Flavors of Northwest Arkansas

House 1830- Binh Hoang & Vatsana "B" Hoang

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, we’re at House 1830 in Rogers where we talk to Owner/Chef Binh Hoang and Executive Chef Vatsana Hoang, or B.
House 1830 got the number in its name from the house that Binh and his brother Quang grew up in. The brothers are Vietnamese, but were born in a refugee camp in Thailand, that the family escaped under gunfire.
Binh and his family moved here from Oregon, where he fell in love with the restaurant industry as a teenager, but, as an angsty teenager, he was not cool with how it happened.  You’ll hear that story.
It’s a family affair for the Hoangs, but Binh was the first to come to Northwest Arkansas 9 years ago. Before opening House 1830 a year ago, his brother’s family and his parents moved here to NWA. Binh will tell you what moved him here back then.
And then there’s the restaurant. How long was it in the works? How did they find their space?
And the menu! Binh and B will describe what they serve, how they serve it, and get into the cultural relevance of it. As always, we highlight a few popular dishes.
It’s Binh & B from House 1830 in Rogers, next here on the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas.

Flavors of Northwest Arkansas Promo

One minutes promo of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast. 

Havana Tropical Grill- Francisco Galdamez

On this week’s episode of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we get an update about a grand opening, and we talk to the owner and chef of the only Cuban restaurant in the state of Arkansas.
Mallory Files is going from charcuterie business owner to charcuterie studio and wine bar business owner, and she’ll be open VERY soon. We’ll hear from her.
Also, if you’ve been to the Havana Tropical Grill in Rogers, you’ve been to the only Cuban restaurant in the state. Owner and chef Francisco Galdamez was born in El Salvador and he came to the US at a young age and went to school in Boston.
I talked to him about getting into the restaurant business, and he started at the VERY bottom and worked his way up. His first job was washing dishes at the Logan International Airport in Boston, where he knew that the only way to make himself indispensable was to work hard and provide himself the opportunity the move up…
Francisco will tell us how he got to Northwest Arkansas… it took a while for his wife to get onboard, but he tells us why. It’s not necessarily what you think…
And how hard was it for him to educate the northwest Arkansas public in Cuban food, and how hard was it to source? It’s an ongoing process…
We talk spices, plantains, pork and so much more and we do it over Cuban coffee on this edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas (available wherever you get your podcasts).

Black Howler Beer Company- Patrick Bohannan & Jonathan Kuenzel

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we talk to Patrick Bohannan and John Kuenzel of the Black Howler Beer Company in Highfill. They’re old pals that met in band in the 6th grade.
Now, I think it’s safe to say that it’s not a shock that they weren’t originally looking to open their brewery in Highfill, but it’s turned out to be the perfect match. You’ll hear why.
The original plan for the brewery was to get into an established building. That didn’t happen, so they built from the ground up – and it’s really nice.
By the way, if you like watching Hot Ones on Youtube, you’re going to love their niche as they brew spicy beer, and the spice level is about to be raised. BIG. TIME.
Speaking of the beer, they have a unique brewing method and it’s worked very well for them.
We hope you check out this edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Black Apple Hard Cider- Leo Orpin

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, we’re at Black Apple Hard Cider in downtown Springdale, talking to Co-owner Leo Orpin. Black Apple just celebrated its 9th anniversary!
It’s the first and only cidery in the state of Arkansas, and they had to take on educating the masses about cider.
I’ve always been curious as to how Black Apple got its name, and it’s a fun story. It was almost names something else. Also, Leo tells us how cider is similar to soccer. Is it? Here it is.
And did you know that Black Apple was rated the 4th best cidery in the country? They also earned a gold medal for one of their ciders overseas in the motherland… Leo will tell the story.
Finally, breaking news of a fall release, and there are new plans for the tasting room. The remodel has started!
Leo breaks it down right here on this edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas!

Bentonville Provisions- Carrie Burse

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas Podcast, we hop up to Bentonville Provisions where we talked with Chef and Owner Carrie Burse, and this lady has a pedigree!
She went to chef school in Napa Valley before getting to work at a 3 Michelin star restaurant for her externship. Wait till you hear what she did there.
She found out that there was a food program out west at Google and her stage (or tryout) was intense. What till you hear what she had to go through.
Chef Carrie will also tell us how she got to NWA and what she did when she got here before she opened Bentonville Provisions.
And speaking of Bentonville Provisions, what is it? A restaurant? Bar? Store? The answer is Yes, and more. Hear about it from Chef and owner Carrie Burse on the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast.

Bauhaus Biergarten- Daniel Hintz and Chef Jennifer Hill Booker

In this week’s episode of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we head to the arts district in downtown Springdale, as we talk to Daniel Hintz and Chef Jennifer Hill Booker of Bauhaus Biergarten. We get into German food and German beer, a very underrepresented concept in our area. Jennifer’s background includes a stint in Germany and she tells us what it’s been like introducing it to an area.
Daniel will tell you that he’s a beer nerd and proud of it. They don’t serve domestic beers there, but they do have more than German beers, including beer from the oldest brewery on earth. They’re only a few decades away from their 1000th birthday! Not kidding.
Relationships and collaborations are their lifeblood, and they have some great stories about that and how it’s really helped them grow.
We hope you check it out (Available wherever you get your podcasts)!

Cura Culinary- Gary & Mia Folden

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we found ourselves in Bentonville at a newer place that I’d heard about called Cura Culinary. It’s a smaller restaurant located inside Bentonville Provisions over by the Momentary and it’s run by husband and wife team Garyn and Mia Folden.
If Garyn’s name sounds familiar to you, you were probably at Top Chef NWA in November where he took home the big trophy. He’s no stranger to the local food scene, having worked at places like the River Grille, Tusk and Trotter and others.
Mia keeps the front of house in order while maintaining their social media, curating the wine list, and basically everything else you could possibly think of.
Garyn’s not from here, but will tell you how he got here. He and Mia had a plan that didn’t include staying in NWA. They took their talents to New York where they learned what they wanted to be, what they didn’t want to be, and WHERE they wanted to be- which was back in NWA.
They’ve been open for a month and a half at this point. They’ll tell you what their future plans are in this episode. We hope you check it out (available wherever you listen to podcasts).

Bethel Brew- Brad and Tanae Coleman

On this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we have some great storytelling from Brad and Tanae Coleman of Bethel Brew!
After corporate careers, they decided to start their own family business. They started with a coffee trailer and within 6 months of their first day with the trailer, they added 2 brick and mortar locations. How did that happen?!?! It’s an interesting story (and they’re about to open store #3!!).
Also, why coffee? Brad and Tanae knew nothing about coffee 6 years ago. They didn’t even drink coffee until recently. So why coffee? It all started one morning at a house in Tijuana on a mission trip, and that’s where it clicked for Brad and Tanae.
Speaking of mission trips, it turns out that it’s a good way to make contacts for sourcing beans and supporting those families that they’ve gotten to know along the way. You’ll hear a heartwarming story about that.
And finally, breaking news!!! Seems like we’ve been breaking more news here recently… You might be seeing Bethel Brew Beans at a store near you soon. Tanae tells all! There’s so much more- We hope you check out this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas!

Zelli Pasta- Mitchell Owen

In this episode of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we’re back in downtown Springdale as we interview Mitchell Owen, co-owner of Zelli Pasta, a homemade pasta and Italian Market on Emma.  
It started out as a product of the pandemic, as like many, they were cooking quite a bit at home. When they were deciding on what to make and sell, pasta wasn’t their initial plan.
Mitchell tells us about what it took to get Zelli open and the first thing they ordered to start the business.
As the store grew, so did the offerings, especially on the retail side once they found the proper distributors and could make it work.
On the pasta side, Mitchell will tell you what they use to make theirs, what kind they make, and why making pasta to sell didn’t work out so much at home before the store. Also, humidity plays a big role in pasta-making. Who knew?!?
They’re also about to expand, and Mitchell breaks a little news about a new product coming soon… We hope you check out this edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast!