Andrew explores Charlotte, North Carolina, a city where big banking meets blue-collar traditions and is buzzing with amazing food. He zeroes in on barbecue, livermush, fried green tomatoes and other eats that are oozing Southern charm.
Austin is known for its barbecue, and Chef Aaron Sanchez is finding out how they cram all those big Texas flavors into a taco. Aaron starts off at Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ food truck where he dives into some mesquite smoked brisket in a hand made tortilla. The party continues as Aaron visits Paco's Tacos for their breakfast taco before heading off to the Peached Tortilla for an Asian fusion favorite. Aaron rounds out his trip at La Condesa where he experiences the delicacy of sweetbreads.
In the tiny town of Chowchilla, CA Noah Cappe discovers some carnival eats that deserve to be shared with the world. First up, it's the Deep Pit Barbeque, a meat extravaganza that takes three days to prepare. Noah also enjoys a Funnel Cake Cheeseburger and the Baja Avocado Taco. Across the country in New Jersey, the St. Michael's Italian Festival celebrates the cultural and culinary history of Italian-Americans with Zeppole, a cheesecake known as Cake 'n Bacon and a bad boy of a sandwich: The Hoboken Fat Boy.
Jason Sobocinski returns to his roots and visits his mentor, Ihsan Gurdal, owner of Fromaggio Kitchen in Cambridge, MA. Later, Jason goes north to Vermont where, as an intern, he learnt about rearing goats and making cheese from Michael Lee of Twig Farm. Jason's first tour of duty rounds off with a goat BBQ, followed by a Turkish pizza cooked by celebrated Cambridge chef, Steve Johnson.
Roger Mooking visits the West Coast for two unique wood-fired roasts. Roger heads to Sloughhouse to visit Passmore Ranch, a freshwater, sustainable fish farm, where Roger is challenged to catch a 6ft white sturgeon-by hand! The catch of the day is then stuffed with aromatics and roasted over a large bed of coals. Roger is on the hunt for Santa Maria-style barbecue and heads to the Santa Maria Elks Lodge. In the legendary BBQ Room, Roger helps build a fire in the massive pit and seasons and skewers big hunks of beef.
We're in Dallas to show you some of the hottest spots in town. Barbecue is big in Texas, and the brisket at North Main BBQ bowls us over with its world-famous brisket. Fried chicken is one of our favorite foods so you bet we went to Babe's to satisfy our crunchy cravings. And for those of you with a sweet tooth, we find some of the best desserts in Dallas, from the Pecan Ball at Café Pacific to the classic fruitcake at Collins bakery. It's time to dig in to Dallas!
At the Prince William County Fair in Manassas, Va., Noah Cappe eats big with the Monumental Grilled Cheese and has his interested peaked by the crab dip-topped Chesapeake Bay Poutine. While there, he also indulges in some Big Daddy's BBQ Rolls and Peach Blossom Dumplings. Then, at the Western Fair in London, Ontario, he dives into a Poutine Dog, the Bacaroni Bowl and Cherry Cheesecake Tempura.
At Ned Ludd in Portland, Ore., chef Jason French loves to prepare food in his wood-fired oven and outdoor smoker so much that he doesn't even have a gas stove. Jason takes Roger Mooking to Big Table Farm in Gaston where his friends built a smoker out of a sea buoy. Chickens and pork belly are smoked for a sunset feast in the middle of the farm. In Iowa City, chef Kurt Friese hosts "Lambapalooza" with whole lamb cooked on a rotisserie he built in his backyard. Lamb from a local farm is stuffed with aromatics and cooked throughout the day, and potatoes harvested that morning are baked directly in the coals.