Season 2 is officially here. In this episode of BRUH, Mike and Tony kick things off with the mindset for the year — stay in the pocket — and welcome Chef Raphael Jones, owner of Garden District in downtown Grand Rapids.

Raphael shares the story behind Garden District, from New Orleans roots and family recipes to building a restaurant that feels more like a home than a dining room. The conversation covers food, culture, gumbo debates, red beans and rice, and how hospitality, memory, and intention show up on every plate.

This is Part 1 of a two-part episode.
Part 2 drops next week, featuring a brand-new segment called Pronunciation Station and listener call-ins.

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Recorded live from the floor at DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Episode 16 of the BRUH Podcast is pure festival chaos—in the best way possible.

This episode is a rolling, unscripted hang with festival-goers, chefs, founders, and flavor-obsessed humans. We bless the booth with the Bolognese gods, debate the correct way to eat leftover pizza, argue lifelong restaurant loyalty in Grand Rapids, and hand out truly questionable prizes. As always, things escalate quickly.

• Live crowd Q&A straight from the festival floor

• Grand Rapids restaurant debates (lifelong picks included)

• Cold pizza vs reheated pizza: settled (kind of)

• Italian Thanksgiving traditions, nonna energy included

• Libation Station featuring Precision Syrups (Sawyer, MI)

• A mezcal-to-tequila cocktail conversion that actually worked

• Syrup bumps, bolognese dipping, and absolute festival nonsense

If you love food festivals, live podcasts, cocktails, and overheard conversations that somehow turn deep and hilarious—this one’s for you.

🎧 Listen now on Spotify & YouTube
🌶️ More chaos at bruhpodcast.com

🍷 What’s inside this episode:

This might be the most chaotic, unplanned, laugh-filled live episode we’ve ever recorded.
We set up at The Crushed Grape in Grand Rapids, turned on the mics, and let the crowd take over — and the result was pure magic.

In this episode of The BRUH Foodcast, Mike and Tony go fully off-script as customers, wine tasters, rum-curious newcomers, cheetah-girls-in-training, and even a licensed therapist grab the mic and ask us everything.

No prep.
No plan.
Just real people, real questions, and real drinks.

You’ll hear:

🍷 A 40-year rum comeback — Rebecca takes her first sip of rum since age 17
😂 The debate of the night: Which food is truly non-perishable?
🔥 A Louisiana childhood food story that will make you crave gumbo immediately
🥧 Sweet potato pie vs. pumpkin pie (and the controversy that followed)
🥪 What is “ham salad,” and why is it a Pittsburgh childhood delicacy?
🍯 A heated argument about who actually knows how to make Kool-Aid correctly
🌭 The great Midwest mystery: Why Chicago sausage hits different
🍳 How to properly cook an egg — fried, scrambled, poached… and with mayo??
🦞 The ONLY correct way to make a lobster roll (and why Boston betrayed us)
🚗 A surprise car segment: Are Range Rovers trash… or elite? (We settle it)

Plus:
Tony creates a brand-new original cocktail LIVE — The Broasis — a tiki drink so good the parking lot fell silent.

This is food, drinks, culture, chaos, community, and straight-up good vibes.
If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you hand strangers a microphone… this is it.