Is your restaurant you're favorite place to be? Plus authentic is a construct, working with your life partner, and wild stories of pigs in walk-ins

#132

Josh and Mike sit down with Todd Duplechan, chef and co-owner behind Lenoir, Dovetail Pizza, and the newly opened Bonnie’s, for a wide-ranging conversation that blends wild kitchen stories with deeper reflections on what it actually means to build a restaurant you love. Todd shares what it’s like to operate multiple concepts on the same block in Austin, the lessons learned from opening a bar for the first time, and how redefining roles, expectations, and service can make a restaurant both more sustainable and more enjoyable to run. The conversation dives into the realities of working alongside a spouse for over a decade, the importance of constant iteration, and how small mindset shifts—like designing a space you personally want to spend time in—can fundamentally change a business.

The episode also explores the bigger philosophical questions around food: what “authenticity” really means, how history shapes cuisine, and why tradition is often more fluid than we think. Todd breaks down the evolution of Texas food through migration, climate, and culture, challenging the idea that any dish can be frozen in time. Along the way, the conversation touches on restaurant design, sustainability, leadership, and the grind of the industry—before ending with unforgettable (and chaotic) stories from their time working under Chef David Bouley in New York.

Links and resources 📌

Visit meez: https://www.getmeez.com

Follow meez on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getmeez

Follow Josh on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshlsharkey/?hl=en

Follow Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-sharkey-406965b/

Follow Todd Duplechan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/todd-duplechan-175644134/

Follow Todd Duplechan on Instagram: @duplechananigans

Visit Lenoir: https://www.lenoirrestaurant.com

Visit Dovetail Pizza: https://www.dovetailpizza.com

Visit Blanket: https://www.blanket.app/

Follow Michael: @michaeljacober

Timestamps

01:01 Introduction and setting the stage for the episode

03:24 The wild reality of NYC food truck licensing and restaurant builds

08:52 Opening Bonnie’s and learning how different bar operations really are

12:23 Rethinking service, roles, and making restaurants easier to work in

18:20 Building restaurants you personally want to spend time in

22:15 Working with your spouse as both life and business partner

27:29 The myth of “authenticity” in food and why it’s always evolving

33:24 Texas food history and how culture shapes cuisine

41:24 Designing restaurants around sustainability and local context

01:05:28 Legendary Bouley kitchen stories and lessons from chaos