Matt Masurka, known to any clubgoer or headphone monkey in the know as Gigamesh, is a Minneapolis-based DJ and producer who’s remixed tracks from Michael Jackson to Velvet Underground and Radiohead to perfection (just ask YouTube). Oh, and Foster The People’s “Pumped Up Kicks.” Do a great remix of any song that’s been on the radio nonstop for three years and boom, fame. When the 29-year-old leaves the Twin Cities, he’s in search of great food. And when he’s home, he’s been known to cook it.

I spoke with him for a few minutes before descending into New York’s epic Labor Day weekend of never-ending beats — Full Moon and Electric Zoo. While I could still hear.

Where do you stand on the great Minneapolis Juicy Lucy wars? Matt’s Bar or 5-8 Club?    
I haven’t really dived into the debate in Minneapolis. I’m not a huge meat eater, but I know plenty of people who could probably discuss that at length. 

What’s a better restaurant in the neighborhood to spend some time? 
Hell’s Kitchen is cool. I really like the aesthetic down there. There’s artwork by Ralph Steadman, this weird dark artist. It’s an interesting artist scene, you should definitely check it out.

Have you ever worked at a restaurant?
One of my first jobs was as a dishwasher. I had to quit because I would get stomach aches from the smell of dishwater, so it didn’t last for very long. 

Do you cook much? I won’t ask if you wash dishes.
Yeah, a little bit, I make a really good Moroccan beef stew. It calls for tenderloin (but I usually go a little cheaper), then add garbanzo beans, raisins, onions and carrots, then for the spices I use cumin and paprika. The first time I tried it was the first time I’d ever cooked — trying new things and I hadn’t cooked with cumin before and it was this whole revelation. I love cumin. I’m pretty sure I got the recipe off What The Fuck Should I Make For Dinner. 

I love What The Fuck Should I Make For Dinner! Classily partake in some fucking bucatini with summer vegetables in a tomato-anise sauce!
Haha, right? 

What’s your favorite food city in the world? 
I really like Hong Kong. I only got to eat two or three serious meals there, but because it’s such a cultural and financial epicenter it attracts a lot of expats, so you get a variety of food grounded in Chinese history. I have a feeling I’d very much enjoy eating there all the time. I hadn’t really done the communal family-style eating where you pass it all around, but that’s great.

I went to a 6-star restaurant — everything came out in courses and the chef came out to explain. I didn’t even realize there were 6-star restaurants. 

How does being in the recording studio affect your eating habits? 
I think this is true for most musicians: when you’re in the zone is when you resort to the worst food possible — I tend to. When I’m being really productive in the studio my intake of frozen pizzas goes way up. I just drink a lot of coffee and have been getting more into espresso. I have to have good beer onhand too. When I’m home I really like Grain Belt Premium, that’s the one that’s been around for a long time and at least used to be brewed in Minnesota. There’s a big famous billboard that’s kind of an icon of Minneapolis.

What’s one thing on your tour rider you can’t live without? 
Some DJs have things like needing a little tub of organic blueberries or whatever, but I don’t really have big demands. I don’t really even have anything on it yet. 

So you’re probably decently hungry when the show’s over. Where do you like to go after? 
Some local food, especially if I’m in the city for the first time. I was in DC for the first time about a year ago and the club happened to be not even a block away from Ben’s Chili Bowl — I was looking at all the pictures on the wall. The owners are huge Obama fans, [with] gear all over the place. I like to hit those places.

Who’s an artist you’ve worked with who’s into food?
Oh, Skeet Skeet. I heard about this Dishlicker thing and found out much later that he created it. He asked if I wanted to start a page. It’s like the Instagram of food. It’s just getting to be a more common thing, anyone who travels a lot and is big into social media tends to post a lot of food pictures. 

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