Presented by:
Barry Sorkin,
Founding partner, Smoque BBQ, Chicago

Podcast courtesy of WBEZ’s Chicago Amplified 

The searing urge was too much for him, so Barry Sorkin just upped and left his safe and comfortable career as an IT professional to pursue his dream of bringing great regional American BBQ to Chicago. Barry spent over a year researching the industry, traveling to the BBQ mecca of Texas, then writing a detailed business plan, finding a location, and fine-tuning recipes.  Continue reading →

Presented by:
Chef Gale Gand,
Executive pastry chef, Tru; TV Host, Food Network; Cookbook author

Podcast courtesy of WBEZ’s Chicago Amplified

When we invite our culinary luminaries to speak before our group, we always ask them to jot down a few lines about their topic, and then we write up the program flyer. When Chicago’s venerable pastry artiste Gale Gand sent us her notes, we decided not to change one sweet word. Continue reading →

Presented by
Andrew Coe, author

Podcast courtesy of WBEZ’s Chicago Amplified

In 1784, passengers on the ship Empress of China became the first Americans to land in China, and the first to eat Chinese food. Today there are over 40,000 Chinese restaurants across the United States—by far the most plentiful among all our ethnic eateries. Join us as Andrew Coe provides the history of this American infatuation. Continue reading →