This is a Vintage episode from 2005.

Why This Episode Matters

• Dr. Paul Rozin brings psychology into the dining room, explaining how culture shapes appetite, portion size, pleasure, and food anxiety.
• The episode gets at a question that still feels painfully current: why do Americans obsess over food and health, yet often get less pleasure and worse outcomes from eating?
• Paul’s comparisons between American and French attitudes toward chocolate, cream, portions, and mealtime turn food culture into something concrete and memorable.
• Mark Pascal and Francis Schott push the conversation beyond nutrition into hospitality, and the cost of convenience.
• It’s a smart conversation about food culture, health, enjoyment, and the way a society teaches people to eat.

The Banter

Mark and Francis open with a spirited riff on okra, bone marrow, dry-aged steak, texture, and the common practice to sacrifice flavor for convenience.

The Conversation

Dr. Paul Rozin, Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, joins Mark Pascal and Francis Schott for a fascinating look at how different cultures think about food, pleasure, and health. He contrasts American habits of guilt, abundance, customization, and speed with the French emphasis on smaller portions, attention, ritual, and enjoyment. The result is a conversation about why some cultures spend more time eating, derive more pleasure from food, and often wind up healthier anyway. Mark and Francis extend that argument into restaurant life, fad diets, convenience culture, and the American habit of trying to solve food problems without changing the way we live.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – Okra, bone marrow, and why texture can make or break a food
• 03:35 – Dry-aged steak, marrow, and the flavor of meat cooked on the bone
• 08:20 – Why people sacrifice flavor for convenience
• 11:00 – France, daily shopping, and why the meal is the point of the day
• 14:00 – Smaller portions, less snacking, and why the French eat less
• 16:20 – Pleasure, attention, and the difference between savoring food and inhaling it
• 19:00 – Heavy cream, chocolate, guilt, celebration, and cross-cultural food associations
• 23:00 – Customization, and what processed food teaches people to like
• 28:15 – “We’re doing it wrong”: the Guys on fad diets, whole foods, and American food anxiety

Bio

Paul Rozin is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and a leading scholar on the psychological, cultural, and biological determinants of food choice. He has studied how different societies think about food, pleasure, disgust, and health.

The NJ Wine & Food Festival @ Crystal Springs May 1-3

The Restaurant Guys will be podcasting from there May 2. Come see us!

https://shop.crystalgolfresort.com/collections/14th-annual-new-jersey-wine-food-festival

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Magyar Bank

https://www.magbank.com/

Stage Left Wine Shop

https://www.stageleftwineshop.com/

Our Places

Stage Left Steak
https://www.stageleft.com/

Catherine Lombardi Restaurant
https://www.catherinelombardi.com/

Stage Left Wineshop
https://www.stageleftwineshop.com/

Reach Out to The Guys!
TheGuys@restaurantguyspodcast.com

Why This Episode Matters

• Robby Younes explains how Crystal Springs Resort and the New Jersey Wine & Food Festival helped New Jersey recognized as a serious food-and-wine destination.
• Mark Pascal and Francis Schott connect the conversation to a bigger restaurant truth: in a tougher market, people are choosing fewer but better experiences and rewarding restaurants that feel human, memorable, and genuinely hospitable.
• Robby’s rise from frontline hospitality work to running a major resort makes this a strong conversation about leadership, mentorship, and restaurant careers as a path upward.
• It’s also a smart New Jersey episode: a conversation about regional pride, and building something ambitious outside New York City’s shadow.

The Conversation

Robby Younes, COO of Crystal Springs Resort, joins Mark and Francis to talk about building the New Jersey Wine & Food Festival into a serious showcase for the state’s chefs, restaurants, and wine culture. Along the way, he discusses developing Crystal Springs into a broader hospitality destination, building one of the country’s standout wine programs, and creating an event designed to prove that New Jersey can provide a food-and-wine experience on a national level. The conversation also becomes a thoughtful look at leadership, and the limitless potential of the hospitality business.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – The Guys on restaurant polarization, hospitality, and why mediocre restaurants are losing ground
• 04:25 – What restaurants need to survive now
• 10:50 – Robby Younes and the vision behind the New Jersey Wine & Food Festival
• 16:00 – Crystal Springs, building a destination resort around food and wine
• 20:00 – Reason for the festival: showcase New Jersey's culinary talent
• 26:20 – Robby’s path from busboy to leading Crystal Springs Resort
• 30:40 – The incident that pushed Robby to learn the wine business
• 34:30 – Why restaurants still offer opportunities for learning and growth

Bio
Robby Younes is the COO of Crystal Springs Resort in New Jersey, where he helped expand the property’s food, wine, and hospitality programs and played a central role in creating the New Jersey Wine & Food Festival. He has built a reputation for elevating hospitality experiences while championing New Jersey’s culinary talent.

Info

• New Jersey Wine & Food Festival at Crystal Springs Resort May 1-3, 2026 https://njwinefoodfest.com/
• Restaurant Guys podcast live May 2, 2026
• Crystal Springs Resort https://www.crystalgolfresort.com/

The NJ Wine & Food Festival @ Crystal Springs May 1-3

The Restaurant Guys will be podcasting from there May 2. Come see us!

https://shop.crystalgolfresort.com/collections/14th-annual-new-jersey-wine-food-festival

Subscribe: Restaurant Guys' Regular

https://restaurantguysregulars.buzzsprout.com/

Magyar Bank

https://www.magbank.com/

Stage Left Wine Shop

https://www.stageleftwineshop.com/

Our Places

Stage Left Steak
https://www.stageleft.com/

Catherine Lombardi Restaurant
https://www.catherinelombardi.com/

Stage Left Wineshop
https://www.stageleftwineshop.com/

Reach Out to The Guys!
TheGuys@restaurantguyspodcast.com

This is a preview of a full subscriber episode from 2006.

Why This Episode Matters

• Tom Colicchio was already one of the most respected chefs in America, but this conversation catches him at a fascinating moment: building restaurants, debuting Top Chef, and defining what modern American dining could be.
• The episode gets at a bigger question than television: what makes a real chef leader, and why talent without professionalism is not enough in a kitchen.
• Tom explains the thinking behind Craft’s ingredient-first approach, which still feels relevant now that simple, product-driven cooking has become restaurant gospel.
• The conversation also draws a sharp contrast between hospitality that feels like home and culinary experimentation for its own sake, with Gramercy Tavern standing as the model of warmth, rigor, and ease.
• Long before restaurant culture calcified into brand language and chef celebrity machinery, this episode shows what thoughtful restaurant leadership sounded like in real time.

The Banter

Mark Pascal and Francis Schott open with one of their classic wide-ranging tangents: better pork, bad agribusiness, accidental TGI Fridays horror, and a spirited defense of foie gras that could only come from two restaurateurs with strong opinions and no interest in sanding them down.

The Conversation

Tom Colicchio joins the show on the day Craftsteak is opening in New York, and the discussion moves easily between Top Chef, restaurant culture, and the philosophy behind his restaurants. He talks about why Top Chef worked when other reality-food television did not, what makes someone worth following in a kitchen, and how mentoring differs from judging.

He also explains the original idea behind Craft: ingredient-focused cooking served in a way that encourages diners to build their own experience at the table. From there, the conversation turns to home cooking, hospitality, experimental cuisine, and why Gramercy Tavern succeeds by doing everything well and making it feel like home.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – Better pork, “enhanced” meat, and why flavor got bred out
• 04:15 – TGI Fridays finger-in-the-burger story and the foie gras ban
• 08:15 – Tom Colicchio joins the show; Why & how Top Chef worked and what made it different from other reality food TV
• 16:00 – What chef leadership should look like
• 19:45 – The philosophy behind Craft and ingredient-first cooking
• 23:30 – Tom and Mark had a common employer
• 28:00 – Why Gramercy Tavern feels like home and what great hospitality really is

Bio

Tom Colicchio is the chef, restaurateur, and co-founder of Craft and Craftsteak, and a founding force behind Gramercy Tavern. He is also the recipient of multiple James Beard Awards and is the head judge on Bravo’s Top Chef.

Info

• Tom Colicchio https://www.tomcolicchio.com/
• Gramercy Tavern, Craft, Craftsteak
• Top Chef

Our Places

Stage Left Steak
https://www.stageleft.com/

Catherine Lombardi Restaurant
https://www.catherinelombardi.com/

Stage Left Wineshop
https://www.stageleftwineshop.com/

Reach Out to The Guys!
TheGuys@restaurantguyspodcast.com

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