There’s no denying the last two years have been a major challenge for everyone. Between the pandemic and the surge of natural disasters across the nation, we’ve seen it all. On this week’s show, we learn how people are coping from coast to coast.

We begin in New Orleans with Chef Eric Cook, who battled to keep his first restaurant Gris-Gris open in 2020 while somehow finding the inspiration to open his second, Saint John this year. Eric shares the story of his viral open letter to the city published at a make-or-break moment for Gris-Gris, which articulated the impossible situation he and other restaurateurs found themselves in dealing with the pandemic in the summer of 2020.

Then, Gibson Thomas, publisher and editor of Edible Marin & Wine Country Magazine, shares the latest on how vintners are adapting to an ongoing series of wildfires burning across California.

Finally, we meet Peterson Harter, a Crescent City native and entrepreneur, who has become an advocate for mental health in the Bay Area while operating his popular sandwich pop up, Sandy’s SF.

For more of all things Louisiana Eats, be sure to visit us at PoppyTooker.com.