People are asking me all the time,
"Hey, Guy, that one joint you checked out
in that one city when you were doing Triple-D,
how they doin'?"
You know, I don't know. We should check it out.
Over the years, I have seen and tasted it all.
This is ridiculous, dude.
But it turns out it was only the beginning.
''Cause Triple-D joints have been blowing up
and we're going back to see what's cooking.
Like on this trip, we're fired up...
Look at the smoke ring on that thing.
...and chowing down...
-It's messy. I'm not gonna lie. -Mmm-hmm.
[mumbling]
...on these mega mouthfuls.
There's pizza packed with a punch in Boulder, Colorado.
That's my kind of spicy pizza.
I made it with you in mind.
Flavor filled empanadas in Mesa, Arizona.
Whoo-hoo. Look at that.
Ta-da.
And in Memphis, Tennessee, a smoker loaded with options...
Got a lot of friends in there. Big flavor party.
...and a secret that's out of the bag.
[laughs]
I need a Cornish hen for Guy, please.
[Guy] Familiar faces, new places and more off-the-hook flavors.
This is Triple-D Nation.
So I'm on the northern side of Boulder, Colorado, to check out a pizza joint.
And just like when I first pulled up to this place back in 2017,
they're still rolling and stretching out the dough.
This is Audrey Jane's Pizza Garage.
Drunken vita up.
It's very unique.
How many places have you been to that has jam on their pizza?
Bam bam piggy jam.
[woman] Everything that they do
has a very playful characteristic to it that I really enjoy.
The Boulder Italian.
[man] We saw Guy coming here and we figured we'd give it a shot.
And we've been long term customers ever since.
[Guy] That's no surprise.
I knew once word got out about the flavors Audrey Kelly throws down,
this place was gonna be hopping.
Have you seen Triple-D?
-They're gonna show up. -We need a bigger mixer.
Oh, you need a beegah mixer?
-I need a big mixer. -Need a beegah mixer.
-[Audrey] Hi, Guy. -Hi, stranger.
How is biz?
We've been busy, you know.
[Guy] You're still doing that same location?
-You got it, yeah. -And why no more locations?
We like our little shop. [chuckles]
I see that you've got
a little bit of a New York pizzeria look going with the slices.
Yeah, this town kind of needed a slice house.
Green mountain, I've got a 16 inch.
It's a little less traditional than something you would find in New York,
but I think for the better.
Guy's favorite spicy pig.
We got a spicy pig.
The spicy pig, it's a pizza to die for.
The hand pinched sausage is so good.
Okay, sister, where are we at?
We're gonna make our homemade sausage for spicy pig.
-[Guy] Okay. So you grind the pork? -Yeah.
-Sea salt. -'Kay.
Grinded up some fennel seeds.
Calabrese chilies.
And we've got some local Colorado honey.
-Is the sausage going onto the pie raw? -Exactly.
Not her first rodeo.
[Audrey] Put our sauce on next.
-Got our mozz. -[Guy whistles]
Natural casing pepperoni, some roasted jalapenos.
And you're gonna stick more meat on this?
Our sausage that we just made.
We also get some chopped garlic and extra virgin olive oil.
Okay. Good. Good.
In we go to the oven at 650.
About six or seven minutes.
[Guy] Good looking pie.
-[Audrey] Oregano in there. -Mmm-hmm.
Like we're blessing some spirits or something.
Exactly.
All right. Good to go.
The sausage is great.
The Sicilian oregano is dynamite.
The right sized pepperoni.
The roasted jalapenos is just giving a little bit of that heat.
Mmm. I can't find anything I don't like.
Next up, spicy pig, 20 inch.
My favorite thing is the spicy pig pizza.
[man] I think it has all the right types of meat.
Hits every flavor, you know, spicy, salty.
A perfect crust is just delightful.
During our lunch rush, spicy pig is like every other slice that people order.
Here's your bam bam piggy jam.
[Guy] What is this monster?
It's a salami jalapeno jam base.
-You make salami jam? -We do.
[Guy] How do you make salami jam?
Well, you know, we take the principles of jam,
we add some Calabrese salami,
some roasted jalapenos, and we pour in a local beer.
We're going to let it reduce out
and then add our sugar and let it finish cooking.
This is crazy.
All right. What else is on here?
[Audrey] Whole milk mozzarella.
Ricotta. Our bam bam piggy jam.
Cook this pizza at 625 for about seven minutes.
-And blackberries. -We do blackberries.
-And arugula. -And arugula.
And sometimes pumpkin seeds.
-Wow, that's got some heat. -[laughs]
[Guy] That's my kind of spicy.
I mean, not burn your mouth off spicy,
but definitely, I'm eating a spicy pizza.
I made it with you in mind.
[man] I got a 16-inch bam bam piggy jam,
It is the perfect complement of a little bit of spice with a little bit of sweet.
I've never had a jam on a pizza before.
But you know, it's so unique, and it takes it to the next level.
[man] The berries just add to the freshness.
Like we say, everything here is just fresh.
Bam bam piggy jam for Triple-D Nation.
So pizza joint's super successful.
[Audrey] We started making pasta sauce as well.
-Are you selling in stores? -We do, yeah.
We're in 35 local grocery stores.
-What? -Yeah. [chuckles]
-No kidding. What's it called? -Yeah. We're really excited.
It's called Audrey Jane's Pasta Sauce.
How'd you come up with the name?
And coming up...
That's not the only brain buster she's got...
Look at this.
Because apparently,
this pizza garage dishes out more than just pizza.
I like aggressive meatballs.
This is delicious.
This is the bomb.
Your mom does you right on that recipe.
I'm back in Boulder, Colorado, at a pizza joint I first checked out in 2017.
Oh, you want more?
Oh, no. It's just not any pizza joint. No, no.
This chef studied in Italy.
She's made pizza for the greats on the East and West Coast.
My mentor, Tony Gemignani...
-[Guy] Okay. -I learned from him in San Francisco.
-Tony, the famous Tony? -Exactly.
Italian mamma.
This pizza is fantastic.
But sandwiches are something that I always look forward to.
Here's that meatball grinder for you.
The meatball grinder is amazing.
All right. What are we making now?
[Audrey] We're gonna make some meatballs.
This is my mom's recipe.
My Italian mom.
Some grated Parmesan.
-House-made breadcrumbs -Okay.
-Some oregano. -Of course.
Sea salt, garlic. And we add it to the beef.
And we've got our eggs.
Be a super trooper and get your scooper.
-Perfect. -Roast these in the oven.
-[Audrey] About 26 minutes at 400. -26 minutes?
[Audrey] We add them to our sauce after they come out of the oven.
We've got our fresh bread roll.
Now we've got our meatballs and our homemade tomato sauce.
Top it with some Parmesan and the shredded mozz.
It's gonna go in our oven for about two minutes.
It's ready to go.
My doctor warned me.
If the food that you see is bigger than your head...
-To eat it? -Run
Hmm. I like aggressive meatballs.
We gotta have some flavor.
Your mom does you right on that recipe.
[Audrey] I've got a meatball grinder outside.
The meatball grinder takes you to Italy.
All the flavors are there.
Truly delightful.
[man] I heard that Guy went with the meatball grinder.
But personally, I think he has to switch it up and try the Boulder Italian this time.
Got a Boulder Italian in the window.
-What is this monster? -So this is called our Boulder Italian.
People have been asking us for years to make a Italian sandwich.
I don't know how to really attack this right now.
It's a little bit messy. I'm not gonna lie.
-I say the messier the better, right? -Mmm-hmm.
[with mouthful] Go right ahead.
It's on our homemade garlic rolls
as you had with our meatball grinder.
What's the story, sister?
We're gonna make some rolls.
So we're gonna use the same dough as we did for our pizza.
-[Guy] Okay. -Flour the bottom.
We're gonna let them proof for about a half an hour,
and then they're gonna go in our steam oven at about 575 for five and a half minutes.
Next, we have our smoked provolone,
our avocado, which makes it very bolder.
-You guys think you get-- -You know, we want to keep it healthy.
You guys think you get to-- Oh, yeah. Thank you.
[Audrey] We're gonna add Sicilian oregano.
And we got four different types of sliced meats.
Calabrese salami. Ham. Our prosciutto.
And lastly, our natural casing pepperoni
-Is this your own giardiniera? -It is. Yeah.
This is delicious. This is the bomb.
I think when you make something like an Italian sub,
there's critical components to it.
One is the Giardiniera.
If at all possible, make it yourself.
-I agree. -Because it tastes--
You can taste the difference. And, boy, there's some heat in this.
Here's your Boulder Italian.
Every bite with the Italian sandwich, it just--
everything just blends together.
It's such great flavors. Great combination of sweet and salty.
[man] The avocado is surprising, but it's really good.
And it's a good texture to bring the flavors together.
[Audrey] Drunken vita, up.
Without a doubt, Audrey Jane's Pizza Garage
is the best pizza joint in Boulder.
[Guy] I didn't quite get it, when I heard about you.
-But I get it now. And I get it really loud. -Excellent.
Well, congratulations on your success.
-Thank you so much. -You look very happy
and still the same happy-go-lucky like,
"Whoops, I just make awesome pizza.
And now awesome bread and awesome sauces."
-You're a wolf in sheep's clothing -[chuckles] I like that.
Watch out for her.
And coming up in Mesa, Arizona...
Order in, picadillo tico.
[Guy] An empanada factory whose tasty turnovers are a hit...
Hmm. That's fantastic.
...in any language.
-The sabor. -[in Spanish] El sabor.
[in English] Two Cuban empanadas.
-[woman] Thank you. -Enjoy.
I'm here in beautiful Mesa, Arizona, about 20 minutes east of Downtown Phoenix,
to check out a joint that's all about family.
They're making some Latin American comfort food.
And even though it's been a while
since I first got my hands on those homemade half-moon masterpieces,
we're talking 2017,
things are still as comfortable as ever.
This is Republica Empanada.
[man] Arroz Colombiano.
Of course, it was a great choice
by Guy to come here to Republica Empanada.
This is a mom and pop place.
It's all about love and food.
Veggie torta, order up.
[woman] Costa Rican, Ecuadorian, El Salvador, Argentinian.
So it stems across so many different countries.
[man] Pernil empana...
It's just wonderful, and it's like eating, you know, homemade food,
like, my mom used to make.
[Guy] That's because her mom, Jinette Meraz
built this joint with her husband, Edmundo, daughter Lou and son Marco.
You got your kids working here?
You're working here. I mean, it keeps everybody together.
Mmm-hmm. It's all about the family.
Yes, people feel that sense of family and motherly, you know, love through food.
Jalapeno bean popper empanada, order up.
Jinette, she's pretty much the one that came up with a lot of the recipes.
[Jinette] Two Cuban empanadas.
-[woman] Thank you. -Enjoy.
Cuban empanadas is one of my favorites.
We're going to start preparing the pernil.
What does pernil mean?
-Pernil means pork. -Okay.
-You put mustard, garlic. -A lot of it.
-Comino, salt, black pepper, oregano, parsley, bay leaves. -Okay.
-Wine. -In there or in you?
Uh, both. [laughs]
Onions.
We cover this and put it in a walk-in, overnight.
We add water.
How long are we gonna cook it for?
Four to five hours.
And then we're gonna shred it.
And that's gonna be the beginning of this empanada?
Exactly.
What we're gonna make is a Cubana.
-A Cu-- -I got ya. You got me at hello.
[Jinette] To bring out the flavors,
-I like to use-- -So a little garlic and some onions?
[Jinette] And a little oregano.
And then the pork.
-This, the empanada 9000. -Yeah?
-We put the empanada dough in. -Spoon the mix onto the disk.
-Ham, mozzarella. -Mozzarella?
And pepinillos.
-Um, what you call this? Pickles. -Pickles.
[Guy] Whoo-hoo. Look at that.
Ta-da.
Let's fry 'em.
Three hundred and seventy five.
-And how long? -Two or three minutes.
Here's the empanada.
Holy football.
It's delicious.
The empanada is light and flaky.
The right mixture of the pork and the ham.
A little bit of cheese, not too much.
Mmm-hmm.
That's fantastic.
Order in, picadillo tico.
After Triple-D, they added way more empanadas.
[Jinette] Here's your picadillo tico empanada.
[man] The picadillo tico empanada is a new empanada.
It's got some vegetables, some onions, some ground beef in it.
And it is for sure, like, one of my new favorites.
So we'll start with some oil, tomatoes, bell peppers,
celery, onions, garlic.
Add some salt, black pepper, coriander, oregano, cumin.
This is green plantain here.
It's been boiled in salt water with bay leaves.
It is a colt 45 sauce.
-Colt 45 sauce? -It has all the ingredients.
It's loaded. See?
-You're crazy. -[laughs]
So we're going to put bell pepper, carrots, onion.
-[Guy] Celery. -Cilantro.
A whole bunch of it.
-Black pepper, salt. -Salt.
-Cumin. And... -Oregano.
[Jinette] Tomatoes and water.
This is gonna boil like an hour.
[Marco] So while I'm letting that simmer for about 15 minutes,
we're gonna go ahead and get started on the beef.
Onions first.
Garlic, the ground beef, black pepper.
Salt, cumin, few bay leaves in there, colt 45 sauce.
Let this cook for about 20 minutes on a low heat.
Add some fresh cilantro.
Now we're gonna add that vegetable blend with the plantains.
And this is ready to go as a feeling for the picadillo tico empanada.
it's ready for the deep fryer.
So those are gonna be in there for two and a half minutes until they're golden brown.
This here is gonna be our house salsa verde,
that we pair all of our empanadas with.
And our picadillo tico empanada.
Here's your picadillo tico.
It's delicious. It's super seasoned and savory.
The filling is really moist. A perfect mix of like, tangy and spice.
It's just very enjoyable, and then you dip it in that amazing green salsa.
Oh, it's heaven.
[Lou] Here's your hearty artichoke empanada.
It's got mushrooms, spinach, cheese, obviously, artichoke.
First, we're making our achiote seasoned potatoes.
We're going to start with some oil, onions,
garlic, boiled potatoes.
Our achiote seasoning.
And now we're going to add black pepper to it. Oregano.
And we're just gonna blend all of these ingredients and seasonings on a low heat.
And then we're gonna move on to the preparation
of the mushrooms and the spinach.
We'll start with some oil again. Quarter cup.
White onion, garlic, white mushrooms.
We're going to add the spinach next.
Some butter, salt, pepper.
This reduces in less than two minutes.
And then we're gonna add the cream cheese,
some mozzarella cheese, shredded, mayonnaise, achiote seasoned potatoes.
And then the star of the show, the artichoke hearts.
Blend them together like that.
So now this is ready to be used as a filling for the empanada.
We'll start with the dough here.
We're gonna get a nice balance of the ingredients in there.
They're gonna deep fry for two and a half minutes.
All right, here we go.
Looking golden brown delicious.
And here it is, the hearty artichoke empanada.
Order up, hearty artichoke empanada.
Obviously, it has that strong artichoke flavor.
But the cheese really brings everything all together.
It's like the perfect blend. It's delicious.
Veggie torta, order up for Triple-D Nation.
The taste you give to the food,
that's what makes the empanada good.
-The sabor. -[in Spanish] El sabor.
[Guy in English] Coming up in Memphis...
I like the way you roll.
A classic barbecue spot serving all kinds of surprises.
Winner winner Cornish hen dinner.
And giving everyone all the feels.
So tender, so juicy. I think you just fall in love.
I need one slab for Triple-D Nation.
One of the great things I love about barbecue is that it isn't all the same.
Every great joint has its own twist.
And during the Great Memphis Barbecue tour of 2008,
I found this small family run restaurant
chock-full of rare recipes and secret ingredients.
That classified information is still in their vault three generations later.
Let's check out the Cozy Corner.
I need a rib end plate, please.
When you come to Memphis the first stop gotta be the Cozy Corner.
[man] I'll have a four bone.
Barbecue just delicious, always consistent, always fresh.
One bite, mmm. So delicious.
[Guy] And all that flavor is thanks
to the late great Raymond Robinson and his wife, Desiree,
who became the pit boss after he passed away,
Did you think that it would go on this long?
I mean, this is 30 years now.
[Desiree] No, I didn't.
Nor did I think I would ever be working here.
And now look at you.
Then, in 2009, she passed the tongs down to her grandson, Bobby,
One slab, mild, two pounds of baloney.
[woman] This is one of the few restaurants in Memphis
that has held its own that long,
and the third generation is now running it.
Same recipes and everything.
[Desiree] We use this on lots of stuff.
Eggs, cornbread, bloody Marys.
I like the way you roll.
Every meat we have gets dry rub put on it.
So we'll start here with the chili powder,
paprika, black pepper, and our salt,
light brown sugar, granulated garlic.
And then we just mix it up and give it a good thrashing down in there.
There are a few other ingredients that are secret.
-Can I taste it? -Sure.
-It's Captain Crunch. -[laughs]
I need a Cornish hen for Guy, please.
[woman] Cozy Corner is the only place in Memphis
where you can get a barbecue Cornish hen.
Winner winner Cornish hen dinner.
So we just sprinkle this on.
Now, how long is this gonna go on the barbecue for?
Until it gets done.
Okay.
Somebody's there, turning and watching.
And when it gets done, they take it off.
-[Guy] Look at that. Those are pretty. -Thank you.
Pull it right off of there.
Mmm. That's tender.
So the rub's not too spicy.
Nice crunch on the skin.
I mean, where is this in the one to ten?
-Is this in the top? -This is ten.
This is ten?
[man] We got three wings going out.
A lot of meats to choose from.
So you come, you got your hands full, making a choice.
[man] I need a half slab plate, please.
My favorite is probably the rib plate.
They're always tender. They're always juicy.
We're gonna go ahead and get our slabs seasoned up and ready to cook.
After it's marinated overnight, put 'em on the pit.
Okay, so those go down, and those are gonna cook precisely until...
-They get done. -Very nice.
It's a new culinary term.
And there you have it.
Our famous ribs.
[woman] I'll have a six bone.
I like the texture. They're well-seasoned.
Falling off bone
So tender, so juicy. I think you just fall in love.
Hey, I need six slabs dry for Guy.
[Guy] Now how did you find out about the Cozy Corner?
A cab driver, the guy who runs the guest house.
Pretty much everybody we talked to.
-So if you said barbecue, they said Cozy Corner? -Pretty much.
The exposure that Triple-D brought was just amazing.
In the last few years, we've expanded the kitchen.
We've also expanded the dining room.
It's almost twice the size of what it was.
So the Triple-D Nation is just amazing.
[Guy] All right. So brisket.
Now, do we let this marinate at all?
Do we let this soak in a bit or we just rub it and go?
[Desiree] We rub it, put it on the pit and cook it.
-I think we've got every square millimeter covered. -To the pit.
[Guy] Very nice.
We've got a lot of friends in there.
A big party. Big flavor party. Look at that.
Well, look at the smoke ring on that thing.
Mmm. Great color. Nice bark. Good.
-You love this, don't you? -I love it.
I need a pork sandwich, please.
Real Memphis style. The best you can find.
I need two bologna sandwiches for Triple-D Nation.
We cut 'em rather thick. And then we take our house. Cozy Corner rub.
And we just season both sides.
It goes on the pit for about 15 minutes to cook them on each side.
So they've got a nice little grilled color.
Build a sandwich. Our Cozy Corner barbecue sauce,
a little coleslaw.
And there you have it. Our Cozy Corner bologna sandwich.
[man] I'll have two bologna plate.
It's so juicy.
Just that round steak. You just bite right into it with some cheese.
All good to go.
[woman] The flavor just comes all the way through the meat.
You can't miss it in one bite.
One bite make you want, "Hmm. I think I need two or three."
I need a two bone plate mild.
Cozy Corner is definitely one of the best restaurants in Memphis.
Raymond had it on point, didn't he?
Yes, he did.
Mmm. Let me finish.
[woman] I know good barbecue.
And who ever back there got a lot of soul.
-We're different. -We're different.
-Yeah. -We dare to be different.
Come prepared with an empty stomach.
[woman] How's that bam bam coming?
Well, folks, that's it for this road trip.
All right. I need a half slab plate, please.
Preparing this with our house salsa verde.
But it's certainly not the end of the road. [laughs]
Order up for Guy.
I got a meatball grinder up, just like on Triple-D.
Rib ends with barbecue spaghetti.
Because we got a ton of joints to check out.
Picadillo tico.
All right. Thank you.
[woman] Would you like anything else?
Next time on Triple-D Nation.
Today we're gonna make our spicy pig pizza.
-Who are you talking to? -I don't know. Who am I...
-You started looking like... -Where do I look?
Today... Today we're gonna make...
That's not nerve wracking or anything.
Food Network's coming. Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
-That's like an everyday thing. -Whatever.