Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard – Emily & Matt Hyland (Emily Burger)

Episode Date: April 8, 2026
Guests: Emily Hyland and Matt Hyland
Overview:
This episode dives into the dynamic partnership—both personal and professional—between Emily and Matt Hyland, co-founders of the acclaimed Emily, Emmy Squared, and Pizza Loves Emily restaurants. Over the past decade, their names have become synonymous with one of New York’s most lauded burgers and innovative approaches to pizza. The conversation weaves through their beginnings, rapid expansion, the burden and joy of family business, the strains that led to their divorce, and how they've continued to operate together while building new, independent lives.

MAIN THEME

Building and Breaking—And Rebuilding—Through Food and Partnership
In a characteristically vibrant and honest discussion, Emily and Matt Hyland open up about how their marriage and business were built together, how the intensity of “startup-life” coupled with differing personal aspirations led to strife and eventually divorce, and how mutual respect enabled them to keep creating and collaborating even after their relationship shifted. The episode explores:

• The inspiration and ethos behind their restaurants
• Their approach to culinary innovation (especially pizza and the iconic burger)
• Navigating personal identity inside a “brand” tied to their relationship
• The emotional and logistical complexity of remaining business co-owners after their marriage
• Personal healing, reinvention, and the meaning of creative and literal “shared custody”

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS & KEY SEGMENTS

Meeting, Early Days & Inspiration

03:27 – 05:00

• Emily and Matt bring gifts—homemade sauce, bonbons, and Emily’s new poetry book.
• Both grew up in New York; discuss the culture shock and food scene differences with LA.
• Restaurant Count: Matt notes there are about “30 Emmy Squareds” now (05:00).
• Emily: “We still co-own and operate the original Emily in Brooklyn.”
• The burger at the West Village location is discussed—how it’s evolved over time.

Family Backgrounds & College Love Story

07:27 – 10:36

• Emily emerges from a family of educators; Matt’s parents were both transportation analysts at Standard and Poor’s.
• They meet at Roger Williams in Rhode Island; Emily was Matt's RA.
• First “date” involved eating pizza together on a dorm room floor.
• “Pepperoni and olives is my olives.” – Matt (09:42)

Entering Food & Hospitality

10:09 – 13:20

• Matt considered dropping out to attend culinary school; Emily went for an MFA in Poetry.
• Matt: “The six-month program basically throws you in to get wrecked in a New York kitchen. I had no technical skills.” (11:03)
• Emily details balancing grad school, teaching yoga, and contemplating restaurant life.

Pizza, Learning, and Launching Emily

13:01 – 16:43

• Matt learns pizza from mentor Luca at Sotto Casa in Brooklyn — explains the "why" of pizza traditions, especially Neapolitan origins.
• Emily shares discovering yoga during a time of personal loss and health struggles:

  “Yoga is the quieting of all the changing states of the mind”—Emily, explaining the yoga sutras (15:55)

• The parallels between yoga’s Americanization and pizza innovation are discussed (16:52).

Opening a Restaurant as Partners

17:18 – 23:09

• Married in 2007, opened Emily (the restaurant) in Clinton Hill in 2014.
• Emily gives up her public school teaching job and quitting school leadership path.
• Startup capital comes from small family inheritances and a Kickstarter.
• Open kitchen for “extension of home” feeling; heavy initial involvement from family.

The Iconic Burger and Menu Creation

19:58 – 24:44

• Matt’s aversion to “soupy” Neapolitan pizza: toppings all the way to the edge.
• The burger began as a staff meal “because Matt was bored of pizza.”
• The Emmy sauce was a happy accident—a blend of wing sauce and Kewpie mayo.
• Dax and Monica recall their formative experience—surprised by the high price, then declare:

  “This is the most underpriced burger I’ve ever had in my life. I would spend $55 for this burger.” – Dax (25:06)

• In year one, Emily greets every guest; Matt makes every pizza.

Stress, Growth, & the Strain of Partnerships

25:23 – 31:34

• Working “16 hours a day”; only day off is Tuesday.
• Relationship stress mounts:

  “Not well.” – Emily and Matt, simultaneously, when asked how it was handling stress as a couple. (25:42)

• Their different skill sets (front-of-house vs. kitchen) and personalities led to friction.
• Discuss “ego stuff” and the weirdness of Emily becoming the public-facing “name” of Emily.
• The disconnect of being forced into well-defined roles for the sake of the business.

Divorce & Professional “Co-Parenting”

31:34 – 41:55

• When their marriage fell apart, the brand, built on “Pizza Loves Emily, built on our love story,” became a challenge.
• Emily: “The copy for the cookbook was due that same summer our marriage fell apart. So I’m writing our love story…” (38:41)
• Both recount their ongoing duty and pride in the original restaurant despite the pain and healing needed.
• Emily: “Now it just feels like we’re family members who had a falling out and have come back together. It feels really beautiful to co-own and operate our baby together. Every breath gets us to where we are.” (71:45)

Growth, Scaling, and Letting Go

43:48 – 50:00

• Matt spearheads rapid business expansion, often over Emily’s objections.
• Systems implemented: conveyor ovens, streamlined menus.
• The bittersweetness of no longer being known by staff in newer locations.
• Shoutout to original team:

  “Sammy’s the burger guy. Every burger you've ever eaten has been there.” – Emily (50:28)

• Dax: “Does it feel sad?” Emily: “It just feels like a very different time and place in my life.” (50:12)

The Breaking Point & Rebuilding Personal Lives

51:55 – 59:57

• Recounting a major dispute: Emily was arrested for hitting Matt with a bag, leading to a restraining order and, ultimately, an emotional reset.
• “That moment changed my life...the restraining order was a next level of, like, boundary… And I actually met my forever husband, Jeff.” – Emily (53:17)
• The launch of Emily’s poetry collections (“Divorced Business Partners” and “My Wise Little Ghost”), dealing with grief, healing through psychedelic therapy, and reclaiming health and a new life in Santa Fe.
• Matt, meanwhile, found personal and professional renewal with chef Simone (Little Tong), a new family, and new culinary ventures in Austin.

Reflections, Closure, and Codes

71:34 – episode wrap

• They share mutual pride in what they built, despite the pain of its evolution.
• “It’s kind of like when divorced parents are at graduation…Ah, fuck, look what we did.” – Dax (72:22)
• Both reflect that their best lives have emerged after the turmoil:

  “It’s the right time for him to be back there. It feels like he’s landed at the time and place it needs him and he’s ready to help it come into the next wave of being.” – Emily (70:05)

NOTABLE QUOTES & MEMORABLE MOMENTS

• “We had had this kind of fantasy of, like, one day we’ll open a restaurant. And the conditions in our life were so that we were like, let’s do this now. What’s the worst that happens? And now we’re sitting here with you.” – Emily (13:45)
• “The work of yoga is to quell the thinking mind. It’s not to be able to, like, do some crazy arm balance in a matching set on Instagram.” – Emily (16:21)
• “We were so broke though, we couldn’t even put tap lines in.” – Emily (18:42)
• “The burger started as something for him. That’s how it began.” – Emily (21:53)
• “And Monica...I would spend $55 for this burger.” – Dax (25:06)
• “It felt performative…and that’s not how I operated in the founding of the original.” – Emily (38:05)
• “Being a teacher really worked out for that.” – Matt, on scaling up and training staff (45:13)
• “We’re more like family members who had a falling out and have come back together.” – Emily (71:45)
• Code word for a free dessert at the original Emily:

  “Dolphin asparagus.” (73:23)

TIMESTAMPS FOR KEY SEGMENTS

• Origins, restaurant count: 04:46–05:04
• Family backgrounds & meeting: 07:30–10:36
• Kitchen training & pizza obsession: 11:03–13:20
• Yoga’s influence: 14:17–16:43
• Funding and opening Emily: 18:09–19:03
• Burger’s invention: 21:53–22:45
• Stress and partnership strain: 25:23–26:43
• Public/private identity issues: 29:45–31:34
• Marriage ends, business remains: 31:34–41:55
• Scaling the brand: 43:48–46:13
• Staff loyalty and transition: 50:11–51:14
• Emily’s arrest and lowest moment: 51:57–54:27
• Healing, poetry, and psychedelics: 59:10–59:57
• Reflections on pride and legacy: 71:34–72:49
• Code word for dessert: 73:23–74:00

CLOSING & CALL TO ACTION

• For two weeks after the episode, mention “Dolphin Asparagus” at Emily Original (Clinton Hill) for a free dessert.
• “You guys really made something very special…Incredibly special. That will probably outlive all of us.” – Monica and Dax (72:57)
• Emily and Matt’s respective journeys show the complications and rewards of entangling love and business, and the possibility of creative rebirth and collaboration even after dramatic personal change.

For listeners:
This episode speaks frankly about partnership, heartbreak, and hope. It’s a compelling listen for anyone intrigued by food entrepreneurship, creative reinvention, and how relationships can lead to unexpected forms of community, meaning, and legacy.