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The Restaurant GuysAuthor: The Restaurant Guys
The Restaurant Guys is one of the original food and wine podcasts, launched in 2005 by restaurateurs Mark Pascal and Francis Schott.With roots as a daily radio show, the podcast features in-depth conversations with chefs, bartenders, winemakers, authors, and hospitality professionalsoffering the inside track on food, cocktails, wine, and restaurant culture.New episodes and vintage conversations because the best stories, like the best bottles, age well. Expect insightful, opinionated, and entertaining conversations about food, wine, and the finer things in life.Subscribe for ad-free content, bonus episodes and invitations to special events! https://restaurantguysregulars.buzzsprout.com/Contact: TheGuys@RestaurantGuysPodcast.com Language: en-us Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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Hospitality Should Be Fun | Rick Tramonto
Episode 235
Thursday, 24 September, 2026
This is a Vintage episode from 2006.Why This Episode MattersRick Tramonto makes the case for fine dining that is polished and precise without being stiff or intimidating.The Guys tackle an enduring hospitality dilemma: when does accommodating one guest diminish the experience for everyone else?Tramonto reflects on restaurants as a place for nontraditional careers, mentorship and finding a sense of belonging.The conversation ends with the importance of cooking, family and gathering around the table.BanterMark and Francis discuss a 2006 proposal to block cell-phone signals in movie theaters—and whether restaurants should do the same. That leads to the story of guests who opened a laptop in the Catherine Lombardi dining room and started watching a movie with the sound on.The ConversationRick Tramonto joins the cell-phone debate from the perspective of Tru, where the philosophy was to cherish the customer and say yes whenever possible—until one guest’s behavior began interfering with everyone else’s experience. From there, he explains his approach to fine dining: maintain impeccable technical standards, but lose the stiffness, read the table and make people feel comfortable.The conversation broadens into why restaurants attract people who take unconventional paths. Tramonto talks about cooking as a combination of art, science, craft and business, and about the responsibility chefs and operators have to mentor young people drawn to the intensity of restaurant life. He closes with the importance of home cooking, family meals and keeping people gathered around the table.Guest BioRick Tramonto is an acclaimed chef, restaurateur and cookbook author. At the time of this 2006 conversation, he was chef-partner of Chicago’s celebrated Tru restaurant and one of the leading figures in American fine dining.Timestamps00:00 Vintage introduction01:00 Cell phones and dining-room etiquette08:00 Rick Tramonto joins: when hospitality has to say no14:00 Taking the intimidation out of fine dining18:00 Restaurants as a path for nontraditional learners22:00 Mentorship and restaurant culture25:00 Family, home cooking and gathering around the tableInfoMore about Rickhttps://tramontocuisine.com/Oct 23, Friday - Winemaker Dinner w/ Neri Capponi of Villa Calcinaia WineryOct 26-31 - Spooky BarOct 27, Tuesday - Robert Simonson book signing cocktail partyMore info - https://www.stageleft.com/events/ Subscribe: Restaurant Guys' Regularhttps://restaurantguysregulars.buzzsprout.com/Magyar Bankhttps://www.magbank.com/Stage Left Wine Shophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Our PlacesStage Left Steakhttps://www.stageleft.com/Catherine Lombardi Restauranthttps://www.catherinelombardi.com/Stage Left Wineshophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Reach Out to The Guys!TheGuys@restaurantguyspodcast.com
