{"id":9029,"date":"2025-07-09T15:29:03","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T21:29:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/?p=9029"},"modified":"2025-07-09T15:29:03","modified_gmt":"2025-07-09T21:29:03","slug":"dallas-chefs-reveal-their-guilty-food-pleasures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/2025\/07\/09\/dallas-chefs-reveal-their-guilty-food-pleasures\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas Chefs Reveal Their Guilty Food Pleasures"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Chefs and Their Guilty Pleasures<\/h1>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Chefs: They eat great food all the time, right? Wrong.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">We turned to some of Dallas\u2019 best chefs and asked what they reach for when they\u2019re too tired to cook.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">The answers were validating.<\/p>\n<h2>Unconventional Snacks<\/h2>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Self-described \u201csnackaholic\u201d chef Anastacia Qui\u00f1ones-Pittman loves Slim Jims. That\u2019s a fun departure from what Chef AQ is known for: her contemporary Mexican food menus previously at Jos\u00e9 and next at forthcoming Dallas restaurant Eledi.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Christophe De Lellis, the French-born chef who will soon open French-Italian restaurant Mamani in Dallas, loves Hi-Chew candies. Yup, the gelatinous, fruit-flavored snacks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">\u201cI can\u2019t stop eating them,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of embarrassing because they\u2019re super sweet and taste nothing like real fruit. \u2026 But I still love them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">\u201cChewy, addictive \u2014 and once I open a pack, it\u2019s game over.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Sweet Treats<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Chef Dean Fearing also craves a sweet treat. \u201cJust give me peanut M&#038;Ms or a Snickers and I\u2019m the happiest guy in the whole wide world,&#8221; he said. He called a candy bar \u201cmy true guilty pleasure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">When McKinney chef Andrea Shackelford, of Harvest, wants a sweet treat, she grabs a handful of chocolate chips from the dry goods section of the restaurant.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">\u201cI have been known to make a trail mix of white chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate and peanuts in my hand, as well. It\u2019s the perfect salty sweet combo,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<h3>Savory Snacks<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Tanner Agar, CEO and creative director of Rye in East Dallas and Flamant in Plano, will eat \u201ca tortilla filled with whatever food is closest to the fridge door. I will not heat any of it up, and I\u2019ll eat it standing while deciding what whiskey to drink.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Via Triozzi chef-owner Leigh Hutchinson prefers a savory snack. When she\u2019s not making housemade pasta or her beloved lasagna, she reaches for mayo slathered on a Saltine, topped with bologna and another Saltine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">\u201cNot even fancy stuff,\u201d she said of the bologna: Oscar Mayer works great.<\/p>\n<h3>Drinks and Other Favorites<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Starship Bagel owner Oren Salomon loves Promised Land chocolate milk. \u201cIf there\u2019s any left, I\u2019m gonna drink it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Quarter Acre chef-owner Toby Archibald, who was born and raised in New Zealand, has learned to love an American classic: a Sonic caramel milkshake, hold the whipped cream.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Recent James Beard Humanitarian of the Year Chad Houser loves Kibo Spicy Ranch lentil chips. \u201cThey remind me, in many ways, of pork rinds,\u201d said the founder of Cafe Momentum, a non-profit that helps teens in need.<\/p>\n<h3>Ice Cream and Other Unique Combinations<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Speaking of ice cream, you ready for this? Matt Balke, chef-owner of Oak Cliff restaurant Encina, loves chili cheese Fritos on top of Blue Bell Cookies \u2019n Cream ice cream.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">\u201cHe was always trying to get us to taste it,\u201d Balke\u2019s mom, Ellen, told The Dallas Morning News. (In an amazing plot twist, she didn\u2019t like it. Sorry, chef!)<\/p>\n<h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">Chefs! They\u2019re just like the rest of us.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">They\u2019re tight on time, too.<\/p>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">We\u2019d love to hear what you like to snack on in secret. Tell us in the comments: What do you reach for when nobody\u2019s looking?<\/p>\n<h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n<h3>Q: What do chefs like to snack on when they&#8217;re too tired to cook?<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">A: Chefs have a variety of favorite snacks, including Slim Jims, Hi-Chew candies, peanut M&#038;Ms, and chili cheese Fritos on top of ice cream.<\/p>\n<h3>Q: Are chefs always eating healthy food?<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">A: No, chefs are not always eating healthy food. They have guilty pleasures and favorite snacks, just like everyone else.<\/p>\n<h3>Q: Where can I find Kibo Spicy Ranch lentil chips?<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">A: Kibo Spicy Ranch lentil chips are available at most grocery stores, Walmart, and Amazon.<\/p>\n<h3>Q: Can I try making my own trail mix with chocolate and peanuts?<\/h3>\n<p class=\"body-text-paragraph\">A: Yes, you can try making your own trail mix with chocolate and peanuts. It&#8217;s a great way to satisfy your sweet and salty cravings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chefs and Their Guilty Pleasures Chefs: They eat great food all the time, right? Wrong. We turned to some of Dallas\u2019 best chefs and asked what they reach for when they\u2019re too tired to cook. The answers were validating. Unconventional Snacks Self-described \u201csnackaholic\u201d chef Anastacia Qui\u00f1ones-Pittman loves Slim Jims. That\u2019s a fun departure from what [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":9030,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9029","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dining"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com\/resizer\/v2\/WZDAYUPPMNH6NH5ZHY4YVA3YDY.gif?auth=ff0e71e8df5acd6ec2a829a561ba0bc405a77066a646c9131ccad438c91c2f2e&height=630&width=1200&smart=true&quality=80","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9029"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9029"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9031,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9029\/revisions\/9031"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}