Walk-In Talk Podcast

This week on the Walk-In Talk Podcast, we're on location with Chef Michael Collantes, chef-owner of Soseki, a one-Michelin-star restaurant that has not only earned its star, but held it through consistency, leadership, and discipline. Another restaurant in his group, Sushi Saint, has also been recognized with a Bib Gourmand, highlighting a different but equally demanding standard of excellence.
This conversation goes beyond accolades. We unpack what it really takes to sustain a Michelin star behind the scenes, the pressure that follows recognition, the creative balance between starred and Bib-level restaurants, and how leadership evolves once the spotlight is on.
As listeners already know, Chef Michael has officially joined the Walk-In Talk Media team. In this episode, we begin setting the framework for what that means. Not as a replacement voice, but as an added perspective that strengthens the platform. As a working chef operating at the highest levels, Michael brings credibility, trust, and access that helps open doors to Michelin-level and James Beard–recognized chefs, while staying firmly aligned with Walk-In Talk Media's mission of honest, chef-first storytelling.
This is a candid, grounded conversation about ambition, burnout, consistency, mentorship, and why the work behind the plate matters just as much as what lands on it.
🔑 Episode Takeaways
What holding a Michelin star actually demands day to day

The unseen pressure chefs face after recognition, not before it

The difference between Michelin-star standards and Bib Gourmand excellence

How leadership changes once awards enter the picture

Why consistency, not creativity, is often the hardest challenge

How chefs protect their teams from burnout at the highest level

Why chefs trust conversations led by other chefs

How Chef Michael's role with Walk-In Talk Media strengthens future storytelling

What listeners can expect more of from the platform in 2026

🤝 Walk-In Talk Media Partners & Supporters
Support for Walk-In Talk Media is made possible by the following partners:
Metro Foodservice Solutions Trusted by professional kitchens for storage, workflow, and durability. https://www.metro.com

RAK Porcelain USA Durable, performance-driven tableware and glassware designed for chefs and hospitality professionals. https://www.rakporcelain.com

Aussie Select Premium Australian lamb, fully cooked and chef-trusted for consistency and quality. https://www.aussieselect.com

Crab Island Seafood Dip Chef-driven seafood dips made with real ingredients and bold flavor. https://www.crabislandseafooddip.com

Citrus America Fresh Florida citrus and juice solutions for foodservice nationwide. https://www.citrusamerica.com

❤️ Cause Partner
The Burnt Chef Project – North America Providing free, confidential mental health support, education, and resources for hospitality professionals. https://www.theburntchefproject.com

🎭 EPISODE SUMMARY
Mardi Gras at the Table: King Cake, Culture, and Culinary Legacy
This special Mardi Gras edition of Walk-In Talk steps away from the stove and into tradition.
Rather than a typical cooking session, this episode centers on king cake as cultural ritual, bringing together James Beard winners, Michelin-starred perspective, and one of the most respected food writers covering New Orleans today.
Mr. Johnny Clutch, Pooch Rivera personally drove multiple king cakes from New Orleans to the studio, honoring the idea that some foods deserve to be carried, not shipped. At the table are king cakes from Brennan's Restaurant, gifted by the Brennan family, a James Beard Award–winning king cake from Dong Phuong Bakery, and a collaborative cake from James Beard recipient Neal Bodenheimer, owner of Cure and board chair of Tales of the Cocktail, created with Ayu Bakehouse and baked by Kelly Jacques, Food & Wine's Best New Chef of 2025.
Joining the conversation is writer and author Matt Haines, making his third Mardi Gras-time appearance on the show, helping unpack what Mardi Gras and king cake truly represent beyond spectacle.
Also in studio is one-Michelin-star chef Michael Collantes, who brings a Michelin-level lens to tradition and helps bring a cocktail recipe from Bodenheimer to life.
This episode connects James Beard and Michelin worlds, chefs and writers, ritual and evolution, showing how food culture endures when it's treated with respect.
This isn't about recipes.
It's about meaning.
🔑 KEY TAKEAWAYS
King cake is ritual, not novelty
Timing, intention, and origin matter more than trend or distribution.

Tradition doesn't conflict with excellence
James Beard and Michelin recognition can coexist with deep cultural respect.

The journey is part of the story
Physically transporting food reinforces its value and cultural weight.

Food, drink, and storytelling are inseparable
Cocktails, baked goods, and conversation together preserve memory and meaning.

Writers and chefs protect culture in different but complementary ways
Both are essential to keeping culinary traditions alive.

🤝 BRAND & CAUSE PARTNERS
Brand Partners
Metro Foodservice Solutions
https://www.metro.com

RAK Porcelain USA
https://www.rakporcelain.com

Crab Island Seafood Dip
https://www.crabislandseafooddip.com

Citrus America
https://www.citrusamerica.com

Cause Partners
The Burnt Chef Project (North America)
https://www.theburntchefproject.com

Operation BBQ Relief
https://operationbbqrelief.org

Hogs for the Cause
https://hogsforthecause.org

Walk-In Talk Media kicks off 2026 in-studio with Chef Michael Collantes, chef-owner of Soseki Orlando, a one-Michelin-star restaurant that has earned and retained its star. This conversation goes past accolades and into what it takes to sustain excellence, build teams across multiple concepts, and keep your life intact while doing it. We also introduce a new recurring chapter, Chef Mike officially joins the Walk-In Talk Media family as a recurring collaborator. Later in the episode, you will hear from Frederic Casagrande with The Live Fire Report, expanding WITM coverage of international barbecue and live fire culture.
In-studio cook
Japanese fluke (hirame) breakdown and two mirrored dishes

Kombu-jime cure, crispy potato technique, and a truffle-forward direction

"Mottainai" mindset, using bones and trim instead of wasting

Key topics
What consistency really means when you are being judged in silence

Leadership when you scale from one room to multiple restaurants

Burnout, rebuilding, and the role of faith, family, and identity

Art vs business in hospitality, and why community and storytelling matter

Why pressure can build greatness, but cannot destroy the person

Notable moments
Chef Mike's path from early jobs to Wolfgang Puck to Michelin-level kitchens

Soseki as "foundation", and how standards get set and protected

Why storytelling and community building are now essential for restaurants

Featured segment
Frederic Casagrande introduces The Live Fire Report, a WITM segment focused on global live fire, competition culture, and the people shaping it.

Connect with Chef Mike
Website: MikeCollantes.com

Instagram: @ChefMikeCollantes

TikTok: @ChefFlipMike

Episode takeaways
Consistency is a system, not a mood. Great once is easy, great every night is leadership and process.

Scaling demands trust. The bigger the operation, the less "hands-on control" matters, and the more people and standards matter.

Burnout is real, and rebuilding is possible. The conversation highlights how identity, faith, and family can reframe success.

Storytelling is a competitive advantage. Food can be incredible, but community and meaning are what keep people coming back.

Pressure can build diamonds, but health is non-negotiable. Excellence is the goal, self-destruction is not.

Walk-In Talk Media
Brand Partners
Metro Foodservice Solutions https://www.metro.com

RAK Porcelain USA https://www.rakporcelain.com

Aussie Select https://aussieselect.com

Crab Island Seafood Company https://crabislandseafooddip.com

Pass the Honey https://freshhoneycomb.com

Citrus America https://citrusamerica.com

Walk-In Talk Media
Cause & Nonprofit Partners
The Burnt Chef Project https://www.theburntchefproject.com

Operation BBQ Relief https://operationbbqrelief.org

Hogs for the Cause https://hogsforthecause.org

Sustainable Supperclub https://www.sustainablesupperclub.org

Walk-In Talk Media
Industry & Event Partners
Restaurant Events LLC https://www.restaurantevents.com

U.S. Culinary Open https://www.usculinaryopen.com

Belonging is not something you arrive at. It is something you build.
In this episode of Walk-In Talk Media, Carl Fiadini sits down in studio with Marina Baronas, hospitality leader and author of A New Life, A New Menu: An Almanac of Belonging. Raised across Lithuania, Russia, and Azerbaijan, Marina came to the United States at nineteen without speaking English and built a life through the unseen work of hospitality. Her journey moves through kitchens, dining rooms, leadership, motherhood, burnout, and reinvention, offering an honest look at service as lived experience, not performance.
Joining the conversation is Chef Carl Riding, who came up through hotels and kitchens before stepping away from the line to build Crab Island Seafood, a small, independent, chef-driven company producing elevated crab dips. Together, they explore dignity in invisible labor, identity beyond titles, redefining success without leaving hospitality, and why this industry continues to feel like home even after it takes its toll.
This episode is for anyone who has carried their roots across borders, worked until they were unseen, or searched for belonging inside the hospitality industry.
What to Expect From This Episode
Immigration, identity, and finding belonging through hospitality

The emotional cost of invisible labor and long-term burnout

Front of house and back of house perspectives shaped by hotels and kitchens

Redefining success without walking away from the industry

Why hospitality continues to feel like home, even after reinvention

Brand Partners
Crab Island Seafood https://www.crabislandseafooddip.com
Metro Foodservice Solutions https://www.metro.com
RAK Porcelain USA https://www.rakporcelain.com/usa
Pass the Honey https://www.passthehoney.com
Trade Show & Event Partners
New York Restaurant Show https://www.nyrestaurantshow.com
California Restaurant Show https://www.californiarestaurantshow.com
Florida Restaurant Show https://www.flrestaurantshow.com
Pizza Tomorrow Summit https://www.pizzatomorrow.com
U.S. Culinary Open (NAFEM Show) https://www.usculinaryopen.com
Cause Partners We Support
The Burnt Chef Project https://www.theburntchefproject.com
Operation BBQ Relief https://operationbbqrelief.org
Hogs for the Cause https://hogsforthecause.org
Sustainable Supperclub https://www.sustainablesupperclub.org

In this episode of the Walk-In Talk Podcast, Carl sits down with Chef Massimo Orlando and Jack Ross for a powerful conversation about Italian heritage, food culture, and the stories that shape who we are.
 
Chef Massimo Orlando shares his journey from growing up in Italy and learning to cook in his grandmother's kitchen to working professionally at a young age in the kitchens around Lake Como. His path took him across the ocean to Miami Beach and eventually to California, where he built a life, a career, and a community. Massimo opens up about mentorship, immigration, the impact of the pandemic, rebuilding after loss, and how mental health and therapy changed his leadership and outlook on life. He also discusses his role with A.P.C.I. North America and the mission to protect and promote real Italian food and culture in the United States and Canada.
 
Joining the episode in the studio is Jack Ross, the creator of YO! Meatball. Jack is a home cook whose Sicilian family recipes are rooted in tradition, comfort, and the Sunday table. While cooking his signature meatballs live, Jack shares how family food traditions became a way to connect with community and preserve heritage outside of the professional kitchen.
This episode explores two different paths connected by one common thread. Food as memory, identity, resilience, and connection.
 
 
Brand & Industry Partners
• Metro https://www.metro.com
• RAK Porcelain USA https://www.rakporcelain.com/usa
• Pass the Honey https://www.passthehoney.com
• Aussie Select https://www.aussieselect.com
• Ibis Images Studio https://www.ibisimages.com
Official Trade Show & Event Partners
• New York Restaurant Show https://www.nyrestaurantshow.com
• California Restaurant Show https://www.californiarestaurantshow.com
• Florida Restaurant Show https://www.floridarestaurantshow.com
• Pizza Tomorrow Summit https://www.pizzatomorrowsummit.com
• U.S. Culinary Open at NAFEM Show https://www.usculinaryopen.org

Cause & Community Partners
• The Burnt Chef Project (Mental health advocacy in hospitality) https://www.theburntchefproject.com
• Operation BBQ Relief https://operationbbqrelief.org
• Hogs for the Cause https://hogsforthecause.org
• Sustainable Supperclub https://www.sustainablesupperclub.com