Chef Roy Choi’s ‘Broken Bread’ Returns Jan. 25 for Season Two

Modern media company Tastemade and Southern California’s PBS station KCET announced today the premiere details for season two of the Emmy® and James Beard Award®-winning series BROKEN BREAD – hosted by restaurant entrepreneur and acclaimed chef Roy Choi. Co-produced by Tastemade and KCET, the new season explores the future of the restaurant industry, highlighting diverse, expert perspectives and features notable names including Chef Wolfgang Puck, Restauratrice & Food Activist Alice Waters, Artist & Activist Chuck D. and more. Season two premieres on Tues., Jan. 25 at 8 p.m. PT on Tastemade and KCET. All six episodes of the new season will also be available for streaming on Jan. 25 for Tastemade+ subscribers and PBS SoCal/KCET Passport members. The program will also air on Sat., Jan 29 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV (DirecTV 375 and Dish Network 9410) and on Mon., Jan. 31 at 7 p.m. PT on PBS SoCal.

BROKEN BREAD follows Choi as he explores complex social justice issues through the lens of food – including gentrification, cultural erasure, and the corporate takeover of food and farming – and celebrates the people who are making big changes to the current food landscape, what is eaten and where communities gather. He will meet inspiring individuals and organizations who challenge the status quo and use food as a platform for activism and a catalyst for change. As the connector, Choi teams up with those making a difference and thus, fuels his deep love for the food community and the players who fight to transform it for the better.

Season two of the series focuses on the faces behind the changing food movement, including Puck and Waters, as well as Journalist Patricia Escarcega and Artist Six Sev. It will also highlight the AAPI experience, as well as what it is like to live on the Mexican side of the Mexican-American border. Choi will answer questions affecting marginalized communities, including:
How are the new generation of Mexican-Americans using food as resistance to fight the forces of gentrification and erasure?
What role does urban agriculture play in the fight for black food sovereignty, land ownership and the climate?

Visit Brokenbread.tv to learn about the organizations and the issues featured in the new season through articles, resource guides and recipes. Viewers can take a deeper dive into the social justice issues explored in the series and ways in which they can become activated to advance change.

BROKEN BREAD season two episodes are slated to air as follows (subject to change):

“The Future of Restaurants” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Jan. 25th

Roy breaks bread with Chef Wolfgang Puck, journalist Patricia Escárcega and restaurateurs who are working to address the worker exploitation, high food prices and unsustainable financial models that have long defined the restaurant industry.

“From Seed to Table” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Feb. 1st

Roy explores seed sovereignty with Kristyn Leach, a farmer in Davis, California, harvests vegetables with kids in Compton and sits down for a heart to heart with the legendary restauratrice and food activist Alice Waters to discuss the food war that has been raging for decades ensuring we protect the right to grow, eat and exchange crops.

“Food as Resistance” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Feb. 8th

After learning more about the buried history of the Chavez Ravine neighborhoods where Dodger Stadium now stands, Roy is inspired to meet the people actively preserving Latinx cuisine in L.A. He explores Kernel of Truth, a tortillería in Boyle Heights, and seeks out some of the city’s top taco makers who are using food and flavor as a form of resistance.

“Returning to Chinatown” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Feb. 15th

Roy’s Chinatown restaurant Chego opened in 2013, which soon became the poster child for gentrification in the area. Roy explores what he would have done differently as he retraces his steps through some of the neighborhood’s beloved establishments like Hop Woo and Phoenix Bakery. He also meets newcomers to the neighborhood, Pearl River Deli and Endorffeine.

“Owning the Block” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Feb. 22nd

Roy breaks bread in Leimert Park with legendary artist and activist Chuck D, explores local businesses like Simply Wholesome and Harun Coffee with artist Six Sev and meets with elders to find out how a neighborhood so rich in food, art, music and culture can counteract the forces of gentrification in the community.

“Tijuana” premieres on Tastemade & KCET on Mar. 1st

Roy explores Tijuana’s incredible variety of nightlife, street food, restaurants and cultural diversity along one of the most misunderstood stretches of the U.S./Mexico border. Often painted as a place of violence and poverty, Roy’s experience is totally different as he visits alongside Mexican punk rock band Tijuana No! and Chef José Figueroa.

Choi is an executive producer along with Tastemade’s Emily Mraz, KCET’s Juan Devis, and Choi’s business partner, Natasha Phan. Avrielle Gallagher serves as supervising producer. The series is directed by Antonio Diaz.