-host Chef Tom LaFauci, who is finally back with me after several weeks! Podcast Contents 00:00 - 05:41 INTRO: Chef Tom is a Delicate Flower05:42 - 09:02 WHERE’D YA EAT? Anniversary Meal at Stone Bowl09:03 - 20:53 SAUCE TALK: Bearnaise Q & A20:54 - 21:38 MANNA SPOT: Please Donate to MANNA Foodbank.21:39 - 47:54 DUNNING KRUGER REPORT: The Price of Food Part 247:55 - 52:30 OUTRO: Thanks & Bye! NEW STOCK PANTRY: Dawn and I popped into New Stock Pantry in the River Arts District to say hi to Chef Ashley Capps and buy a bunch of yummies for later. We got a bag of fresh local greens, a tasty and hearty white bean salad, a very delicious chicken pot pie galette, a whitefish salad sandwich and a Moroccan chicken salad sandwich, both excellent, and dessert of house made Graham crackers and three house made marshmallows!!! Two were subtly fruit flavored to be red, white, and blue, the other was coffee flavored. All three were pure soft marshmallowy goodness! Oh, I also got a bag of their corn grit crackers, which were so frickin' gooood, I ate them all in one sitting! 😂😂😂 Thanks, New Stock! CONTRADA: Dawn and I went to Contrada on Wall Street for her birthday last night and we thoroughly enjoyed every bit of the experience! The patio was cool and comfy, service was very friendly and professional, and the food was awesome as always of course. We started with the sugar snap peas w/ cucumber, buttermilk & mint, and it was to die for. Very fresh, crisp and flavorful! We had a hard time deciding on which pizza to order, because all of the options sounded super-delish, but we finally landed on the "estate" pizza, with EVO, zucchini, peas, fresh basil creamy ricotta. It. Was. Frickin. Awesome. The various textures and flavors of the topping, along with a perfect Neapolitan crust made this pizza a unique and exciting pie and the perfect choice for that night. Thanks, Contrada. You da best. FLOUR: I went back to Flour in the SWAsheville cafeteria building on Patton Ave right downtown, and got a perfect biscuit with butter and jam, plus a cappuccino. I'm falling in love with Flour. ASHEVILLE FOOD TOURS: We run food tours every day of the week, with 2 on Saturdays! Food tours walk about a mile and 1/2 in downtown Asheville, and include a little bit o’ history and architecture, a lot of food (a large meal for most people), plus a couple of boozy drinks if you want ‘em, or n/a beverages if you you’d rather have those. My tours happen on Sundays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays, plus I am available for private tours some Mondays and Thursdays. Our other guide, Sarah, does tours the other days of the week, and she is awesome. Sign up for a tour with either of us! You’re gonna have fun. “Sarah was an excellent guide. She expertly explained all interesting areas of the city’s downtown, as well as a bit of history. The food tour had a good, balanced selection of restaurants, and the knife place put an interesting touch to the tour” - Oscar G. “Stu was an amazing guide. Friendly, knowledgeable about food and Asheville. He kept us laughing, took us to some wonderful restaurants and overall made the tour a great experience! We loved our food tour! 💛⭐️💛” - Cherri C. — end — Get full access to Stu Helm: Food Fan at stuhelmfoodfan.substack.com/subscribe