From The Ground Up

Dec 04 2020

From The Ground Up Podcast artwork

What does it take to pursue food and beverage as a career? What have culinary entrepreneurs sacrificed to follow their passion? Each week, From The Ground Up provides a platform for diverse voices across the industry to share their personal journeys – the triumphs, the failures, and the raw unexpected stories in between. Follow @fromthegrounduppod on Instagram for show news and more. Hosted and produced by Danielle Berg.

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Luke Saunders: Making Fresh Food Accessible At Farmer’s Fridge

Dec 04 2020 30 mins

“We are trying to change the way that people can get access to fresh, healthy food.” Luke Saunders is the founder of Farmer’s Fridge, the omni channel fresh food business. He likes to call himself a ‘small business entrepreneur’ - in college, he founded a bike rental company, sold it when he graduated and then went on to work at a small family business making industrial g

Emily Griffith: Building Lil Bucks

Nov 27 2020 43 mins

Emily Griffith shares her story of starting and building America’s sprouted buckwheat brand - Lil Bucks. While living in Australia, Emily had a life changing açaí bowl that inspired her to build a brand of her own. The bowl had sprouted buckwheat seeds as a replacement to granola that's usually sprinkled on top - it was not too sweet, had the perfect crunch and soon became her

Vanessa Price: Big Macs & Burgundy

Oct 30 2020 37 mins

Vanessa Price first got into wine in Louisville, Kentucky, where she was born and raised. She originally moved to New York to go to school for theater and film but shortly after, moved back home to Louisville to get her Bachelor’s degree. During her off days from school on the weekends, Vanessa worked at a winery in downtown Louisville and that’s where she fell in love with the

Ken Addington: Opening Strangeways During The Pandemic

Oct 13 2020 31 mins

Chef Ken Addington is a veteran of some of New York City’s most renowned restaurant kitchens including the Ace Hotel, Picholine, Patroon and Town restaurant in the Chambers Hotel, which he opened with chef Geoffrey Zakarian, receiving three stars from The New York Times. At Strangeways, which Addington opened with his partner, Jamie, during the COVID-19 pandemic as a safe and wel

Bridget Firtle: From Stock Trader to Beverage Entrepreneur

Sep 30 2020 38 mins

Bridget Firtle, born and raised in the Rockaway Beach neighborhood of Queens, began her career on Wall Street at a hedge fund as a consumer goods investor with a focus in global alcoholic beverage companies. In 2012, she saw an opportunity to join the renaissance occurring in American distilling and founded Owney’s Rum – New York City's only rum distillery. Withi

Berty Richter: The Art Of The Feast

Sep 10 2020 36 mins

“Those were some of my best memories of my childhood... sitting around the table with my family." Berty Richter is the Executive Chef and Owner of TLV in Austin, Texas - a restaurant inspired by the streets of Israel. Berty was born and raised in Israel to an American-Hungarian father and a Turkish mother where food was at the center of their everyday life. There was always someb

Greg Baxtrom: Reinvention During The Pandemic

Sep 08 2020 43 mins

Greg Baxtrom always knew wholeheartedly that he wanted to be a chef. He grew up in a small town in Illinois watching Rick Bayless on CBS and took his first gig in the industry at Wendy’s at the young age of 15. In 2016, after years of working at some of the most well-known restaurants, such as Alinea, Per Se and Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Greg opened up his first spot in Brooklyn,

Nini Nguyen: Keeping Vietnamese Food Alive in America

Aug 27 2020 36 mins

“I feel so reinvigorated and I want to teach people the comfort foods that I grew up eating. I want to keep Vietnamese food alive in America.” Chef Nini Nguyen is a New York City based chef, instructor, recipe developer and recent contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef All Stars. Nini grew up in New Orleans East where there is a big Vietnamese population and growing up, she predomin

Donna Lennard: Il Buco and The Soul of Bond Street

Aug 20 2020 27 mins

Donna Lennard reflects on her 26 years in the industry and the beautiful, large, extended family she built with it. Donna started out as a filmmaker and supported herself through graduate school at NYU by working at restaurants across the city. During this time, she met her original Il Buco partner, Alberto Avalle. The two became fast friends and turned their hobby of collecting Am

Ray Anthony Barrett: Reimagining The Future of Soul Food

Aug 06 2020 45 mins

Ray Anthony Barrett has spent most of his career as a visual artist and his work is based on language - how it orients us, how meaning is constructed and how it shifts depending on your perspective. His background in art and his art education gave him the foundation to make the transition to food four years ago. Ray worked at pizza shops and as a doughnut baker growing up, but land