The Dine One Six

The Dine One Six

Max Connor

The Dine One Six podcast is focused on the Sacramento food scene along with the people and culture that make it special. The show features interviews with chefs, farmers, journalists and anyone else with a great Sacramento food story to tell. Hosted by Max Connor, an award winning journalist and podcaster as well a long time restaurant worker and dedicated home cook. Max will take you behind the scenes of some of Sacramento’s best restaurants, dive into how your food gets from ”farm to fork” and follow trends and interesting stories of how food can connects us all. Everyone in Sac...

Ryan Ota of Mecha Mucho

Ryan Ota of Mecha Mucho

Mecha Mucho roughly translates to “lots and lots.” For Chef and Owner Ryan Ota that means lots and lots of smiles, lots and lots of people saying, “Damn this is good!” and lots and lots of sandwiches sold.  If you haven’t discovered it, Mecha Mucho is cranking out amazing egg salad sandwiches on Shokupan (Japanese milk bread) with additional protein options from chicken katsu, to spam to sometimes even wagyu beef, out of the little street side window at Osaka-Ya on 10th street.  Ryan tells us ab

Jun 7, 2024 • 57:51

Oliver Ridgeway of Camden Spit & Larder

Oliver Ridgeway of Camden Spit & Larder

To say Oliver Ridgeway is well traveled is a gross understatement. After getting his start washing dishes in his dad’s restaurant, at 20 years old he got a job cooking on the Queen Elizabeth II cruise liner, which traveled from England to New York city. That ship took him all over the world over two years, and taught him how to cook and how to organize.  That organization would be vital as he went on to cook for Athletes and VIP sponsors at the Olympic Games in Sydney Australia 2000 and the Wint

May 16, 2024 • 1:03:00

Amanda and Chris of Kau Kau

Amanda and Chris of Kau Kau

Amanda Bridger started cooking food at home during COVID as a way to pass the time and to comfort herself, her partner Chris and friends. Little did she know that in going back to the Hawaiian flavors of her childhood evenings visiting her grandmother, she would stumble upon a new found talent and passion for cooking Hawaiian cuisine.  She and her partner Chris Tocchini moved to Sacramento and started a pop up with the recipes she developed and it was such a success that they ultimately opened K

May 3, 2024 • 53:08

Billy Ngo of Kru

Billy Ngo of Kru

Billy Ngo of Kru Contemporary Japanese Cuisine got his start at an old-school Japanese restaurant on Broadway in Sacramento, spending hours washing dishes and painstakingly preparing shrimp for the week’s service. After a stint at Mikuni he understood how sushi could become something that mixed his passion for creativity and attention to detail.  Billy headed to culinary school in San Francisco and came back to work at The Kitchen for a year, where he learned the importance of good ingredients a

Apr 18, 2024 • 1:03:03

Jody Bogle on family history and producing award winning wine in Sacramento

Jody Bogle on family history and producing award winning wine in Sacramento

It all started when a disastrous failed potato crop led Jody Bogle’s grandfather, Warren Bogle to try planting wine grapes on the acreage he purchased on Merritt Island. In 1968 he planted 10 acres of Petite Syrah and 10 acres of Chenin Blanc. He got the Chenin Blanc clippings from a guy named Skinny in Lodi! Today, Bogle has grown to become the Bogle Family Wine Collection, a brand that stretches worldwide, which includes several different labels, styles and price points of wine. We talk to Jo

Oct 24, 2023 • 46:47

Greg Gearhart and Victor Mihalchuk talk about the show Breaking Bread

Greg Gearhart and Victor Mihalchuk talk about the show Breaking Bread

Greg Gearhart and Victor Mihalchuk were sipping coffee and having lunch with their colleague Cameron Tyler of Moonracer films when they thought, “the food scene in Sacramento is so amazing…what if we filmed it.” That nugget of an idea launched what is now one of the most beautiful celebrations of Sacramento and its food you will ever see called Breaking Bread.  On Tuesday September 5 there was a very special premiere of the amazing limited series and the next day we sat down with Greg and Victor

Sep 8, 2023 • 48:16

Robert Masullo from Masullo’s Pizzeria

Robert Masullo from Masullo’s Pizzeria

Before Robert Masullo became a Sacramento pizza icon, he was the son of a Sac Bee journalist and a stay at-home mom. His mom was a major influence on his life as she taught him the values in hard work and making recipes from scratch.  His Sacramento food orgin story is epic, with him riding a Vespa to Biba to wash dishes when he was 16. His love of food took him to the CIA in New York and then a little over a decade stop in Minnesota. He worked as a baker, learning the art and craft dough and ho

Sep 2, 2023 • 56:09

Ben Roberts from Pizza Supreme Being

Ben Roberts from Pizza Supreme Being

Ben Roberts grew up in Grass Valley where he loved skateboarding and punk rock. He dreamed of getting out of the small town but had no real plan, but after he met his future wife at a record shop, he followed her to Sacramento as she went to UC Davis and he looked to take any job he could find. That is the perfect recipe (pun intended) for a young kid to make his way into a kitchen.  He got his start at R15 and then Shady Lady where a mentor showed him the right books to buy and Ben dove in head

Aug 26, 2023 • 57:09

Chloe Booth - dough maven of Pizzasaurus Rex

Chloe Booth - dough maven of Pizzasaurus Rex

Chloe Booth got a taste for interesting food at a young age when her mom went to culinary school. But it was years later as a teenager when her grandmother bulldozed a job path for Chloe at Del’s Pizza in Fair Oaks. There she learned the ins and outs of the pizza business, from interacting with the regulars to managing 20 pizzas at a time in the ovens.  After a break from restaurants Chloe saw a Facebook post about a new pizza place opening in Midtown. She went in for a stage shift and has never

Aug 18, 2023 • 47:08

Alison Clevenger talks Ginger Elizabeth, delectable pastries and Doughbot donuts

Alison Clevenger talks Ginger Elizabeth, delectable pastries and Doughbot donuts

Alison Clevenger moved from Arizona to Oregon to go to culinary school without ever checking out the campus, her mom just signed her up, drove her up there and dropped her off. That move set her life on a course where she would land in Sacramento and ultimately help build one of the premiere sweet treat destinations in the city, Ginger Elizabeth’s.  Alison talks about taking naps on giant bags of flour, the growth of Ginger Elizabeth, perfecting the perfect ice cream sandwich (in Max’s opinion,)

Jul 20, 2023 • 48:15

Matt Brown from Bodega

Matt Brown from Bodega

Matt Brown loves to cook. That may seem obvious given he’s spent the last 20 years as a chef. But many chefs don’t cook between shifts…not Matt. He loves nothing more than cracking open a cookbook, a bottle of wine and spending a day off grilling in the summer or roasting in the winter.    Matt got his start at pizzeria as a teenager and spent time at several other spots in Sacramento that are no longer in existence (Matt swore their closing wasn’t his fault.) After moving to Idaho for five year

Jun 15, 2023 • 46:26

Taylor Lovelace is ”saucy and bossy”

Taylor Lovelace is ”saucy and bossy”

Taylor Lovelace is the head chef at J.J. Pfister Distilling Company but her love affair with cooking started when she interned at The Kitchen while in culinary school. It was actually years before when she would chauffeur her parents to the famed restaurant that she got to try the food when the staff would feed her the menu in the back of the restaurant while her parents dined.    Taylor went on to hit Sacramento hot-spots like Localis, Echo and Rig and Camden Spit and Larder before landing at J

May 10, 2023 • 43:34

BONUS EPISODE!! Get to know Max and Neill

BONUS EPISODE!! Get to know Max and Neill

In place of a usual episode, Max and Neill take turns asking each other food questions to give you insight into the minds of your favorite local food podcasters! What food are you embarrassed to say they don't like? What's the one meal you would make to impress someone? If you could only eat one cuisine for the rest of your life what would it be? And more!! This episode is in place of an episode that was supposed to be with Polo Adamo of Adamo's Kitchen but the audio was lost during a computer c

Mar 30, 2023 • 26:22

Eddie Torres formerly of The Kitchen

Eddie Torres formerly of The Kitchen

Eddie Torres learned the power of food connecting families at an early age when he would have Sunday dinners with more than 20 members of his extended family, most of whom lived in the same apartment complex. But it wasn’t until the great recession, which buckled the car industry where he was working, that he decided to go to culinary school.  After school he bounced around town until making his way to Ella pretty quickly, starting at the bottom and working his way up to the line. Then, he heard

Mar 12, 2023 • 47:44

Dennis Sydnor from Renegade Dining

Dennis Sydnor from Renegade Dining

Dennis Sydnor first fell in love with cooking in his family home, smelling bbq and parker house rolls that his dad made. Then when he got his first kitchen job back in Cleveland at 17 he realized that his ability to cook impressed the girls and gave him some juice as the new kid in town.  Soon he moved to the front of the house and fell in love with hospitality and being front and center watching people experience what he knew would become lifelong memories. Eventually, he longed to get back int

Feb 24, 2023 • 43:25

Sac City Brews Chef/Owner Rebecca Campbell

Sac City Brews Chef/Owner Rebecca Campbell

Max and Neill sit down with Rebecca Campbell, owner and chef of Sac City Brews in Tahoe Park.  They talk about Rebecca’s unconventional and even accidental move to running a kitchen. It’s not often you find someone with two Masters degrees running a kitchen, but she has taken her background in community development to create an amazing spot for the neighborhood of Tahoe Park and frankly for all of Sacramento.  She talks about how growing up on a small farm in the foothills gave her an appreciati

Feb 10, 2023 • 51:16

Greg Desmangles of Urban Roots

Greg Desmangles of Urban Roots

Greg Desmangles got his start as so many do, in the dish pit of a family owned restaurant. But from his first weekend working on his feet all day bussing tables and washing dishes during beer week, Greg knew he wanted to be in a kitchen.  Greg went on to stage at Taylor's kitchen soaking up all he could before going back to his uncle's restaurant Pangaea Beir Cafe and working prep. Today Greg has helped the family business grow to four restaurants, including Pangaea, Urban Roots Brewing and Smok

Dec 20, 2022 • 49:23

Julie Cassotta - cheesemonger

Julie Cassotta - cheesemonger

Today we talk about the wild world of cheese! How does blue mold bloom? Does what the animal eats change the taste of cheese? Strange food combinations to eat with cheese, headless spiders that create a rind on cheese. All these questions and odd facts are answered and discussed with our guest Julie Cassotta.    Julie is a Certified Cheese Professional and one of only eight people with that certification in Sacramento. That means she knows her stuff when it comes to cheese.    Julie creates gorg

Dec 2, 2022 • 46:07

Chris Sinclair from Bodega

Chris Sinclair from Bodega

Chris Sinclair fell in love with cocktails when a salty San Francisco bartender schooled him on what a real martini was. Since that moment Chris has dedicated his life to teaching other aspiring bartenders and guests, wherever he has worked, the art of the craft cocktail.  Chris is from New York but has made Sacramento his home having spent the last decade working at the likes of Red Rabbit, La Cosecha, Kasbah, Sail Inn, Jungle Bird and more. He is also the founding president of the Sacramento c

Oct 12, 2022 • 46:15

Jonathan Kerksieck of Cacio

Jonathan Kerksieck of Cacio

Jonathan Kerksieck has been working in restaurants in Sacramento for 30 years. He got his start making pizza at original Pete’s out of high school. He considered culinary school but a conversation with Rick Mahan when he was working at Paragary's and set his course on learning to cook by working long hours in kitchens all over Sacramento.  After all that training, head chef jobs, running hotel food programs and even doing food research and development, Jonathan met an old colleague who helped hi

Sep 16, 2022 • 44:05

Scott McCumber of Pangaea Beir Cafe

Scott McCumber of Pangaea Beir Cafe

Scott McCumber has not had the traditional path to becoming a head chef here in Sacramento. Most chefs start young, finding the discipline and camaraderie in the kitchen intoxicating. Scott loves that about the kitchen too, but for him it was consecutive layoffs in his corporate sales career that led him to completely shift his life’s course.  Scott took six months of severance pay and with his wife’s blessing went to work in a kitchen as a volunteer prep cook, and less than eight years later fo

Sep 1, 2022 • 47:16

How to start a home vegetable garden

How to start a home vegetable garden

This week Max throws back to an episode of his college podcast where he talked to Nicole McDavid, the garden coordinator at the Capital Public Radio garden. McDavid tends to the large garden which produces roughly 2,000 pounds of produce per year to the Associated Students, Inc. food pantry and other food banks. McDavid does it all using organic gardening techniques and passes on her 10 years of experience with urban farming to listeners. Wondering what to plant this fall? When to water? How to

Aug 19, 2022 • 23:11

Sac Hot Chicken Battle

Sac Hot Chicken Battle

WARNING: Make sure you’re not hungry before listening to this episode This week we are back with an episode all about the Sac Hot Chicken battle that took place earlier this summer. We interviewed all the chefs, tried all the sandwiches and got reactions from people on site as about 1000 people came out and enjoyed spicy chicken sandwiches and beer and cider.  We also talked to the event organizer Misty Alafranji as well as one of the judges Benjy Egel from the Sacramento Bee. So kick back and l

Aug 11, 2022 • 52:59

Masullo pizza chef Shannon McElroy

Masullo pizza chef Shannon McElroy

Shannon McElroy has one of the best restaurant jobs in town. He works 8 a.m. to 3 p.m everyday at one of the best, most respected pizzerias in town, making the pizza dough and the desserts. But Shannon’s career has spanned everything from high end restaurants in Napa, cooking pizzas in the redwood forests of Mendecino and serving surly customers in some of Sacramento’s “finest” dive bars.    We talk about how Shannon went from culinary school, to bartending and then back to the kitchen at Masull

Jul 4, 2022 • 35:53

Karen Bond and the story of Bondolio olive oil

Karen Bond and the story of Bondolio olive oil

In 1986 Karen Bond and her husband Malcolm bought a 10 acre almond orchard in Winters to fulfill a dream of living in the country. At the time they never would have guessed that they would be selling prized olive oil made from trees imported from Italy.    After removing their almond trees, they were visiting Sicily where Karen tried freshly pressed olive oil for the first time and she fell in love.    More than 15 years later Bondolio produces some of the most sought after and award winning oli

Jun 21, 2022 • 48:37

Nash and Tender ”Hot chicken slider”

Nash and Tender ”Hot chicken slider”

Jimmy and John Sierra of Nash and Tender out of Stockton and Folsom explain how they bring a special blend of spices from childhood into every aspect of their chicken sandwich.

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:50

Alaro Craft Brewing

Alaro Craft Brewing

Chef David Santana of Alaro Brewing is adding a restaurant favorite onion dip to the “Alora Spicy Chicken” sandwich

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:24

Sac City Brews

Sac City Brews

Chef Rebecca Campbell of Sac City Brews is bringing a sweet heat heat to the competitions with her “Sac City Brews” sandwich

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:06

Mumpy’s ”Dirty Bird”

Mumpy’s ”Dirty Bird”

Chef Rudy Balch of Mumpy's food truck says the driving force behind his food truck is his sandwich, the “Dirty Bird”

Jun 16, 2022 • 0:44

Skip’s fish and chicken

Skip’s fish and chicken

Chef Frankie Abboushi of Skips Fish and Chicken keeps is traditional with his chicken sandwich “Skips Nashville hot chicken sandwich”

Jun 16, 2022 • 2:01

Pangea Bier Cafe ”Chicken Rick 137”

Pangea Bier Cafe ”Chicken Rick 137”

Chef Scott Macumber of Pangaea Bier Cafe throws a curveball into the competition with a Szechuan style chicken sandwich

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:01

Black Cat Diner ”Hot chicken Milane$a $ando”

Black Cat Diner ”Hot chicken Milane$a $ando”

Chef Byron Hughes III of Tiger Bar explains how a trip to Argentina inspired his unique hot chicken sandwich.

Jun 16, 2022 • 2:05

Bawk ”Bawk’n hot”

Bawk ”Bawk’n hot”

Executive Chef Greg Desmangles of Bawk explains his process to crafting his chicken sandwich

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:01

Naija Boy Tacos ”Yoruba Demon”

Naija Boy Tacos ”Yoruba Demon”

Chef Rasheed Amedu of the soon to open Naija Boy Tacos explains his unique South American and Nigerian inspired fried chicken torta

Jun 16, 2022 • 2:18

Device Brewing Co. ”Hot Mala Chicken”

Device Brewing Co. ”Hot Mala Chicken”

Executive Chef Eddie Torres explains his sandwich from Device Brewing Company

Jun 16, 2022 • 1:15

Jet’s ”Flamin’ Jet”

Jet’s ”Flamin’ Jet”

Chef Jet Bonanno, the founder of Jet’s Restaurant Group, describes his chicken sandwich

Jun 16, 2022 • 0:40

Hawks Public House

Hawks Public House

Executive Chef Michael Fagnoni talks about his sandwich representing Hawks Restaurant of Granite Bay and East Sacramento.

Jun 16, 2022 • 0:42

Bobby Coyote and Mark Casale of Dos Coyotes

Bobby Coyote and Mark Casale of Dos Coyotes

Today we welcome Bobby Coyote, owner of Dos Coyotes and his long-time executive chef Mark Casale. Dos Coyotes is unique in so many ways. It’s uniquely Sacramento, it blends Mexican, southwest and farm-to-fork California cuisine and it’s one of the original concepts to offer restaurant quality food that’s fresh, fast, ordered at a counter but “served on a cool plate.” Bobby tells the harrowing story of trying to open his first location. Everything went wrong, from his contractor having to stop wo

Jun 1, 2022 • 54:49

What it’s like to be a server with Neill Little

What it’s like to be a server with Neill Little

Neill Little has a been a server and bartender since he was 21. He's spent over a decade working at places in Sacramento including DeVere's, Empress Tap Room and Camden Spit and Larder. Neill and I talk about the good, the bad and the ugly of working as a server. Mostly, we talk about the good and how being a server allows you to connect with people, have great conversations and make lifelong friends with co-workers and guests. We also talk about how apparently, the grocery store you were raised

May 27, 2022 • 47:00

All about In-N-Out

All about In-N-Out

In this episode Max throws back to an interview he did in the summer of 2020 with Shaun Holkko, a peer from Sac State who worked at In-N-Out burger for nearly three years. Max and Shaun get into all the In-N-Out lore including if you have to be religious to work there, what are all the secret menu items, how many patties can you put on one burger and of course...what's with the fries!? Links:  Shaun and Von podcast   Visit the podcast website at dineonesix.com Follow me on Twitter and Instagram

May 17, 2022 • 31:06

Ray Ballestero of Alaro Craft Brewery

Ray Ballestero of Alaro Craft Brewery

Ray Ballestero is the co-owner of Alaro Craft Brewery along with his wife Annette. Alaro is located in the old Rubicon Brewing Co. location which was a Sacramento institution for almost 30 years.  Alaro is a labor of love and combines decades of experience in home brewing paired with Ray’s upbringing eating food influenced from his Spanish background. Combine that with his wife’s background as a co-owner of River City Brewing Company, a master Head Brewer in Chris Keeton and great tapas by Chef

May 10, 2022 • 38:17

Food photographer Taylor Gillespie

Food photographer Taylor Gillespie

Today I talk with professional food photographer Taylor Gillespie, who runs Food in Focus here in Sacramento. Taylor comes from a family of entrepreneurs and food people. Her mom was a chef when she was younger and her grandparents started Sunrise Natural Foods. I love Taylor’s story because it is a story of a business that could only be created in the last 10 years. She built her business on Instagram and now photographs for Style Magazine in Folsom and for restaurants all over Sacramento. We c

May 4, 2022 • 38:44

Chef Brad Cecchi part 2

Chef Brad Cecchi part 2

In part two of Chef Brad Cecchi we cover why he made the move back to Sacramento to open Canon, how they managed to survive the pandemic after being open only three years by helping start Family Meal Sacramento which became Great Plates delivery in California.  Cecchi owns and is the executive chef of Canon in East Sac, which holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand award and is widely considered one of the best restaurants in Sacramento.  Chef Cecchi also tells us about his toughest critic, his 4-year-old

Apr 28, 2022 • 42:59

Chef Brad Cecchi Part 1

Chef Brad Cecchi Part 1

Brad Cecchi got his start in cooking by taking classes at American River College as a teenager, not because he loved cooking but because it seemed easy but he quickly found he had a knack for it. After placing second in a national cooking competition he found himself working in the kitchen at a five star resort in Colorado at age 18 and he never looked back.  Today Cecchi co-owns and is the executive chef of Canon in East Sac, which holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand award and is widely considered on

Apr 22, 2022 • 35:56

Episode 4: The Better Meat Co.

Episode 4: The Better Meat Co.

Nestled along a levee, in the back of a large business park in West Sacramento is a company that is developing new technology and striving to mitigate the devastating effects of factory farming and provide a new protein source for a population set to hit 10 billion people over the next few decades.  The Better Meat Co. is using a proprietary microflora organism to create fermentation and quickly grow a product that can be dried into a shelf stable, protein rich and non-allergenic product, which

Apr 15, 2022 • 43:21

Episode 3: Lee Pflugrath says frozen yogurt isn’t dead

Episode 3: Lee Pflugrath says frozen yogurt isn’t dead

Lee Pflugrath always dreamed of owning his own restaurant. He worked in kitchens his entire life starting at age 14. He worked his way up to being an executive chef at a high end restaurant in Napa in the 90’s. So how did he end up owning a humble yogurt shop in Davis?  It’s a long, funny story and Lee lays out all the details for us in today’s episode. We talk about what it was like to be a chef in the 90’s, the fickle business of owning a restaurant and what has happened to the frozen yogurt b

Apr 8, 2022 • 43:52

Episode 2: All about coffee with local roaster Tamra Ruxin

Episode 2: All about coffee with local roaster Tamra Ruxin

Tamra Ruxin is a roaster for the local land park roastery Two Seeds Coffee. She knows her coffee and has the credentials to prove it. In fact, Tamra is a certified Q Arabica coffee grader, a certification that is held by only a few hundred people in the U.S. and it means she can taste a cup of coffee and tell you almost anything about it.    We get into the difference between dark, medium and light roasts. How different brewing methods affect your cup of coffee, why you should always grind your

Apr 1, 2022 • 30:40

Episode 1: Andy Bakes Bread

Episode 1: Andy Bakes Bread

Andy Baranoff bakes bread and sells it on Instagram. He sells so much of it that he converted his laundry room into a cottage bakery, pumping out the smell of fresh bread into his South Land park neighborhood.     Like so many people who end up as chefs or bakers, Andy Barnoff got his start by helping his grandmother in the kitchen make all sorts of Russian pastries and dishes with enriched dough. As a young adult Andy dreamed of being a professional cyclist but a trip to culinary school in San

Mar 25, 2022 • 42:22

Trailer: The Dine One Six

Trailer: The Dine One Six

The Dine One Six podcast is focused on the Sacramento food scene along with the people and culture that make it special. The show features interviews with chefs, farmers, journalists and anyone else with a great Sacramento food story to tell. Hosted by Max Connor, an award winning journalist and podcaster as well a long time restaurant worker and dedicated home cook. Max will take you behind the scenes with people in the food industry.

Mar 16, 2022 • 4:04

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