The Check: A Podcast About Restaurants

Culinary School

The Check welcomes Emmalee Zimmerman, a student in the culinary arts program at ECPI. She plans to use the skills she's learning to serve first responders and military personnel after her brother — a marine and firefighter — was killed in Afghanistan.

 

Catching Up with Sam McGann

Sam McGann returns to The Check to reflect on his career and share what’s next after turning over the reins to the Blue Point Restaurant in Duck, NC, where he was co-owner and chef for the past 32 years.

Want AI with That?

Rob Carpenter, the founder and CEO of Colorado-based Valyant AI, explains how his company is changing the fast-food industry with the introduction of "Holly," an order-taking system that interacts with customers using conversational artificial intelligence. Carpenter also discusses AI’s potential and limitations, ethical implications and what the impact of this groundbreaking technology will have on customers and those working in the restaurant industry. 

Holiday Cocktail How-to

Brady and Alvin share their recipes and techniques for making a couple of their favorite holiday drinks: Jamaican Guinness Punch and No-Cook Eggnog. Visit thecheckpodcast.com for ingredient lists and learn how to make these drinks in a special bonus video.

 

’Tis the Season

The Holidays are here and Brady and Alvin are gearing up for one the busiest times of the year for restaurants. With a look at Christmas traditions in Alvin’s native England and what it takes to deck the halls, this podcast also includes a great gift idea that anyone will be happy to receive.

Restaurant Management 101

Once a pro golfer, Anne Gannon combined her financial acumen with experience in the hospitality industry to create the Largo Group — a Boston-based accounting firm that specializes in helping restaurant owners with innovative accounting and bookkeeping solutions. In this episode, Gannon shares some of the ways that restaurants can succeed despite the ongoing pandemic, inflation and labor shortages.

Family Tradition at Luna Maya

Sisters Karla and Vivian Montano grew up in Bolivia as part of a large family that valued good food and local traditions. Inspired by the recipes and techniques they learned from their mother and grandmothers, the sisters teamed up to open Luna Maya restaurant nearly 25 years ago.

The Real Value of Restaurants

Against the backdrop of labor shortages, the rise of robots, and a pandemic that continues to create challenges, Brady and Alvin discuss the importance of preserving the ability of good restaurants to be restorative places for their customers.

Deep Thoughts

In this wide-ranging podcast, Alvin and Brady discuss everything from how working in a kitchen is like Brazilian jiu-jitsu to the surprising link between bananas and latex glove allergies.

Surprise Party

To mark the Cobalt Grille’s 21st birthday, The Check pops the champagne and invites several surprise guests to celebrate with Alvin and his business partner Gary Black.