My favorite restaurant on earth is Epic Deli (2616 Schaid Ct, McHenry, IL 60050). I couldn’t resist going there with Josh Caterer of Smoking Popes, who recently helped create the “Smoking Pope” sandwich for Epic.

Our plan for the night was for me to try a Smoking Pope and for him to eat a JVO. It sounds weird, but it’s not. We accomplished our goal, but ate a lot more than planned. A LOT MORE.

And we have Tyler Wildey, owner (and former CCC guest), to thank. He kept bringing us Epic Deli food to try. It was too much for any stomach to contain, but we approached the challenge with the courage and fortitude of Olympic medalists. Everything was stupidly, wonderfully delicious. And I was adequately full for a full 24 hours afterward.

Before we ate, Josh played some songs in the backseat of the Mazda 3: An acoustic version of the “Car Con Carne” theme song, the new Smoking Popes song “Simmer Down” and the Jackson Mud song “It’s Nothing.”

This is a fun one with some of my favorite people. Hope you enjoy listening!