Today, the Bronx-born culinary collective Ghetto Gastro, from Jon Gray, Pierre Serrao, and Lester Walker announced the global release of their first-ever podcast, In The Cut, an eight-episode Audible Original podcast, created in collaboration with Gunpowder & Sky.
Street-to-table is the only way to break bread on the block. It’s nourishment through the food, the flavor, the vibes—if it ain’t fresh, it ain’t served up.
Join in on a trip down the sidewalks of the Bronx with culinary collective Ghetto Gastro for In The Cut with Ghetto Gastro, a gastronomical deep dive into the dishes and cultures that shape the New York foodscape. From “Chopped Stease” and hood Chinese to “Twerk n Jerk” and mofongo, Ghetto Gastro takes us through the origins and legacy of the borough’s food culture.
From restaurants to bodegas, each episode explores an iconic dish through unfiltered conversations with tastemakers, cultural experts, and neighborhood icons like Questlove and Black Thought, Von Diaz, and A$AP Ferg.
After choppin’ it up on the block with guests, the chefs of Ghetto Gastro take their recipes back into the kitchen to lead listeners in a hands-on cooking demo with their signature spin. So grab a plate, take a seat and get your ears ready to feast—with Ghetto Gastro everybody eats.
Ghetto Gastro has found mainstream success across genres. The collective released a custom line of kitchen appliances, CRUXGG, across Target stores nationwide, and a cookware line of the same name in Williams Sonoma. They also launched their namesake consumer goods brand of pantry items inspired by ancestral ingredients. In February 2022, Ghetto Gastro partnered with Wolfgang Puck for the iconic Oscars Governors Ball, the first time in 26 years that Puck brought on a collaborator. They have since produced culinary experiences for Coachella, Spotify, BottleRock Napa, Diageo, Audemars Piguet, Nike x Sacai and more.
Episode 1: Chopped Cheese
Let me get a chopped cheese, salt, pepper, ketchup please! Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter roll up to the Ghetto Gastro table to test if the Uptown-born Chopped Cheese sandwich has the ability to win the hearts of the two Philly expats and cheesesteak lovers. Later, Jon, P and Les head to the lab to cook for you their version of the hood favorite, “The Chopped Stease.”
Episode 2: Mofongo
Jon, Pierre and Les explore the relationship of African-descended and Latino cultures in and beyond NYC with cookbook author and scholar Von Diaz. Inspired by their conversation, the guys hit the lab to make some “Mofongones”- a dish made from a combination of plantain cooking techniques enjoyed throughout the Latin America-diaspora.
Episode 3: NY Slice
On this episode of In the Cut, Ghetto Gastro explores how NY pizza has a flavor and style all its own; join the guys in discussing how the dish has evolved from the Italian pie into something wholly New York. Jon, Pierre and Les talk about their favorite spots in town, and interview Dominican chef Scarr Pimentel of Scarr’s Pizza, who mills his own grains every day for sensational, delicious slices. As an homage to NY, the guys take you into the lab to cook you up a pie with bubbling mozzarella and gorgeous San Marzano tomatoes.
Episode 4: Sea Moss
Health is wealth! NYC – and the Bronx in particular – is home to some of the largest communities of Caribbean people outside of the region, and it’s common to find Caribbean sea moss gels sold in juice bars or even beauty shops throughout the hood. Now popping up in luxury grocery stores, Jon, P and Les chat with Jon’s mom, Denise Lee, about sea moss and its benefits as well as how to make your local community healthier. Using Denise’s tips, the guys whip you up their own Moss Boss smoothie, designed to jump start your day and make it pop.
Episode 5: Hood Chinese
On this episode, Ghetto Gastro celebrates the influence of Chinese cuisine on American culture with founder and CEO of Fly by Jing, Jing Gao. After, the guys step into the kitchen to cook up another GG original, General Tso’s Cauliflower.
Episode 6: Twerk ‘n’ Jerk
Join Ghetto Gastro as they give us a rundown on NY’s iconic Jamaican Jerk Chicken. They mix it up with rapper and Bronx native, A$AP Ferg as he speaks to his experience with Jerk chicken and what makes it sing. Later, the guys pull up to the kitchen and share their very own GG jerk dish.
Episode 7: NYC Ice
Summer is here! Jon, P and Les chat about summertime staples, with good friend, food writer and NY native, Osayi Endolyn. Then the boys enter the lab, aka the kitchen, to crush some ice, mix some flavors and make their very own Watermelon Granita.
Episode 8: Everybody Eats
In the season finale of In the Cut with Ghetto Gastro, Jon, P and Les discuss the importance of food, activism and power with New York City’s Time Out Woman of the Year, Carolina Savereda. Later, they hit the kitchen and talk about how the Black Panthers Community Services Program inspired one of their most famous dishes to date, the Black Power Waffle.