According to Saveur magazine, Border Food is defined as Mexican food with a distinct identity —influenced by the cooking of Chihuahua and Texas, but with a number of little twists. Because Texas is so large and diverse, it’s a more nuanced label than the overarching Tex-Mex, and one surprising spot that it is celebrating with abandon is in Greenville, SC. Dayna Lee is the chef and operator of Comal 864, a petite spot with a big heart and a smoking hot flattop. With her clear vision of the food of her childhood and a combination of grit and introspection on her own life path, she’s gained some well-deserved attention, from being named of Eater's "18 Essential Greenville Restaurants" to a nomination as a 2023 James Beard semifinalist. Originally from South Texas and specializing in Mexican American cuisine, she began her work in a series of brewery pop-ups, teaching herself to channel homesickness into cooking and making more room for others at the table along the way. Last summer, I had the chance to eat my fill of tacos at Comal on a hot June night, and I’ve been wanting to sit down with her ever since, so we finally got the chance to record at this year’s Charleston Wine + Food Festival. The only thing missing? More tacos.
Cheryl Day: Author, Teacher, & Baker, Back in the Day Bakery (Savannah, GA)
Season 6 Finale: Steph Looks Back & Shares Insights
Kevin Mitchell, Author & Chef Instructor, Culinary Institute of Charleston (Charleston, SC)
Andrew Carmines, Hudson's Seafood on the Docks (Hilton Head Island, SC)
Tim Morton, Frannie & The Fox and Emeline (Charleston, SC)
Marcie Cohen Ferris, Author & Professor Emeritus, on Jewish Foodways in the American South (Chapel Hill, NC)
Adam Evans, Automatic Seafood & Oysters (Birmingham, AL)
Chris Lilly, Big Bob Gibson BBQ (Decatur, AL
Caitlin Schumacher, Girl Next Dough (Charleston, SC)
Matthew Raiford, Chef, Farmer, & Author (Brunswick, GA
Padgett Arnold, Sequatchie Cove Creamery (Sequatchie, TN)
Sarah Pierre, 3 Parks Wine Shop (Atlanta, GA)
Lee Pantazis, Gus's Hot Dogs (Birmingham, AL)
Rob McDaniel, Helen (Birmingham, AL)
Shamil Velazquez, Delaney Oyster House (Charleston, SC)
Lou Thomann, Yaupon Tea Company (Savannah, GA)
Craig Richards, Lyla Lila (Atlanta, GA)
242: Frank Stitt, Highlands Bar & Grill, Chez Fonfon, Bottega (Birmingham, AL)
241: Amanda Storey, Jones Valley Teaching Farm (Birmingham, AL)
240: Brian Hart Hoffman, Bake from Scratch / Hoffman Media (Birmingham, AL)
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
50 Tastes Of Gray
Walk-In Talk Podcast
Gastropod
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Anne of Green Gables
The Recipe with Kenji and Deb
Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Radio