TIFFANY MACISAAC: Kyle does not
drink room-temp gin like
everybody-- he wants everybody
to think he does.
GREG ENGERT: I know, but
the funniest thing--
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
TIFFANY MACISAAC: He'll be like,
babe, want a margarita?
And then he'll be like, do
we have "Glee" recorded?
Just kidding, he never
says that.
KYLE BAILEY: I've never
done that in my life.
But for real, though,
have you ever had
room-temperature Malibu?
GREG ENGERT: Room-temperature
Malibu?
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Oh, gross.
[LAUGHTER]
TIFFANY MACISAAC:
It's a lot like
doing a shot of sunscreen.
[LAUGHTER]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
KYLE BAILEY: My name
is Kyle Bailey.
I'm a chef at Birch &
Barley Restaurant.
Birch & Barley is a restaurant
with American cuisine.
Local, seasonal,
farm-to-table.
It's all the same words
everybody uses.
We definitely make a big push
to make everything in-house.
It's a from-scratch kitchen.
All the sausage is made
from scratch.
Every dough, made
from scratch.
All the pasta's made
from scratch.
I just never wanted to
open a bag here.
I never wanted to open a can.
I wanted it to be
as challenging
to a cook as possible.
We're sort of making
couscous in-house.
I've never really seen
it done before.
I've never seen anybody
do that.
So it takes a while to figure
it out, but huge flavor.
Awesome, awesome house-made
technique.
I'm super-excited about it.
Let me go get that dish.
It's a carrot puree with
handmade couscous, minted fava
beans, and lamb tenderloin.
So we made our own
curry blend.
It was really cool.
And then we started making
our own yogurt.
So we kind of finished
the sauce with that
yogurt and the curry.
Birch & Barley's definitely
a beer-centric restaurant.
The pairing beer with the
food is very special.
I don't know a whole lot of
people doing that right now,
and I definitely wanted
to jump into that one.
We have 555 beers, 50
drafts, 500 bottles.
We have five cask ales.
Greg Engert is beer director
for this restaurant.
Also for the entire restaurant
group that we work for.
He's the best that I've ever met
at beer, and his knowledge
will astound.
It's amazing.
He was one of the top three
reasons me and Tiff moved here
to work here.
My wife Tiffany.
We've been married for
about three years.
Tiff's running desserts
for the entire group.
She's got really great ideas,
really a different way about
food than I do.
It's fun.
It's really cool.
We're just swimming with
bow-legged women.
Now we're going to Radius,
Chef Todd Wiss.
He's got this killer
restaurant.
This wasn't super-planned.
It was like just this chef
who really wanted--
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Found a space
and made it happen.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah, he's
made it happen.
It was awesome.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Remember
how good the pastas were?
KYLE BAILEY: I love it.
I love everything he's doing.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: You're like,
this makes me hate myself.
GREG ENGERT: He makes all
that himself, right?
KYLE BAILEY: Totally
does, man.
KYLE BAILEY: Uh,
yeah, it sucks.
It's like we were eating--
we were eating and it was like,
god, I don't know what
he's doing.
It's really good.
GREG ENGERT: How you doing?
TODD WISS: Good to see you.
KYLE BAILEY: Radius Pizza is
in Mount Pleasant area,
Washington, DC.
Todd Wiss, he's the
chef at Radius.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: I definitely
want to get the risotto,
'cause it was so good
last time we came.
KYLE BAILEY: All this stuff
sounds awesome, dude.
Do you want to get-- we
get some mussels?
TIFFANY MACISAAC:
Yes, mussels.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: That's
just how Kyle and I do
it when we go out.
We order the whole menu.
KYLE BAILEY: Todd, he's
like, just the
coolest guy ever, man.
He's here to cook.
He's here to cook
you good food.
And that's all, man.
And he's in his kitchen
every night, man.
He's doing it himself.
TODD WISS: People are--
it's a misnomer.
Like oh, they just
serve pizza.
But we do other things,
as well.
We start a risotto with veg
stock, some arborio rice
that's been parcooked.
We try to drive the menu
with the seasons and
so forth like that.
Right now, it's just the
beginning of springtime and
we're getting stuff that's fun,
like asparagus and ramps
and peas and favas.
When I think of spring,
I think of green.
I think of what's coming out of
the doldrums of winter into
the start of something great.
Finish it with some whipped
goat cheese that's whipped
with lemon confit and olive
oil in a spring pistou.
I think what's great about
Radius is that we're bringing
the quality of food and
a good atmosphere to
a lower price point.
And that's important
to my wife and I.
Think we hit the mark.
Asparagus risotto.
Following a little theme
here of green.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah,
I know what kl
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Spring.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah.
Spring has sprung.
Thanks, Todd.
TODD WISS: Yeah, man.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: This
is so fucking good.
It's like rich, but there's
lemon or some
kind of acid in there.
KYLE BAILEY: It's awesome.
Every time I see what he does,
like man, blown away.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Everything's
really balanced.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah,
it's awesome.
Todd's food is extremely
local.
It's very seasonal.
Then he's got really,
really killer pizza.
But it's his pastas, man.
It's his pastas.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: That carrot
sauce is so good.
KYLE BAILEY: The fettuccine with
the ramps and the fava
beans, that dish was just
so simple, so clean.
It was extremely fresh.
And it was real.
It tasted like real food.
I mean, this is like ramp pesto,
right on the noodle.
And it's so--
it's like, it's working.
It's working in ways that
I could never make work.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: It's really
simple and all the flavors are
really strong.
KYLE BAILEY: It's really good.
-OK, we have the meatballs.
GREG ENGERT: Oh, shit.
-And the creamed kale.
KYLE BAILEY: We met--
we were in New York.
We were at the Bryant
Park Hotel.
It was 2003.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: One day a
week, they had to work the
late-night shift for
room service.
So I would get them playing
chef, and I'd go to the corner
store and buy beer
and come back.
We'd just sit and drink beers.
'Cause no one ever ordered
food, so we were just kind
of sitting there waiting.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah, so we'd
just sit there and
drink beer all night.
Sitting on the counter.
I was like, [INAUDIBLE], man,
one of those things I'd never
let anybody do.
And we were just like, sitting
on the counter.
GREG ENGERT: Falling in love.
TODD WISS: That's the spring
pizza with house-made fresh
mozz, spring garlic puree, local
kale and local chard.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Oh my god.
I'm starting to get
really full.
KYLE BAILEY: It's delicious.
It's so good.
Have a seat, bro.
It's fucking awesome.
KYLE BAILEY: Everything.
It's so much more than pizza,
and it was really good.
I was blown away by his food.
Hey, you clean up nice.
TODD WISS: Thanks.
KYLE BAILEY: Let's go get
some drinks, dude.
So it was me, Tiff, Greg, and we
grabbed Todd, and we rolled
out to Room 11.
TODD WISS: I'm not the kind
of guy who goes and
has a beer, you know?
[LAUGHTER]
TODD WISS: I'm not going
to have "a" beer.
So Room 11's on the next
block on your right.
KYLE BAILEY: Super small
little place.
They got this outdoor area
with a fire pit.
How are you ever going
to be beat that?
Even when it's raining
out, it's awesome.
Anything on the menu
is awesome.
You're never going to lose
with anything you pick.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Oh, man.
I'd cheers you, but I'm
too busy drinking.
Should we rotate?
How should we do this?
KYLE BAILEY: I guess the whole
cocktail thing got really big
in New York.
And me and Tiff were right
up in there, man.
We were so about it.
And in DC, there's a couple of
really great cocktail places.
And we're really, really into
cocktails all the time, like
really all about them.
Along with beer and
wine, you know.
We drink a lot.
TODD WISS: That's--
what is this one?
KYLE BAILEY: That's the one.
That's mine.
It's the Prodigal Son.
TODD WISS: It's good, man.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: That's good.
KYLE BAILEY: It's really
right, dude.
I picked it.
Dude, I picked it,
it was awesome.
Also, I've got this cold sore.
[LAUGHTER]
KYLE BAILEY: Now you've
all got the cold sore.
[LAUGHTER]
KYLE BAILEY: Me and Tiff, we
used to go to Olive Garden
once a year, just to see
what it was like.
I know, right?
GREG ENGERT: I love
Olive Garden.
TODD WISS: I've never
been, man.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Oh, man.
TODD WISS: I'm not saying
it 'cause I'm a snot.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: You
haven't lived.
You haven't lived.
One year we went in, and we
went in, and we sat down.
It was like a Monday
night at 6:30.
There was a 45-minute wait.
We're like, what the fuck?
So finally, we finally
get a table.
They had 30 wines
by the glass.
They were out of a giant jug.
They had one bottle
that was only by
the bottle, the chianti.
So we ordered it, and they
were like, oh, wow.
What?
TODD WISS: They thought you
guys were like ballers.
TIFFANY MACISAAC:
They were like--
TODD WISS: They ring a bell.
KYLE BAILEY: So we're eating
this food, and I was just
like, I don't know why my
stomach hurts so bad already.
I'm getting a headache.
I'm like--
[GROAN].
But all these preservatives give
me such a headache, dude.
TODD WISS: That's--
I'm telling you, I want to go to
fuckin'-- you know where I
want to go?
Red Lobster.
KYLE BAILEY: Yum, cheddar
biscuits, bro.
TODD WISS: Dude, they're
so good.
KYLE BAILEY: The best.
TODD WISS: They're so good.
KYLE BAILEY: Cheddar biscuits.
JESS WOODS: Thanks very much.
KYLE BAILEY: Uh, gonna make
some hot pockets.
Gonna make some pasta.
And some egg dish.
When it's late night and you've
had a few drinks,
what's better than,
like, omelet?
GREG ENGERT: Let's get
some beers, guys.
KYLE BAILEY: After Room 11, we
came back to Birch & Barley,
hung out with all my cooks,
and cooked up some grub.
The pasta is based off a
sandwich made famous by Tony
Luke's in Philly.
Supposed to be porchetta, or
pork loin, broccoli rabe,
toasted pine nuts, and fresh
red chili flake.
We turned it into a pasta
with ricotta cavatelli.
And that's what we're serving
to these guys tonight.
Another dish we made
was the giant
ham-and-cheese hot pocket.
I had Tiff do that, 'cause I
trust her the most with dough.
She's got that kind
of figured out.
So I bought this is Himalayan
salt block.
You heat it slowly through.
That's the biggest hot pocket
you've ever seen.
And it's like cooking
on a flat-top, on a
griddle, you know?
But it's made out of salt, so
it's also seasoning the food.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: It's good.
I did good.
KYLE BAILEY: Yeah, it's great.
It looks like a pastry
person made this.
One thing that we made
was the foie-melet.
And I had a couple of foie gras
scraps laying around, so
I kind of browned them up in
the pan a little bit, added
the egg, asparagus.
All right, grab something,
Tiff.
KYLE BAILEY: Ha-ha,
fuck you, man.
Anyway.
Our kitchen dynamic is--
I think it's fun, man.
I really like it.
I don't know anybody who
fights more than we do.
But I don't anyone who
gets along better
than us either, so.
Hey, we do this all the time.
It's great, dude.
-Mamma mia!
[LAUGHTER]
KYLE BAILEY: That's great.
-Yeah, this omelet's
all weird and shit.
-Yeah, I bet it sucks.
KYLE BAILEY: Hey, fuck
you guys, man.
You don't know what it's like
trying to make an omelet when
you're all fucked up, man.
Tiff makes cookies for
every event ever.
Is there anything that
will ever beat
a fresh-baked cookie?
I don't think so, man.
TIFFANY MACISAAC: Cookies.
-Oh, what?
[CROWD GOES WILD]
-Oh, man.
Are you kidding me, dude?
This is awesome.
15 years before that were all
nothing but pain, man, cooking
six, seven days a week, 14-hour
days, just trying to
get some experience, trying
to understand food.
And I loved it.
It was fun, but it was rough.
I never thought that I would
ever be given this chance.
I never thought that I would
be in charge and
that I would be happy.
And it's awesome.
Cheers to you, guys.
Thank you very much, man.
Here's to--
here's to drinking.
Also, eating.
I don't know where it came
from, but it was so--
I think I saw it on "Night
Court." I love that fucking--
it's my favorite cheers.
Are you ready?
She offered, Your Honor, so I
honored her offer, and all
night long, I was on
her and off her.
-That is not from "Night
Court," dude.
KYLE BAILEY: Are you sure?
It sounds like--
TIFFANY MACISAAC: And now, a
quote from "Night Court."
