Welcome To Connecticut

Three weeks into Phase One, where not only is society dealing with Covid19 but also the protests bringing attention to systemic racial issues across out country, Ken and Scott dive into what it's been like relaunching an entertainment company in the midst of everything ...

With the first full week of Phase One in the books, Ken Tuccio and Scott Thomas dive into the way they think the public has reacted to getting out and doing things under this new normal. They also discuss a perceived acceptance of Covid as a part of life, while the public begins to focus on other greatly important social and societal issues.

This is the first episode of Begin Again, a phase one podcast mini-series from Best Trivia Ever. In this episode Ken Tuccio and Scott Thomas dive into the early days of the lockdown, the emotions they went through when the world began to pause and everyone was uncertain of what they were dealing with. Then, they discuss what went into relaunching Best Trivia Ever once the state began to reopen this past week, and how the company's first live event since March came together. For more information about Best Trivia Ever, please visit BestTriviaEver.com.

Ken Tuccio's Food & Drink Podcast returns next week, October 18th, with a brand new episode!

Recorded live on-location at this past Saturday's Octobeerfest In The Park event, put on by Half Full Brewery, spend the day with Ken as he navigates the second year of this killer event. Ken chats with Conor Horrigan, Andrew Dominick from Real Food Dudes and Jordan Giles throughout the day to get a feel for what went on behind the scenes and in the crowd at this awesome event.

In 2015 Noble Jay Brewing made headlines by funding a Kickstarter campaign to make their dream of opening a brewery a reality. Then ... nothing happened ... for three years. It wasn't until this year, 2018, that Noble Jay finally opened their doors and poured their first beers as a fully functioning brewery. What was with the delay? What went wrong? Ken Tuccio sits down with Mike Lincoln, the founder of Noble Jay, to talk about the long, long road they took to get to where they are today.

This week's episode was filmed on location at Two Roads' Ok2berfest 2018, which Ken Tuccio was the host for. While at the event Ken chatted with a few people who have seen this event grow from very small and intimate to the massive extravaganza it is today. In this episode Ken talks with Two Roads' Regional Sales Manager Dan Zeek, CT beer personality Tom M, Jordan Giles from Half Full Brewery, the founder of Two Roads Brewery Brad Hittle and the Event Coordinator for Ok2berfest Kristen Malski.

When Ken Tuccio first launched Food & Drink one of the things he wanted to do was a series of "With ..." episodes. Episodes where he shared a meal or drinks with someone and had a conversation ... not so much an interview, but more of a real chat. This is the first episode in that conceptualized sub-series. Ken sits down and has "Beers with" Patrick DiCaprio, the co-host of the Full Pours podcast. They discuss beer festivals, the boom of the CT beer scene, the new trend related to "one off labels" showing up in the market and more.

Evarito's Mexican Kitchen & Bar is the latest addition to South Norwalk. Ken Tuccio sits down with Christian Burns, the mind behind the spot, to talk about his background in the culinary world and how it all led to what he's doing now with Evarito's.

We're off this week ... but don't worry, Ken Tuccio will be back next Thursday with a brand new episode of the Food & Drink Podcast. Catch you then.

It was a long road for Tribus Beer Co. to become a reality. One of the founders of Tribus, Sean O'Neill, sits down with Ken Tuccio to tell the story about how he and his partners got together, took their idea and turned it into one of the most anticipated brewery openings in the state.

Jes Bengston, from Terrain Garden Café in Westport, started her career dropping baskets of french fries into a fryer and now she's an award winning Chef who has cooked at the James Beard House. Jes sits down with Ken Tuccio to tell her fascinating story and why she feels she found a home at Terrain.

Stony Creek is opening up a brewery in Foxwoods. Yes, the casino. It's a big deal ... not just for Stony Creek but for the Connecticut beer scene as a whole. Ken Tuccio traveled to Foxwoods to chat with Andy Schwartz from Stony Creek about how this Foxwoods brewery came to be, what it's been like working with Foxwoods and how this could be a great boom for Connecticut beer.

You can't understate the importance of Thomas Hooker Brewing Co. in the history of Connecticut beer, however for a while they got lost in the shuffle. Then, with a beer called #NoFilter, they had a bit of resurgence within the Connecticut craft beer community. Ken Tuccio sits down with Jonas Griggs, the head brewer of Thomas Hooker Brewing, to talk about Hooker's spot in the CT beer scene, the importance of #NoFilter to the growth of the company and his plans for the brewery moving forward.

Vinnie Penn has been a Connecticut media staple for decades, but he's never been someone who you'd necessarily think about when it comes to the Connecticut food scene. Well, that's changing now. Vinnie's got a brand new book out called Route One Food Run where he travels up and down Route One to try the best places you can grab some grub. Ken Tuccio talks to Vinnie about how the book came to be, his love for the world of food and what he's learned during this process.

In Connecticut when you think "pizza" a few places immediately come to mind, but Ken Tuccio has always championed Letizia's Pizza in Norwalk as the best pizza in Connecticut. Well, it seems like other people are jumping on the Letizia's train, because they just beat out "the big boys" and were crowned 2018 Best of the Gold Coast for pizza. Ken sits with Danny, Dennis and Dave from Letizia's to talk about their 20 years making pies in Norwalk, the struggles they faced as a business and what it means to finally be recognized as the best.

This week Ken Tuccio sits down with Vin Giannetto and Michele McHugh, two of the owners of Hawk Ridge Winery in Watertown. They tell their interesting story about how, with very little experience in wine making, they managed to turn their lot of land into one of the most gorgeous vineyards in the state.

Lock City Brewing in Stamford is producing some of the best beer in the state, but what's there story? Ken Tuccio sits down with Mike Bushnell and Patrick Casciolo, the two founders of Lock City, to hear how they went from ambitious homebrewers to brewery owners and the challenges they faced along the way. Also in this episode Ken sits down with the guys from Athletic Brewing in Stratford for an update on how their Non-Alcoholic brewing venture has been going since they opened their doors a little over a month ago ...

For years Charter Oak Brewing has been trying to open up a physical brewery in Connecticut, but they've been met with roadblock after roadblock. They never quit though, and as a result they now have a gorgeous brewery in Danbury CT which is ready to pour beers for the public. Ken sits down with Scott Vallely, the founder of Charter Oak Brewing, to discuss the hurdles and challenges he faced to get to this point.

Chef Bill Taibe's culinary reputation is nationally known. His restaurants in Westport (Kawa Ni, The Whelk and Jesup Hall) are destination dining locations. Chef Taibe is making some big changes to the way he does business however, and he sits down with Ken Tuccio to discuss exactly what those changes are and how he's dealing with them both professionally and personally.