Hey, this is the moment I'm Brian Coppelman, thanks for listening.

I first met my guest today, I think like just when I was getting out of college, we've

been friends and I've admired him really since then.

Mark Strouseman is a great chef, a great restaurant tour and there really aren't that many people

who do both of these tasks at the level that Mark does and has for so long and he's been

through many iterations.

He's a great, great, great cook.

He's also really great at front of house and being a figure in New York and understanding

the way New York works but it all started with the fact that his cooking blew people's

minds.

In New York where people, it wasn't nearly the kind of front line topic of conversation

that it is now, but Mark, you managed to be so, man, welcome and thanks for being here

and thanks for all your thoughtful friendship over the years.

Oh, my pleasure, it's excited to be here, it's very exciting.

Man, I got to start with, so my dad passed away a few months ago and then for people

who don't know, in the Jewish religion, we don't do awake, what we do is something called

the Shiva which is after the person dies and you've buried them, you meet back up at

the house of the family and people sometimes bring food, pastries, things like that and

they visit you.

It's kind of like awake, maybe less drinking and more, gnashing, but there was this moment

Mark and I know you know this where you came out before you came out to the house the

day before, kind of the first day that we were all gathered, you sent a big care package

...