Podcast Summary: Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly
Episode: Car Cuisine: Car Companies in the Food Business
Date: February 21, 2026
Host: Terry O’Reilly
Producer: Apostrophe Podcast Network

Episode Overview

In this engaging and insightful episode, Terry O’Reilly delves into the fascinating intersection of the automotive and culinary worlds. The main theme explores how car companies have a long, surprising history with food—not just in how we eat in vehicles, but in the ways automakers actually manufacture, brand, and market food products. From iconic sausages to luxury honey, and even restaurants run by car brands, Terry connects dots between marketing, human behavior, and pop culture.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Michelin: Where Fine Dining and Automobiles Meet

• Drive to Table Experience:
  The Michelin Guide’s Toronto and Vancouver collaboration with chefs and car sharing company Turo created exclusive culinary-tourism packages that involved driving luxury cars to Michelin-starred restaurants and enjoying chef-hosted meals and hotel stays.
  “The Guide, the chefs and Turo partnered to create Drive to Table...This drive to Table package combined gourmet eating with luxury automobiles.” (05:11)

• History of the Michelin Guide:
  Originally, Michelin brothers designed the guide to inspire people to take more road trips (and use more Michelin tires) by listing enticing places to eat.
  “It’s easy to forget that the Michelin Guide was created to fuel more driving trips. That link of food to automobiles was just beginning.” (08:48)

2. The Evolution of Eating in Cars

• Emergence of Car-Eating Culture:
  • The first drive-ins in the 1920s.
  • Early Ford cars included picnic baskets in the 1940s.
  • Cup holders’ evolution—one Chrysler minivan had 19!
  • 80% of meals are now takeout, often involving a car.
    (Cites David Page, Food Americana; 12:57)
  • Boomers eat in cars the most, while millennials and Gen Z the least.
• Personal Anecdote:
  “I remember the day I got my driver’s license. The first stop I made was to a drive-in A and W restaurant.” (14:09)

3. Automakers as Food Producers

• Fiat Chocolates:

  • In 1911, Fiat held a contest to celebrate its new model with a chocolate confection—Fiat’s “Cremìno” chocolate remains in stores today.
  • “The president of Fiat once lamented that they sold more Fiat chocolates than Fiats.” (18:24)

• Volkswagen Currywurst:

  • VW’s own sausage (product #398500A) is made by factory employees—18,000 a day.
  • Gifts for customers and cafeteria staple.
  • Vegetarian switch was reversed after employees protested. VW USA gifted proprietary curry ketchup for the 75th anniversary.
  • “Nothing says thank you like a sausage.” (20:01)

• Peugeot Pepper Grinders:

  • Peugeot began in steel tools, later coffee grinders, then their iconic Model Z pepper mill (1874), years before their cars.
  • The pepper grinder legacy continues—Peugeot Saveur is still a major housewares brand controlled by the family.
  • “So the next time you grind a little pepper onto your dinner, you can thank a French car company.” (22:35)

4. Sweet and Spicy: Luxury Honey and Hot Sauce

• Porsche Honey:

  • Porsche’s bee colonies produce Spring Blossom honey on their Leipzig grounds—sold at the customer center.

• Audi, Bentley, and Rolls Royce Bees:

  • Each maintains bee colonies; Rolls Royce’s honey is a client-exclusive rarity.
  • “The world’s most exclusive honey is only given to Rolls Royce buyers who spend an average of $400,000 per car.” (25:15)

• Ford’s Hot Sauce:

  • To launch the EV Mustang Mach E 1400, Ford made a limited-edition hot sauce (never sold to the public).
  • Featured on Hot Ones with Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Sean Evans.
  • “It was so hot, Ford didn’t sell it to the public.” (27:18)

5. Cookbooks and Collaborative Marketing

• Ford’s 1950s Cookbooks:

  • “Ford Treasury of Favorite Recipes from Famous Eating Places”—recipes from celebrated restaurants and illustrated maps.
  • A marketing twist: Tempted drivers to travel by Ford to restaurants.
  • “It was a twist on the Michelin guide…to drive to them in your shiny new Ford.” (28:49)

• KitKat & Formula One Collaboration:

  • 2026: KitKat—official chocolate bar of F1.
  • Novelty KitKats: Shaped as F1 race cars.
  • Strategic brand fusion to leverage Drive to Survive’s F1 popularity.
  • “This isn’t just a novelty pairing. It’s a marketing strategy that fuses entertainment, sports and play…” (31:09)

6. Car Brands with Restaurants and Cafés

• Ferrari’s Ristorante Cavallino Maranello:

  • Once a worker’s canteen, now Michelin-starred and filled with Ferrari memorabilia.
  • Hosted critical meetings shaping F1 history.
  • “It’s the Formula One of fine dining.” (32:07)

• Renault’s Car Walk Café and Pub Renault:

  • 53 Champs Elysees: Merchandise, F1 exhibits, and a luxury food experience in Paris.

• Lexus Intersect:

  • Upscale restaurant/lounge in NYC, Dubai, and Tokyo featuring rotating chefs and craft drinks.
  • Showcases Lexus’s “omotenashi”—exceptional hospitality.
  • “The inspiration…comes from a Lexus core value called Amanitashi…” (34:02)

7. Cars Actually Named After Food

• The Datsun Cherry (1970–77)
• Nissan Escargot (1989–91):
  “Small cargo,” snail-shaped retro van.
• Suzuki Cappuccino (1991–98):
  Collectible two-seater convertible.
• Mitsubishi Pistachio (1999):
  Efficient, eco-friendly hatchback.
• American Chocolate (1902–06):
  Built by vending machine makers; soon renamed.
• All Days and Onions (1898–1918):
  English firm, plushly upholstered early automobile.
  • “Why drive a lemon when you can drive an onion?” (38:26)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Cars and Food: A Deeper Link
  “For decades car companies have actually been making foods. Yes, you heard right.” (17:03)

• On Peugeot’s Surprising Origins:
  “When the mill is twisted, it grinds pepper in a two step process…Peugeot was still 15 years away from producing its first automobile.” (22:02)

• On Emotional Marketing:
  “Food is very emotional. It can be a comfort food, a sweet treat, or a meal to celebrate. Breaking bread is social connection, which makes food a powerful marketing tactic.” (40:29)

• On Tradition and Brand Legacy:
  “When Volkswagen serves employees its sausages, it’s a long held tradition. When Fiat offers its branded chocolate wafer, it’s a piece of Fiat’s long history.” (41:15)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Michelin Guide & Drive to Table – 05:11
• The Car-Eating Culture – 12:57
• Fiat Chocolate & VW Sausages – 18:24
• Peugeot Pepper Mill – 22:02
• Porsche/Audi/Bentley/Rolls Royce Honey – 25:15
• Ford Hot Sauce – 27:18
• Ford Cookbooks – 28:49
• KitKat x Formula One – 31:09
• Brand-owned Restaurants & Cafés – 32:07
• Cars Named After Food – 36:51
• Final Reflection: Brand, Emotion, and Connection – 40:29

Conclusion

Terry O’Reilly delivers a rich, humorous, and insightful look into the fascinating overlap between the automotive and culinary industries. By exploring everything from luxury carmaker honey and iconic sausages to restaurants run under Ferrari’s banner, this episode illustrates how food—and the emotions it stirs—has become a potent tool and tradition in global automotive marketing. The aptly titled “Car Cuisine” shows that when it comes to advertising, the road from the car showroom to the dinner table is shorter (and tastier) than you might think.