On this week’s podcast, we’re sitting down with Sarah and Zak Baker, the husband and wife team behind Ca’Lucchenzo Pastificio & Enoteca, a West Side mecca for housemade pasta and regional Italian dishes.
During our chat, they share their culinary journeys, from inaugural jobs like Starbucks barista and Door County busser to their current roles as restaurateurs. Along the way, they share stories from their time with the Bartolotta Restaurant Group where they met, trained and fell in love; their work as consultants to revive the Pizza Man brand; and the background behind their long-held dream of owning and operating their own restaurant.
Find us and love us
The FoodCrush podcast is available via a variety of platforms from iTunes and Google Play to Spotify, Stitcher and more. Search for us on your favorite podcast platform, subscribe for notifications about each new episode. Better yet, help us out by sharing the love by writing a review on iTunes. You can also give @FoodCrushPod a follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for additional tidbits, live tastings and more.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.