Sam Mason’s departure from Tailor over the summer hasn’t dampened his mood. The former WD-50 pastry chef is looking ahead with his new television series premiering next week on IFC. Part cooking show, part music performance, Dinner With The Band invites the viewers into Mason’s Brooklyn loft as he cooks for his guests while chatting about music, food and life. Guests include Yacht, Les Savy Fav, Final Fantasy, Kid Sister, Flosstradamus, Men, and Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings. Dinner With The Band premieres next Tuesday night on IFC at 11pm.

Chefs stray away from the term, but we’ll go ahead and use it. Leading the way in molecular gastronomy in the United States is Grant Achatz, the owner and head chef of Alinea. For years, his approach to cooking was only achieved in commercial kitchens, utilizing laboratory equipment along with unique ingredients that were difficult to source. Slowly but surely many resourceful amateur chefs began to experiment in their home kitchens, mimicking many of Achatz’s dishes (Alinea At Home). DIY prevails again as entry into the molecular gastronomy world becomes more accessible, especially when starter kits are being offered. ThinkGeek is selling a kit that consists of all the chemicals and equipment that is needed to start your culinary experiment. So the next time you have that cheese burger, instead of washing it down with a Coke, try eating it the same time with some cola pearls. Mmmm… sounds yums. (via PSFK)

Grant Achatz has had an interesting career to say the least. A disciple of Thomas Keller, a cancer survivor, and a highly successful chef. The kitchen in his Chicago restaurant, Alinea, resembles a laboratory resulting in concept driven dishes. It is more than an act of eating when you visit Alinea, it is an experience totaling over four hours. A video on Alinea’s operation gives us an idea of what goes on behind the scenes, precision and timing.

Outstanding in the Field has amassed a strong following, touring the United States in a vintage motor home and uniting eaters and farmers through a shared passion for fresh, local food. Dinners are often held on the farm, providing a context for what normally shows up in pretty packages at the supermarket. Menus are developed based on local and seasonal availability of foods, ensuring everything on your plate is ripe and natural.

Opening tonight and for the next five Thursdays is MADCrush, a wine bar sitting on the seventh floor of the museum’s event space overlooking Central Park. This project is a collaboration between the Museum of Arts and Design, Crush Wine and Spirits and designer Stephanie Goto. By recognizing the bar’s temporary state, Goto has designed an environment using recycled wine boxes. Some of the city’s finest chefs have been invited to serve up a menu of small plates with Chef Mark Ladner of Del Posto taking the honors in tonight’s opening. MADCrush will open from 5pm until 10:30pm every Thursday evening until the end of August.

Heritage Radio Network is great, but it doesn’t define itself very well, so we’ll do it for them. It’s an online radio station dedicated to the food movements of our time: real food, local food, sustainable food, and food preparation—with the odd architecture/urban living show. Broadcasting out of two shipping containers (with a garden on top) in the backyard of Roberta’s Pizzeria in Bushwick, Brooklyn, Heritage Radio Network is funded by and stars some central people in food.