Who: Sarah Curtis-Fawley
What: Pacific Pie Co.
Where: Portland, Oregon

While I've always considered myself a chocolate cake over fruit pie person (I'm a diehard chocoholic, what can I say!), a slice of Sarah's apple sour cream streusel just about converted me. The flaky, buttery crust paired with local gala apples and crunchy topping bowled me over with its delicate balance of flavor, texture and natural sweetness. Just in time for Thanksgiving (prime pie season!) join us for a tour of this Portland-based pie shop. More

Who: Antonio Ramos and Caroline Mak
What: Founders and head juice makers of Brooklyn Soda Works
Where: Brooklyn, New York

It all started on a whim. Back in early 2010, Antonio, a chemist, and his partner Caroline, an artist, just wanted to make a good ginger beer at home, but what followed was the basis for a new business: intensely flavored carbonated fruit sodas made not from syrups (as is the norm) but rather fresh-pressed juice, with over 40 unusual spicy/sour/sweet flavor combinations, like Grapefruit Jalapeno and Blueberry Lavender. But what's interesting about Brooklyn Soda Works is how very unlike a soda company they are: they don't use syrup and they don't bottle. Instead, they sell their soda in 5 gallon kegs so they can be on-tap at local restaurants and bars. They're really more like beer brewers, but for non-alcoholic soda. More

Who: Jeff Stuffings and Michael Steffing
What: Founders of Jester King
Where: Austin, Texas

Craft beer might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Texas, but a few new upstart breweries near Austin are trying to change that. One of those breweries is Jester King, an authentic farmhouse brewery nestled along the open landscape of Texas Hill Country. By incorporating wild yeast and interesting techniques (barrel aging, natural carbonation) Jester King is elevating beer into something truly special. Join me for a behind-the-scenes Maker Tour of the facilities where all the magic happens. More

Who: Charley and Jessica Wheelock
What: Woodblock Chocolate
Where: Portland, Oregon

You may recognize Charley and Jessica from their warm kitchen and home tour published a few months ago. Since then they've opened up their own manufactory to produce their pure and delicious bean-to-bar chocolate bars, and they've barely been able to keep up with the demand! It's a very exciting time for this husband/wife company. More

Who: Agatha Kulaga and Erin Patinkin
What: Founders and owners of Ovenly
Where: Brooklyn, New York

If you live in New York and frequent one of Joe the Art of Coffee's nine locations around the city for your morning brew and breakfast, chances are you've tasted Ovenly's pastries. Or, if you've ever enjoyed a beer at the Brooklyn Brewery, you've probably snacked on one of their ridiculously delicious sweet/salty bar snacks. A chance encounter at a food-focused book club led these two former hobby bakers to start a food business together in the Fall of 2010. Fast forward two years and Ovenly now has a staff of 14, a brand new retail location in Greenpoint, and a growing number of big-time fans and clients... More

Who: Keavy Landreth
What: Owner and head baker of Kumquat Cupcakery
Where: Brooklyn, New York

Inside a nondescript warehouse on a busy street in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, Keavy Landreth makes some of the most delicious mini cupcakes I've ever had. When I visited her tiny, industrial kitchen she was about to frost a batch for a wedding delivery that weekend: chocolate peanut butter, coffee caramel bourbon, peanut butter banana honey, and (her bestseller and my personal favorite) maple bacon, which is every bit as sweet and salty and scrumptious as the name implies. More

Who: Andrew H. Garrett
What: Executive Chef/Hot Sauce developer at NW Elixirs
Where: Portland, Oregon

Andrew H. Garrett is the executive chef/owner of NW Elixir's Hot Sauce line, creators of hot sauces with tang, pluck, flavor and heat unlike any I've tasted before. After years in the restaurant business, Andrew's recent turn to all things spicy has set Portland on fire! More

Who: Andrew Curren and David Norman
What: Chef and Baker, respectively, at Easy Tiger
Where: Austin, Texas

Five years ago my wife and I took a trip to Germany, and when we returned what we missed most from the trip were the pretzels. The dark brown salted exterior and the soft, chewy interior was perfection and like nothing we'd ever had in the States. Then late last year we began hearing rumblings of a bakery and beer garden opening up in Austin, one that would have chef Andrew Curren and his farm-to-table philosophy behind the traditional bratwursts and cured meats, and skilled doughpuncher David Norman at the helm of a bakery producing heritage breads. They called the place Easy Tiger, and when the doors finally opened the fare was all we ever imagined. The sausages were handmade and the breads were a perfected art. More

While visiting Tel Aviv a few weeks ago, I spent a few Thursday night hours in Bnei Brak, located in the Dan metropolitan region east of Tel Aviv, observing preparations for the Sabbath. One of my visits that evening included a trip to the area's largest challah bakery, which operates 24 hours a day, six days of the week (every day except Saturday). Here's a sneak peek into how that traditional Jewish braided loaf gets made on an industrial scale: More