Ina Pinkney, The Breakfast Queen of Chicago
It's the final episode of Season 1 so we called in the big guns: Ina Pinkney, the legendary restauranteur known as "The Breakfast Queen" who served Chicago the most important meal of the day for 30+ years from her spots in Lincoln Park and the West Loop. Learn how she got her start, her battle with polio as a young child, how obsessing over the details helped her stand out (33:00), her brief foray into local politics and civic engagement (47:03), how she helped get the citywide smoking ban passed (52:00), fun stories from her life like dancing with Fred Astaire (1:00:35) and her advice for restauranteurs (01:05:00, seriously though listen to this if you own a restaurant or plan to one day). Thank you all for listening to Season 1!
Back To (Culinary) School
Earlier this fall, Ari and Maggie spent some time at Washburne Culinary Institute, one of the oldest culinary schools in the country. In this special episode, they talk with Associate Dean Greg Beachey and current student Jose Cruz about the venerable culinary school's history and how it provides opportunity for members of marginalized communities to become chefs.