What does it look like to build a creative life before algorithms and stay true to yourself as everything changes?

Justin Burke chats with Adam Roberts, the voice behind The Amateur Gourmet and now the author of the debut novel Food Person. Long before food blogging was an industry, Adam was writing into the void. That blog led to Food Network, a writers’ room on The Real O’Neals, two cookbooks, and now fiction.

They talk about the early days of food media, writing before SEO drove content, and the freedom of finding your voice without having to optimize it. But they also talk about queerness; not as performance, not as branding, but as something steady. Present. And in Food Person, Adam shares what it means to write characters, especially queer characters, who feel human and specific, not symbolic.

This is a conversation about staying curious, staying human, and letting queerness exist in all its forms.

Below are the people, businesses, and organizations mentioned in this episode, including this week’s guest(s):

• Adam Roberts - connect on Instagram
• The Amateur Gourmet - check it out here, or subscribe to Substack
• Food Person - Get your copy here

Queer Food Stars Adam wants you to know:

• Jeremy Salamon
  • Agi’s Counter, Pitt’s
  • Jeremy’s cookbook, Second Generation
• Renato Poliafito
  • Ciao, Gloria, Pasta Night
  • Renato’s cookbook, Dolci!

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That Ate:

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• Want to collab or have a suggestion for a future guest? Visit the website.