Rosen's Bagels and Tso Chinese Delivery

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Today, we have a special double-billed episode where I interview the owners of two of the best takeaway restaurants in Austin, Rosen's Bagels and Tso Chinese Delivery. 

First up I have Tom Rosen, the owner of Rosen’s Bagels on the show.  He tells me about what inspired him to make a bagel business, what separates a good bagel from a bad bagel, and what the process of bagel-making involves. 

Next, I’m joined by Min Choe and Angell Tsang, who run Tso Chinese Delivery.  They explain how Chinese food varies across the world, why they chose to focus on deliveries, and the innovative new delivery method they have rolling out…

“I made an ideological commitment to the double-side seed bagel.” - Tom Rosen 

“We don’t need a tip to incentivise good service, they give good service because they’re good people.” - Min Choe  

Time Stamps:

01:47 - The two local food providers I’m talking to today. 
07:14 - Playing tennis and how it compares to making bagels. 
10:55 - What inspired Tom to start his company Rosen’s Bagels. 
14:17 - What’s the difference between a good and a bad bagel. 
20:58 - The strong history and tradition of bagels. 
23:25 - What the process of making a bagel involves. 
32:44 - The difficulties of balancing speed and quality. 
34:58 - The type of brick and mortar shop Tom is planning on opening up. 
36:47 - Home deliveries and what the pandemic has been like for Tom. 
38:14 - Why Tom doesn’t want to expand to other cities. 
39:13 - The frozen bagels Tom does. 
41:30 - How to connect with Rosen’s Bagels online. 
43:18 - Where the bagel originated from. 
47:21 - The top ten restaurants to get food from for Valentine’s Day. 
53:27 - Who Min Choe and Angell Tsang are. 
54:55 - How to pronounce Tso and who General Tso really was. 
58:15 - The difference between Chinese-American food and Chinese food. 
1:01:00 - The way Chinese food changes wherever you are in the world. 
1:03:02 - The new popularity of fusion foods and why we need to stop being such snobs. 
1:10:59 - The value there is in authenticity. 
1:14:24 - Why they chose to revolve the restaurant around takeaways inside of focusing on a dine-in experience.
1:23:56 - The benefits of having your own delivery software. 
1:25:30 - The brand new Tesla delivery programme Tso is working on. 
1:32:50 - The way Tso is moving their business to focus on how they’re benefiting society. 
1:36:16 - The autopilot features in Tesla and the importance of hiring the right people. 
1:37:44 - The different locations they have, and the new places they’re opening up. 
1:38:15 - How to connect with the restaurant online. 
1:40:45 - My favourite Chinese food. 

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